Exterior House Painting Progress

Overhauling Myrtle’s exterior was always high up on the list of priorities during the first major phase of renovations. She needed some rotted trim replaced, new gutters, scraping and caulking, and the biggest part – ol’ girl needed a new paint job like whoa.

The painters got started on the prep work pretty soon after closing day. There was lots to be done before the painting could start. They pressure washed, scraped, caulked, replaced rotted out window trim, and applied tape and plastic.

Peep my lil’ swatch of paint next to the brick. Myrtle was dotted with swatches and samples while we hemmed and hawed over what the heck to do about the colors! It was such a big decision. An amazing color scheme could totally transform the curb appeal of the house, and we wanted to make sure we loved whatever decision we made.

Plus, the painting and related work – exterior and interior* – is taking the biggest bite out of our overall budget by far, so we want to make sure we feel great about where that money goes.

*I’m including removal of the textured stomp ceiling in that statement, and boy, that was a big, dirty, expensive job.

I took this photo when we started swatching paint. After reading countless design blogs, poring over paint chips, and swatching samples, we chose 3 colors that we thought worked well as a trio:

Cedar siding – Sherwin Williams Gauntlet Gray (the dark color)
Trim/Soffits – Sherwin Williams Pearly White
Brick (?) – Sherwin Williams Repose Gray

The question mark on the brick is because I haven’t pulled the trigger on deciding on Repose Gray, a different color paint, OR going in a totally different direction and having a limewash product applied instead. We shall see. We’re waiting until the rest of the paint is finished before making a firm decision on the brick.

It was an exciting day when actual paint started going onto the house. The painting crew started with a first coat of Pearly White on the trim.

(there will be a lot of overspray on the gutters visible in these photos because they are being replaced with larger, white gutters. Knowing that, there was no need to tape off or be careful of the existing gutters)

Things got even more exciting when the Gauntlet Gray started to go onto the cedar siding! I was soo nervous about making the final decision on paint colors (what if I hated it?!). But now, after seeing the first coats go up, I’m totally in love!

Goodness, it looks like a brand new house, even with the existing deck color (that will eventually be painted… later) and the wonky paint spray on the gutters.

Compare this photo to the similar one at the top of this post. The transformation is insane!

The front of the house still looks rough, since the plastic is now covering the newly-white trim. The new gray against the existing brick cements our decision to paint it, because right now the two hues look kinda muddy up against each other.

And the front door? I have no idea what to do with it. Replace it? Might not be in the budget. Paint it? What color?! I’ve put it on the back burner for now, but I’m sure once the exterior paint is 100% completed I’ll want to do something with it ASAP.

There are lots of things happening inside (master shower and kitchen cabinets?! YES PLEASE! FINALLY!) so stay tuned for more!

As a parting shot, bonus shot of Shelby trying to be patient during the boring days at the house.