If you’re preparing to refresh the paint on your property, you’re probably thinking about a single hue for the whole house. Unfortunately, you could lose out on a lot of style points by choosing to go monochromatic. What about the ornamental aspects of your home’s exterior, such as the trim and other accents? Here’s how to choose colors for these peripheral, yet pertinent, exterior painting parts.

An Exterior Painting Guide for Trim & Accents

1. Establish the Three Tiers

To choose the perfect colors for your home’s trim and accent pieces, you’ll need to pick them relative to the body of the house. With paint swatches in hand, compare and contrast hues with your home’s main color, the one you will be or have already applied to the sides and face of the structure. You’ll want this color to take precedence, so stay away from accent colors that overpower. For example, if your siding is navy, you’ll want to choose lighter hues for the periphery, like white and light yellow—not deep reds, purples, or browns.

2. Look at Samples in Various Lights

Remember that the colors you’re looking at in a paint store will look a lot different in natural light on the exterior of your home. If you’re browsing hues on a computer monitor, you can expect even more of a disparity. To test out your favorite picks, paint a bit on an inconspicuous portion of your house and look at it during different times of the day. Some hues may lose their original saturation, or look much bolder than you expected, especially on delicate accent pieces.

3. Consider Your Surroundings

In addition to your own preferences, think about the neighboring homes and those on your block. What kinds of colors are they using for the body, trim, and accents? While you want to make sure your design doesn’t copy the neighbors, you’ll also want to choose a palette that fits in with the atmosphere. If you have an HOA, you may also have to check with them about using unusual colors for exterior painting, or even using more than two colors on your entire home.

If you’re having trouble picking paint colors for your home’s details, get in touch with W. Reardon’s Painting of Lorain, OH. They’ve been performing impressive exterior painting jobs on residential properties for over three decades, so they have the expertise to help you with the finishing touches. For more information on their related services, such as power washing, visit the website. You can also call (440) 233-6852 to schedule an appointment.