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Fall Colours


Early Fall, Not Summer, is Best Time for Exterior Painting

Add pizzazz to the outside of your home with this season’s top colours.


If you put off painting the exterior of your home this summer, don’t fret. Early fall, not summer, is actually the best time to paint or stain the outside of your house.

Most people wait for summer to get outside and paint, but contrary to popular opinion, a hot sunny day is not the ideal time for an exterior paint or stain job. But weather conditions can make or break a paint project and affect the longevity of a job. If it’s too hot outside, the coating will dry too quickly, leaving behind brush marks, causing blisters and preventing the paint or stain from properly adhering to the surface.

Tips for the Achieving the Perfect Exterior Paint Job


Clear and dry. 
The perfect time to paint is when the weather has been dry for at least two days and daytime temperatures are between 10ºC and 25°C. Humidity should be low or moderate, and there should be no fog, drizzle, dew or gusty winds.

Time it right.
To guard against potential night-time temperature drops, complete painting by mid-afternoon to allow the paint ample time to dry and reduce the chance of early moisture causing condensation on the surface. Similarly, when starting to paint early in the day, make sure to wipe all surfaces with a rag or towel immediately before painting to remove any moisture that may have settled on the surface overnight, even if it may not be visible.

Unveiling Our Fall 2014 Colour Palette


With exterior painting season upon us, we unveil our fall 2014 colour palette – featured in our new exterior colour card – including a mix of deep reds, jewelled greens, warm browns, classic whites, and muted neutrals. The combination of the muted classics with bolder accent colours works particularly well on the outside of a house and does wonders to enhance a property’s curb appeal

Topping the list of our favourite fall colour combinations are:

1. Kitten White (30YY 78/035), Artisan Brown (RM 71YR 08/119) with Tomorrow’s Taupe (90YR 29/096)




2. Miller’s Cove (10GY 56/073), Midnight Garden (50GG 23/085) with Legend Tan (20YY 51/098)




3. White on White (30GY 88/014), Smoke Grey (90BG 30/073) with Approaching Storm (90BG 11/101)

Tips for Choosing the Right Colours for Your Exterior Paint Job


Key in on your door. 
Painting your front door a vibrant colour not only jazzes up your entrance way, but it also adds interest to your entire home, creating a welcoming feel. Top door colours for 2014 include tropical blue, spicy orange, reddened violet and mustard brown.

Don’t pass up pastels.
Lighter shades of any hue work well on home exteriors because they attract less light and heat. Tans, whites and creams in particular will also make your gardens pop and lend well to brighter accent colours for trim and doors.

Enjoy the view.
Choose a paint colour that complements both your surroundings and neighbouring homes. If your house gets a lot of sun, whites or yellows will look radiant. If you are in a woodsy area, browns and greens blend well.

Mix things up. 
Rather than use matching shades on trim and siding, consider contrasting colours to highlight shutters, frames, gables and other architectural features. The general rule of thumb is to use a lighter colour for the main areas and a darker tone for accents.

Don’t worry if you’re late for fall’s prime painting season as there are products on the market – such as Dulux Diamond Exterior Paint – that are specially formulated to work at surface and air temperatures as low as 2°C, helping increase the longevity of a paint job even in colder weather.



For more information about Dulux Paint’s colour palette, and to select the right products for your exterior painting job, visit our colour inspiration and trends pages or a Dulux Paints store near you.