Young House Love

Home Decorating & DIY Tutorials

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How To Pick A Color And Paint Your Front Door

“The door is the smile of the house.”

John likes to make strange declarations like that. For example, after talking about how both bacon and mustaches were trending, he once proclaimed that “the mustache is the bacon of the face, and bacon is the mustache of breakfast.” But back to the front door. Our first house had a red door. Our second house had a yellow door. And our new house has a….

Door12

Yup, it’s a happy little blue door. It’s sort of a peacock meets teal with enough gray to keep it from going neon when the sun hits it.

Door14

When it came to picking the shade, first we taped up a bunch of swatches in almost every color of the rainbow (we tried red again, some green tones, a bunch of blue options, and other colors like plum, orange, navy and charcoal). Then we stepped back about ten feet, took note of what we liked best, and stepped back a lot more – just to make sure we still felt the same way from further back. We did this a few times during the day and evening to make sure the colors we loved in direct sunlight didn’t look crazy or change a ton when the front door was in shade or lit up by the porch light at night.

Door1

Then I painted the cream sidelights white like the rest of the house’s trim. We really wanted the sidelights to be their permanent color before finalizing a front door hue, just in case the old creamy-yellow trim was throwing us off. So after rubbing them down with a magic eraser to get all of the bug guts off, I just used an angled brush to apply the same white exterior paint that the painters left behind (and later used a razor to scrape the excess off the glass panes).

Door4

That helped us to narrow it down to four contenders: Spirit In The Sky, Blue Lake, Peacock Blue, and Tranquil Blue (all by Benjamin Moore). We’re actually convinced any number of colors could have worked (nearly all of the swatches looked nice with the white trim and natural brick) so we just went with what we liked the best.

Door3

Then it was test swatch time. After the whole oops-we-picked-the-wrong-siding-color snafu, I didn’t trust swatches without putting a big ol’ rectangle of color right on the door. So here’s how things looked after I applied each of our four samples on four of the raised panels of the door, being sure to give them each nice thick coats so the true color was easy to see, but not goobery and drippy. Colors tend to darken as they dry, so we did that “live with them a hot minute and evaluate them throughout the day” thing. That’s Blue Lake in the top left, Spirit In The Sky in the top right, Tranquil Blue in the bottom left, and Peacock Blue in the bottom right.

Door5

And the winner is Blue Lake…

Door6

The others all looked either too dull or too neon in certain lighting situations throughout the day. Here she be, all glossy and gorge.

Door12

It only took about half a day to get it painted. As for the finish/type of paint, we used BM’s exterior paint that the guy at the desk recommended for doors called MooreGlo in Soft Gloss, which is their version of a semi-gloss finish (didn’t even need primer since it’s self-priming). We only needed to buy a quart, so this whole project was pretty darn cheap, which feels great after basically sweating money out of our pores for the last month or so on bigger inspection-item fixes that we needed to check off.

When it comes to painting doors, my favorite method is to start in the morning so the door can be open all day and has time to dry before you have to close and lock it at night. I like using an angled brush only – although John loves a foam roller, so it’s a different strokes for different folks thing. Literally.

Door10

I have a certain order that I swear by, so first I paint the frames of each raised rectangle, then I paint the insides of each of them as you see in the photo above. Then I paint the flat planks around them and between them, always going in the direction of that plank (I pull my brush from top to bottom to do the vertical plank down the middle, then I go from left to right to get all of the horizontal slats, and at the very end I drag from top to bottom to do those vertical parts on each side of the door).

Door11

I wait for that to dry about an hour (or two if it’s super humid) and then I do the whole thing again, in the same order. Then I just give it the rest of the day to dry and lock it up at night. Oh and we like to remove the hardware, so that’s why it’s off (we reattach that right before we lock the door in the evening).

We also updated both the door knocker and the doorbell, so we’ll be back with those details tomorrow (they involved a dremel and some paint as well as a bit of a manhunt).

Door21

Oh and I repainted the sides of the door but not the back, so that’s still a hazy dusty blue color like the rest of the trim in the foyer… but I’d love to paint the back of the door the same happy blue shade once we nix the blue trim and wallpaper going on in the foyer and get some nice white trim and sidelights in there as well.

Door17

So that’s how one quart of paint and one morning of work made our house smile. Not bad, right? It took me waaay longer to take pictures of the finished product than it did to actually do it (is it just me or has it been raining for 40 days and 40 nights?). Heck I think the little doorknocker and doorbell upgrades took longer than painting the door.

