Our Black Exterior Paint Color + Found Friday Week 9

If you read the last blog post or follow @fernwayhome on Instagram, then you know about our black exterior paint idea that sparked last week.

I’ve been following with the blogs Studio McGee & Chris Loves Julia for quite some time, and have been totally on board with the black paint colors they’ve been using on their houses. I’m beginning to see black exteriors more and more, & I love them all.

Even though it’s technically charcoal gray, the first house to pop in my mind is the Little Women house. (Which just so happens to be in my top 5 favorite movies.) I guess this dark exterior “trend” isn’t so trendy after all-it goes way back!

One morning last week, the idea hit me; we could paint the back of our house black!

Since the original 1922 farmhouse was added on to over the years, the back room of the house doesn’t match the rest. That’s the room we are calling our “office.” It’s just asking for something a little different. Plus, Elijah & I are both 21..we need to add some spunk to this house!

The day after the idea struck, we headed to the paint store & got two sample colors to paint on the house! There were about a million shades to choose from, so we decided to sample one lighter shade and one darker shade. We went with Black Panther by Benjamin Moore for #1 and Onyx by Benjamin Moore for #2.

After painting both colors on the house, we felt like a case could be made for both. The first black was more matte, while the second black was deeper…

If we’ve learned anything about paint colors, it’s to look at the paint colors in all lights of the day. When we were choosing our white paint color for the house, some of our samples pulled blue in certain lighting!

Funny thing is, the church across the road is painted stark white with stark black accents, so one of our goals is to not to look exactly like them…

On Instagram, we took a poll between the two colors & gathered your input…the final poll was 262 votes for #1, 98 votes for #2, and 7 votes for undecided. It was so much fun hearing all of the thoughts!

After some thinking, we decided to go with…..

NUMBER ONE! Black Panther by Benjamin Moore.

We both love the matte-ness to it & think it will be less harsh against our Silos White house color! We also love how it has some character. I love off-shades of colors, since they just look a little more thoughtfully chosen.

To ease the transition between the white and the black, we want to build a trellis to grow vines up the side of the house. I’m so inspired by this one.

Also, the concrete slab coming off the back of the house is getting a facelift, which will add some nice texture. We’re going to edge the concrete in a border, and fill it with pea gravel to create a little patio!

Whatever back door we end up going with, I want to surround it with baskets of plants! I can already see a few plants perched on little wooden stools.

Like always, the goal is to create another beautiful spot to gather and make it feel more like home. Both Elijah and I always prefer being outdoors over indoors, so I see the outdoor spaces just as important as the inside. Can’t wait to get the paint up soon & get rolling!

Found Friday Week 9 Collection

Though I’m partial to them all, this week’s Found Friday is a fun one. I love all of the white pieces! So timeless.

This week’s collection is available in the Fernway Home Etsy shop!

In case you aren’t familiar with Found Fridays, every Friday we post a collection of found items to share with you. We believe that decorating with old pieces adds a depth of character to a room that new things can’t add. As we are on the hunt for pieces for our house at thrift shops, auctions, and yard sales, we always end up finding more treasures, so Found Fridays are our way of sharing those finds with you!

• Blue and White Painted Floral Jar
• Round White Classic Tea Pot
• Tall White Tea Pot
• White Gravy Boat
• Modern Woven Basket

If you’re local to Murfreesboro, use coupon code LOCAL for porch pickup. If you’re not local, shipping is available. Hope you enjoy looking through!

As always, it’s been a joy sharing parts of our journey with you, and we love hearing from you in the comments! What’s the boldest house decor move you’ve ever made?

Glad you stopped by,

Daisy Sue