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Picking A Perfect Color Scheme For Your Bungalow Style Home

When choosing exterior colors, I have found that homeowners often envision what the home will look like once it is completed. All they lack is the know-how that will give them confidence in making the decisions necessary to turn their dream into their dream house.

This is the primary reason I have taken my years of experience choosing colors for hundreds of homes and put it into easy-to-follow steps. This valuable information is ready to download for FREE in my free FRESH Colors eBook series, available in the DaVinci Roofscapes Color Studio.

The recently revised ebook, FRESH Color Schemes for Your Home Exterior, provides step-by-step color guidance for creating color schemes for seven different home styles.

Don’t worry if your home doesn’t fit precisely into one of these styles. By peeking inside my mind through the explanations and illustrations, you can see how to apply the same thought processes when planning your home’s colors.

You will see how I use a “top-down” approach, giving you insights on adding eye-pleasing color palettes to your home exterior. I start with the roof and then work my way down to consider your siding, window frames, front door, and trim.

FRESH Colors for a Bungalow Home

Bungalow, a term that originated in India and found its way into English, was used in the late 19th century to describe large country or suburban houses built in Arts and Crafts or other Western vernacular styles. Developers later began to use the term for smaller residential homes, single stories or two-story, built under a sloping roof with dormer windows.

Here are examples of palettes for a ranch home. As you will do for your home, I considered each part of “FRESH.”

Start at the Top

Autumn blend polymer shake on the roof and inside the gables honors the style of this charming home. The homeowners chose Smokey Blue and Aria to complement Autumn’s rich cedar brown and give their home personality.

Identify the Fixed Features

The homeowners liked the medium-dark stones but didn’t want a neutral primary color. Tempe Star, a deep teal, contrasts the stonework, allowing both to stand out. The Dark Auburn shutters and the door nods to the roof.

Choose Your Primary Color and Trim

Shitake, a warm neutral paint color, harmonizes with the Weathered Green Slate roof. Deep Forest Brown and Rosemary accents bring out the architectural details of the Bungalow style.

Select Color for Trim and Accents

The Char Brown window frames—another color choice that honors the history of this home style—blend beautifully with the Mossy Cedar Shakes and Sparrow primary color.

Find Your Front Door

Make the entry a welcoming focal point for the home. It stays true to the original Craftsman bungalow style. A color from the stones can inspire the front door color.

Other home styles included in the ebook FRESH Color Schemes for Your Home Exterior:

Colonial-style homes are known for their symmetrical design, with the front door in the center. The windows are aligned horizontally and vertically. The architectural detail varies depending on when and where the builder constructed your home.

The type of home known as a Ranch or Rambler is an architectural style that originated in the United States. Noted for its horizontal, close-to-theground profile and minimal use of exterior and interior decoration, the Ranch originally epitomized the idea of a casual lifestyle.

Bungalow, a term that originated in India and found its way into English, was used in the late 19th century to describe large country or suburban houses built in Arts and Crafts or other Western vernacular styles.

The colors historically found on Victorian-style homes were inspired by nature and ranged from light browns, tans, and greens to darker, muddier colors than we often associate with this home style today.

A Spanish Mission home has solid Latin influences and fosters a connection to nature. Generally built with thick stucco walls and clay tile roofs, the courtyards are enclosed to extend the home’s living area and merge with the environment.

Homes referred to as European-style are generally larger, elegant-looking homes rich in exterior detailing. Brick, stone, and stucco are commonly combined to create a look reminiscent of Old-World European influences. Most of these style homes are 1-1/2- or 2-story structures inspired by Italian-, Italianate-, French Country-, Mediterranean-, or Tudor-style homes.

The New American-style combines the best of many different elements to create a home design that is uniquely ours. Born during the affluent years of the 1990s, it originally celebrated living life “large” with sizeable homes on oversized lots. Today, the New American-style encompasses homes of all sizes that can fit into any neighborhood, budget, or lifestyle choice. A mix of architectural influences brings together easy living and technological innovations.

All eBooks in the FRESH Colors series: