Close Give Feedback
Resene Paints - home page
Follow us on Facebook Follow us on Pinterest Follow us on Instagram Follow us on YouTube

superior exteriors


From habitat magazine - issue 35, exterior ideas

Colour is key to creating a home with street style.

Tegan Williams, colour is key
A bold front door*

Painting or staining your home’s exterior might seem like an enormous task but there’s nothing quite like the street appeal of a freshly painted or stained house or the sense of satisfaction you feel on completion. Just ask Tegan Williams. The 2021 NAWIC Tradeswoman of the Year has painted hundreds of homes since becoming a professional painter five years ago. She says the keys to a good paint job are quality tools, quality paint and the right prep.

“When painting an exterior, a good wash with the correct products is essential. I recommend using Resene Paint Prep and Housewash before any painting and, if possible, a Resene CoolColour finish, especially with dark exteriors.”

Tegan Tegan says DIYers often make the mistake of hurrying their paintwork, but she insists good things take time. “Don’t try to rush it. Do the prep right. Let the paint dry before recoating. When the temperature drops, stop painting. There’s always tomorrow.”

Tegan’s tip: “Keeping a wet edge is important when painting. It keeps your paint consistent and avoids a harsh stop/ start line. My advice for keeping a wet edge would be to work methodically. Start from a corner and work from left to right, never from the middle out.”

* A bold front door makes a huge impact. The door is painted in Resene Parsley with trim in Resene Alabaster, weatherboards in Resene Merino and deck in Resene Woodsman Natural. Plant pots in Resene Digeridoo and doormat in Resene Felix. Lantern light from Lightingplus, buxus plants from Mitre 10.

Red hot

Although its dramatic roof, which points over the landscape to the sea, could only be described as contemporary, Parirau by architect Pete Bossley of Bossley Architects also feels like a traditional home thanks to its use of colour. The cedar cladding is stained in Resene Woodsman Totem Pole, a colour reminiscent of traditional rural barns, and the dramatic soffits are in Resene Eighth Pearl Lusta.

Red hot home exterior

Renew and restore

As a young girl, Chessa Stevens remembers her family driving past the dilapidated house in her hometown of Carterton and wishing she could one day do it up. The conservation architect finally got her chance when she and her partner Rob bought the property and restored it to its original glory. Chessa and Rob run Rare Buildings, a local company that specialises in designing and restoring historic homes. When working on this villa, they chose their exterior paint colour palette carefully, painting the weatherboards in Resene Half Delta, the window trim, doors and details in Resene Grey Friars and the facings, fascias and corner boards in Resene White.

Historic home exterior refurbishment

American dream

Heather and Rod’s bach in Whitianga is inspired by Heather’s childhood, where she lived in a Cape Codstyle home in Pennsylvania, USA. Cove Construction built the A-line extension on an existing 1980s bach and the colour scheme features Resene French Pass. “Our home has some blatant American characteristics – so much so, we have had a few people walk up to our front porch and the first thing they ask is, ‘Are you American?’” says Rod. “We are fans of any beautiful colour. Don’t give us browns, blacks and beiges. Life is better with colour!”

American Dream inspired home exterior

Twice as nice

When designing an extension to an Edwardian villa in Auckland, Natasha Markham of Maud wanted her design to complement but not compete with the original building. The twin-peaked extension built around a central courtyard garden uses heritage brick, which Natasha paired with Resene Lumbersider in Resene Double Alabaster for the weatherboards. “The use of the brick outside informed the material palette,” says Natasha. “Resene Double Alabaster provides the perfect foil for these rich natural hues and allows for light play throughout the day.”

Edwardian villa exterior

Edwardian villa courtyard

When you’re painting in the warm weather, try and paint out of direct sunlight. Use Resene Hot Weather Additive to slow your paint’s drying time down to give you more time to get a quality finish.

Black magic

Adam and Sooz had always dreamed of living in a black house, so when they bought their 1927 brick and stucco do-up in Gore, they set about transforming the beige home into a black beauty with Resene All Black. “It had always been the dream to have a black house,” says events manager Adam. “Choosing the right black took a while, as we had to consider the dark fleck through the clinker bricks on part of the house.” Their son Carter chose Resene Double Sea Fog for the trims, and as a family, they decided on Resene Log Cabin as the feature colour for the stairs and front door.

