Millie’s Remodel: Exterior Paint Colors – Need Help Deciding
The time has come to pick paint colors for the exterior of the Millie’s Remodel house. The majority of the house is brick so I have to choose a paint that is safe for exterior brick. If I’m not careful paint can cause the bricks to deteriorate or the paint to flake off easily.
Millie’s Remodel: Exterior Paint Colors – Need Help Deciding
Welcome back to another Millie’s Remodel update. Today I need your help deciding on exterior paint colors!
When I purchased the house, it had ugly khaki vinyl siding on the front.
The rest of the house was red brick. It was hard justifying painting the entire house until…
…my siding contractor removed the vinyl siding to reveal the original wood siding underneath. Would you believe it was in pristine condition? No wood rot!
The paint was peeling, so I knew it had to be painted and I didn’t like the two-tone look of siding and brick. I really wanted the house painted one color.
You may remember I had my mason brick up the back doorway leading to the laundry room. Anyone living in the house used to have to go outside the house and make a U-turn to go back inside to do laundry, which was just crazy.
Now that room has a doorway from the inside so you can do laundry from inside the house. That makes more sense, doesn’t it? Because who wants to walk outside in the rain to do laundry? The room is actually a dual purpose room. It’s a laundry room and powder room, which is why I opted for a transom light to allow some natural light in while still maintaining some privacy.
Anyways, now that this doorway is all bricked up, the mortar doesn’t match and you can see where the doorway was. I’ve wanted to paint the exterior, and now this gives me a great excuse because as you can see, none of the mortar matches.
Masonry Paint Specifically for Brick:
Many people love the look of painted brick, but make the mistake of using regular latex paint. If the brick can’t breathe, it forces the paint to flake off the house or traps moisture in which can damage the bricks. Either way, it leaves you with a maintenance issue.
But, RomaBio is a mineral paint that allows the brick to breathe and prevents moisture from getting trapped. While I was researching RomaBio paints, I discovered they had several new colors in the Young House Love collection. Although it was hard to decide, I narrowed my choices down to four colors:
- Forever Evergreen
- Navy Steel
- Sage Advice
- So Succulent
As you can tell, I’m leaning toward greens and blues. But, I need to show you the other houses in the neighborhood so you get the full picture! Do me a favor and watch the video below to see the samples on the Millie’s Remodel house and see what the surrounding houses look like.
As you can tell, I’ve narrowed the choice down to two colors: Sage Advice and Navy Steele.
Leave me a comment and let me know which is your favorite.
Oh but wait, I photoshopped some renderings of the house with different colored doors! Hopefully, this will help you make a decision!
Pumpkin Door on Navy Steel
Lime Green Door on Navy Steel
Cranberry Door on Navy Steel
Pumpkin Door on Sage Advice
Navy Door on Sage Advice
Cranberry Door on Sage Advice
Let me know your thoughts in the comment area. I’m all ears.
Disclosure: RomaBio is a Millie’s Remodel sponsor. I reached out to them after doing lots of research on painting exterior brick and asked if they wanted to be a sponsor of the project. I was provided with complimentary products to use.
You can catch up on the Millie’s Remodel project here.
Definitely sage, but I’m torn between the pumpkin and cranberry door.
Navy steele but with a little deeper green on the door (looks pastel-ish to me)
Do really like the sage advice with the navy door too.
Pumpkin door on navy steel
Sage & Cranberry
cranberry door, dark blue siding. hard yes 🙂
I like the Sage Advice. Being a lighter color, it provides more contrast and makes the cedar shutters pop.
My vote is between the cranberry/navy steel option and the sage advice/navy door! Both of those look pretty nice in my opinion!
Love the “Pumpkin Door on Sage Advice”. I’m a big fan of Young House Love too!
I really like the pumpkin door + dark grey. However, I just have to ask–have you considered DyeBrick? Even mineral paints that allow brick to breathe need maintenance later for future homeowners, but just staining or limewashing (in a tinted color) doesn’t ever require maintenance. Limewashing is particular (it can be tinted to any color you want–I think Ask the Builder did a post on it ages ago) would hide the discrepancies in mortar, and would extend the lifespan of the brick. It’s also much cheaper than DyeBrick. Might be worth it. I know I run screaming from any homes that have ever shown any sign of paint, because to me, the #1 best thing about brick is how maintenance free it is. If I wanted something I had to repaint occasionally, I’d get wood or vinyl siding. 😉
I love the navy steel! None of the door colors are calling my name…. what a fun remodel to follow!
What fun! Cranberry door on Navy Steel
Cranberry door on Navy steel would be my choice!