Here's a taste of some of the Colour Expert questions and answers to help you with your own colour scheme.
If you would like more colour advice for your project, please ask our Colour Expert for help or come in and see our staff at your local Resene ColorShop or Reseller. Colours are a representation only.
Please refer to the actual paint or product sample. Resene colour charts, testpots and samples are available for ordering online.
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Q. We are looking to paint the exterior of our house, which is cedar and weatherboard. The cedar is stained dark brown and the weatherboard is white. We want to leave the cedar dark brown as we do not want to go any darker. We would like to update the weatherboard for a more organic natural colouring that fits with the dark brown. We would like to keep the windows white. Please suggest a colour for the weatherboard and a contrast for the garage and the front door. A. You might check out these colours to see if they appeal to you - Resene Cougar (Resene Karaka garage door/front door), Resene Copyrite (Resene Road Trip garage door/front door) or Resene Sandspit Brown (Resene Scoria garage door/front door).
April 2017
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Q. I want to paint my bathroom pale grey - possibly with a hint of blue. Can you recommend a colour to try? I painted it Resene Quarter Duck Egg Blue - but it looks like a boy's nursery room! I’m having no luck with the testpots I've tried (e.g. Resene Sea Fog just looks white). The colour needs to look OK under bright light as well as natural light. A. Am I right in thinking that the room doesn't get bright sunshine in it from the window? If this is the case and you have already tested a blue/grey colour - Resene Quarter Duck Egg which is far greyer than blue and it looks too blue it may be that a blue/grey is not the right colour for the room. Perhaps you might check these colours out - they are warmer greys - as they might suit the room more. Try Resene Midwinter Mist, Resene Eighth Truffle, Resene Half Concrete, Resene Black Haze or Resene Half White Pointer.
April 2017
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Q. What Resene Enamacryl colour would be the closest match to Duralloy Silver Pearl? I want to match/paint aluminium joinery. A. Silver Pearl is a metallic powder coat colour - not a plain flat paint. A Resene version of the colour has been done (for a plain paint) using Resene paint and tinters so a formula exists and can be annexed through any Resene ColorShop. As long as the item being painted is a long way away from the powder coat Silver Pearl (and can't be directly compared) then you won't notice any subtle difference created by the type of paint – Resene Enamacryl - in comparison. But if this is not the case you will notice the difference. April 2017
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Q. We have an ex-state house with terracotta roof tiles and Fibrolite exterior cladding. Our soffits are painted in Resene Half Wan White. We are thinking of doing the windows the same colour. We want to paint the walls a dark colour, probably green. What do you think would look best with the colours we already have? A. Some of the greyer or more muted types of green may work well with your trim colour and terracotta roof. You might check out these colours to see if they appeal to you - Resene Templestone, Resene Innocence, Resene Jurassic, Resene Yucca, Resene Rivergum or Resene Quarter Gravel.
April 2017
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Q. We need some advice on colour schemes for our house. We are located in a landscape feature zone, and in order to meet planning requirements we must specify the paint colour. It has to meet reflective requirements, walls 35% and roof 25%. We are recladding the upstairs in weatherboards and will be replacing the windows in aluminium joinery (colour to be determined). Unfortunately the house was recently re-roofed in a light green colour (Mist Green I think) so we are struggling with ideas. A. In order to have a balanced colour palette on the exterior of the house I suggest you use a very light colour for the powder coated window joinery. I think it would be a mistake to use the same colour as the roof (although it does meet the LRV % requirements) because you may be trapped in a green scheme forever as it is hard to move away from that when the windows compromise your options. The weatherboard LRV % requirement - if it is to be exactly 35% with no leeway to use mid tone or lighter colours - might be one of these colours - although it too traps you in a zone of less choice. Here are a selection of colours that sit in the mid tones. In some cases they are deeper than LRV 45% - LRV 100% which is the recommendation for timber weatherboards according to BRANZ. But they aren't too deep and I would definitely recommend that they be made into the reformulated CoolColour™ versions to get as much benefit from the reflectivity of this technology. This will minimise heat associated jeopardisation of deeper colours when applied to timber surfaces. Try Resene Bison Hide (LRV 49%), Resene Half Craigieburn (LRV 44%), Resene Double Truffle (LRV 44%), Resene Quarter Arrowtown (LRV 44%), Resene Half Taupe Grey (LRV 42%) or Resene Triple Tea (LRV 43%). Powder coat colours for the window joinery that might be considered are these - they are neutral enough to work with any roof and weatherboard colours - Bone White, Titania, Cloud, Warm White Pearl or Appliance White.
April 2017
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Q. I wondered what colour to do the roof and base of this property. I was thinking of Resene Triple Sea Fog, Resene Alabaster or Resene Grey Friars for the weatherboards and Resene Black White for the windows. A. The house won't know itself once it is repainted in these smart neutral colours. You might consider a slightly warmer toned deep grey or an olive based earthy grey so the roof and base works really well with the Resene Triple Sea Fog. Try Resene Windswept (Resene version of COLORSTEEL® TernStyle) or Resene Squall (Resene version of COLORSTEEL® Thunder Grey).
April 2017
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Q. We have replaced all the windows with aluminium joinery. The colour is Matt Titania. The house is weatherboard and built in the 60s. Can you please help with a colour that would look great on the weatherboards and soffits? We also want to paint the roof. A. You might check out these colours to see if they appeal to you - they work well with the yellow/grey toned Titania. Try Resene Eighth Stonewall, Resene Overland or Resene Helium. Under the soffits could be a much lighter crisper white colour like one of these - Resene Eighth Thorndon Cream, Resene Quarter Rice Cake or Resene Quarter Black White. The roof might be deeper - perhaps like these colours - Resene Windswept, Resene Squall or Resene Ironsand.
April 2017
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Q. We want some colour schemes for a nursery. We like a colour block idea and are thinking of grey tones, or otherwise blue tones? We have repainted our house in Resene Double Sea Fog, with Resene Alabaster trims, so may use them as two of the colours, and need at least two more to go with them? We would have metallic accents around the room – copper or gold. A. Perhaps you could use a deep charcoal like Resene Quarter Bokara Grey to create a strong contrast with the Resene Alabaster and then one or two of these greys - Resene Half Foggy Grey, Resene Shuttle Grey, Resene Half Jumbo, Resene Revolution, Resene Duck Egg Blue or Resene Dusted Blue.
April 2017
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Q. We have chosen Mist Green for our COLORSTEEL® roof, which we haven't ordered yet, on a 1904 villa we are renovating. I see Resene Quarter Cararra is a match for walls which I like the look of, but we wondered about a colour for the window and door trims? Would a darker shade of Resene Cararra work? We're surrounded by green paddocks. A. You could use (full strength) Resene Cararra. It will be a subtle look but quite nice and it does have a little green in its undertone. Alternatively, you could use one of these greener colours as they work well with the roof colour and the Resene Quarter Cararra - Resene Quarter Tana or Resene Titania.
April 2017
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Q. I have to reclad, reroof and put new windows into this house. I was going to paint it something like Resene Half Doeskin, with white window frames, white guttering and install fretwork under the front eaves, which will be painted a dark charcoal. The side main doors will be a dark charcoal and lights will be installed, high, either side of the roller door in dark bronze with opaque glass. Timber railings on a new balcony will be a crisp white. What colour should I paint the new roller door? I am removing the bottom left hand side window; this will be clad in cement weatherboards. The upper section we will paint with Resene X-400 with a spaghetti roller. A. You might think about whether or not you want the garage door to be an eye catching colour or a softly tonally merging colour. If you want it to be 'Wow - here is my garage door - take note!' then you could use a deep traditional green or a charcoal or a rich warm dark brown – try Resene Permanent Green, Resene Foundry or Resene Lignite. But a softer colour that doesn't leap out at you but just says 'Yes I am here' modestly might be this sort of colour - Resene Desert Sand.
