Color Me…
You may, or may not know, that I have an ugly house.
Exhibit A:
No worries, though: I like it. Not the ugly, the house. But I have a dream: I want to be able to give directions to my house by saying, “it’s on Bonnie Brae and it is the ________________ (insert color) house on the right.” In it’s current state, I don’t even know what color my house is. So, I’m changing it up, folks.
Please weigh in. There is this certain house that I regularly pass of which I have long admired the color.
Here is a slow-down drive-by picture I took last spring. I actually pulled in with my color cards to match the paint, and the owner was outside. He was super sweet and pulled out their old paint can and even painted a piece of wood for me; the wife was tickled. She told me they had had numerous people pull in with the same question: I told her she should open a color consultation business.
Anywho, I was all set, but then I came home and compared my painted stick to my neighbor’s blue house, and my green paint just looked too similar. So, any of you artsy people have strong opinions? Do you think I should just go ahead with the green and cross my fingers that it won’t look too similar once it is covering a larger surface area? Or is it a lost cause? Do you have strong feelings about a different color scheme?
Maybe I am just making this up, but it seems like you could go your whole life without having to choose what color your house should be–you could just stick with what you’ve got. But I can’t. It’s too nondescript. I need descript, ya dig?
The Chronicles of O 
There is a house on our street that is almost that same color and I LOVE IT! I think once it gets painted it will look different. (though I haven’t seen your neighbors color) decisions. decisions.
Exactly.
If you love that color enough to stop and match the color and talk to the owners about it, it’s your color. You’ll love it.
OK, Amy–you’re pushing me to the end of the board. What a coach!
your house is not ugly at all. it looks tired. that wonderful color will wake it right up and it will look beautiful and happy. got mine painted my favorite yellow house color (after owning the sad ugly thing for 19 years) and it still makes me smile big every time i pull up in front of it, it looks so happy to me. hope you will go with the bright white trim, and shutters in the same value but deeper. also hope you post more pictures when you’re done.
Ooooohhhhh yellow–my next choice.
Is it your next door neighbor? You could always make it slightly darker if you felt it would bother you, but who knows when they may paint and change the color. Imitation is the most sincere form of flattery.
No! This house is not my neighbor’s house. It is over on Westfall. You can kind of see my neighbor’s house that I am worried about coordinating with on the left hand side, except there the blue looks washed out.
I love that green. Your neighbors house isn’t a deep blue, right? I think you’ll be fine. Or maybe just go a smidge darker to heighten the contrast.
Our house over on Raleigh St. was a pale and peeling yellow when we moved in. When we finally painted it deep red, it doubled or perhaps tripled my love for that house.
Yes blue, headed toward…blue/green? And I love red, but I don’t feel brave enough for it–maybe I’ll go over and hunt out your former house for inspiration.
you can do a red front door.
I like the green. What does it matter what color your neighbor’s house is? I lived in a house once that was yellow with white trim and black shutters and I loved it. Then, the landlords painted it tan with white trim. My friend’s daughter looked at it and said, “It looks like a dirty sheet.” From cheery to dirty sheet.
Yeah–your landlord should have taken advice from that girl.
RE: door
I like red so much, and a red door would be super fun, but I’d like to have a door that matches the gumwood trim that runs through my house–so I’m going for natural wood there.
I wouldn’t worry about the blue one. If you say “the green house”, it won’t be confused with the blue one. And I don’t think the colors will be too similar. Go for it. What color are you thinking for the shutters?
A little late to the game here, but…you know we were inspired by that same house on Westfall when we picked the color for our house a couple of years ago? (Can’t recall if you were here yet at that point, but if you want to see how hideous the place looked before that, look at what’s left of our garage to see what the previous color scheme was.)
And Lisa concurs with me: our house isn’t blue. We think it’s green, or at most bluish-green. And having another green house next door would be just peachy with us.
Just don’t ask Ari. She’ll tell you to paint it pink, just like she wanted to do with our house.
Well, this is a fascinating development! Your house has been it’s current color the whole time I have lived here, but I noticed on google earth that it was a rather recent development. I appreciate your magnanimity in allowing me to copy you, though. I’ll try to coordinate and at least not clash!
Yes, for anyone reading, WE are the next-door neighbors, and our house isn’t blue, it’s sea-green. Deborah, we won’t be changing colors any time soon because we just painted new three years ago, but we certainly don’t own the rights to that color. Any shade of blue or green on Emily’s house would be very nice. Although if she likes red, a muted orangeish or rose red would look great and set off our house too…
You are a BRAVE woman, Lisa, suggesting orange and red.