Last week, we asked you to send us the questions that were bothering you the most in your current home design projects. We got a bunch of great questions, but we noticed that a large proportion of the questions that were asked related to exteriors. We got questions about exterior paints, architecture, stonework, and how to choose materials for an exterior, among others. This makes so much sense to us, as exteriors are the absolute hardest part of design. Many designers and architects struggle with exteriors, so it makes sense that it would be that much more difficult for someone outside of this field. Today for Good to Know, we’re sharing our best tips for approaching your exterior design.

One of the things that makes exteriors so difficult is there are so many elements that need to work in concert with one another. These include roof color, landscaping, gutter color, soffit and fascia, stone, cement, windows, and more! Even harder, there really isn’t a “rule of thumb” for any of this stuff, because every house is so different, and what works for one house might not work for another.

Here’s how we suggest approaching exterior design:

• START BY CONDUCTING A SELF-INTERVIEW.

  • It’s important to start out by asking yourself some questions. Asking questions like the ones below can help you define a direction for the whole project. It can also help you start to narrow done how much this work might cost, which can help you nail down a budget. Even more importantly, this exercise can help point to areas where you might not have answers, which leads to our second tip.

  • If you’re building a new home, ask yourself things like: “What am I trying to accomplish by my home design? Am I looking for something that is more traditional or more contemporary? What styles have I admired in the past that I’d like to incorporate into my dream home? What do I want to convey about myself through this home?”

  • If you are looking to do a remodel, ask yourself things like: “What aspects of the exteriors are not working for me right now? Are these things that can be solved with paint and landscaping, or do I need to invest in some construction work? What would it take to make this house my dream home?”

• DO YOUR RESEARCH.

  • We’ve said this exact thing in so many of our blog posts, but it really is so vital. Take time to figure out what you like and dislike, and what kind of design direction you’d like to go in. If you don’t have answers for the questions above, you know to spend more time trying to figure those out. Asking questions and doing research insures that you’re thinking critically about your home, which helps avoid costly mistakes later on. It’s not enough to say “I don’t like my house.” Being able to find a solution lies in being able to say “I don’t like my house for x,y, and z reasons, and here is the direction that I’d like to move toward. You definitely do not need to have all the answers from the beginning, but knowing what you don’t like, and what you’d like to move toward is incredibly helpful to the architects or designers that are helping with your project.

    • Here are some of our favorite resources for starting your research process.

      • We always recommend the book Get Your House Right, which offers tips and insight on all aspects of home design, including exteriors.

      • Pinterest is a great place to go for all kinds of home inspiration. Even better, our team maintains a board specifically for exterior and landscaping inspiration. Click here to check it out.

      • For more home inspiration, accounts like this one on Instagram help educate people about different architectural styles. Plus, you might find something new that you’d like to incorporate in your dream design.

      • Hire a consultant. This doesn’t necessarily apply if you’re working with a designer and an architect, but if you’re looking to DIY some things, it can be helpful to get the second opinion of a professional. It’s very likely that they’ll catch something that you didn’t notice, or provide ideas for an updated, cohesive design.

      • Contract high-quality 3D renderings of the changes that you’d like to make to your exterior. This will help you visualize the changes, and catch any potential problems before they exist in real life. There are many talented draftsmen out there that can create realistic renderings of your plans. We recommend DsignVisual and the Tiek Design Group.

• PAINT

  • One of the trickiest aspects of the exterior design process is choosing paints. This is especially true because lighting changes so dramatically throughout the day, and you have to consider the look and feel of the surrounding homes to make sure your house feels right once it’s been painted. If you’re agonizing over the paint color of your home, know you’re not alone! I couldn’t decide on my exterior color for a very long time, and I wrote about that process here.

    • We definitely recommend painting samples on your house to make sure you’re happy with the color. Even if you need to paint half of your home, it’s worth it in the long run to make sure you’re happy with the colors that you chose.

    • When choosing a color scheme for your home, be mindful of how many elements need to be included in that color scheme. If your home has siding, work from the idea that the siding is the foundation of your color scheme. Choose that color first, and then add on. It’s certainly the simplest to choose a single paint color, but any number of color combinations can work well. If you want to use two main colors for your home, put the darker color closer to the ground. This anchors the home, and helps it to look more natural.

    • Everything else on your home’s exterior, whether it’s trim, stonework, or a door color, should be added in colors that complement and elevate the main foundational color.

    • If you want to add accents like shutters, make sure to add them in a neutral tone, so they can complement your whole color scheme.

  • As an example of paint that we would change on a home, one of our Instagram followers presented us with this question. She owns the beautiful red brick home below, but was wanting to know what she should do to change things to be more updated and more classic. We recommend utilizing an all-white tone on tone look with a contrasting front door.

• MATERIALS

• Choosing the materials for your home can also be a difficult part of the process. When we consult on exteriors, we try to keep the schemes as “architecturally honest” as possible. We do this by avoiding choppy transitions (especially continuing materials around outside corners) & cladding all sides of the house equally. Most materials can look great for a whole house as well, but if you’re using a mix, our rules of thumb are to limit it to two different materials. Use the visually heavier structural materials like brick & stone on what would look like the main house (or just on the foundation if you want to add stone without blowing your budget), and use visually lighter materials such as siding & stucco on areas that protrude from the main body of the house. 

• For example, one of our Instagram followers asked for materials recommendations for her limestone home. We recommend keeping the main body of the house in that limestone, and potentially using siding for any additions or areas that protrude from the home.

• QUICK FIXES

  • We want to be mindful that a lot of the processes mentioned in today’s blog post are quite expensive. Especially given the state of the economy right now, we know that a large scale home renovation or new home build might not be possible right this second. However, that absolutely doesn’t mean that you can’t change up your exterior, and breathe new life into your home. Here are our favorite ways to update your home and show off some personality without blowing the budget.

    • Update your house numbers.

    • Repaint or replace your front door. Relative to other exterior projects, front door projects are inexpensive, and can quickly influence the feeling of your home.

    • Add window boxes.

    • Switch out your porch lights or sconces.

    • Get a new doormat.

    • Add matching planters to your front porch.

    • Change out your mailbox.

    • Wash the windows.

    • Spruce up your landscaping. Trim some hedges, add in some new flowers or climbing vines.

Information for today’s blog post was gathered from our own team, as well as Gardenista and James Hardie.