The lesson? If you’re putting off painting your door, jump on that pony. Then your house won’t be all “oh hi it’s you, whatevs” when you come home. It’ll be all “Hiiiiiiiiii! Welcome!!!! It’s so nice to see you!”

Porticobanda

It’s so funny to compare it to the portico as it looked back when we bought the house. Complete with a really old wreath on the broken slatted screen door (we took that down asap). And remember how green those front steps were before we power washed them?

Oh but one more thing. Remember that time a deer photobombed my front door photoshoot? Wait you don’t because I didn’t tell you about it yet. Allow me to paint you a picture. I’m snapping a few photos, and here comes my deer friend, stage right.

Door15

He saunters across the yard right in front of me and stops to chew on a few weeds by the door. Directly in front of my shot. I’m telling you, I never laughed so hard. Dude must have thought our yard looked extra welcoming, what with the smiling door and all. It certainly wasn’t a lush lawn that was drawing him in…

UPDATE: I quickly snapped this instagram picture on the way back from our evening walk, and it one captures the green undertone in our teal door so it finally looks like real life. Leave it to the ol’ cell phone to take a more accurate picture than the fancy camera. #nofilter #instagrambeatsDSLR

Exterior IG Shot

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Comments

  7. jeannette says

    absolutely gorgeous with the brick and the grey pediment. this really is outside the box, so glad to see it. rock on.

    Reply

  8. April says

    Deer freak me out, so the area ya’ll moved to would totally not be ideal. Do you have plans to do something to keep the deer out of your yard once you get grass and pretty plants that they’ll surely find tasty?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We’ve always lived in wooded areas with deer (I even had them in Jersey growing up) so we know the drill with planting deer resistant plants (there are tons of them so it’s not too bad). Clara loves watching them when they pop up, so we don’t have any plans to drive them off. I’m not sure anyone can keep deer out of their yard other than installing a giant 8 foot fence anyway :)

      xo
      s

    • Annie says

      Did you know that hanging a little mesh bag of Irish Spring soap in your garden will keep deer away from your flowers and veggies (if you decide to plant veggies;). It doesn’t hurt them or scare them away but it keeps them from eating all your pretty stuff.

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Thanks Brianne! We feel the same way! We wake up and we’re like “we really live here?” We used to drive through this neighborhood all the time just to look around and pretend that we lived here, so it’s still hard to believe that we snuck in somehow! Haha!

      xo
      s

    • Kathy says

      I agree! That shot with you and the deer, Sherri, looks like you all live in a national park. Just a gorgeous setting!

  10. Jeri says

    LOVE IT!!! I just painted my door a bright happy blue (though a bit more aqua than yours) a few weeks ago, and it completely changed the feel of the front of my house. It’s definitely the biggest bang for small bucks transition. Life’s just too short to have a dull door.

    Reply

    • Kathryn says

      As a Southern girl transplant to Dublin, I have to agree. The famously grey weather isn’t nearly so bad with all the gorgeous doors about. (Seriously, google them. There are postcards, tours, just for the doors!)

  13. Liz says

    Your street is a thing of dreams! Look at all those trees! I am super jealous. It looks all quiet and peaceful. I need to quit condo-living right now and buy a house – stat!

    By the way, I love the door colour. It’s so different and cheery. :)

    Reply

  14. Bri says

    Love the blue lake color, you guys! It’s so cheery and fun. While we’re on the topic of paint, I have a question. You guys always paint your kitchen cabinets white, but what color would you use in the kitchen if you left the cabinets dark? I’m sure I’m not the only person with this burning question ;)
    Sending you guys love from Canada!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      I love soft sagey wall colors with wooden cabinets. John’s mom used a super light greeny-golden tone with her oak cabinets in their last house and it was gorgeous!

      xo
      s

    • Aimee says

      Now I have a question for you too! I am just curious to know if you are planning to go with white cabinets in this house too, or are you planning on changing things up this time around. I know whatever you guys decide will look AMAZING. I love your design choices:)

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We have no idea! We definitely aren’t afraid to do a white kitchen again if it’s what we love the most of all the options (seems lame not to do what we love most just to “do something else for the blog”) but we also love the idea of a tuxedo kitchen or softly colored cabinets so who knows where we’ll end up!

      xo
      s

    • YoungHouseLove says

      I think we like those white just so it’s not too bold (in all of the photos of bold doors that we looked at online with sidelights, the ones we loved best had white trim/sidelights with just the color on the door).

      xo
      s

    • HeatherB says

      Thanks for this. Our front door has sidelights, and I don’t know why, but it never occurred to me to paint them the white trim color and paint just the door my chosen blue (darker than yours, more like a blueberry color).

