Hi, this is a great site. I am color challenged. My partner and I purchased a great old house that needs lots of work in an area that turns out to be pretty conservative. We would dearly like to move but take the house with us...we think the ghosts called us to save them...we are debating what to do because we purchased the house from progressives (who we later found out wanted to leave as bad as we do now) so, do we decorate for our taste, or for conservative tastes,...the neighborhood is known for being boring and conservative..and frankly unfriendly. This paint challenge is more of a moral challenge...do we trap another unsuspecting progressive? or try to appeal to more conservative tastes? Or perhaps compromise and go traditional? Ideas appreciated. We do like traditional craftsman style but want to have an upbeat feel.

Maybe a nice quiet beige with white trim on the outside, and a riot of color inside, like luffly's:


Or, such soft, subdued colors on the outside that the neighbors don't even realize they are subversive, like CYand3Labs's wonderful:

I think you can "thread the needle" and manage a progressive craftsman colour palette while fitting in with the neighbourhood.

It will require some research, but I think you can find some beautiful colours fitting the arts and crafts spirit.

If you are super stuck, my suggestion is to find an artist or designer whose house you like and ask them to give you colour advice.

we live in a very conservative town - every house seems to be gray, white or beige. being artists we couldn't stand it and we painted our house teal. now everybody in town (a small suburb) seems to know us. "oh, you're the ones who live in that teal house." lots of people came by to tell us how pleased they are that we did it. they said they would love to have the nerve to paint their house something different, but they're all too afraid to step forward and do it. just because things appear to be conservative doesn't mean you have to join in.

now i have friends and acquaintances coming by and asking colour advice. one asked me to pick her new exterior colour, and we had a great palette picked out, but she chickened out and went with white and used colour on her shutters. one good friend now said she made it her mission to come and meet us, just because she liked our colour choice on the house.

you know your neighborhood better than we do, but my advice is to do what you like. my husband said, when we first painted our house and the next door neighbors got a little weird, "when they pay our mortgage, then they can choose our house colour. until then they can just live with it."

there's a picture of the back of the house in this palette.


here. i think i figured out how to get the photo on here:

I would think if its a craftsman style house there are enough details on the exterior ( like shutters and wood detailing) to paint those as a "pop" of color to start
you'd also be surprised how much you can do with landscaping and small details if you are unsure of painting the whole house- there is a grey house on my block with a cherry red door and its looks great
When we bought our colonial 3 years ago, it had new siding that was cream beige- but new, so we wont change it. So we planted some flowers that are our style and hang baskets and outdoor decorations to make it more us. We also did some stone work

Whats a progressive?
I'm in NY- we don't have many conservatives- at least they don't let themselves be known in public

Liz- great house!!

perhaps flickr.com would be helpful?
i suggest entering keywords: craftsman, bungalow, colorful craftsman, colorful bungalow, etc

I'm such an Arts & Crafts movement nerd that the thought of going non-trad on a great old house gives me hives, BUT I bet you could get the effect you're wanting just by intensifying traditional colors. There is an AWESOME book on exterior paint ideas called House Colors. It's divided by architectural style, but my favorite thing (and what might interest you) is that there are many ideas for incorporating bold colors to highlight architectural details in a more traditional overall palette.

i think GreenMyEyes suggestion of "Domaru Armor" would be perfect.

I personally like a happy medium when it comes to house paint. but I also think if you like bold colors, and are thinking of sticking around for awhile then go with what you like, just remember that when a color is applied to a large surface it becomes much more drastic and a lot different then a paint chip. I often find, even when just looking at a palette here on colorlovers, when you view it at full screen it changes; colors that seemed black are lighter, and vice versa, colors that appeared almost white are now distinguishable, and bright colors become even brighter.

Here are a few of my suggestions, good luck with your project

similar but different

I work a lot on antique and period homes. Maybe I am conservative when it comes to such things but sticking to the bones of of the house and its heritage does keep you out of trouble. The preservation people here in Central Illinois are fairly understanding when it comes to creativity but Craftsman Houses do not get the wide sweep of color possibilities that Queen Annes do. So paint the exterior something boring but traditional and go creative inside. Just be respectful of the wood involved and make the new kitchen contemporary but period. Toss some art on the walls and add some lighting.