07 April 2012

Exterior Color: Aesthetic Inspiration

Stick-Italianate Victorian in San Francisco her new custom paint scheme

I am excited to show you this recently completed color project - a Victorian in San Francisco a stylish new artistic dress.

Eddy St. Victorian, before painting

This 1880s Stick-Italianate Victorian house in the Western Addition  was long overdue for a paint job. Pale and peeling, it was nearly invisible and set back from the street behind an added garage and a tangle of overgrown plants.  The owner asked me to help make the house show up better, and give his home an artistic look using some of his favorite colors.

I created a scheme using a muted split-complimentary palette of mauve, green-grey, ochre, and rose, with hints of purple and peridot, and of course, some well-placed gold leaf.  This isn't necessarily an historic color scheme, but such colors were popular during the Aesthetic Movement, along with those other "indescribable colors" that I have been studying lately, and which provided inspiration for this design.
Eddy St. Victorian with new, Aesthetic colors
The garage and foundation walls were painted a warm grey, very simple and plain so as not to compete with the house. The roof of the garage will become a front garden.

Entry doors painted a deep glossy phthalo green-black

Originally I suggested an intense peacock teal for the front doors, picking up some of the color in the stained glass insets, but we decided to use a deep phthalo green/black, for a more formal look. Gilt elements on the glossy doors make for a stunning entrance.







*****

Color Consulting by Lynne Rutter 415-282-8820
  

Paints used on this house are by Benjamin Moore and C2 Color.



all images in this post by Lynne Rutter  - click on images to view larger