April 2017
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Q. What is the closest Resene colour match to the COLORSTEEL® Windsor Grey? A. Resene have formulated a version of COLORSTEEL® Endura Windsor Grey. If you ask for it, please make sure you say that it is the COLORSTEEL® Endura Windsor Grey as there is also another powder coat company with a colour of the same name. April 2017
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Q. I would like to paint our hallway white, but there are so many different shades, it's hard to decide which one! The hallway is quite dark with no windows and matai flooring so I was thinking of a warm white, perhaps like Resene White Pointer or Resene Half White Pointer. A. If you decide you want a warm white that has a good reflectance in the dim hallway you might look at these ones that aren't grey/beige based colours - Resene Half Merino, Resene Half Sea Fog, Resene Eighth Fossil or Resene Half Albescent White.
April 2017
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Q. I’m looking for a darker neutral colour for our lounge which has rimu trim/windows/skirting boards. The rimu has shellac on it so is quite orange in colour. What colour would complement this but tone down the orange? The room is very sunny as it faces north/west. In the rest of the house we have used Resene Rice Cake on the walls and Resene Eighth Rice Cake trim with Resene Alabaster ceiling, and Resene Double Rice Cake in the kitchen, but are looking for something a bit more interesting in the lounge. We have been thinking about Resene Double Merino, Resene Thorndon Cream or maybe Resene Quarter Linen or Resene Half Linen but haven't done any testpots. The natural light has a yellow/red tone. A. Because the natural light that floods into your lounge has a yellow/red tone (which will be more so as the sun sinks lower in the sky towards sunset) I am unsure that any wall colour will block that out and make the rimu look less orange. But slightly deeper tones of colour will stop the rimu from being the deepest (and most noticeable) coloured element in the room. You mention lighter colours and certainly if that is your preference you do need to trial them to see how they work with the natural light and the rimu. You might look at these colours that are a little bit 'more' in depth - Resene Triple Rice Cake, Resene Triple Merino, Resene Linen, Resene Parchment, Resene Double Thorndon Cream or Resene Half Tea. Do not be surprised if the light in the lounge at certain times of the afternoon alters the colours and brings out more orange/red/yellowness and makes the green edge of the colour appear to be a warm Russian toffee colour - it won't look like that first thing in the morning. I think a north/west facing room is a blessing as it always has light and warmth no matter what the weather is like and your room has a lovely mellow ambiance. April 2017
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Q. We want to paint the exterior of our house with grey walls and white around the windows. The veranda will have a charcoal trim on the gutter, door, veranda floor, and maybe the veranda railing. We are thinking Resene Triple Concrete for the walls and Resene Sea Fog for the white trim, although we are not sure about the charcoal trim. What do you suggest? A. You might check out these lovely charcoals to see if they are the sort of colour you have in mind - Resene Half Nocturnal, Resene Half Baltic Sea, Resene Steel Grey, Resene Half Fuscous Grey, Resene Grey Friars or Resene Half Shark.
April 2017
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Q. We need a colour for our exterior plaster cladding. We live rurally and have an Ironsand roof and Titania joinery. A. You might like to investigate these colours to see if they appeal to you - Resene Double Truffle, Resene Quarter Stonewall, Resene Bone White, Resene Taupe Grey, Resene Foggy Grey or Resene Quarter Mondo. These colours - which are all earthy natural tones - are quite different from each other so they will provide plenty of options to choose from.
April 2017
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Q. We are painting the majority of the inside of our house Resene Surrender and for our two boys’ bedrooms we have said they can pick a feature wall colour each. One wants a bright blue the other red. What colours will go with the Resene Surrender on the other walls? A. You might get the boys to check out these lovely bright blues and reds - I am positive they will see something that really rips their socks off - Resene Optimist, Resene Bondi Blue, Resene Double Resolution Blue, Resene Jalapeno, Resene Poppy or Resene Smashing. Yes they are knock out bright colours but one wall is a joyous colour statement and easy enough to completely change as they grow older and their taste changes. The main colour – Resene Surrender - is a soft grey that works well with lots of colours.
April 2017
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Q. We have a cottage in Queenstown that we are renovating and would like some advice on what to paint the inside and outside. On the inside, we would like to paint one colour throughout with another colour around the door frames and possibly doors. We would like the colour neutral to make the place look more open and bigger, although as it is in Queenstown, not a cold colour. We would also like to do the outside, with a contrasting colour on the handrail and bargeboards. The exterior is stained. A. Stain colours that you might consider - Resene Waterborne Woodsman Iroko or Resene Tiri. Handrails and bargeboards might be one of these colours - a little bit more green to try and tie in the window joinery so it isn't 'home alone' - Resene Paddock, Resene Canyon or for something different Resene Overland, Resene Pioneer Red or Resene Spanish White. The interior could be one of these warm light neutral colours - walls and ceilings lighter and woodwork/doors slightly deeper - Resene Eighth Spanish White/Resene Quarter Spanish White, Resene Quarter Tea/Resene Half Tea or Resene Eighth Akaroa/Resene Quarter Akaroa. April 2017
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Q. I have Resene Pearl Lusta cabinets in my south side, dark kitchen. What colour can I paint the walls for a light bright and fresh white? Also what colour could I use on the trims? Our roof is COLORSTEEL® Grey Friars. What white could I paint the cottage weatherboards? Could you also suggest a colour for the trims? I am after a clean country look. A. I think one of these whites may work for you in the kitchen - Resene Eighth Pearl Lusta or Resene Half Bianca. The trims could be the same colour which is a simple look otherwise you could just use Resene Quarter Alabaster for a whiter/crisper look. For the exterior perhaps one of these options may appeal to you - Resene Rice Cake, Resene Sea Fog or Resene Merino. These colours do come as slightly deeper versions if you need to have a bit more in the way of colour on the exterior. Resene White works really well for trims. If this seems a little too stark, then you might use Resene Quarter Alabaster - it just has the edge taken off it but still looks traditional and timeless.
April 2017
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Q. We have a painted roughcast and red brick house. We are painting the roof and fences Ironsand. What colour should we paint the roughcast above and below the brick and below the window frames? We will leave the window frames white. A. You might use a light neutral colour - one of these colours may appeal to you - Resene Half Truffle, Resene Thorndon Cream or Resene Quarter Bison Hide.
April 2017
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Q. I am trying to choose a Resene colour to paint our acrylic splashback behind our stove. We want a colour that is going to modernise our kitchen. We have terracotta floor tiles, white window sills, cream cabinetry and Resene Quarter Tea on the walls. A. It seems to me as though you have quite a colourful kitchen - walls, tiles, cabinets, worktops - so any colour that might be considered for the splashback needs to work very well with what you have now. You might look at these colours to see if they appeal to you - Resene Tea (deeper than the walls), Resene Tuscany (deeper terracotta to tie in the floors and relate to the rich coloured wooden top on the servery) or Resene True Blue (deep blue to relate to the china I see on the open shelves).
April 2017
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Q. What white would you recommend to use on the walls and trims in a glossy white kitchen with a teak wooden floor? We are thinking about Resene Alabaster or Resene Half Black White. We are looking for a fresh contemporary look. A. Matching exactly to another white (like the kitchen cabinets) is always tricky. But if you used a white that is a little more toned then the cabinets would be the whitest white and would pop out a little bit. I think that either of these colours may be a little better than the ones you have mentioned - Resene Double Alabaster or Resene Black White. The ceilings and the woodwork trims could always be real white - Resene White to add layers of tonal white into the room to create visual interest.
