Mmm, pickles. That will make sense in a minute. But first we’ll show you what John’s sister Emily’s front entryway has looked like for the past three years that she’s lived in her amazing casa (which you can virtually tour here).
And here’s the after, thanks to a new color on the door and some semi-transparent stain on the deck that leads to it (oh yeah and some pumpkins).
Here’s how we landed on the door color and the stain hue. First I came over with a bunch of paint swatches and we held them up to the door to see what would work with the smoky gray color of the house.
We easily narrowed it down to a few favorites (Cornichon, Lagoon, Duck’s Egg, Egg Yolk, and Sultana – all by Martha Stewart).
Then after a bit more deliberation both Emily and her hubby Todd decided they loved Cornichon the best by far. And I must say I agreed. They really wanted their house to look hip and a little funky, so they appreciated that it wasn’t an obvious color that could be found on many doors. It also looked really great with the house color as well as with deep wood tones (since they also planned to go dark with the wood deck that leads to the door).
With the front door color narrowed down, it was time to select the exact hue for the deck, and we all decided on something rich and brown but not too opaque (a semi-transparent stain by Behr called Premium Plus Deck Stain in the color “Wood Chip”).
After all those decisions were reached, it was time for the deck to get power washed, stained, and then for the door to get two coats of semi-gloss latex exterior paint in our favorite Cornichon color by Martha.
We think it really gives off a confident “how YOU doin'” vibe that feels cool and welcoming. And Emily and Todd couldn’t be more pleased with the outcome.
So we thought we’d share that quick curb appeal makeover with you guys in case you’re debating a new front door or deck color. It really can make all the difference, right? And now Em and Todd are excited to complete the transformation with a few more details (like more planters, cool house numbers, and a big modern welcome mat). Gotta love a makeover that makes you excited about things like doormats and planters.
Are any of you guys getting ready to paint your house’s exterior or otherwise turn up the dial on your home’s curb appeal? Tell me all about it. Oh and I promised the title would make sense so here ya go: cornichon, the name of the front door paint, means pickle in French. And thanks to my 9th grade French teacher I was in the know from the moment we selected it as our favorite swatch (thanks Madame Cruger-Langer!). Snookie would be proud.
We painted the exterior of our house a few weeks ago. The front door/spindles/and shutters were all a dark royal blue. Eeek! It wasn’t horrible but just not what we loved. We painted the spindles back white, the shutters black, and the door a red color. It looks lovely now. We also painted our deck. It was a bluish color as well and we painted it a brownish gray color.
That color rocks that house’s face! Kudos! And it sounds so affordable! :D
man, that is so cute! i love the front door color, and the entire entryway is such an interesting architectural element!
J&S- My friends and I are obsessed with your blog! You guys manage to post relevant stuff on a daily basis and we love it. So I am digging the green planter to the left of the door- do you know where that came from?
Hey Jen,
Emily got that at HomeGoods for cheap.
xo,
s
Wow what a difference! That looks like a fun place to come home to.
Love it! What a great looking house! Now it kinda feels like the door frame should be painted as well. Perhaps the same white that the window frames are painted…I would say black, but it might be too much with those small-ish windows.
Amazing! The new color on the front door and the stainon the walkway make the house look totaly differnt and fabulous. susan
We’re thinking about painting our door red next Spring. We have so many interior projects to blog about right now. I hope we can get to painting the door next year.
I realy like the yellow. It really compliments the exterior.
It looks great. And I just had a front door painting snafu. I painted it yellow and it looked HORRIBLE with my green shutters. I really needed to compare swatches like you guys did. You can read the details here:
http://thecozycape.blogspot.com/2010/10/autumn-wreath-and-paint-snafus.html
I’m in the process of repainting it a nice red color.
The color of the door is fantastic! So unexpected and inviting :)
How funny- I was just searching your site for your door painting tips! We have a brick 1920s colonial with white trim and black shutters. For the entire time we’ve lived here, the front door has been white. I don’t think red is for us, but maybe a shade of french or slate blue?
Btw, your cornichon looks great! Bold choice- you have such an eye- that looks fantastic.
Hey Cindy,
Mmm, french or slate blue sounds awesome. Just bring home some swatches to see what looks best and tackle that white door. It’s such an easy and inexpensive update!
xo,
s
Do you want to come over to my house and help me pick out a new front door color too? I’m not too far from you – a little hop down Midlothian Turnpike and you’d be there!!!
We’re working on our little house in Southside and we’ve been discussing door colors lately! I think I know what we’re going to do, but I wish my house looked as sassy as this one! My husband could honestly care less. Some help he is!! We just painted the porch a grey/grey-blue color, and the house is white. We have some little brick colors poking out at the bottom so I think the door is going to go a burnt orangey color – Here’s to hoping it turns out okay!
