White Exteriors: BALBOA MIST OC-27 & Trustworthy Contenders to Sample shares a photo gallery of exteriors where the exact paint color or educated guess is provided. Judging from the popularity of BM Balboa Mist (also known as BM 1549), this pale gray may be a safe bet when you’re after an off-white with grey undertones. Remember natural light is going to wash out the color so that even if you want a white house, a gray color may be your best friend. In addition to Balboa Mist, find additional ideas to sample for exterior paint colors.
White Exteriors: BM Balboa Mist
Will BALBOA MIST Feel Like a Warm or Cool White?
The brand (Benjamin Moore) calls the color slightly warm, and even though it is a pale gray, additional undertones keep it from feeling sterile.
Maybe that’s why it is such a perfect exterior white color when you’re after an off-white that won’t feel blinding. When the sun hits it, the color feels even more gentle.
Is This Paint Color Very Light?
The light reflectance value (LRV) of Balboa Mist is 65.53. LRV is the percentage of visible or usable light reflected from a paint surface. Hence, this color reflects 65.53%. Brighter whites have LRVs in the 80s, but this off-white still lands on the lighter end of the spectrum.
BM 1549 is a Designer Pick for Exterior Paint Colors
What a boon when a great designer shares the name of her favorite paint colors for projects!
Atlanta-based interior designer Sherry Hart loves the color for client projects, and it’s easy to understand why. Across a range of eclectic homes in various contexts, it sings.
For a renovated Tudor-style Atlanta home by Ladisic Fine Homes, the Balboa Mist painted brick is paired with darker gray trim as well as warm coppery accents and dark iron. Another home exterior with the color paired with mid-tone grey trim?
For the home below, we also know the cool gray exterior color of garage doors (BM Coventry Gray):
This next exterior features a harmonious combination of BM Balboa Mist with Sherwin-Williams Intellectual Gray. The trim color feels very Parisian greige and chic:
What I find especially helpful is seeing a bunch of photos of an exterior color at different times of day.
The way a color is perceived is always dependent on the lighting at a particular time.
What’s the Easiest Way to Sample Balboa Mist?
Sample pots work, but they can be messy and involve a paintbrush, posterboard, etc. An easier way is to order peel and stick samples with Samplize and have them delivered straight to your door.
Care to see the tone in two different interiors with high and low lighting conditions? First, with natural light:
And then here it is with dimmed light in a bedroom:
Another color from Benjamin Moore that is quite similar to Balboa Mist is Athena 858.
What Paint Colors Look Great With Balboa Mist?
In addition to the designer-picked accent colors above (Amazing Gray, Coventry Gray, Intellectual Gray), Benjamin Moore suggests these contenders:
Cloud Cover OC-25, Rock Gray 1615, Flint AF-560, and Barista AF-175)
Should you need an idea for a lighter exterior trim color to provide contrast with Balboa Mist, here’s how it appears with BM White Dove:
White Exteriors: A Collection of More Paint Possibilities
Benjamin Moore WHITE DOVE
White Dove is a trustworthy paint color choice for white exteriors (snag a sample right here) if you are going for a brighter effect like this:
It’s an off-white so is not likely to feel like a too bright white. I’m partial to it for traditional style exteriors and interiors.
Thinking of White Dove for trim? Wise move. I have often painted trim and doors this hue and find it doesn’t change much throughout the day.
The same cannot be said for plenty of other whites. For example, our painter confused White Dove with Dove Wing (he should have known better!) and painted all of our trim and doors the wrong white. Dove Wing is much more grey and just wasn’t as fresh looking.
That said, Dove Wing is a fine choice for exteriors since the yellow sunlight warms it. What a nuisance that the names of those two whites are easily mixed up! Let’s face it. Choosing a white paint is nerve wracking enough.
Another Benjamin Moore color to consider for traditional and French country projects? Benjamin Moore Gray Mist. Here it is on a gorgeous Canadian home:
If you admire the contrasting shutter color above, it is Benjamin Moore Revere Pewter (has a natural warm linen yet still taupe-y greige look).
You could also peek at Sherwin Williams Repose Gray (a slightly warm gray with blue undertones) for trim.
BM White OC-151
Not long after we painted all of our interiors OC-151 White in our former home, I noticed a board and batten cottage (below) designed by Lisa Furey. She used this white on both the exterior and interior. Benjamin Moore White OC-151 with its blue undertones feels like a bright modern white, perfect for modern farmhouse and coastal design styles.
Need reinforcement for using the same white inside and out? I suppose this seals it! Nothing wrong with going for a cohesive feel. However, just because it worked in this situation doesn’t mean you’ll be equally pleased. Always sample at least three similar colors. What other whites could you try? Ideas ahead,
Sherwin-Williams EXTRA WHITE
Similar to OC-151, here are more board and batten style homes with SW Extra White:
What sorts of questions do I ask when selecting the proper white? Does it appear too yellow? What undertones are coming through the white? In what ways does the white change when light washes it?
As you compare different white samples, you’ll notice the light reflectance value (LRV) number varies and will be able to take that under advisement too.
The higher that LRV number, the more light it reflects, and the lighter the color.
Years ago, interior designers consistently recommended choosing paint colors for walls in the 50’s – the mid range for LRV. However, in recent years, homeowners have preferred lighter colors and lots more light reflectance inside and out.
I imagine this exterior’s color to be close if not exactly SW Extra White:
SW Alabaster
Alabaster is now iconic. One of those warm whites that exploded on the modern farmhouse scene a few years back (at the dawn of HGTV’s Fixer Upper), Joanna Gaines was a huge fan who used it for countless projects.
Alabaster is also great for exteriors where you want a creamy, not too bright (but truly light), white for your home’s siding or brick.
I admire the color story for this stunning Atlanta project where a deep gray was chosen for shutters…
and this gorgeous, cheery yet sophisticated hue Wythe Blue is on the front door:
The front door is critical to curb appeal and certainly deserves thoughtful consideration. That said, the color you choose for the exterior door and shutters doesn’t have to be a forever sort of decision. Have fun with it. Try a new color on a whim or for a particular season.
Alabaster is also a great choice for trim:
While we may not know the exact white paint color used on this brick home (in my neck of the woods), it reminds me of Alabaster:
BM Simply White
BM Simply White is wildly popular like SW Alabaster. Its popularity may be a result of how often it seems to work in a variety of contexts.
Pretty perfect for modern farmhouse homes, it also works for European inspired homes.
I’m guessing the homes above and below were painted Simply White since The Fox Group tends to rely on it often for interiors.
Don’t forget though how the color will look different across scenarios, according to the time of day the photo was snapped, geographic location of home, and even editing.
White Exteriors: Paint Ideas
If you need a few more names of paint colors worth sampling, consider these:
Close to the Custom Paint Color of Our Former Exterior
Our former home’s exterior color was pretty close to perfect for my taste – not too warm, not too cool, and a nice contrast with the white trim. It was a soft greyed-white close similar to Farrow & Ball’s Cornforth White.
In fact, I got a nearly exact match when I mixed equal parts Cornforth White and Hardwick White.
Do PIN this graphic for future reference!
Peace to you right where you are.
-michele
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