April 2017
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Q. We are building a new house but are using second hand joinery, which is New Denim Blue. We are looking at a COLORSTEEL® roof. We are unsure of what colour we should use to paint the Rockcote, roof, fascia and spouting. A. In order to tie in the window joinery you might consider using the same colour for the roof. I would hate to think that the New Denim Blue windows didn't have a friend. A warm grey/beige or a complex green edged cream might be considered for the main colour on the Rockcote - Resene Quarter Cloudy, Resene Half Truffle, Resene Thorndon Cream or Resene Half Ecru White. Fascias and spouting might be lighter/brighter to add a little crisp contrast - Resene Alabaster or Resene Half Black White.
April 2017
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Q. We are painting the exterior of our plaster and LINEA® house. We are thinking of Resene Triple Truffle for the plaster (we have been told by our plasterer that we should go below a 40 LRV) and are struggling to find darker colours for the LINEA® that will complement it. We have looked at Resene Masala, which makes everything look a bit brown, and Resene Dune, which doesn't quite work, although we could live with either of these colour combos if need be. We'd prefer something a bit darker though - but still earthy tones. What do you suggest? A. You don't mention what colour the roof, garage door and window joinery colours are - these are usually powder coat colours and because there is a limited range of colours to choose from it is usually wise to check these out first and then co-ordinate everything else. You might look at these colours as options for the LINEA® (bracketed colours roof etc option) - Resene Triple Friar Grey (COLORSTEEL® TernStyle), Resene Half Baltic Sea (COLORSTEEL® FlaxPod), Resene Quarter Ironsand (COLORSTEEL® Ironsand) or Resene Quarter Bokara Grey (COLORSTEEL® Ebony).
April 2017
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Q. I have been told by a painter that Resene Alabaster can be tricky and can often seem darker on the outside of walls etc due to a smaller amount of tinting. Also that Resene Black White is a better option. Is this true? A. This sounds a bit strange to me. Resene Alabaster doesn't have a bad reputation - it is extremely popular which indicates it has a good reputation - wouldn't you think? Resene Alabaster is lighter than Resene Black White which is greyer toned. If a painter wanted to cover more easily any existing paint colour (in 1 coat instead of the standard recommendation of 2-3 coats) then a greyer white might do that. But that is more about taking a short cut rather than Resene White or Resene Alabaster (which is a tinted white so a little more shaded than real Resene White) being 'tricky'. Perhaps the painter already has Resene Black White on hand which they could use and so they would prefer to use that.
April 2017
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Q. We have a 1920s villa with high ceilings and gorgeous rich matai floors. Mainly my furnishings are like a brushed pewter aluminium with glass tops, dark grey lounge suite. I also have wrought iron in my home. We have huge colour artworks with bright colours in silver frames. Some have black frames. My question is what colour to paint the interior. Do I stick to a grey colour with white ceilings and door trims or do I steer away from greys. I want a warm bright inviting colour scheme. For our kitchen we are thinking a high gloss white. A. Greys aren't usually referred to as warm, bright or inviting. They are fundamental neutrals with minimal personality that allows whites, charcoals and blacks to make a scheme look very contemporary and smart. Grey does work well with deep or muted colours, clear toned pastel colours and bright bold colours. So they are very obliging. Grey comes alive when colours are seen close to it. If you prefer a light to mid toned backdrop for your bright coloured artworks then you might check out these greys – Resene Cloudy, Resene Double Concrete or Resene Quarter Silver Chalice. Using a true white - Resene White - for the ceilings and door trims will work best with a high gloss white kitchen rather than using a 'coloured' white.
April 2017
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Q. In my house with large windows, lots of greenery and golden timber flooring, I am freshening the walls by painting them with Resene Double Alabaster. Can you please suggest complementary whites for my new kitchen cabinetry that will be a slightly stronger colour than the Double Alabaster? I am considering either a creamy or a grey engineered stone benchtop. A. You might check out these colours - they are slightly more toned than the wall colour you have – Resene Half Sea Fog (aka Resene Triple Alabaster), Resene Sea Fog, Resene Black White or Resene Double Black White.
April 2017
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Q. Our new house will be clad in Plastercote (Rockcote) and cedar board. I have samples of Resene Tea and Resene Napa for the plaster finish and samples of Resene Warm Kwila, Resene Nutmeg, Resene Cedar, Resene Heartwood and Resene Timberland all stained onto cedar samples. What stains and plaster finish match? A good combination is more important to us than choosing any particular colour. A. These paint colours look really nice with these stain colours - Resene Waterborne Woodsman English Walnut, Resene Treehouse or Resene Bushtrack. If you want a warmer stain colour with more of a ginger/red/light brown tone then Resene Waterborne Woodsman Nutmeg looks nice with the more grey/beige/yellow toned Resene Napa and Resene Tea.
April 2017
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Q. The exterior of my home is board and pine ply batten which I am staining with Resene Waterborne Woodsman Shadow Match. I want to paint the down pipes, which are white plastic, to match. Can you suggest a paint colour? A. You might try either Resene Bokara Grey or Resene Half Bokara Grey. Because the colour is so dark it will attract heat and may cause the white plastic downpipes to expand and contract. This may mean that you see a little bit of white plastic where the joins are every now and again - it might pay to have a little amount of paint ready to quickly touch up the white plastic so it doesn't annoy you.
April 2017
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Q. I would like advice in choosing a colour to match my Resene Half Tea exterior walls and dark charcoal Decramastic tile roof. The colour is for the wood around the front porch, garage door and back door. Currently it is a green but I wondered about a blue. A. You might check out these colours - some are blue and some more blue/grey toned - they do look really nice with Resene Half Tea and dark charcoal – Resene True Blue, Resene Regatta, Resene New Denim Blue, Resene Half Tuna, Resene Avalanche or Resene Rhino.
April 2017
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Q. I am having trouble choosing an exterior wall colour. I would appreciate any help you can give. I am after a modern colour that looks good. The roof and garage door are painted in Resene Grey Friars and the windows are Resene Flint. A. These are some nice modern colours that you might use - Resene Tea, Resene Triple Sea Fog or Resene White Pointer.
April 2017
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Q. I have a large internal double garage with a high ceiling. The walls need to be repainted and I am unsure whether to continue the Resene Quarter Tea from in the hallway or if this will be too washed out in a large area. I was also thinking of using Resene Thorndon Cream. The garage floor is painted a charcoal grey, similar to Friar Grey. A. If you want the garage area to look warmer and more friendly (less industrial/bland in ambiance) then you might use a deeper version of the colour you have used in the hallway and use a definite colour on the ceiling (not white) to visibly lower it a little bit - Resene Tea with a ceiling that is painted in Resene Quarter Tea, Resene Thorndon Cream with a ceiling that is painted in Resene Quarter Thorndon Cream, or Resene Quarter Napa with a ceiling that is painted in Resene Albescent White.
April 2017
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Q. We want to do our walls in Resene Half Black White and the windowsills, door frames, ceiling etc in Resene Alabaster. Do these colours work well together? We just want the frames, sills etc to be a little bit lighter but not too much. A. You may not notice any difference at all between these two colours as they are very close in depth.If you wanted to see a slight difference, it would possibly be better to use Resene Half Alabaster. Alternatively, you could use the same colour as the walls, just relying on the different sheen levels to create the difference - i.e. Resene Lustacryl semi-gloss enamel for the woodwork and Resene SpaceCote Flat for the ceiling.
April 2017
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Q. We want to repaint the whole exterior of our house. We are thinking of using Resene Grey Friars for the roof, gutters and garage door. We are keeping our bright blue aluminium joinery and for the plaster I’m thinking of a very light grey colour. What would you recommend? I also thought we could use a grey white for the plaster around the garage to mix it up and we would have a white soffit. A. By leaving the bright blue aluminium joinery as it is and changing roof, garage door and gutters to a charcoal and the main house colour to a grey it will make the windows a very strong blue colour feature. Is this ok? You might look at these greys to see if they appeal to you - Resene Half Gull Grey, Resene Midwinter Mist or Resene Half Grey Chateau. A grey/white that you might use on the soffits and around the garage might be this colour - Resene Black White.
