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Answers to your questions from our colour experts, p. 96

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.

 
 
 
 

Q&A   p. 96

Please refer to the actual paint or product sample. Resene colour charts, testpots and samples are available for ordering online.


Q. My husband and I have bought a 1906 villa. We are completely gutting it, recladding and doing new joinery. Our roof is Grey Friars and our aluminium joinery matt Appliance White. We will also be doing timber fascia. We want our house (excluding the roof) to be all white, light and modern but for there to be a slight contrast between the weatherboards and trim. We are unsure what colour to paint our weatherboards.

A. I love the sound of what you are doing. Here are a couple of recommendations for you to try: option 1 – weatherboards in Resene Sea Fog with trims in Resene Double Alabaster, or option 2 – weatherboards in Resene Black White with trims in Resene Quarter Black White.

March 2020


Q. I have two areas I need colour advice on please: 1) Exterior – I was planning on black however this will void the warranty of the Weatherboards which specify a LRV of >45. White seems a bit boring, what are some creative alternatives? 2) The lounge – the whole house is to be Resene Sea Fog, but the lounge I would like to be cosy. I have some pale grey curtains. What could you suggest?

A. Some colour ideas for the exterior that do meet the criteria of no deeper than LRV 45% – Resene Triple Duck Egg Blue, Resene Silver Chalice, Resene Perfect Taupe, Resene Half Grey Olive or Resene Quarter Tapa.

For the lounge it really does depend upon the flooring, the drapes and the furniture as to what looks good. Some warmer neutrals you might like to try are Resene Half Orchid White, Resene Merino or Resene Eighth Spanish White.

March 2020


Q. I want to paint my ceiling this weekend – what is a typical colour to use – I am thinking Resene Alabaster? My ceiling is low. Eventually I will change my wall colour to be whiter.

A. I think your idea of using Resene Alabaster is good. It is closely related to the Resene Sea Fog palette of colours but it is a white that works really well with many other whites.

March 2020


Q. We are having our house repainted. The house is coffee coloured. The barge boards etc are Ironsand. Which white/neutral would go with these for soffits please?

A. You could try Resene Black White or Resene Half Sea Fog.

March 2020


Q. My son has painted his house. The walls are Resene Quarter Joss and window frames and skirtings are Resene Quarter Sandstone. He now wants to paint his kitchen cupboard fronts in a lighter colour that will go well with the existing colours and wooden bench tops. He was thinking of an off white. Which colour would you recommend?

A. The following colours look lovely with wooden bench tops and Resene Quarter JossResene Eighth Spanish White or Resene Quarter Albescent White.

March 2020


Q. I am looking to use Resene Sea Fog on all of our walls. We have a north facing coastal property with a handful of bright rooms and some dark hallways and bedrooms facing south. I was thinking of Resene Wan White for the ceiling. What would you recommend for the doors and trim? Also what shades wold you recommend? For the south facing would I go Resene Half Sea Fog or Resene Quarter Sea Fog?

A. Resene Wan White is very similar to Resene Sea Fog. If you wanted to see a lighter contrast on the ceiling (compared to Resene Sea Fog) Resene Wan White wouldn't work. It would look slightly greyer however. Is this what you want?

I recommend that you use one of the many lighter variants of Resene Sea Fog – i.e. Resene Double Alabaster (same as Resene Quarter Sea Fog) or Resene Alabaster (same as Resene Eighth Sea Fog) for the ceilings and possibly all of the doors and trims. In south facing rooms or in hallways where the space isn't blessed with natural light you could use Resene Half Sea Fog for the walls.

March 2020


Q. I want to use the colours Resene Olive Green and Resene Amulet as feature wall colours however need one more green to add into the mix.

A. Try Resene Paddock or Resene Rivergum.

March 2020


Q. I am building a new house. The colour of the window frames is Matt Titania. Does it go well with Resene Triple Sea Fog weatherboards? Or which colours (I prefer something like grey) do you suggest I use on the weatherboards?

A. Titanic is a yellow/green/silvery grey. It looks really great with the following colours – Resene Gauntlet, Resene Dusted Grey and lighter variations of TitaniaResene Half Titania and Resene Quarter Titania.

I recommend you visit a Resene ColorShop to view the A4 colour swatches in their Colour Library – you could check out Resene Triple Sea Fog and compare it to these other suggestions.