I don’t think we’re ready to tackle the peachiness of our house yet, but we did paint our door a while back to try and make it a little more bearable: http://hernandohouse.wordpress.com/2010/08/10/living-with-an-exterior-color-you-didnt-pick/
I love love love Emily’s house and am hoping that you do a more detailed, updated tour of her gorgeous home soon!
We recently repainted our house and added new doors and shutters (in a navy blue). We love our curb appeal now! Paint is sooooo freakin amazing!
See it here: http://www.samanthamuse.com/2010/our-one-year-anniversary/
I love this! I have been debating back and forth for ages on painting our shutters and door. We have a yellow house and i would like the door to pop, but I don’t know what would be good! Or whether I should paint the shutters the same color or something different? (they are black right now).
What about painting the door a bold eggplant color and taking those shutters from black to a charcoal gray (so the bold plummy door is the star). Good luck!
xo,
s
I just painted our front door … green! Behr’s Asparagus, to be exact.
A Jersey Shore reference?
Oh Sherry – oh dear dear dear.
Next thing you know you’ll be fist pumping at finding the perfect house?
I can’t help it- it’s in my blood. I’m actually from Jersey. Born and raised.
xo,
s
That is an amazing transformation. Love that door color, love what the deck stain did for the entrance. I bought the same product but husband hasn’t gotten out to do it yet. I especially like the way y’all made the leaves turn to match the door. Y’all go all the way with a redo, don’t ya? :)
LOVE this! It’s amazing how the smallest things can have such a huge impact :)
It looks fabulous! I love doors that pops with a cool color! It makes a world of difference.
Too funny! My husband and I actually just painted a dresser almost the exact same colors! Slate green for the base and drawer fronts and avacado on top. I plan to send in photos for a possible “reader redesign” soon once we finish up the poly on the top and decide what to do with the tarnished brass drawer pulls.
Frikkin Paint!!!!! Ahhh, it never ceases to amaze me.
Just wanted to say that I’m really liking the more relaxed and spontaneous format you’ve been using for posts since your anniversary week. I can really tell that you’re having fun, and (though it didn’t bother me before) it gives the blog a more personal feel than the past year or so. Good work and good luck on the house selling and hunting!
Great timing–I JUST finished my back deck last weekend! In July and August we did the front porch. It’s great to have the entire exterior now stainedd. The previous owners did nothing to the front porch, and there was an “attempt” at painting (staining? who knows?) the back deck. So, color and protection were both sadly needed.
We used Behr as well! Premium Plus Deck Stain in Tugboat (the chip right above the one you used for Emily & Todd’s deck) was used for the floors and tops of the steps and Pinto White was what we used for the railings and trim. Our house is beige with burgundy shutters and door, and the colors look great!
We totally need some curb appeal. Our house exterior is riverstone (which some people love, so I’m not trying to knock it, it’s just not exactly our style) and beige siding. We want to get a half-window-door for the front to bring in a bit more light, and paint it something bold. Maybe an asparagus or eggplant.
The only issue is that I’m in a townhouse, so by re-doing the front it makes it look very much NOT like my attached neighbor. Maybe that’s a good thing?
Oh yes! Dare to be different!
xo,
s
Whoa! What a difference. I’m forwarding this to my husband. He had not been very open about my idea to paint the door. It’s dark brown and has a white storm door. Do you think I can paint the storm door the same color as the door?
For sure! One of our favorite looks is a storm door that matches the door exactly. It’s a sleek clean look that packs a nice punch.
xo,
s
I LOVE this color! I have bookmarked it now for future door painting reference :)
Great colour choice!
Our front door needs a fresh coat of paint but I can’t seem to find the perfect shade. Even the Benjamin Moore consultants had a tough time coming up with suggestions.
I’ll have to get out my swatches (maybe grab a few more too) and stick them up on the door like you did.
The door color reminds me of that avocado green appliance color of the 70s that was so popular. I hate that color. Somehow it works on the door though. I don’t get it!
Love the door color but something about the stain is throwing me off. I would have gone a little darker on the stain I think. Picking a door color is tough – I went through this last year before deciding on a red to pump up my beige (with black shutters and foundation) house.
I too have a gray house and a yellow door. Good combination. I did have a red door, but decided to change the color when 3 of my neighbors decided to paint their front doors red.
wow that’s gorgeous. and punchy! How you doin’. haha
I’d love to see the back of this casa too, I checked the original housecrashing, but didn’t see it there. Any to share?
Hey Sheila,
We’ll try to remember to snap some pics of the back one of these days…
xo,
s
We called it “grellow” on our door.
http://lilapuppy.blogspot.com/2010/07/it-was-all-grellow.html
Please ignore all of the half-finished parts of this curb appeal makeover!
That looks so cute! There house looks fab!