April 2017
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Q. My steel roof and guttering is COLORBOND® Dune. I am about to replace two roller doors and I am not sure whether to go with Dune to match the roof (generally uninspiring) or some other neutral colour such as Evening Haze, with the fascia a slightly darker colour like Cove, or the Resene equivalents. I did my last house with Resene paints (Resene Bison Hide and Resene Shark). A. I am not so sure about using Evening Haze or Cove for the garage doors - they are much more yellow based neutral colours and it makes the Dune powder coat look really 'off' by comparison. Would you mind seeing non-related possibly clashing colours on the house? If it is COLORBOND® powder coated doors that you are getting, then you might use Jasper. This does look good with Dune. Have you thought of getting plain galvanised metal doors and painting them yourself? That way you can use Resene paint colours that may suit the existing colours on the house and look more harmonious. Paint options to choose from - Resene Settlement, Resene Quarter Cougar, Resene Double Schooner, Resene Stonewashed, Resene Quarter Lignite or Resene Quarter Ironsand.
April 2017
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Q. We have painted the VJ panelling in the vaulted ceiling of a living room, in our beach house, in a flat ceiling white but are unsure whether to paint the exposed rafters (DesignPine) in a flat ceiling white or a low sheen ceiling white so that they are more of a feature. The room is very bright. What do you suggest? A. Exposed rafters are already a feature so they don't need to be made more of a feature with a shinier paint finish. If the room is very bright you don't need to make the beams shinier to reflect light more. It is a personal choice as to whether or not you enhance the beams - you may like to make them different so that all eye attention is focused on them and not other elements in the room. April 2017
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Q. In your opinion, which colour better complements Resene Blanched Pink – Resene Half Washed Green or Resene Robin Egg Blue? Or do they both work as complementary colours. A. I think they both work well but I do like the dusty muted tone of Resene Half Washed Green. I do think that Karen Walker may have had the same idea as Half Washed Green is on the same palette sheet as Blanched Pink. But you may prefer to use the more definite green - Resene Robin Egg Blue.
April 2017
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Q. We are building a house on a lifestyle block and want to style it ‘modern farmhouse’. We are putting in a painted shaker style kitchen, which I want to be white, with either a marble bench or white quartz look in laminate. We are pretty sure we are using Resene Double Rice Cake for the walls. What is a nice white we can paint the kitchen cabinets? I want to use something that doesn't make the Resene Double Rice Cake look too yellow. We are thinking of having black hardware on the drawers/cupboards. It’s open plan living, so all the walls will be Resene Double Rice Cake. A. Colours in an interior can look a lot deeper (or brighter) than you might imagine they will do. So the Resene Double Rice Cake will always look yellow/green - possibly more like Resene Triple Rice Cake. Is that what you are wanting? If it isn't, then it may be wise to consider using Resene Rice Cake. It may look like Resene Double Rice Cake but it won't look like Triple Rice Cake. Please test colours carefully to ensure you know exactly how the colour responds to space, light and shade at different times during the day and night. Testpots are your best friend in this regard - paint all of the testpot onto A2 card (available from Resene ColorShops) and move it around from wall to wall/room to room. A very pale version of the colour that will look stunning for the kitchen cabinets - Resene Eighth Rice Cake or if you feel it is too 'white' you could try this version - Resene Quarter Rice Cake.
April 2017
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Q. Our house is currently painted one colour all over, in COLORBOND® Paperbark. It is two storeys, being rendered on the bottom half and Shadowclad® boards on the top half. It faces east and has a skillion roof in COLOROND® Jasper as well as guttering and fascia all Jasper. Window frames are cream and security screens are black. We want to get completely away from the yellow look and would like two colour shades, darker bottom and lighter top. We love greys and browns or maybe Resene Greige. We do not want our house to look like a large muddy cake by painting top and bottom two colours though. Do you have any suggestions please? A. You might like to check these tonally related colours out to see if they appeal to you - Resene Cougar/Resene Quarter Cougar, Resene Double Stonehenge/Resene Half Stonehenge, Resene Friar Grey/Resene Quarter Friar Grey, Resene Taupe Grey/Resene Quarter Taupe Grey, or a much deeper colour coupled with a mid-tone colour - Resene Ironsand/Resene Half Sandstone. April 2017
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Q. My bathroom tiles come up 600mm short of the ceiling. It is an internal room so has no outside windows, just a skylight. The walls tiles are pure white gloss and there is one wall with a polished concrete look tile. What do I paint in between the top of the tiles and ceiling and also the ceiling itself? I want to keep the room looking light and maybe also create a feature of the grey tiled wall? A. The simplest option - and the one to effectively make this dark space seem much lighter - is to use Resene White in a semi-gloss enamel paint designated for bathrooms – Resene Lustacryl semi-gloss Kitchen & Bathroom waterborne enamel. If you choose a colour for this area it may compete for attention with the grey tiled wall.
April 2017
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Q. We have repainted our bedroom and hallway walls Resene Quarter Thorndon Cream, skirting is the same (but in semi-gloss). What would be a colour option for the doors? We thought of Resene Thorndon Cream as a possibility but were wondering if there is a grey tone colour option? At present, we have kept Resene Tea around the door frames but I think it would be best to repaint in Resene Quarter Thorndon Cream semi-gloss as well (but my husband likes the Resene Tea!). What would you suggest? A. You might look at using greyish colours like one of these for the doors - Resene Double Black White or warmer toned - Resene Quarter Ash. I do agree with you in regard to doing the door frames in Resene Quarter Thorndon Cream.
April 2017
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Q. We have a large lounge, 7.7m long by 4m wide. It has a dark brick fireplace with wood panelling on one wall; the room is northwest facing and gets a lot of sun. We also have some stunning silk drapes in a pinky red with a hint of gold; I'd love to keep these if possible. Can you suggest a colour we could paint the brickwork and wood panelling? A. You could paint the wood panelling in a deeper version of the main wall colour so it is a subtle feature. It might not be a super feature but it would co-ordinate well with the drapes. Do you know what colour you have used? The brick work is trickier. If the fire is used a lot then it wouldn't be advisable to use a pale colour as the carbon/smoke and ash would mark it. Mind you, if it was a gas fire this wouldn't present a problem. So - if it was darker - what type of dark colour? If you don't like brown you could check out warm charcoal colours - Resene Fuscous Grey, Resene Half Bokara Grey or Resene Ironsand.
April 2017
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Q. I am painting the exterior of an old villa, Resene Cinder, with the roof done in Resene Whitewater. All of the exterior window trim, doors and porch rails etc are being done in Resene Alabaster. We are replacing the floor of the porch area with new timber as the old has rotted in parts, and also the steps. The question is, what colour options do we consider for the floor of the porch? We don't want to do it too light because of wear and tear but don't want it too dark, given that the weatherboards are Resene Cinder. A. Perhaps you could look at these colours - to see if they appeal to you - Paint options - Resene Quarter Tuna, Resene Quarter Baltic Sea or Resene Half Raven. Stain options - Resene Woodsman - Bleached Cedar, Silvered Grey or Smokey Ash. Or you could oil the wood to a natural look - Resene Furniture & Decking Oil.
April 2017
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Q. We have done a new kitchen renovation with a Caesarstone® Oyster benchtop and we need to choose a kitchen cupboard paint colour and a colour for the glass splashback. The cupboards will have no handles. We are looking at Resene Quarter Perfect Taupe for the cupboards and maybe Resene Half Perfect Taupe for the splashback - is this too much grey? A. I don't think it is too much grey - and especially since Resene Perfect Taupe and the lighter variants of the colour are warm mushroom toned taupe/greys and not at all industrial or cool looking. It is a personal choice - but please do test the colours well by painting up very large samples onto A2 white card so you get a good overall view of the colours and can check out how they alter in changing natural and artificial light. Place them vertically over a horizontal sample of the Oyster so you can see how they react to each other - it is so important that they be harmonious.
April 2017
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Q. We are building a house and in the living room I would like to use a blue/grey colour, but I am finding it very difficult to find something just right. On the sample colour strips, the colours look completely different to pictures of rooms painted with the colours. Take for example, Resene Nepal or Bali Hai - on the strip they look perfect, but when I have googled pictures of them in real life they are much lighter in colour. Do you have any suggestions? A. Oh dear - you have found out that technology is not advanced enough to show colours on the computer or in printed photos as anything other than representations of what they are truly like. That is why it is important to use testpots. If you paint the entire testpot (two coats) onto a large A2 card (available from Resene ColorShops) and leave a narrow unpainted border all around the edges it will help you a lot, large enough to see the reality of the colour. The unpainted white card border helps you focus on the true depth of the colour plus it acts as a barrier to stop any other colour from negatively influencing how you see the colour - even unpainted plasterboard is a colour. The card can be taped to the wall surface and viewed from close up and further away. The card can be moved from wall to wall to see how changing angles, light and shade alter the colour. Colours in an interior have the potential to look twice the depth you imagine they will be so be prepared to see the colour deeper not lighter when all four walls are painted. Handy hints for you: start off firstly by viewing the smaller A4 real paint colour samples in the Colour Library at your local Resene ColorShop to shortlist which colours may be better ones to trial at your house. Always stand the painted samples vertically (as they would be seen on a wall) and have flooring placed horizontally so you can see the angle correctly. Colours are greatly altered by other colours seen close to them.
April 2017
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Q. I am after a good colour to put in a boy’s bedroom that goes with skirting boards and window frames that are painted Resene Quarter Spanish White. Would you have any suggestions, I am reluctant to paint the walls Resene Quarter Spanish White as I am afraid it will be too yellow? A. The main problem - as I see it - is that the trims may well look far more yellow than you might imagine unless a reasonably deep colour is used on the walls to force your eye to judge the trims as whiter than they really are. You don't mention what colours you and the boys like. Here are a few ideas to get you started - Resene Tea, Resene Quarter Regent Grey, Resene Summer Green, Resene Moby or Resene Hope.
April 2017
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Q. There is an existing colour on our ceilings and cornices of Resene Quarter Black White. The house is only two years old, and we have just replaced our flooring to a wood, natural oak colour. We have painted the walls in Resene Double Alabaster and I am undecided on what to paint the skirting, frames and doors. The ceilings now look a horrible cream colour. I was going for a crisp white modern look that I have not seemed to have achieved. I wondered if I should paint the walls with Resene Alabaster. A. A crisp white modern look might be more easily achieved - with your wall colour Resene Double Alabaster - if you used a lesser variant like Resene Quarter Alabaster or even real white - Resene White. Have you thought of that as an option? Ceilings - because of the shadow that natural and artificial light creates - always look deeper or greyer that when the exact same colour is used on the walls - because it reflects a different quality of light.
April 2017
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Q. We have reclad our farm cottage with LINEA® weatherboards and Silver Pearl joinery. The roof is plain corrugated iron in silver. I am looking for colour options that will give enough contrast to the joinery but not be too dark, I want the dwelling to be homely. I’m also looking for inside colours that are warm and will match. I like Resene Duck Egg Blue for the bathroom or something along those lines please. A. Silver Pearl joinery has a distinct warm yellow/grey undertone. Contrast to the joinery might be along these lines - perhaps you could check them out to see if they appeal to you. A lighter option - Resene Quarter Foggy Grey, deeper option - Resene Gauntlet, darker - Resene Friar Grey, Resene Ironside Grey or Resene Dune. A warm neutral colour that isn't too brown, grey or yellow might be one of these colours - Resene Sea Fog, Resene Quarter White Pointer, Resene Barely There or Resene Eighth Truffle. Resene Duck Egg Blue is a lovely dusty shell blue that can look mostly grey - depending on the light. Other colours that are similar are these ones - Resene Half Periglacial Blue or Resene Quarter Powder Blue. April 2017
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Q. We are about to erect a 1.8m macrocarpa front fence. The exterior of the house is Resene Triple Bison Hide and the gutters we think are Ironsand. We are not sure about the roof but the garage doors are cedar with the boundary fences being black. We want to stain the fence, but are uncertain what colour to use. A. These colours may be appropriate - please check them out - Resene Woodsman – Resene Iroko, Resene Tiri, Resene Banjul, Resene Sheer Black, Resene Touchwood, Resene Shadow Match or Resene Oiled Cedar.
April 2017
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Q. We recently purchased a house built in 1910; it would be best be described as a transitional villa. My problem is that the wooden floors cast a very orange shade that is making choosing colours harder than I had anticipated. The previous owners were quite adventurous with colour with mauve, claret and buttery yellow walls, all making an appearance but they all seem to clash with the orange in the floor. I'm a bit stumped with whether we should be aiming for cool or warm toned paint colours? The previous owners have seemed to run with the warm tones in the wood and pair the orange toned floor with peachy neutral walls and a pink toned marble in the fireplace surround and hearth and brass lighting fixtures. The white trims appear to be Black White or similar and they almost have a bright fluorescent glow compared to everything else. I love greens generally, so the thought of bringing a dark green as an accent colour is attractive to me, in the region of Resene Permanent Green but I fear it may not work with our orange floor? A. Sometimes when rooms have very definite colours in them it is hard to gauge exactly what a change of colour will look like. The natural light for instance may be reflecting off the existing colours making you see the rooms quite differently than if all surfaces were undercoated in white. If this was the case then the size and shape of the room may seem different. The natural light playing on each wall and the angles may create shadow. I have seen this work well for people because they get a better idea when the wall colours aren't influencing their eye. Testing colours on a real white background will allow you to see the reality of the colour without an existing wall colour negatively affecting it or making your eyes misjudge the colour. You will always have the rich warmth of the wooden floors to take into account. Unless you choose to carpet over them they will always exert a strong influence. Addressing the white trims - a warmer white (but not too yellow in tone) may be more sympathetic. Perhaps, with less bright whiteness, the contrast between it and the wooden floors isn't so stark. These ones may be worth checking out - Resene Half Albescent White or Resene Eighth Akaroa. A neutral palette that might appeal - and work with the 'whites' suggested - could be these types of colours - Resene Half Fossil and Resene Fossil, or Resene Quarter Akaroa and Resene Akaroa. Some dark green accent colours to look at - these should work in the room with the neutrals, warm whites and wooden floors - Resene Celtic (a green that has a subtle blue edge to it), Resene Timber Green (slight yellow undertone), or Resene Palm Green (a traditional deep green]). April 2017
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Q. We have purchased a 1910s villa with high ceilings in Auckland and would like to paint the entire interior in shades of off white. We do not want a light grey but would prefer a warm off white. The ceilings and walls the same colour but slightly darker than the skirting, doors and window surrounds. Do you have a winning combination you could recommend? A. These warm off whites are lovely and popular: All whites pick up the changing aspects of light and shade and respond to the axis of light (N/S/W/E) in each room, so the wall colour may look different in all of the rooms. Ceilings - if painted the same colour as the walls - will always appear slightly deeper - so a lighter variant is usually recommended. April 2017
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Q. I am looking for an exterior colour that would be the equivalent of Quadruple Tea for my Californian Bungalow. The exterior will be plastered with Resene Half Tea for the eaves. I have used Resene Triple Tea on the interior living room and would like a shade darker for the exterior. I am wondering about Resene Arrowtown but feel it may be too dark. A. Resene Half Arrowtown may be better – it is not as dark as full strength Resene Arrowtown. Or try Resene Beaten Track – it has a little more depth but less yellow in it.
