What is the perfect colour for the façade of my house?

Sunita Vellapally Sunita Vellapally
PRIVATE RESIDENCE AT KERALA(CALICUT)INDIA, TOPOS+PARTNERS TOPOS+PARTNERS Casas clássicas
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The façade is the business card of a house, because it presents visitors with the first impression of the home. Therefore, it’s particularly important to choose the right colour for the façade.

However, deciding which façade colour to pick depends on an individual’s taste. The possibilities are endless, but you should be sure of the colour you choose for the façade as it will last for years, and probably decades!

In general, warm colours such as orange are inviting, while cold colours like green and blue are distant. Several other factors play a role in the house façade. The size and location of the house, the amount of sunlight it receives… these are some of the factors that contribute to the overall appearance of the façade. To help you to find the perfect house façade colour for your home, we have a few tips for you.

A mix of different materials that are compatible

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Glass, wood, metal, stone or the classic plaster walls? Why do you always have to decide? The simplest option is probably the plastered wall, but this notion can be easily broken. 

It is best to combine a plastered exterior wall with a stone base, or simply add stone columns on an otherwise plain façade. Anyone who decides to work with wood gets a house with a natural look. Individual elements of metal, such as the balcony railing, for example, gives a rustic themed house a touch of modernity. 

If you prefer to spend less time deciding on a house façade colour, you can also opt for glass walls to provide a well-illuminated interior. However, you must also think of fixing the appropriate blinds and curtains.

In general, you should decide on which façade colour is best, by thinking about the overall design concept and blending your home in the environment. Choose two or three materials, so that it doesn’t prove too distracting to visitors. You can contact an interior design professional for guidance.

Light façade, dark roof

This is a classic combination. Light walls blend into the environment and radiate warmth. In addition to the commonly used colours such as white, beige and yellow, orange is a brighter colour that is often used with a dark roof.

You can’t really go wrong with a light house façade colour, but does it make the house noticeable? Probably not. Even in the case of large houses, light facades are soothing and fit easily into the landscape, unlike dark or bright walls.

Often a community has a prescribed colour that must be used on the façade, in which case the owner of the house needs to adhere to it to avoid disturbing the overall harmony in the design of the community. This can be either a blessing or a curse. On one hand, you needn’t worry about choosing a colour. On the other hand, you can't use your own colour concepts without getting special permits.

The goal should be to create a harmonious image of the house, the garden, the roof and the surroundings. With a dark roof in colours such as dark grey or brown, the contrast of a light façade colour can give the house an elegant chic appearance. A dark roof also has the advantage of not showing up the dirt on the tiles very fast – a point worth considering.

Walls and roof in the same colour

In this option, one starts with a basic colour and combines it with a brighter or darker tone of the same hue. If you paint the house façade in a uniform beige, the brown roof fits perfectly into the picture. 

To create a uniform look, the window frames, railings and even the garden fence can be matched to the base colour, like the white windows and light brown railing in this image. Even the gutter is in a shade of beige to blend with the overall concept. Nothing stands out to distract.  

This tone-in-tone colouring concept works best when the home is not squeezed between others, but has its own space to unfold and stand alone. In such cases, striking house facade colours are not even necessary to make it eye-catching.

Dark façade, bright roof

When you are deciding which façade colour will suit your home, you should first ask a few questions. What is the design style of the house? Is it a terraced house or a semi-detached one? The size of the house and the amount of sunlight are other important considerations as they will play a role in deciding whether a dark façade fits into the surroundings.

Most homeowners choose a classic palette with a light house façade colour and a darker roof. However, this house shows that one can create a stunning façade by being different. This country house is striking mainly because the bright roof matches the base and forms a frame for the dark-brown walls. 

Such houses fit ideally into a natural environment, especially with a  large garden. The green lawns and the façade in dark-brown give the entire property a uniform earthy look.

Choose the façade colour according to the style of the house

In general, when deciding on the house façade colour, the best choice is neutral tones, not clear or bright shades. Why? Façade design is long-term feature of the home and is subject to external elements such as dirt and weather.

Moreover, in contrast to earth tones, luminescent colours usually only exist with organic pigments, which are less resistant to light than paints with mineral pigments. 

But, what if bright green or blue are just the colours you want for your façade? The colours should fit into the theme of the house. Can you imagine a country house with a facade of wood painted in bright pink? It’s not a great idea! On the other hand, a home in the middle of greenery with its house façade colour in dark green, can paint an amazing overall picture. Likewise, large houses in bright red can be overwhelming. It’s better to have one red wall or a single red element for the house, which you can contrast with exciting accents. 

If the style of the house is striking and special, it does not need a bright facade. And, if one lives in a community with row houses, one should not disturb the overall look by painting the house façade in a bright colour.

The classic look

Most older Indian homes have a classic and unaffected style that ensures they are inconspicuous. House facades are in most cases painted with light colours such as white, beige or yellow. The roof is red or brown. 

This doesn’t have to make them look boring by any means. For those who are keen to experiment, the house does not have to be made striking with bright red paint. The contrast can be added simply through window shutters and garden fences in a bright shade – perhaps green?

In modern houses, you often find flat roofs or large glass façades, which leaves little room for those who want to be creative. With the classic Indian tiled roof, you can choose colours such as red, brown or grey tiles to add a bit of contrast.

The Baroque look

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For trying to revive the baroque age, one must focus on the architecture, because art is the strongest expression of this style – playful, curved shapes, ornaments, gables, columns and the play of light and shadow. In addition, Baroque architecture is deliberately based on illusion. Which material will do it justice? All. If there is no marble, create the marbled effect with wood. If you cannot afford gold, use gypsum to gild the façade or roof.

Earlier, natural stone was used for house facades with colours of sandstone and brick in addition to white, grey and black of marble, granite and slate. Later, contrasting colours became popular for creating stunning facades.

While traditional Indian house façade colours were somewhat restrained. Over the years, more and more, the emphasis has shifted to contrasting shades. The conscious play of light and shade on the facades of these houses, present the colours in all their intensities, adding to the overall effect of the house in relation to its environment. If the façade is adorned with elaborate ornaments, one might prefer to avoid imposing colours, as it can overwhelm the visitors.

Living behind a Renaissance façade

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Majestic renaissance-themed houses bring one back into the ancient era, for nothing compares to the beauty and luxury of this style of architecture. It is recaptured in elements such as columns, arches, and statues. Simple geometric forms such as circles and cuboids dominate the façades, giving them a grand look. 

Renaissance buildings are often found in three different versions: natural stone, plastered facades or veneer. In that era, the tendency was towards grey with overtones developed over the base colour. If the façade is plastered and only slightly decorated for the Renaissance look, the use of a contrast colour is worthwhile. In the Renaissance era, for example, there was a preference for dark grey, or brown and red shades against a white wall. 

In the case of wood facades, the contrast was usually white.  Many details and ornaments were used on the façade. Due to its versatility, a renaissance façade does not have clear rules for house façade colour. On the contrary, one should take a close look at the façade design and then decide whether to go 'striking' or stay 'unobtrusive'.

Romanesque facades

Clear geometric stone squares placed on top of each other, with minimal ornamentation and small windows, made the Romanesque architectural style one with massive, heavy and solid looking structures. 

It’s no surprise that the Romanesque period also favoured opacity in its facades and interior spaces. Often, natural stone was decorated with colourful elements. 

Today, thick walls, which are characteristic of this style, are considered a desirable feature in houses. The ornaments on the façade are in the classical style of this era, offering a lot of scope for experimenting with the house façade colour.

For ideas on roofs for houses see The top roofing materials for your home.

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