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Architecture/Exterior paint color 1907 house

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Expert: Rikki Nyman - 3/5/2009


Question

Angela's 1907 House
My husband and I bought a 1907 house a few years ago and we are now looking to have the exterior painted due to a poor paint job done by the prior owner which was sloppy and also is chipping in several places and the fact that we really just don't like the color (very light pink). The  house also has a very beautiful stained glass window with a gold, yellow-green, and wine/maroon color in it. I've included a pic with this question so that you can see what the house looks like (we've redone the landscaping since this photo was taken right before we bought it!) I've been trying to find info on popular exterior house colors for homes in 1907 but haven't been very successful.  We'd really like to paint it a historically accurate color that we both like.  The last owner also had a new roof installed with green shingles (it's actually a very nice roof and I do like the color) so I guess any color we'd pick would have to go with that green (which is also the trim color.)  What suggestions would you give for color choices and is there a website somewhere that I could view these colors or similar ones or could I find them at the local hardware or paint store?  Thanks.

Answer
Angela  --

I really like your pretty Queen Anne wing and gable farmhouse. It has some nice detail.

The green roof gives you a wide variety of interesting options including gray, white, yellow, greens, and browns. There is a page at Antique Home & Style from 1912 that shows what they considered a bad paint job and their ideas for solution: http://www.antiquehomestyle.com/outside/color/goodhouse-badpaint.htm

I think you could take your cues from the original stained glass and go with that yellow, green, and red scheme. It's a combination that is time tested and has been popular for more than a hundred years.

You could use a green body, yellow trim, and red door and highlights or yellow body and green trim. The red can run from a rust or cinnabar to a brighter "barn" red.  

As to how light or dark the colors should be depends on what you like. Yellows included mustardy yellows and lighter butter yellows, so you really have a nice spectrum to choose from. The same goes for greens.

Now, a word about historicity of color. The colors and palettes I've seen tend to look very similar to the colors we use today, but generally are fairly neutral. Neutrals and calmer schemes tend to weather well and age better without advertising the fad prevailing when they were painted. (That changes a bit when you start getting into the bungalows 10 years later during the 1910s and 1920s.)

Garish and bright colors were done of course but designery types often panned them as ugly. They were quite outspoken in their judgments.

You can hire a historic paint consultant with some experience in your area as they understand the quality of light, which can make a big difference in color selection. If you're more hands on, take your picture and some tracing paper and copy the shape and detail in ink. Using other sheets of tracing paper over that, you can color in various combinations to arrive at something you like.

With a modest Queen Anne like yours, three or four colors should be more than enough.

Once you have a combination you like, select paint colors that match your preferred color combo. (Any quality paint dealer will be able to match your colors.) I recommend buying or renting quarts and painting a section of your house with all of the colors so you can see how they look together. This gives you an opportunity to see the color in morning and evening light, in sunshine and overcast.

Late summer or early fall is the best time to paint, so you have a little time to arrive at something you like.

Hope this helps!

Best regards,
Rikki Nyman
www.antiquehomestyle.com  
    Questioner's Rating
    Rating(1-10)Knowledgeability = 10Clarity of Response = 10Politeness = 10
    CommentI got a lot of possible options to consider which is exactly what I was looking for. I also got some ideas from it that I hadn't thought of. Great job! Thanks!


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Rikki Nyman

Expertise

Residential architectural questions concerning houses designed between 1900 and 1950, where the question pertains specifically to styles, designs, plans, building materials, color schemes, paint colors, interior finishes and so on. I am NOT qualified to answer engineering questions or issues involving construction methods, plumbing, electrical and the like. For example, I can describe what an appropriate color scheme would be for a vintage 1920s kitchen, or sources for plans for Storybook Style houses. I can not tell someone how to replace the electrical wiring in their old home.

Experience

I have been researching old houses and writing about them for more than five years. (See www.antiquehomestyle.com, which is my site.)

Organizations
Oregon Historical Society Architectural History Center, Portland Oregon

Publications
www.antiquehomestyle.com

Education/Credentials
B.S. History, Minor in Architectural Design

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