Combination Number Four: Broad surfaces, Yellow M Buff; casings, Walnut Brown; sashes, White; shutters, Walnut Brown; porch, Yellow M Buff; cornices and mouldings, Yellow M Buff; doors, White; casings, Walnut Brown; cornices, Walnut Brown; other mouldings, Yellow M Buff; porch floors, Siennese Drab; roof, Walnut Brown.
Combination Number Five: Broad surfaces, White; casings, Palm Green; sashes, White; shutters, Pea Green, porch, White; cornices, Pea Green; other mouldings, White; doors, White; casings, Pea Green; porch floor, Palm Green; roof, Palm Green.
Combination Number Six: Broad surfaces, White; casings, Brown G Stone; sashes, Warm W Grey; shutters, Brown G Stone; porch, White; cornices and other mouldings, Brown G Stone; doors, White; porch floor, Brown G Stone; roof, Woodbine Green.
Combination Number Seven: Broad surfaces, Grey T Stone; casings, White; sashes, Tobacco Brown; shutters, White; porch, Grey T Stone; cornices and mouldings, Grey T Stone; doors, Tobacco Brown; casings, White; porch floor, Tobacco Brown; roof, Fern Green.
We must remember that harmonious contrast is in order, and there are greens and greens, greys and greys, browns and browns. In incompetent hands, the best color scheme ever planned may be rendered hideous. Home should not be a paint-maker’s color card, and cannot be successful unless your own taste and individuality are reflected in its dress, inside or out.
Assuming that you live on a street containing representative American homes, we must plan the color treatment of your own so that it will not appear violent in comparison with that of your neighbor’s. You have no doubt seen the deplorable result of a variance of preference when one side of a semi-detached residence has been painted white and the other half done in green. The straight, sharp line of demarcation showed that each neighbor cared nothing about what the other thought of it—and less about the neighborhood spirit.
We have assumed in our seven suggestions that the house is one of board construction. If it be of brick, it must be considered from a somewhat different point of view. Brick and stone are elemental in character and are better unpainted. The little exterior wood trim should generally be done in very light colors, white and buff being in order with shutters white, buff or bright green. Sashes may be dark if one chooses. There is much less choice of colors to use with brick because there is so little variation in the tones of the brick itself. The same is practically true of stucco, save that it may be colored to suit almost any fancy. The general use of grey is prevalent, and inasmuch as grey harmonizes with nearly all other colors, the same treatments of trim as mentioned in our previous suggestions may be applied to stucco buildings.
Shingle houses offer less variety of choice as far as color is concerned, but there are good and substantial reasons why shingles should be painted, rather than left to the weather. In the first place, there never has been a shingle roof which has not required patching at more or less frequent intervals. The patch, usually a fresh, uncolored shingle, becomes startlingly conspicuous when set among its older, weather-stained neighbors. When the shingles are painted, repairs can be made as often as necessary, and a coat of paint on the new pieces preserves the harmony of color and does not flaunt their newness.
Painted shingles have a far greater resistance to fire than unpainted shingles. While it is true that the oil in paint is inflammable, it is equally true that, after drying, the surface is practically metallic and to a high degree fire-resisting. Painted shingles do not warp, with the result that they do not form pockets in which a burning cinder or spark could settle. Furthermore, actual experience proves that painted shingles are rain-proof and remain so as long as the paint endures.
Painted shingles of a color in harmony with the rest of the house, are, first of all, a good investment; second, good protection; and third, pleasing and attractive to look at.