      Based on your above post, I decided to scroll through pictures online, and I agree–I think I like the sidelights white better. Seems to make a clean statement, and yet almost makes the door pop even more. I think I will do it this way when we paint in the fall.

      Thanks for the idea!

    • Jess @ Crunchy Hot Mama says

      I’m with HeatherB. I never thought to paint the sidelights (nor knew their name) til I saw this post. Now I need to get on that. I did paint our door a light green but cannot tear my eyes away from that blue! Nicely done, Sherry :)

      What more could you ask for, a happy door, deer frolicking in your yard, and a beautiful view! Great house choice…can I come stay ;)

  17. Felie Hempfling says

    Love the Blue! I think it’s great that you guys have changed things up between all three houses, you know taking chances trying new things! Belated 6 year anniversary! My husband and I were also married on 7.7.07!

    Reply

  19. Susan says

    LOVE the door. I’m trying to convince my husband to paint our front door a nice happy color. But my MIL insists that A. it will look like a clown door (buzz kill) or B. it will be too much up keep. Do you find that you have to re-paint the door every year? What kid of things to do you do keep it looking nice? Thanks, my MIL loves your book, so maybe if I show her your doors she will change her mind…

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We paint them once with high quality paint (well two coats, but just one time) and it stays. Then you can wipe it down with a magic eraser or just a wet cloth if bugs get on it and you’re good. We never repainted our red or yellow door and those both lasted for years. We hope this blue guy does the same thing!

      xo
      s

  20. Amy E. says

    like the color, but i’m more intrigued by the deer. i wonder if the previous homeowners fed them; that could explain why they keep getting so close to your home and to you! even with your home being in a wooded area, i can’t imagine a deer being that fearless unless it was accustomed to humans feeding it.

    anyways, good color! and a great update for just a quart of paint! it’s amazing what a little brush work can do!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Our house was actually uninhabited for almost a year before we got it, so we know no one at our house was feeding them since it was empty. We think the deer just like our street because it’s a cul de sac with a woodsy area behind it (more private than some of the busier streets).

      xo
      s

  21. Tijana says

    Love the door!!! I was wondering what colour you would pick this time. I’m moving to a new house in 9 days and much like yours it’s got great bones but lots of old & dated stuff (carpet in the master ensuite! yay!). Can’t wait to start ripping it all up.

    I’m still in awe of how beautiful every neighbourhood you’ve lived in is! Here (Toronto), it’s really rare to find neighbourhoods where you get so much privacy & where it feels like you’re living in the middle of a forest. Let’s not even talk about suburbs – those houses are like sardines on top of each other.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Aw thanks Tijana! We feel so lucky to have finally found a house in our budget in this neighborhood. This little fixer upper is the only reason we could squeak in here after 7 years of drooling :)

      xo
      s

  22. Alison says

    That’s funny :) here you are trying to get rid of blue trim and doors and you paint something blue.

    Reply

    • Ge says

      Haha! I was just thinking that, one day*, this blue door will be a nice reminder of the blue trim, where your started, the labor of love involved, and so forth :)

      * you know, this future future day. The one you’ll be laughing about the blue trim instead of making nightmares because of it!

  23. Pallavi says

    Love that color! I was eagerly waiting to see what color you would paint your front door. And I must say it is an awesome color. Good choice!

    Reply

  24. Mishellie says

    I TOTALLY called it!!!

    I thought (quietly to myself) “ohhhh a teal would be fun” when you mentioned that you were considering all different colors. I may be biased though, because teal is one of my two favorite colors (the other being lush/royal purple)

    It looks great!

    Its amazing what these little changes are doing to the overall feel of your house. A little goes a long, long way!!!

    Reply

  25. Anne says

    Looks great! Love the cheerful color. My husband makes similar declarations. The other day he said that “ginger ale is the vegetable of sodas.”

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      No worries at all! We certainly didn’t pick this color or share the photos thinking everyone would love it! Bright doors are such a personal preference thing. Which is awesome since it would be nuts for the whole world to have the same front door color anyway :)

      xo
      s

    • foobella says

      I loved it in the up close picture, but when you step back, it seems there is something not quite right for me. I just can’t put my finger on it. I think maybe once they have some landscaping and a lawn (ha. no rush, guys!) it will look better.

    • Annie says

      Love the color. Love it for a door. Hate it on your house. Sorry guys but I don’t think it works at all with your brick roof color or shutters. Other than the grellow color you originally put in the kitchen I think you are normally great with your work. Oh well maybe the door will go the same way as the grellow!

    • Marissa c says

      Yeah, add me in. Just too bright for such a traditional looking house. Maybe if the blue had more gray or you paint the shutters. Maybe because there is very little white? It looks out of place

    • Courtney says

      I have to agree I LOVE it up close, but when I scrolled down and saw it on the house as a whole it doesn’t look right with the brick to me.

    • Katherine says

      +1, I like the color but NOT on the house. The house is way too traditional and already has too many shades of neutral for that color to work. It would look great in a warmer climate or on a less formal house, but not in this case.

    • Stephanie says

      Ditto! Love your blog and so excited for your new house, just not digging this color. I would have loved a rich emerald or navy.

      Then again, not my house, not my jam :)

    • Jenna says

      agreed. I’m not too keen on this for your house but as long as you guys like it.

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Thanks guys! We love it, and sometimes photos and certain monitors can get a little wonky when compared to real life (so it might just not be “translating” as well on screen as it does in person). I propose that you all come over and hang out on our front porch with us. Haha! But really, no worries if it doesn’t float your boat – that’s completely cool. I think 100 people would pick 100 different door colors, so it’s just like expecting everyone to love the same food or the same bands. To each his own! :)

      xo
      s

    • decoratica says

      I agree too. At least in the photos appears as too light. But of course it is your choice and it’s great as long as you love it :)
      Xo

    • Shell says

      I think the issue may be that the color is not picking up any other colors from your house. The blue is directly contrasting the house, as opposed to complementing it?

    • YoungHouseLove says

      That could totally be it! We’re only 1% done with landscaping, so we’d love to bring in blue hydrangeas and blue planters among other landscaping that should make more sense of things. There are other colonials with blue doors and more landscaping that we love, so we can’t wait to see it come together. We’ve only been here around a month, so we’re just getting started :)

      xo
      s

    • alli says

      Agreed on the white shutters — it would really make that blue pop! Beautiful color! Love watching the house progress as it unfolds…

    • Moriah Jovan says

      I love the blue door, but the problem is it clashes with the gray on the face of the portico. Paint that white, and it’ll be fine.

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Oh yes, in person we love that siding color up there, but it probably reads differently on every monitor. We also have plans to frame that out more thickly (there will be more white) and possibly slat the front part so it looks more like slatted siding. We’ve seen other brick colonials in our neighborhood with that going on (slatted siding up there with white trim and a bold door) and we’ve loved the look!

      xo
      s

    • Jenn says

      I agree :/ I was realllly hoping for a beautiful emerald color. I was also hoping that blue color would be left at the last house lol but if it makes them happy, that’s all that matters!

    • Serena says

      Completely agree with everyone above. The blue is beautiful–such a great color for a door–but I don’t love it with your brick or something. It’s almost jarring to me. But maybe with more landscaping or something. I love pretty much everything you do, so maybe this will work out eventually.

  27. Jen. says

    Love the door!

    My little guy and I ate at Bob Evans last night. When he ordered his pancakes (laid out as an owl with whipped-cream eyes and a bacon eyebrow), he told the waitress, “But I don’t need the eyebrow.” :)

    Reply

  28. Nicole says

    Love the new door color! Do you worry at all about deer ticks and Lyme disease? I am from an area of New York where Lyme is prevalent.. is it also a big concern in Richmond?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      It doesn’t seem to be very prevalent although of course we do tick checks on ourselves and Burger. Burgs even has a lyme vaccine but in all of his vet’s years of experience (over 20) she said she’s never seen a single case of an animal getting Lyme’s Disease in Richmond or the surrounding area. I couldn’t believe it when I heard it, but it was definitely comforting!

      xo
      s

  29. Diane says

    It’s beautiful Sherry! :) You are such an inspiration to me! Now excuse me while I go paint the front door before breakfast . . .

    Reply

  30. Traci says

    I can’t believe you went with blue after all the blue that’s inside the house! I’d most likely swear off whatever color covered 90% of the woodwork – so props to you for not holding a grudge :)

    Reply

  32. Auntie Allyn says

    Nice choice of color . . . didn’t expect a blue door, but it really looks good. I’m curious about one thing . . . do you find that sample pots of paint really match the final product? I’ve found that some samples don’t always match the paint that I end up buying.

    Reply

    • HeatherB says

      I’ve had that problem with the Valspar samples at Lowes, more than once. The sample pots aren’t a true round bucket, and while their shape is cool looking, the paint doesn’t mix well. I can always see white streaks, even after they’ve mixed. I’ve tried stirring at home and still it doesn’t match the chip–it’s always slightly off. So if your problems were with Valspar, that may be why.

      I’ve often done sample pots from Behr and have never had a probelm with the color match there. When I was selling my house after 8 years, I went back to Home Depot and got a sample pot to do some wall touch-up and it was dead on…couldn’t believe the match!

      Also heard somewhere that the darker the color, the more likely a problem matching, but I’ve never had that happen.

  33. Caitie says

    Love the color you guys picked out! An unexpected one, but it looks so pretty!

    Has Clara named any of your deer friends yet? How neat for them to come so close!

    Reply

  34. Dee says

    Your new house looks a lot like the house John grew up in that his parents sold a few years ago (you posted about that and getting a painting done?).

    Reply

  36. Kaely says

    I love the color. Something wasn’t working for me when I first looked at the pictures, but I figured out what was bothering me. You need some blue hydrangeas to go with it. :) Well, really just something else blue to tie the color in. Maybe some pretty planters or something?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Oh yes, we have a lot more plans for planters and landscaping and grass and garden beds out there. I’d say we’re 1% done with the landscaping ;)

      xo
      s

  38. Emily says

    Love the new door color, not to mention the very handsome door knocker! Is the lock and door handle new, as well?

    I have to say, “Spirit in the Sky” is my favorite color *name* of the bunch, if not the best color for the actual door. Now that song will be in my head all day, accompanied by strange cravings to play Rock Band! :)

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Haha, now it’s in my head! John will be going into the door knocker and doorbell details tomorrow, and the door handle is about 6 months old (we switched them all out for new ones right when we bought the house so there were new locks and we didn’t have to worry about anyone having the keys to our house from the previous owners).

      xo
      s

  39. Kimberly @ Turning It Home says

    Wow, it looks great! I dream of the day I have a front door of my own to paint. Seriously though, I do… is that weird?

    Also, that deer in hilarious. Clara better watch out, she has a photo-bombing competitor!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Haha, and Burger too! The funny thing is the fawns look like Burger. I think he might be convinced he’s half deer, and they might just think he’s one of them…

      xo
      s

  41. Stefanie says

    Love this color, especially with the white around it. I can’t help but think that the black shutters look a little out of place now…but that could most certainly just be me. Any plans on changing their color?

    It’s amazing how such simple upgrades can make such an impact. =)

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We love the black shutters with the charcoal roof in person, although sometimes photos (or different monitors) don’t always paint the most accurate picture like seeing them in real life :)

      xo
      s

  42. Gracie says

    Question….what color are your shudders? They look black in most pics, but then every now and then you’ll post a pic and they almost look Royal Blue. Trying to figure out what all of your exterior colors are. Thx!

    Reply

  43. Ana Silva says

    OOOHHHH I love it! What a great color. I would like that color for my back door. My two front doors are the happiest yellow and I love them!

    Reply

  45. Libby says

    I’ve heard that in Amish country, they paint their door blue if they have a daughter of marriage-able age. So if a young man in a straw hat and a horse drawn buggy pulls up to your door asking for Clara, you may want to rethink the color! :)

    Reply

  46. Lisa E says

    Love it! I recently painted my front door a bright blue as well. Mine is a deeper blue, however. The previous owners had both the front door and the sidelights painted hunter green. I, too, painted my sidelights to match the trim, but all of our trim and windows are a tannish finish. I thought of using white, but since it wouldn’t match anything else, it would stand out like a soar thumb. We then bought a storm door that matches the sidelights, color is sandstone. We have a brick front facade, but it’s the lighter faded looking brick. I kept looking at houses every time I was in the car or online and noticed that it’s kind of split how people paint them. Well, at least around here it is. Some paint the sidelights the same color, others do as you and I did. Most of the entrances online I did notice, as well, paint the sidelights the trim color and I believe that’s how I made the decision. I like the door to stand out. Since I now have a storm door for ventilation, the added brightness of the blue helps to see it better.

    Reply

  47. JenB says

    I love, love it! We painted our front door this weekend, too! Last weekend, we bought a quart of a lovely, botanical green (real color name) and we were very excited about painting the door. That is until our 3 year old pulled the bag off of the dining room table and the quart of green paint exploded on the dining room floor! So this weekend, we bought an 8X10 rug to cover the green monster and then we painted the door. I was able to scrape enough paint off of the floor and put it back in the can to use on the door later. Unfortunately, this kind of thing is not uncommon for us when we attempt DIY projects!

    Reply

  48. Morgen says

    We used to live in a brick colonial. We had a red door and I wanted to paint the front door that same color (or at least a very close cousin to that color). Unfortunately we moved before I got a chance to paint it. I’m so glad to see it on your house. It looks great! You guys have great taste!

    Reply

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