April 2017
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Q. The walls of our bedroom are Resene Quarter Napa and we are currently painting our ensuite. Does this need to be the same colour tone e.g. Resene Napa or does it not matter? A. The ensuite can be quite different as long as it looks nice close to the bedroom wall colour and not jarring or so random you wonder where the colour came from. If you favour continuing with the bedroom theme then you may be wise to go lighter - i.e. Resene Eighth Napa - as the smaller the room and the use of lots of white ceramic bathroom fittings will make the colour seem deeper (it might look like Resene Quarter Napa) than you might imagine - so less is more than enough when it comes to colour in this type of space. Alternatively you could investigate a soft duck egg type of colour to create a contrast that is sympathetic but not the same as the bedroom colour - i.e. Resene Half Duck Egg Blue or a soft dusty white - i.e. Resene Double Sea Fog. You have lots of options available to you.
April 2017
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Q. I'd like some assistance for a colour scheme for a 1930 timber cladding/window house. I was thinking a sage/earthy green with white trimmings and a bold accent. Alternatively, a grey wall colour with white trimmings and a bold green accent. A. Try these colours - sage/earthy option - Resene Half Lemon Grass/Resene Eighth Pearl Lusta/Resene Trouble, or for a grey option - Resene Double House White/Resene Half Black White/Resene Atlas.
April 2017
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Q. We've painted Resene Quarter Stonehenge on exterior walls, full Resene Stonehenge on shutters, I would like to do an accent colour for the front door that will say WOW! What colour will go with Resene Stonehenge? A. The following colour suggestions have buckets of WOW! - perhaps you could check them out – Resene Zinzan, Resene Jalapeno, Resene Whizz Bang, Resene Turbo, Resene Left Field or Resene She’ll Be Right.
April 2017
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Q.
Our house is Italian style and painted in Resene Napa. What would be a good colour for a stained wooden fence? The windows are tinted (brownish) and the windows and doors are grey/blue. A. These are some stain colours that you might check out to see if they appeal to you - Resene Woodsman – Resene Iroko, Resene Tiri,Resene Sheer Black, Resene Bushtrack or Resene Bleached Cedar.
April 2017
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Q. We have a Gerard Tuff coat tile roof in Obsidian. Can you indicate the best COLORSTEEL® match or Resene colour match? We are building a new carport and also need a new garage door. We would like to match the existing house roof colour to the carport roof and the garage door. A. I think Obsidian (black) may look a little bit similar to the COLORSTEEL® colour Ebony, which is matched to Resene All Black. If you can obtain a small sample of the Gerard tile Obsidian and pop into your nearest Resene ColorShop you may be able to confirm this and see how the Resene All Black sample looks.
April 2017
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Q. I have a red brick house with a terracotta coloured tile roof with COLORBOND® Monument fascia, gutters and window frames. What colour would you recommend for the soffits? What teal/dark turquoise would you recommend for the doors? A. Most soffits are a whiter type of colour. Perhaps you could use a warmer white - because of the red bricks and the terracotta roof colours – and try Resene Half Soapstone or Resene Eighth Spanish White. Some teal/dark turquoise colours to consider for the front door – Resene Retro, Resene Guru, Resene Teal Blue, Resene Billabong or Resene Marathon.
April 2017
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Q. We are building a new home - White Pearl brick with black joinery - and I would like to paint the interior walls white. Which whites would complement the soft grey polished concrete floors, black joinery, white gloss kitchen cabinets and white Pacific Stone counters? A. You may need to test several whites to see how they look in different rooms and at different times of the day and night. These ones are good to look at - Resene Double Alabaster, Resene Black White or Resene Quarter White Pointer. It pays to look at them also as A4 colour samples in the Colour Library at your nearest Resene ColorShop and compare to a true white - a sheet of white printer paper will help you judge the reality of the subtle undertones of colour in these whites. Testpots applied to a super large A2 card (available from Resene ColorShops) and moved around the walls, will help you a lot. All colours - yes even whites - respond to changing qualities of light, so please take the time to see this, so there are no surprises later on when the painting is completed.
April 2017
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Q. My house is concrete block built in 1964, very boxy, and dated looking with an iron roof. It’s pretty much the standard, smallish home, built back then. I have just painted the roof Resene Grey Friars with white soffits and white wooden window trims. I would appreciate your advice as to a colour for the concrete block. I intend to sell, so I need a colour that will make the house look as desirable as possible. A. My first thought was perhaps greys could be used, but because of the concrete block it might look like unpainted concrete or they might look ominous or too industrial which may not look appealing. So after some thought I have found these warmer colours that you might check out to see if they appeal to you - Resene Double White Pointer, Resene Cloud, Resene Triple Merino or Resene Thorndon Cream.
April 2017
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Q. I am looking for some colour advice please. Can you recommend any colours that are darker that we can use as a feature wall in our bedroom? The current wall colour is Resene White Pointer and we have painted our doors Resene Stonehenge, so any new colour will need to go with these two. A. Quite a lot of colours will work with Resene White Pointer but not so many are harmonious with the deeper Resene Stonehenge. You don't mention whether you have other colours in the room - drapes, carpet and duvets - that might compromise the colours that might be used for a feature wall. The following are a few suggestions to get you started - perhaps one of them will appeal to you - Resene Memphis Belle, Resene Scaramanga, Resene Explorer, Resene Snapshot, Resene Ringo or Resene Ciderhouse.
April 2017
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Q. I want to repaint the render and include a feature render. I want a warmer feel. A. A warm colour and a tonal feature colour might be one of these options - Resene Thorndon Cream and Resene Double Truffle, Resene Quarter Tea and Resene Tea or Resene Quarter Sandspit Brown and Resene Sandspit Brown.
April 2017
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Q. We want to paint the walls in our lounge, Resene Quarter Parchment, as it is currently quite dark. I'd like to know what colour you would suggest we paint the ceiling? A. Some of these colours might be worth checking out - Resene Quarter Pearl Lusta, Resene Quarter Merino or Resene Alabaster.
April 2017
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Q. Can you recommend a light grey (that’s not blue) colour for my open plan kitchen, dining room and living area (lots of light) which is currently a creamy yellow? The kitchen will have medium grey cupboards when the renovation is done. A. You may need to link the wall colour and the new kitchen cupboard colour so it is harmonious and well-co-ordinated. You might look at using these greys - Resene Concrete and Resene Triple Concrete, or Resene Quarter Rakaia and Resene Rakaia.
April 2017
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Q. We painted our open plan living/dining/kitchen area 12 years ago with Resene Sisal on the walls and Resene Quarter Sisal on the ceiling. I am now looking for something brighter, as our house is small and these colours are quite dark, closing it in. I am after a warm white to freshen it up that will go with rimu wooden floors. What would you recommend? A. These colours may provide you with options - Resene Eighth Sisal for the walls and Resene Quarter Pearl Lusta for the ceilings, Resene Cararra for the walls and Resene Eighth Thorndon Cream for the ceilings, or Resene Double Rice Cake for the walls and Resene Half Rice Cake.
April 2017
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Q. We have recently bought a new house (built early 2000s). It has green/grey carpet and dark green kitchen cabinets/bench (typical early 2000s). We are not really green people and have a lot of blue art with white, grey, black and light wood furniture. We want to paint the walls in a light neutral colour that will help neutralise the green. Could you recommend some colours? We read a colour with a barely there green/blue undertone might work? A. If the kitchen wasn't dark green it may make your hopes for a new neutral colour palette a little more easily achieved. Perhaps a soft grey with a slight undertone of green may work. You might check out Resene Eighth Ash. Alternatively one of the following might work for you - Resene Sea Fog, Resene Merino, Resene Black Haze or Resene Quarter Titania.
