let’s talk: WHAT I WISH I KNEW BEFORE PAINTING MY HOME EXTERIOR
Hey Guys!
Project H is well underway and nearing the end of Phase I – thank God. We broke this project down into two phases so that we could continue to live in the house while it was being renovated. Phase I – exterior paint, new floors, kitchen, man cave and guest bathroom buildout. Phase II – master bath / closet, laundry room. As with every project, I have learned a ton throughout this process. The biggest lesson learned so far though is in regards to the exterior… this was my first major exterior upgrade and despite doing a ton of research beforehand, I still made mistakes. So let’s talk about those.
So, as we do, let’s talk Real Estate, let’s talk WHAT I WISH I KNEW BEFORE I PAINTED MY EXTERIOR…
#1 Sample as many paint colors as you can and in as many different lighting scenarios as possible
We painted our red brick white. And let me tell you, WHITES ARE TRICKY. While we did try a ton of different paint samples out beforehand, we only did so on one part of the house. In my opinion, the way the white looks on the back is way different than it looks out front. If I could do it over, I would have gone with something slightly warmer. We painted our home exterior SW Snowbound but I think I would try SW White Duck, SW Shoji White or SW Alabaster if I could redo it all. SW Snowbound to me feels like a very pure white (even though it is technically off white) but hoping that means it stays looking nice and clean for a while!
#2 Go with a paint company that specializes in exterior
We went with a small group who had great reviews…. for interiors. 75% of the way through our project, I came to find out this was their first large exterior project. While ultimately the house still looks good, there are still some imperfections and it took way longer than it needed to. You could tell we were all learning how to tackle the brick together. An investment this big should be done by someone who has done this 100 times before (in my opinion). No shame to the guys that were here, some of them were awesome (shout out to Tyler if you are reading this!)
#3 Use a gloss for your shutters and doors
Okay luckily I did not mess this part up. Well the door at least. I am now in the process of having our shutters painted for the 4th time because I keep changing the color…. but I think we finally nailed it. They were first done in a flat white (SW Snowbound), then a flat greige (SW City Loft), then a flat grey (SW Light French Grey – love this color just not for here) and now we are going with a glossy black (SW Tricorn Black, which is STUNNING if you are ever looking for a true black color). We are did a high gloss on the front door to make it pop, and will do a semi-gloss on the shutters and garage.
#4 Brick walkways are TRICKY
Our house is all brick everything. Brick home, brick walkways, brick patios… it is a lot. I struggled the most with how to do the brick walkways but in the end, we had the painters do a couple coats of white wash in hopes that it would hold up better to wear and tear. There are groups that specialize in exterior walkways and landscaping renos… use them lol. I wanted a German shmear effect originally but that is not something all painters do. A german schmear would look stunning with a warm white brick.
Overall, I love the way Project H is turning out, despite my notes above. I am just a firm believer in you never know how to do something perfectly until you try it…. and boy did we learn on this one. Will share photos in the next few weeks!
HAPPY WEDNESDAY!
Erin
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