Door and Trim Colors: What to accent
May 18, 2011 § 8 Comments
Choosing an accent color for your house is easier than you might think. If you’re starting with a neutral house and want to add a pop of color, first consider where you want to see that accent color. These Florida homeowners wanted to liven up their drab gray home so they chose a bright blue and highlighted the trim with it (below). They kept the front door white. The result? The house was outlined in blue, which made the house seem smaller, and the builder-white door looked like it had just been installed. (In fairness to the homeowners, this was an experiment! They weren’t crazy about it either!)
What we suggested was that they paint over everything blue with a lighter gray to soften the edges and make the house seem bigger. Then we gave them a few ideas for the front door color, including a buttery yellow — a terrific accent to gray. The warmth of the yellow simply lights up the front entry, and the accompanying yellow pots and greenery finish off the look.
Your front door is the place to start when you’re applying an accent color. The whole idea is to draw your visitors to the entry and welcome them in!
Your Home & Color Coach 
Love it! What a difference.
So, my CV house is white, white, WHITE. I may want to paint the front and side doors and trim this summer. You know the place…suggestions? LN
Hi Sister!!
Thanks for blogging! Oh, sure I have tons of ideas for your mid-century-modern home. If you send me a photo of the front with any recent updates (is the bush still there?) then I will give you some suggestions for how to embrace the style. You can copy a photo link into this Reply Box or attach a photo to an email and send it to bmeglis@yahoo.com.
Talk with you soon!
-LB
Hi Barbara,
Thanks again for your help. We get compliments all the time and we’re much happier with the colors. Never realized how great a butter yellow door could look! So many people use a maroon red with gray, which is still nice, but typical.
Originally, the house was gray with all white trim. We really needed some color. We tried experimenting on the house itself and in Photoshop. After using two different blues and pulling my hair out, we gave up and contacted you. Best decision we could have made. I will recommend you to anyone that needs help with their home from now on.
John
Hi John,
Thanks so much for the kudos — and referrals!! I do love how your house turned out! And I’m so glad you like it too!
Thank you also for letting me share your results so others see that there are terrific options for gray houses!
-Barbara
Your Home & Color Coach
the yellow is very fresh.
xo
elyse
Love the color! It’d be great if you could give specifics re: the paint manufacturer and actual color name…..yellow is very very hard to pick from a paint chip (I know from experience). We have a white colonial with dark green shutters and grey stone accents. Right now the front door is green also but I’ve been toying with the idea of a yellow for a punch. Could you possibly provide the specifics??? The buttery yellow I think would be a better choice than something more bold.
The Yellow is Sweet Butter by Benjamin Moore, The Light Gray is Wickham Gray by Benjamin Moore and the Main Gray is French Silver by Behr. I normally use Behr, but Barbara recommended the other two colors and we were really happy with those selections. This yellow might not work for you, so it’s best to paint it on a large sheet of cardboard, let it dry and put it up against the door.
Thanks, John, for filling in the details on what colors you actually used. And yes, great advice for testing colors first!
-Barbara
Your Home & Color Coach