Showing Personality from the Street

A home’s design and architectural details make a big impression, but, quite often, the color is the first thing that anyone notices, either consciously or subconsciously. It could be a bright red front door or the contrast of the siding and the trim. The design team at Homes By Taber says choosing a home’s exterior colors is one of the toughest decisions our homebuyers make—because it’s “showing personality from the street”, says Elizabeth Tucker, one of our in-house designers.

“The exterior colors are the part of the home that we look at the least, yet it’s the first impression,” she adds. “Because of that, it’s hard for homeowners to visualize and design the exterior color palette.

If you’ve ever struggled between six shades of green for a bedroom or the ever-so-slightly off-white hue that is right for the trim inside your home, then you can imagine the angst that comes with choosing the exterior colors. Unlike an interior room color, you are unlikely to change the colors outside your home (well, maybe the front door).

“Everyone wants to show their personality in their home—inside and out—and make it special,” Elizabeth explains, “but how do you make that happen without scaring your neighbors or having the HOA call you?”

Here are some tips that Elizabeth offers people who are trying to find the right color & material choices for their home’s exterior.

Choose the personality you want to show.

The personality you show from the street can be as bold as a vibrant siding color or as subtle as the flower pots you place on your front porch. It begins with deciding how you want to use your home as a personal statement. What do you want your home to say about you and your family? For example:

• Classic
• Clean and contemporary
• Bold and eclectic
• Outdoorsy

Think about the style (and some adjectives, too) that best describe you while making this house your home. 

The main ingredients

There are four features of your home’s exterior that contribute to the overall look:

1. Trim color—The “picture frame” of your home
2. Siding color and type—The main focus
3. Accents—Doors (front and garage), shutters, and wood accents
4. Décor—Planters, chairs, wreaths, and doormats

As you build your exterior color palette, pay attention to the individual choices for these four components and how they relate to one another. For example, if you want classic with a hint of bold, use the more powerful hues in the smaller areas, like accents and décor. Think of it like using colorful throw pillows to add a punch to a neutral sofa and loveseat. 

Picture your ideas

You might have a vision of the colors for your home, but you need to express that idea visually to your designer. Go to Pinterest and search the words you’ve determined that express your style and add “exterior paint colors”. Create a board of photos that show the images you have in your head. If your home will have brick or stone on the façade, add that term to your Pinterest search. You can also include architectural style, like “Farmhouse” or “Craftsman”, when searching. 

Look at the board you’ve created and you’ll see a pattern of preferences for each of the four ingredients of your home’s exterior color scheme. Not sure of where to go from here? Here are some things to look for:

• Trim—Are you drawn to houses with a bright, crisp white trim or a subtler off-white? Or do you seem to lean toward a dark trim?
• Siding—Do your choices indicate a preference for light or dark siding? Are you going toward earthy hues or something more colorful?
• Accents—In the images you’ve saved on your Pinterest board, are the wood accents consistently painted, raw cedar, or stained dark? Are the shutters and front door neutral or do they have a pop of color? Is the garage door the same color as the house or the trim? 

Overall, what do these images communicate? Do you see a trend toward more classic and neutral, clean and contemporary, rustic, or a fun flare of personality?

Share your Pinterest board with your design team and they will see your style, too. They will help you narrow down your choices and, using their design software, can provide you with a visual representation of your selections on your home. This is the best way to avoid that “uh oh” moment when you realize that a tiny photo or swatch didn’t pan out in the “big picture”.

Time to accessorize

Now that you have picked the house colors, it’s time to add what Elizabeth calls “the jewelry”. Your accessories are all of the decorative accents you use to apply the finishing touches, and it’s here where you truly show your personality.

Look at the four styles we identified and let’s explore the accessories that would provide the perfect accents.

• Classic—Keep it simple, with a traditional, seasonal wreath on your front door, and natural wood and wicker furniture and accents. Choose urns and large pots for your container gardens.
• Clean and contemporary—Sleek lines are your preference, so keep that in mind when you select your accessories. Modern planters, metal furniture, and minimalist décor fit nicely here.
• Bold and eclectic—Your love for bold colors is evident, so choose quirky touches, like metal and recycled yard art, out-of-the-ordinary wreaths (like square, not round), and gardens where the containers are as colorful as the flowers themselves.
• Outdoorsy—You love earthy tones—like greens, grays, blues—and the texture of natural elements, like wood and stone. Greenery is a must, with an abundance of plants and potted trees. Anything hand-hewn (wood that's cut or shaped with hand-blowns) is ideal for your front porch, but you can also add pieces of your outdoor passion, like fishing creel as a planter. 

Whatever your niche, find décor that speaks to you, that makes you smile every time you look at it. There is nothing better than sipping on a glass of wine or steaming mug of coffee on your front porch, taking in the details of the home you’ve created.

In the Oklahoma City suburbs, Homes By Taber builds unique communities of new construction homes. We work with each homeowner to explore the details that will go into making your home so that when you walk in, it is distinctly your own. Browse our gallery for inspiration and then contact us to share your vision with us.