Expert: Rikki Nyman - 10/27/2008

Question
QUESTION: I bought a beautiful old house and want to paint the exterior.  It has been all
white for many years, yet I believe it needs to be painted in several colors.  I
want warm, bold colors, and I like the colors of autumn if I can incorporate them
into the house.  I don't like pastels or "cold" colors.  I hate the color of the roof,
and want to change it somehow--to a warmer, browner color.  Please help me!

ANSWER: Nancy --

Yours is a beautiful Queen Anne with strong Neoclassical elements. Traditionally, your house would have been painted white or ivory to mimic the classical temples of Greece. If you want to paint it a color, I would encourage you to keep the scheme relatively simple ... three colors tops.

Let's say you go for a rich brown for the roof, and a complementary brown for the gable ends and doors. The body might be handsome as a deep, rich old gold. Tie all of it together with a warm buff for decorative trim, columns, railings, and sash.

Or stick with the brown for the roof, but use the old gold for the gable ends and doors, then paint the body dark cinnabar (dark red-orange). Again use a buff or ivory trim ... I think leaning toward a rich butter color would give you the warmth and boldness you desire without getting overly complex.

The darker colors will make your house look a little smaller and more friendly. It won't appear to be quite so stately or remote.

Once you narrow down your scheme, get some paint samples and test the colors to get the right hues. Let them sit a few days while you ponder it. Watch the color change during the day and as the weather changes. Then make your selection.

Hope this helps!

Best regards,
Rikki Nyman
www.antiquehomestyle.com

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Wow!  What a quick and thorough answer!  It is giving me ideas (and hope)
already!  I want to send another photo that compares the present look of the
house with the way it used to look when first built.  I can tell the house had
color in the old photo, but can't tell what the colors were.  What do you think
the age of the house is?  I had no idea it was a Queen Anne!  What elements
in the  house tell you that?  I am tickled pink to have a Queen Anne, and
would never have known it because it is so symmetrical.  Any more
comments from you on a paint scheme for the house (with the added
information supplied by the old photo) would be greatly appreciated.  I would
have sent it earlier, but couldn't find it.  Thank you very much.

ANSWER: Nancy --

It's impossible to tell what the colors were in the black and white photo because all we have to go on are shades of gray. (If you desaturate any combination of colors all that remains is contrast, from which almost nothing can be said about the original hue or color.) You could imagine the body as butter yellow with dark green, red-orange, or rich brown chocolate trim with ivory column and rail. It might as easily have been painted a dove gray with charcoal trim, and pale cool gray columns. It appears to be three colors to me.

I'd date your house from between 1895 and 1905. The primary elements I am looking at are the shape and roof line, which is steeply hipped with lower cross gables. The roof pitch is fairly early, but the columns are most likely post-1895. If it is symmetrical (difficult for me to see with this angled shot) then I'd say it was later and closer to 1905. The ornateness of the columns is in synch with a 1900 date. A full height entry porch with lower full-width porch is a fairly uncommon subtype. The fluted columns with Corinthian capitals are often seen on earlier Neoclassical style buildings.

Technically, your house is eclectic because it merges Queen Anne with Neoclassical, but it's more QA because that's the shape and roof line.

If you made me give you a date, I'd call it at 1900 on the nose, though it could go a few years either way.

Hope this helps!
Rikki Nyman
www.antiquehomestyle.com



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---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Are there products which will allow me to paint or stain my roof so I won't have to totally replace it?  I want a rich brown rather than a gray roof, but would hate to have to go to the expense of totally replacing it, since it's a good roof.  It is "pseudo slate".  Thank you.

Answer
Nancy --

I think your best bet would be to check with a local roofing contractor who could identify the manufacturer and material. Once you know that, you'll be able to check with the manufacturer to see if they have a product that you can use to change the color without voiding the warranty.

Best,
Rikki