March 2020


Q. We are painting a beautiful villa, but are struggling to decide on colours. We are thinking, white trims, off white body of house and dark roof and front door. Can you please advise?

A. The following options may appeal to you –

Option 1 – Resene Half Titania as the main colour with Resene Eighth Black White trims and Resene Windswept for the roof and doors. OR

Option 2 – Resene Whitewater for the main colour with Resene Quarter Alabaster trims and Resene Element for the roof and doors.

March 2020


Q. We have recently begun our Reno journey and have started in our boys’ bedrooms. We have stripped our 70s wallpaper and skimmed and added larger coves. Both rooms have loads of natural light and have white joinery. We have kept the 70s pelmet and ceiling tiles. I want to keep the same colour throughout the house which has 180 degree sea views. I’m thinking Resene Quarter Duck Egg Blue with white coves, ceiling and window surrounds. Which other colours complement this choice please? I feel lots of people use white as they are too scared to use a colour.

A. I think your colour choice of Resene Quarter Duck Egg Blue is lovely. It is a very pale grey with a wisp of watery blue in it so it is a versatile neutral. Not everyone is using whites in their interiors – more and more people are choosing definite colours.

Colours that work well with Resene Quarter Duck Egg Blue are – Resene Tuna (a soft grey with a steel blue undertone), Resene Thumbs Up (a rich mustard gold), Resene Atlas (a deep blue based green), Resene Daredevil (a fluoro orange with a red undertone) and Resene Triple Duck Egg Blue (a blend of blue, grey and green).

March 2020


Q. I'm aiming to repaint my home and at the same time downplay the brown aluminium joinery (without having to paint that as well). What colour brown would you recommend as a colour to conceal the brown joinery? I am changing the roof to COLORSTEEL® too but thought I needed to get the paint colour right first.

A. There aren’t a great deal of COLORSTEEL® colour options. I would suggest you choose that first so that any main colour options could be chosen to work with the roof and the brown joinery. There is always the chance that after starting the painting of the colour on the house you realise that the best colour for the roof is a colour you don't particularly like.

But if you just want some ideas for the house to try to conceal the brown joinery then the following may be a start point – Resene Half Masala, Resene Quarter Ironsand or Resene Stonehenge.

March 2020


Q. We are repainting our roof, and looking to go Resene Black or maybe Resene Ironsand? We are looking to keep the cream colour on the siding, but want to find the right colour to repaint the red/orange brick.

We have tried a testpot of Resene Double Stack and Resene Gauntlet but they were too close. Then we tried a testpot of Resene Chicago which was better as a bit darker, but we are not 100% decided. Do you have any ideas on which roof colour and which colour for the brick? We want the home to look more contemporary but want it to look ok with the colonial style of the house.

A. A contemporary style and a colonial style are often quite different to each other.

If you did use Resene All Black for the roof you could use a warm toned grey or grey/brown for the bricks. Resene Chicago would look fine (very smart/contemporary) and possibly the following colours are worth checking out as well – Resene Eighth Ironsand or Resene Eighth Bokara Grey.

If you wanted a colonial and, timeless look you could use Resene All Black or (not as dark) Resene Ironsand for the roof and paint the bricks the same colour as the siding.

Or try for a tonal variation of the siding colour so the bricks and the siding were related.

March 2020


Q. Could you please tell me if Karen Walker's Wan White is the same colour as Resene Black White or are they different colours?

A. Resene Black White and Resene Wan White aren't the same colour – if they were their colour codes would be identical.

Resene Black White looks a little bit warmer/more shaded than Resene Wan White but they are very similar.

March 2020


Q. At our last house we had Resene Quarter Tea which we loved as it looked like a warm grey and had a calming feeling. We are now in a new house and I feel like Resene Tea looks too brown. We have a sunny north facing open plan living room with lots of glass and natural light, blue rug, chrome light fittings, a marble (grey and white) kitchen island and kitchen cabinets that are white. We are looking for a calming soft light grey type colour for the walls of the open plan living space.

A. Colours are very quixotic. If they can change how they look they will do so. Every aspect of natural light will alter then. You mention that you have a north facing open plan very light living room. You will need to carefully test colours and watch how they alter during the day and in artificial light at night. I always recommend that all of the testpot/two coats be applied to very large A2 white card and moved from wall to wall/room to room.