April 2017
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Q. I am currently trying to choose a colour for the lounge which has a big opening into the kitchen and hallway. The kitchen has recently been painted with Resene Half Rice Paper, the cabinets are Grey Mist and the island is a black quartz fleck. I need to tie both spaces together, but don't want to use the Resene Half Rice Paper in the lounge. I was thinking of a grey green like Resene Celeste, but would appreciate your colour advice. A. You may need to test Resene Celeste carefully as it is a pretty green but isn't a grey/green. If you wanted a green with more grey in it, you could look at these colours to see if they work for you - Resene Quarter Ash or Resene Half Copyrite.
April 2017
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Q. We are painting a house Resene Half Rice Cake throughout. I am confused about what colour to use (a) on the architraves, trim etc including wood panelling in the hallway and (b) on the ceilings. What do you recommend? A. You might check out the whitest variation of the colour you have - Resene Eighth Rice Cake. It may work really well for you.
April 2017
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Q. I am opening a shop which has this amazing brick wall. I wanted an industrial look with exposed concrete and was thinking a grey, with maybe a splash of colour on the panels? A. You might check out these greys - Resene Triple Concrete, Resene Half Delta or Resene Half Silver Chalice. Some colours that are darker and a bit more exciting for the metal struts and the pillars - Resene Chain Gang (this is a sparkly metallic colour), Resene Half Bokara Grey (this is a warm toned charcoal) or Resene Blackout (this is warm black). Personally, I would recommend splashes of colour in anything other than the walls - chairs, light fittings, flooring, accessories, art work etc. I think you may lose the industrial look if you splash lots of paint colour on the panels.
April 2017
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Q. I am a photographer and want an interior wall colour that is only made up of black and white. I could do pure white, but I wondered if there were other options in the greys? A. For a grey/white you might check out these colours - Resene Quarter Iron, Resene Quarter Surrender, Resene Double Black White, or a lighter white with a touch of black in it – Resene Black White.
April 2017
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Q. I am having a bachelor studio built i.e. an 8m x 7m garage with a bathroom. The exterior is 100% Grey Friars. The interior will have a white ceiling and the floor is concrete. I have a lot of art to display for colour and I am leaning towards painting the walls concrete or half concrete. What other colour would you consider? A. Slightly warmer grey whites may also be considered - Resene Half House White, Resene Sea Fog or Resene Double Black White.
April 2017
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Q. I have a Slate Grey tile roof with orangey red tiles on the bottom half and rendered wall on the top half. I want to know what colour I should apply on the rendered wall. A. Some nice colours for you to consider for the rendered half walls are Resene Quarter Spanish White, Resene Quarter Linen, Resene Quarter Foggy Grey, Resene Half Tea or Resene Pearl Lusta.
April 2017
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Q. Could you please suggest three colours that we can look at for a large sunny bedroom? The ceiling is wood panelling with beams. We would like a pale neutral grey. The carpet is very dark grey. Curtains will be purchased to match. A. You might check out these soft grey colours to see they appeal to you - Resene Half Duck Egg Blue, Resene White Thunder or Resene Double Sea Fog. These greys are restful and carry quite different undertones of colour within them.
April 2017
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Q. We are very confused as to what colour to paint our roof (currently green). We would prefer to keep weatherboards white. A. For a new look for the roof you might consider something quite different this time - Resene High Tide (a deep blue/grey), Resene Grey Friars (a steel grey/charcoal) or Resene Ironsand (an earthy brown charcoal). These dark colours are very smart and would work well with the main exterior white. Or for lighter (more mid tone) options you could try - Resene New Denim Blue, Resene Quarter Ironsand or Resene Quarter Grey Friars.
April 2017
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Q. We have a Karaka green COLORSTEEL® roof and Resene Kaitoke Green walls. What colour do you suggest for the soffit? A. Because of your other choices - i.e. dark earthy olive (yellow based green) roof and very bright green (with a blue undertone to it) walls - I think it may be wise to resist using a real white under the soffits as it may look too stark. You might consider using one of these colours - Resene Quarter Titania or Resene Half Sea Fog.
April 2017
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Q. We are painting our south facing (and quite dark) TV snug in Resene Spinnaker. The room contains rimu wood throughout and has a fireplace needing to be updated. We are covering up some old orange brick on the bottom and need a colour for there. We also want to paint the light grey cement block above the dark mantel. The walls are to be painted Resene Half Merino and ceiling Resene Quarter Merino. We need help with the fireplace. A. The fire itself is a feature in the room, the dark mantle is another feature - and the rimu trims also. I don't suggest you add more in the way of colours to the room because it may confuse the eye and make the room unduly busy. Is the Resene Half Merino an option for the fire surround and the cement block above the dark mantle? You say the room is south facing and quite dark so using a pale colour - i.e. Resene Half Merino - will add more light into the space.
April 2017
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Q. Our home is a split level with part of it stucco, part Summerhill stone and part fibre-cement sheet cladding. Our roof is currently being replaced and our windows are also being replaced in the same colour - Ironsand. The house does not have any trim but does have some weatherboard detail above most of the windows. It is currently painted, but will be replaced with cedar weatherboards. The front door is also cedar. I was looking at grey/beige colours for the exterior but have bought over 10 testpots and they are all too light! I do not want it to be too dark as the Ironsand is the only other colour, however, I do not want it to be too light. I have tried Resene Quarter Stonewall, Resene Quarter Pravda and Resene Mountain Mist. A. Perhaps you might check out these colours to see if they appeal to you and aren't too light - Resene Double Pravda, Resene Friar Grey, Resene Half Masala, Resene Masala, Resene Half Baltic Sea or Resene Gauntlet. All colours seen on an exterior have the definite ability to look much lighter due to bright natural light.
April 2017
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Q. We are building a house and the bricks are almost black. The roof and garage doors are Sandstone Grey and the joinery and front door are Silver Pearl. What colour do you think would be good for the LINEA® around the entrance? I was thinking of Resene Sea Fog (maybe Double or Triple) or Resene Quarter Atmosphere, will these be too light?
I also need a colour for the soffits. A. All colours when seen on an exterior (and especially if the main colour is very dark) will seem a lot lighter/brighter than you might imagine they will do. I think you may need to go a bit deeper. And please do test the colours by painting all of the testpot onto large A2 card (available from Resene ColorShops) leaving a narrow unpainted perimeter. This will help you see and judge the reality of the colour compared to the white card. It can be taped up on the wall you are planning to paint and viewed from close up and further away. Resene Double Sea Fog or Resene Triple Sea Fog and full strength Resene Atmosphere are worth testing to see how they look on the exterior. They are still light colours - but not too white. The paler versions might be considered for the under soffits as that area traditionally is the lightest or whitest colour.
April 2017
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Q. I am thinking of using the colour Resene Eighth Truffle for my interior walls in the majority of the house. We have a vinyl floor in Country Oak. Our house faces east west, so in the morning, the main living area is dark and in the afternoon, it streams sunlight in this area. I am a bit stumped with what to paint on the ceiling and for the trims? Would you have any suggestions if you think Resene Eighth Truffle would not be suitable? A. I think Resene Eighth Truffle is lovely - very soft and gentle. A white that looks really nice with it might be one of these two colours - Resene Quarter Bianca or Resene Half Alabaster. The first one is a sweet white and the second is a cool white. In the west facing room you may notice the walls take on a lovely glow - this room will always look lovely in the late afternoon when the sun is lower in the sky. The east facing room will have a completely different mood due to the cool sharp light that is in there first thing in the morning. If you feel Resene Eighth Truffle isn't quite right - and that really depends upon how you feel about it - then you might check out Resene Quarter White Pointer. The white that works best with it is Resene Eighth Black White. It is important to have a definite contrast to add visual interest.