A black brick home exterior

Dark arts

This home in Mangawhai Heads by Maurice Langdon of Eclipse Architecture has nearly 360-degree views of the coast and land, but the windswept site faces a constant battering from the elements. Luckily, its exterior finish is up to the task. Rodney Decorators and Painters recently repainted the house in Resene Ebony Clay, and it looks as good as new.

Dark home exterior

A modern dark home exterior

Resene CoolColours contain special pigment technology that reflects more heat and are recommended for dark exteriors. This not only means the paint and surface is cooler to touch but helps reduce heat damage in the substrate.

Home on the range

Skylark Cabin’s black colour scheme fits with its natural surroundings in the tussock grasslands at the foothills of the Ben Ohau range near Twizel. The rural retreat designed by Barry Connor Architectural Design has a timber exterior with a rough-sawn larch rain screen stained with Resene Waterborne Woodsman tinted to Resene Pitch Black with orange accents in Resene Lumbersider tinted to Resene Vesuvius. The home is exposed to the elements and the Resene Waterborne Woodsman CoolColour formula was chosen to make sure the stain reflects heat and to help protect the timber.

A modern black cabin exterior

A modern black cabin exterior

She’s a mod

A lot of thought was put into the Resene colour scheme for this much-loved midcentury home. The house, originally built in 1965 by Architect Keith Cottier of Alan Jack and Cottier of the renown ‘Sydney School’, was modernised with an extension designed by architects hungerford+edmunds to connect the original structure with the pool area. The colours were chosen to match photos of the original building. The exterior masonry is painted in Resene Quarter Thorndon Cream paired with accents in Resene Dynamite on the roof edge, Resene Bokara Grey on the balcony columns and Resene Triple Masala on the door and window frames. The mural near the pool is painted in Resene Dynamite, Resene Retro, Resene Half Resolution Blue, Resene Dauntless, Resene Spotlight, Resene Adrenalin and Resene Eighth Masala.

Modernised home exterior

Modern home pool

True blue

Leonie Bolton has never had a painting brief quite like this one. When Melbourne Precision Painters received this commission from an artistic couple to paint their entire exterior in Resene Resolution Blue, she couldn’t help but smile. “Jobs like this don’t come up very often – this one was very special,” says Leonie. “Everyone who walked past while we were painting it commented. It’s very striking.” Leonie had painted the window frames on the house a few years ago in the same colour using Resene Enamacryl. She had joked that the homeowners should consider painting the entire house that colour – a few years later, they did just that and Leonie and her team chose Resene Sonyx 101 waterborne semi-gloss to achieve the eye-catching look.

A bright blue home exterior

Top paint picks

Images: Leonie Bolton, Simon Devitt, Murray Fredericks, Sam Hartnett, Jason Ireland, Eve Razey, Tegan Williams

 

Search habitat magazine stories

Want to get your own free copy of future issues of habitat magazine?

Printed copies of habitat highlights are available from late March 2024 at Resene ColorShops and resellers, while stocks last. You can view back issues of habitat magazine online.

If you have an idea, project or story that you think would suit habitat, we’d love to hear from you. Please drop us an email with your details and include photos if submitting a project.

Sign up for a DIY card and Save! Australia | New Zealand

Return to habitat 35

 

Order online now:
Testpots | Paints | Primers and Sealers | Stains | Clears | Accessories

Get inspired Get inspired ! Subscribe      Get saving Get saving ! Apply for a DIY card

Resene Paints Ltd

Can't find what you're looking for? Ask us!

Resene Paints Ltd   – www.resene.com

Follow us on Facebook Follow us on Pinterest Follow us on Instagram Follow us on YouTube
Videos on how to paint and stain your house
 

Colours shown on this website are a representation only. Please refer to the actual paint or product sample. Resene colour charts, testpots and samples are available for ordering online.   See measurements/conversions for more details on how electronic colour values are achieved.

What's new | Specifiers | Painters | DIYers | Artists | Kids | Sitemap | Home | TOP ⇧