In this case, the fifth time was the charm. As in 5 coats later our front door looked fabulous, darling. In fact, the color is Valspar’s Fabulous Red and let’s just say the name isn’t an over-promise. Although if I were gonna do it all over again, I definitely would have primed over the existing black paint first. Check out my pathetic first coat:
But five thorough coats did the trick. Thank goodness I had some nice scenery to admire while I painted and painted (and painted). Check out our gorge flowering cherry tree in the front yard.
But back to the door. People may be wondering how we knew Fabulous Red was “the one”. Well, as soon as we held up the swatch next to our brick it was obvious. A bunch of our other red swatches looked too close in tone and intensity to the reddy-brown brick tone, and the last thing we wanted the front door to do was disappear into a sea of brick. So we went with the brightest, most dramatic lipstick red of the bunch. None other than Fabulous Red (in semi-gloss exterior paint for shine and durability). So for everyone who writes us asking if a brick house can sport a red door, the answer is “but of course… as long as it’s brighter and redder than your brick”. Check out our finished product:
Oh and look how purty a red door looks at dusk:
And we thought it might be helpful to share our exterior palate as a whole with you guys so here it is. To complement our all-brick facade we added tan trim (Valspar’s Lyndhurst Stone), some black paint on the shutters and door stoop (Glidden’s Dark Secret) and punched things up with a delish new red door (Valspar’s Fabulous Red):
Crisp, classic, and clean. Now if only our front walkway and landscaping felt the same way. Stick around to see a total front yard makeover as we attempt to capture the curb appeal that our little brick ranch deserves.
I’m a big fan and decided since I didn’t start reading until this year that I’d visit the archives and “catch up”… :)
I’m thinking of painting my front door a duck egg blue… My house is a creamy color (maybe a little lighter than the tan you used) and my shutters are currently a faded black. You think the blue is too much? My door sits really far back and I feel like our entry is very dark which is why I was wanting something bright and cheery to lighten it up. I even thought of repainting the shutters charcoal gray or should I still with black?
You guys are crazy inspiring :)
P.S. I’m still on the hunt for a slipper chair slipcover in chocolate brown if anyone gets wind of a place to hunt……
I think it sounds great since you want to lighten it up! You could even get a test pot of the paint and just paint a corner of it to see what you think. Good luck!
xo,
s
The color of my townhouse is your standard blah, light tan, with a pinkish undertone, if that makes sense. HOA permitting ;), what color would you recommend for my exterior door? I’m trying to find something that goes with the outside but doesn’t clash with the inside (browns, tans, reds, greens inside and oak colored hardwood. I’m at a loss!
Maybe some sort of tan or gray color? Something rich so it pops. I’d bring home a ton of swatches and just hold them up to see what looks best with the siting. Good luck!
xo,
s
Our house is beige cedar wood. We have red dark brick foundation and dark brown roof. What color shutters and door?
Maybe some dark brown shutters to tie into the roof and a bright red door? Valspar’s Fabulous Red is awesome with red brick (shinier and redder so it looks nice together).
xo
s