If you leave a narrow unpainted border all around the perimeter of the card it will help your eyes judge the reality of the tested colour.

It also acts as a barrier to stop the existing wall colours from negatively influencing how the tested colour is seen.

Try these colours to get you started – Resene Half Truffle, Resene Triple Black White, Resene Quarter Foggy Grey or Resene Half Cloud.

March 2020


Q. We have brought a 1900s villa and will get the outside repainted as it hasn’t been done for some time. The new roof is Karaka. We would appreciate some advice on colour options for the house and front deck/steps.

A. The following are several options that you might check out – Option 1 – Resene Quarter Taupe Grey as the main colour, with Resene Alabaster detail and trims, Resene Quarter Karaka on sills and Resene Scoria for doors.

Option 2 – Resene Triple Rice Cake as the main colour, with Resene Eighth Rice Cake detail and trims, Resene Tapa on sills and Resene Double Tapa for doors.

March 2020


Q. We have a rental property built around 2006 which needs a total interior repaint for resale. We want to update the paint colour but need to work with the existing cream and brown tones of the carpet, curtains and joinery. The downstairs is more shaded than upstairs and so need to keep things light. Trims will remain white.

A. I recommend that the main colour is a warm white neutral so it works well with the many other stronger coloured elements in the house. Try Resene Bianca, Resene Half Villa White or Resene Half Cararra.

March 2020


Q. A dark interior wall in my house was 90s plum. I am looking for a feature wall replacement colour. I have gone back to white and thought that might work as the other walls are a tea/tan colour. It’s too flat. Any suggestions to bring the beachy bushy surrounds in? Some thoughts I have had were a kowhai yellowish but with mustardy green tones?? It needs to make people feel welcome, warm and bright and draw you in. It will have art and plants in front of it. Perhaps something like Resene Bird Flower, Resene Barberry or Resene Canary.

A. I love the idea of going for a warmer/inviting colour. I think Resene Bird Flower could be a good option if you like that but maybe going with something that has a little more green to it might be best. They will appear lighter on a whole wall so it might be better to have something with a little more depth also to get the contrast with the other walls.

Other options to try are Resene Karma and Resene Flourish.

March 2020


Q. We are building in a rural/forest setting and have chosen FlaxPod for our COLORSTEEL® roof and window joinery and Resene Climate for our board and batten exterior. Along with the board and batten we have quite a lot of pine timber weatherboard and would like a recommendation for a stain that would complement the other colours.

A. You could try Resene Nutmeg or Resene Pickled Bean.

March 2020


Q. I was wondering if you could please be of assistance is providing a few ideas for our exterior paint concept for our 1970s brick home. We are having a new COLORSTEEL® roof put on as part of this project and would also like some guidance as to what colour you would recommend for this.

Our aim of the project is to modernise the home by painting the brick but to make it still fit into the rural and green surroundings of the property. At this stage I am thinking that a dark house and roof is the look that we would like to go for, but open to suggestions of course.

The pillars and banisters at the front of the house and some of the underside of the soffits have just recently been painted in Resene Half Sea Fog and we would like to keep that and continue to use that as the white accent in the other areas of the house where you think best.

Our joinery is a bronze aluminium which at this stage we won't be changing, we would like this to blend into the house as it's not a feature we are typically fond of!

A. The new COLORSTEEL® roof might be one of these colours – Ironsand, TernStyle or Thunder Grey. These colours associate well with the existing window joinery.

Some deep colour options that you might check out for the main house colour and the base of the house could be one of the following – Resene Chicago, Resene Double Trojan, Resene Suits or Resene Dark Web.

Resene Half Sea Fog works really well as your 'white' and is perfect as a crisp contrast to a deep main colour.

March 2020


Q. We are building using weatherboard exterior in a coastal zone allowed no more than 35% reflectivity. I need colours for the exterior of my new build house. I am having a Gerard Roofs metal tile roof and am limited to their colours (textured finish options). I was thinking Greenstone which is apparently like Karaka. I like olive green type colours and would like green LINEA® weatherboards with white window joinery and trim. I was thinking something like Resene Flax or Resene Elixir. Would they be good colours for a whole house weatherboard to work with the roof or what would you suggest? And what trim colour would you use? I had someone suggest Resene Half Washed Green for the weatherboards but that feels too blue/grey to me which I don't really like.