April 2017
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Q. We're painting a large (approx 70 square metre) room, with high gabled ceilings (approx 6m high), and have decided on your Resene Burgundy colour. Could you tell me a complementary black that is not quite black? There is very little natural light and it will be warm lighting in the fixtures and chandelier. A. You might look at these blacks - Resene Diesel, Resene Blackjack or Resene Bokara Grey.
April 2017
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Q. We want to stain our hardwood deck, but we are having trouble deciding on a colour. Our house is all white/grey/beige tones. We want the deck to look like an extension of the house. What colour Resene Woodsman would you recommend? A. The problem - as I see it - is the fact that you have a hardwood deck which is recommended to have an oil (solvent) stain rather than the waterborne stain due to the need to penetrate into the (harder) matrix of the timber. There are fewer colour options available in the oil (solvent) stain colours. None of the paler colours are available. But you could use a black colour like Resene Woodsman Shadow Match - this is an option that allows your deck furniture (being lighter) to pop off the dark background. It may also relate slightly better to the warmer tones that the exterior brick cladding and roof colours are. Alternatively have you considered painting the deck rather than staining it? You have more colour options available to you, which may make co-ordinating with the interior colours much easier. You have two types of product that you could use – Resene Walk-on paint or Resene Lumbersider. You could use a deeper variant of the interior main wall colour or Resene Half Sandstone, Resene Stonehenge or Resene Wireless. In order to get the linking colour for the deck, I think you need to test several colours on some hardwood offcuts. Whether it is stain or paint, that you choose to use on the deck, I do recommend you scrub the timber down with Resene Timber & Deck Wash first.
April 2017
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Q. Our new bach has slate coloured Palisade cladding, Silver Star joinery, and Ebony COLORSTEEL® roofing. What colour would you recommend for my fascia boards? A. The first option might be to match the roof colour - the match colour to COLORSTEEL® Ebony is Resene All Black. Alternatively you could do a lighter metallic charcoal/silver to create a bit of contrast and to relate to the window joinery - Resene Meridian or (non-metallic) Resene Quarter Foundry. I definitely recommend that you use CoolColour™ re-formulated colours for the standard dark paints - it will help the coating reflect more heat.
April 2017
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Q. We wish to use a Resene colour for a glass splashback in our new kitchen. The cabinets are white and the benchtop is black stone marbling. It is an open plan house with Graphite Grey carpet and Resene Half Sisal walls. What colours would work for a splashback? A. Almost any colour would work with the cabinets, bench top and carpet colour but in order to get something to look great, it has to work well with your main wall colour. If you are unsure about colour the first (default) option is to just have low iron oxide crystal clear glass over the wall colour. No 'special feature colour' but a protected surface. The glass I have mentioned is the only one (of the two available) that doesn't alter how the colour is seen behind it. The other one is called standard float glass and it has a green cast to the glass and makes colours look very unlike what they are in reality - this is important to know so you don't get a surprise when it is all completed and you don't recognise the colour you have carefully chosen for the splash back. Another option is to use a metallic colour - either to co-ordinate with the wall colour or to pick up a deep sparkly grey to tie in handles on the cabinetry and possibly the cook top or refrigerator. You could try Resene Time Machine, Resene Aluminium or Resene Blast Grey. These are a bit different and quite deluxe looking. Choosing a very definite colour is trickier, as it would have to be something that related in some way to another colour that you might be using (like a red) so there was a reason for it rather than a very random colour that didn't co-ordinate.
April 2017
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Q. We want to do an all-dark exterior colour scheme, with Resene Shadow Match stain on board and batten and Matt Black joinery. Could you please recommend a good match for the roof in COLORSTEEL®? I was thinking of FlaxPod, but I’m not sure it works. A. If you want a black colour for the roof, you could use COLORSTEEL® Ebony. COLORSTEEL® FlaxPod is nice as well but it is a slightly earthier/warmer black.
April 2017
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Q. We have a two storey house which we are doing a rebuild on. We have a lot of Ironsand joinery i.e. stacker doors, downpipes and roof. We are looking at greys and also Resene Half Stack. Our house is pine timber. A. Apart from Resene Half Stack, these other greys could appeal to you - Resene Quarter Chicago, Resene Half Jumbo, Resene Quarter Tapa or Resene Quarter Friar Grey.
April 2017
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Q. We are painting the exterior of our farmhouse (old villa style). The roof and guttering is Grey Friars, the weatherboard walls are Resene Half Foggy Grey, the windows are Resene Quarter Albescent White, and the front door may be Resene Double Cod Grey or Resene Double Foundry. Can you please advise me on what colour the fascia/bargeboards should be – Resene Grey Friars or Resene Quarter Albescent White? I'm planning on painting the windowsill the same black as the front door. There are three other doors, French style. Do I paint just the door Resene Black with the frame surrounds Resene Quarter Albescent White so that the windowsills tie in with the doors or leave the doors the same as the windows - all Resene Quarter Albescent White? A. The colours all sound really nice, classical and elegant. Fascia and bargeboards could be either colour but perhaps the lighter option might be nice as a contrasting line between the weatherboard colour and the roof colour. French doors and the frames are not like main entry doors - they are more like windows that you walk through so these too could be the lighter option. The front door and back door frames might be the lighter colour also - for continuity with the windows and French door surrounds. If you are unsure which black option to have for the doors and the windowsills (both are nice) the Resene Double Foundry is slightly softer toned than the Resene Double Cod Grey.
April 2017
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Q. We have a villa with a COLORSTEEL® roof in Karaka green. It is time to paint the house and we are looking for colour scheme ideas. Can you help? A. You might check out a few colour options to see if they appeal to you - Resene Villa White, Resene Parchment, Resene Triple Sea Fog, Resene Cloud or Resene Half Foggy Grey. The trims, windows, under soffits, bargeboards etc could be in a crisp clean white to offset the roof and the main weatherboard colours - Resene Half Sea Fog or Resene Quarter Rice Cake, or real white - Resene White. The doors - and possibly the windowsills - could be your favourite bolder colour (and there are so many to choose from) so this is where you get to pick a lovely colour that really rings your bell.
April 2017
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Q. We have a federation style house with cream window frames which we hate but cannot change. Can you please provide some guidance on exterior colours that will work with the cream window frames? We are having the roof painted, gutters, fascia, eves, garage doors and need to know what to use where. We like COLORBOND® colours like Woodland Grey, Monument or lighter colours like Dune. A. All of the colours you have mentioned are very nice - perhaps the deeper Woodland Grey (Resene Squall is the paint match) has a slight edge on the paler Dune (Resene Settlement) and blacker Monument (Resene Nocturnal). This is because it has a warm/earthier green edge to it which works well with the bricks on the house and the cream window frames. A second viable option could be Monument (Resene Nocturnal) - very dark colours have a timeless appeal.
April 2017
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Q. What is a good house colour that ties in with brown aluminium joinery? A. You might consider some warmer neutral colours - they look nice with brown joinery. Check these colours out to see if they appeal to you – Resene Triple Ash, Resene Double House White, Resene Truffle, Resene Quarter Arrowtown or Resene Spanish White.
April 2017
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Q. We are extending our 1940s weatherboard house. We have chosen a Gull Grey roof and Arctic White joinery. We want the exterior of our house to be white, light and bright. I realise we have chosen icy joinery and this might limit options. I don't like yellow though. What colours do you recommend for the exterior? We are also repainting the interior. Currently our main interior colour is Resene Thorndon Cream. Although I have painted our office in Resene Merino which I think suits the house better and might go with the Arctic White joinery better. A. You may need to carefully test colour options to see which colours look best with the cool white powder coated joinery. These may be a few to check out to see if they appeal to you – Resene Iron, Resene Half Silver Chalice, Resene Quarter Foggy Grey, Resene Quarter Atmosphere, Resene Triple Merino or Resene Triple Black White. You may be right in regard Resene Merino looking better with Arctic White in the interior - another possibility is Resene Barely There.
April 2017
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