I painted our computer room PURPLE and although I love that it’s bright & bold, I sometimes want to repaint it a different color & then add pops of bright color in the accessories!
Thanks to a recent Oklahoma hail storm, we had the opportunity to do some major exterior renovations on our new-to-us home. We just added a finishing touch with a coat of Behr’s Bayside on the front door. You can take a peak here: http://settlingwest.com/?p=426
I was just looking for new house numbers the other day and I found some cute ones on etsy but most are over $100….not really in my house number budget. Have you seen any artsy ones for cheap or have any good DIY ideas? Love your blog!
Hey Emily,
We’ve seen some cool ones at local home improvement centers (not chains) like a store here in Ricmond called Pleasant’s. Maybe check your yellow pages for non-chain places near you to check out?
xo,
s
Love this color! A little sad they didn’t go with Egg Yolk, as we love that color, as seen here and here:
http://www.yellowbrickhome.com/2010/04/28/bathroom-redo-reveal/
http://www.yellowbrickhome.com/2010/10/18/quail-of-a-tale/
And the first link has some YHL inspiration in it!
Great job! Wishing we had a curb to add some appeal to :)
It *does* say “How YOU doin!” Our boring house is boring battleship gray. We were tempted to paint a giant “71” on one big gray side and dub it The Nimitz. So far we have taken the bold and drastic step of replacing the cheap black plastic house numbers with expen$ive brushed nickel house numbers. Now the outside light and the doorbell look like crap, so they’re next. And I want to paint the front doors, but the very thought of it makes me lunge for the gin. How do you paint your doors without letting Nature in all her glory (spiders, earwigs, etc.) come waltzing through?
Hey Lisa,
Paint actually dries really fast if it’s applied thinly and evenly (as it should be) so you can keep the door just cracked a bit while it dries and may even be able to close it by evening if you tackle the door painting project early enough in the morning.
xo,
s
Love! Love! Love! the curb appeal. I so need help with mine :)
Fantastic. Love it. :)
Any tips on picking a color for the interior of a front door? I’m tired of white (entryway has cherry floors, light tan walls and the adjacent rooms are medium brown den and eggshell blue/ deep brown dining room! Thanks!!!
How about avocado or celery green? Those tones always look good with cherry wood.
xo,
s
Think your sis would clue us in on a cost/square foot on her house? I just checked it out and it looks amazing, so of course I am curious. Also, have you considered designing and building your own house, and if so, what keeps you from going that route?
Hey Babbler,
Just got off the phone with Emily. She has no earthly idea about cost per square foot because they went unexpectedly over budget due to dirt (long story, but it has to do with erosion control) but the actual cost of building the house wasn’t bad- it was mainly making sure to extend sewer lines and deal with the erosion issues of the property. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
I totally appreciate the Jersey Shore reference. Gosh these Petersiks have decor in their blood! I’d love to see the back yard… a shot from the exterior of all 3 levels.
I painted our builders basic metal front door a bright cherry red last summer. My husband had reservations (man has no vision:) but it has made all the difference in the world. I love how it pops against our gray siding and white trim. I brought in some lime green and red accents in the form of planters and outdoor pillows. I love it so much. Such a big impact for so little money and time.
Wow, thanks for checking for me. Yes, the earth can be quite unpredictable, can’t it?
Strangely enough, we’re waiting for our new door to arrive in-stock at Lowe’s any day now! And we’ve already chosen and purchased a paint that comes somewhere between historic red and BRIGHT red — cheery and perfect for the house! Next spring, we’re also going to be staining any horizontal “place people step” parts of our wooden front porch and new back deck, with everything else white-white-white. Fun! Can’t wait!!
Oh, and meant to say that I love love love the pickle-colored door. It looks amazing with the fall foliage. I just love a pop of color on a front door- so inviting.
Hi John and Sherry!
My husband and I replaced the front door and screen door on our house when we bought it in May 2009. It was kind of a fiasco because hubby first accidently broke the orginal, run down front door…then we realized that we had to buy a custom size front door and screen door because our house is very old (built in 1927). About $1500 later we painted our front door and it really adds great curb appeal to our house!
Looks great! We have a 50s brick ranch and haven’t been blessed with the red brick you guys have–we have orange-y brick. Currently the trim and shutters are all white and it doesn’t look good. We’ll also be replacing the roof in the next couple of years and will probably go with charcoal grey. Any ideas out there for trim, shutter, and front door color(s)?
We love how soft tan or cream trim looks with brick, which is why we opted for that as our trim color while keeping our front door bold red (which makes the brick seem less bold by comparison) and added black shutters for that classic look. You could really do any bright bold door color (we love yellow with brick, sage with brick, and even deep plum or orange) and then keep the shutters and the trim looking classic and neutral (like tan and black, light gray and deeper gray, cream and brown, etc). Good luck!
xo,
s