Home is now painted
Hello Everyone,
Thank you for all your suggestions and Cathye Hardwick's article in the Eichler Newsletter (Spring 2004), so I thought I'd let everyone know what did transpire:
The house is painted. I ended up hiring my neighbor because she painted her home herself and did a wonderful job -- and she was unemployed. So, she and a friend did an excellent job.
I still hemmed-and-hawed about the colors. I finally picked Benjamin Moore Aspen Green siding; Benjamin Moore Navajo White eaves and beam; and finally selected a Kelly Moore dark brown (I don't remember the exact name) for the... for the.... the thingee around the roof.
Before I had my whole house I painted I asked the painters to paint one side of my house that faced the sunlight -- which I now highly recommend. That way I could see how the colors blended and played off each other. And that's when I found out the original brown (Benjamin Moore Tudor Estate) had a lot of red in it that clashed with the yellow in the Aspen Green and the yellow in the Navajo White. Apparently Navajo White tends to reflect the hues in other paint. So this red and yellow really clashed. And that's when I switched to this Kelly Moore brown.
The trim around the windows is painted Aspen Green. I thought about painting it another color, but, to me, it would make my house too "Hansel and Gretal-ish."
I painted the door a Kelly Moore red (cherry red?) and that color makes the door standout.
What the jury is still out on is.... the thick beam over the garage.... right now it's Navajo White.... it needs another coat.... but I'm debating whether to paint it the dark brown. My home is a courtyard model, so people see the garage first.
Plusses: it would make the Navajo White smaller beams and eaves stand out -- or "pop" for the new lingo.
Minuses: the dark brown beam may put the home off-center, and focus people's eyes on the dark beam rather than the whole house.
So, thank you again for all your suggestions and to Cathye Hardwick's article.
And now on to other projects!
David
Thanks for the update and congrats on the progress David!
Other long-time Eichler owners and contractors we spoke to about the "what color to paint the beams?" dilemma (right after buying 10 years ago) almost universally indicated that whatever you paint the beams they should all be the same: inside; outside; closets; and even posts. It was their opinion that doing otherwise would break up the outside-in look that the glass walls were designed to create and would make the house look smaller and less open and modern. Our most trusted advisor, Rick Hinz, also suggested that the beams be a contrasting color to the ceiling and the home's exterior, so we did Lom by Kelly Moore - it is a dark brown, keeping the ceiling a white semi-gloss called Frost and our walls flat Navaho White. I just love Navaho White - it is so easy to coordinate with other colors. All that said, there are quite a few homes in our area that have white beams and ceilings, so that the only contrast is between the beam/ceiling color and that of the exterior. I think this is pretty customary as well, since so many have done this.
In fact, Rick--who has since moved away--also suggested that we have our track lighting installed so that they would run wall-to-wall (in the entry, kitchen, LR and DR) the entire width of the room and in the same direction as the beams for the same exact reason. We did that and they almost touch the glass walls, but not quite. It worked great.
Lastly, when we replaced our sliding glass doors we removed the transom (metal bar with glass above it) and put in 8-foot high sliders. That uniform floor to ceiling look really makes it, but can only be achieved if you have a flat roof.
Take care,
Cathye SMITHwick
Dear Cathye SMITHwick :) ,
Thank you for all your help because it was invaluable.
I have seen pictures of beams (the ones that go from outside to inside) painted a contrasting color and it looks wonderful. But I am afraid that contrast would close in my home (low ceilings).
I still have the original Philippine Mahogany paneling -- it's in great shape.
I love your idea about running track lighting. I think I will incorporate it in my future plans.
Regarding the sliding glass door (removing the transom and making the door 8' tall) is WONDERFUL! Wow! I never thought of that. That suggestion is an eye opener.
Right now, I am having my bedroom sliding glass door replaced with a Blomberg design -- and it's sorta expensive. He gave me a ballpark figure of $2,500. cough cough. And I don't want to go through another freezing winter. I will get my quote soon and installation is another eight weeks out.
Thank you again, Cathye SMITHwick!
David
... and I apologize for getting your name wrong. :oops:
david
Hi David:
No problemo. Yep, we would never in the world thought of getting rid of that transom. Rick's advice was incredibly helpful. It looks great and the doors don't feel any heavier and they certainly slide much better. I am jealous though - Blombergs are great and more in keeping with the original thin profile of the Al frames.
We replaced ours about 6 years ago and at that time were clueless that such an Eichler friendly door existed, so we just went with the biggest brand name we could find locally - Milgard - with the white vinyl frames. While they look good and "modern" they do not look mid-century modern and the frames are quite a bit wider than the originals - thus breaking up the outside in look a little. Hey, if that's the worst mistake we make in our lives we are in great shape! One never has perfect information or budgets - but if I had to do it over again I would probably get the Blombergs. Ours were expensive too, but I believe Blombergs are more pricey than the Milgards.
Cheers,
Cathye
On the subject of windows.
We replaced the rusted and broken master bathroom window with a Blomberg aluminum frame and couldn't be happier with it. It fit right into the existing slot and the installers were able to install it without breaking any tiles. It is very similar to the original profile but it will not rust like the original did.
Just wanted to mention another innovative idea a fellow Eichler owner shared with me.
When replacing her master bedroom sliding doors, she kept the transom but installed a sliding window into it. Her reasoning was that it would allow her to open the transom for breeze on hot summer nights with much less risk than leaving the screen door open.
Got to love Eichler owner creativity :-)
Jake
David,
I also have a courtyard model so I know just what beam you are talking about running above the garage door. You should paint it the same color as all the rest of your beams. It is a beam too just running a different direction. If you paint it a different color then the other beams it will not blend as nicely. Our beams are black and so is the beam over the garage door. Make it flow and keep it simple!
Dana
Hello Dana,
Thank you for your insight. I tend to agree with you. The more I think what a dark brown beam would look like (as you can tell I haven't done anything yet), the more I think a Navajo White beam would balance the home. And, yes, the beam I am talking about is the one the crosses the other beams - it's really thick and big.
David