A. I do know the Gerard colour Greenstone and it is earthy and very appealing. Are you having powder coated windows? Which white have you chosen? There are several and it is important to know which one you have chosen so that the main house colour works well.

The colours that you mention would be good. Your alternatives may be one of the following colours – Resene Climate, Resene Castle Rock, Resene Cobblestone, Resene Terrain, Resene Double Tana or Resene Double Lemon Grass.

March 2020


Q. What are the most popular bathroom colours? Are people starting to use bolder colours in their bathroom?

A. Blues, greens and whites, such as Resene Duck Egg Blue, Resene Secrets and Resene Black White, are still reigning supreme in bathrooms, but we are seeing more customers be brave and bring other colours into these spaces.

Traditionally blues, greens and whites have been popular as they bring a sense of freshness into a bathroom.

More confident homeowners are starting to embrace darker colours in bathrooms – for some that means instead of the white they would always have used in the past, they have moved to weathered blues and weathered greys, like Resene Silver Chalice for a timeless look. For others they are adopting mid tone and even very deep hues for a bathroom look that feels luxurious and cocooning. Feature walls and accent colours are becoming increasingly popular as a way to add colour to a bathroom without overwhelming the space. We’re also seeing more timber finishes as homeowners bring a sense of the day spa into their bathroom so they can enjoy a relaxing escape from busy life.

Dark and stormy colours have been popping up everywhere from bedrooms to living areas, and bathrooms are no exception. Usually these are charcoals or deep blues or greens, such as Resene Nocturnal.

Where once bathrooms were often very clinical and cold, homeowners are starting to treat them as an opportunity to use colour, often as an extension of their master bedroom palette.

We expect colour use in bathrooms will continue to grow as homeowners turn bathrooms from purely functional spaces into a room they can relax and enjoy a long soak. Colder tones are being replaced by more warmed up variants, still fresh but not as icy.

March 2020


Q. I’ve heard that neutrals are changing. Are they moving darker?

A. Neutrals have started to warm up and beige is becoming more popular though this is more focused on living areas. Whites are still always popular but many are finding that darker off whites are more forgiving of everyday life and don’t require such frequent cleaning.

March 2020


Q. We have a very boring looking home and I’m keen to add some personality without it costing too much or ruining the resale value later. What do you recommend?

A. When you’re decorating your home, there are limits when it comes to most elements, such as benchtops, carpets, furniture – limits of budget and what you can afford, and limits of the range of options available. Paint is the great equaliser. Anyone can be creative with a few Resene testpots in a small space or go wild with larger pots of paint in a bigger space. When it comes to personalising your space, the key is to think about what you will use the space for, who will use the space the most, the way you want the space to feel – happy, moody, cocooning, and the other elements in the room and choose your colours and style based on that. Personalising a space can be as easy as choosing a few favourite colours, or going all out with a one-of-a-kind painted design. If you’re not confident with a brush, try using masking tape to block off an interesting feature shape or shapes and paint in contrasting colour so you can indulge a few favourite colours in one space.

When it’s time to sell up, it’s so easy to paint over a custom feature wall and no-one will ever know it was there. And if you can’t bear to part with a feature you have painstakingly created, consider personalising furniture, art and pots that you can easily take with you. Even renters can add personality to their space by painting a few household items in favourite paint colours.

It’s good to get advice and ideas from friends and family too, but you should always choose colours that make your heart sing. It doesn’t matter what the neighbours, relatives or friends think – it’s your space, decorate it to enjoy it!

March 2020


Q. We’re considering painting our home’s exterior soon and want to avoid black. What sorts of lighter colours are people choosing that might work for us?

A. Generally many customers are still choosing greys, but the lighter softer tones (not so obvious grey) with Resene Alabaster and Resene Black White variations for trim.

There is a growing demand for Resene Rice Cake, Resene Thorndon Cream, Resene Tea and Resene Napa variations, using and mixing up these family of colours together for one exterior, ideally keeping it light, but with a dark roof (Hampton vibe).

I am also seeing interest in light and clearer colours like Resene Swans Down, Resene Willow Brook, Resene Carefree (with Resene Alabaster variants for trim) – it’s more of a fresh clear look but soft at the same time. These colours tend to suit more cottage style homes, bungalow and villas.

Keeping it light is a big factor.

March 2020


Page 96

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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