House Colors: Exterior Color by Style of Architecture [Paperback]

Susan Hershman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 2007

House Colors is the most comprehensive resource ever compiled on choosing exterior house colors. Sorted by architectural style, this format will allow the reader to pinpoint the colors that will best suit their style of home. It is the ultimate resource for those looking to achieve exceptional color combinations, from subtle to bold, that are so difficult to achieve without professional design assistance. The information included will supply the homeowner with all of the resource information from manufacturers and retailers that are needed to provide dazzling professional results that will increase the beauty of the home and neighborhood, increase curb appeal and add value to the property while creating pride of ownership for the homeowner.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

HOUSE COLORS Susan Hershman Beautiful, well-chosen exterior color can add significant value to any home investment, not to mention fill its owners with a sense of pride. But finding the right colors through trial and error isn't an easy task. A color that looks good on the manufacturer's tiny paint chip won't necessarily look great on your house.
With homes organized by architectural style, Susan Hershman provides the information you need to achieve inspired results as painlessly as possible, without all the confusion and guesswork. House Colors contains photographs of hundreds of homes with successful color combinations that work-from the main house color to the trim to the smallest accents.
Included for each house are specific names and numbers of the products and materials used, including paint, stucco, stone, roofing materials, lighting, and door hardware. The comprehensive resource section contains manufacturer and retailer contact information, making a seamless connection between what you see here and how to achieve the same results at home. Hershman also shares painting tips and explains the basics of color and design. The painstaking research has already been done for you, making House Colors your ultimate resource for ideas, inspiration, and information that will guide you to achieving the beautiful home of your dreams.
Susan Hershman is a talented interior architect who received her BFA in interior architecture from California College of Arts (CCA). She received an MA in Art from San Francisco State University and a BFA in Art from Moore College of Art and Design. Having worked as a designer in some of the country's award-winning design/architectural firms, she is currently the principal of her own design company, STUDIO+ONE:DESIGN, which focuses on interior design and color consultation. She resides with her husband and son in Oakland, California.

From the Back Cover

Eliminate exterior house color anxiety with House Colors, a comprehensive guide for achieving the exact look you want-without the guesswork. Features include:
Dozens of perfectly painted houses in several architectural styles ,br> Color and product specifications for each house
Professional painting tips
An exhaustive resource section
Ideas for integrating landscaping with house color and creating curb appeal

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Gibbs Smith (October 1, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1586856901
• ISBN-13: 978-1586856908
• Product Dimensions: 9.7 x 9.7 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (31 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #54,208 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #8 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > How-to & Home Improvements > Power Tools
  • #16 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > Interior Design > Decoration & Ornament
  • #79 in Books > Crafts, Hobbies & Home > How-to & Home Improvements > Do-It-Yourself

More About the Author

My book, House Colors, is an altruistic project that came from my need to share great design with anyone who wants to access it. My passion for design led me to the idea of writing and photographing this book. It was a labor of love, taking three years to complete the project.

I'm an interior designer with my own design firm, STUDIO+ONE:DESIGN in the San Francisco Bay Area. I have a B.F.A. in art from Moore College of Art and Design, an M.A. in art from SFSU and another B.F.A. in Interior Architecture from CCA (formerly CCAC). My education and experience in art and design have led me to follow my passion for color and how that impacts our lives on a daily basis. I work on all aspects of interior and exterior residential design projects with the inate understanding that great color is at the heart of every successful design project.

When I started to work with exterior house color, I realized that it was a struggle, even for me, an expert on the subject. How could anyone expect to get great color on the exterior of a house when selecting it from a tiny paint sample? Once scaled to the size of a house and exposed to tremendous amount of natural light, the color is completely different.

That's why I wrote the book. I wanted to make it easy and user friendly, skipping complicated explanations and basically getting down to the nitty gritty of sharing great house color information in an easy to use visual format: the photographs of the houses are keyed to the matching paint specifications in the back of the book. The book is also divided by architectural styles to help the reader key into a homes that are most like their own. When I could, I added other useful information too, like the manufacturer of the doors, door hardware, lighting, house numbers, mailboxes and roofing materials - and included where to find them.

I hope that my book does its job and helps you to get great house colors and ideas for sensational curb appeal for your home that you may have trouble getting to on your own.

Learn more about my book at:
www.facebook/House.Colors

Learn about my interior design business and see my portfolio of work at:
www.facebook/Studio.One.Design

See my resume at:
www.linkedin.com/in/susanhershman

Enjoy!

Susan Hershman
STUDIO+ONE:DESIGN
1395 Trestle Glen Road
Oakland, California 94610
(ph)510.986.0200
(cell) 510.332.7253
[e-mail]
www.studio-one-design.com

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Breakthrough Book for Developing a Color Scheme for your House, December 10, 2007

By 

Andre Ptaszynski "architect" (San Francisco Bay Area) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: House Colors: Exterior Color by Style of Architecture (Paperback)

This book has been waiting to happen for years.
If you've ever gone cruising neighborhoods to find the new colors for your house, with color fan and notebook in hand, you know it can take weeks to find just what you need. Susan Hershman has done the work for us at long last. Not only has she photographed almost two hundred beautifully painted houses, she discusses each color scheme and reveals the paint manufacturer, color number and many other essential details.
The houses are of all styles and colors. They are mostly houses which the average American can relate to, no chateaux on the Loire or English stately homes. Her descriptions are insightful and help one figure out just what would be right for one's own particular situation.
Essential reading even if you want to develop your own unique color palette.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic book, June 16, 2008

By 

avid reader "mccate" (Indiana) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: House Colors: Exterior Color by Style of Architecture (Paperback)

This is the best reference I have ever seen for exterior colors. The pictures are of real houses, not staged for photography and the book gives you the paint brands and numbers of the colors used on each house. Very very helpful. I found colors to paint my home I would have never thought to consider and I am a decorator. Thank you Susan!

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book!!, December 29, 2007

By 

Robert Nebolon "Architect" (Berkeley, California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: House Colors: Exterior Color by Style of Architecture (Paperback)

This book will be very useful to laymen and professionals for use in selection of exterior colors and materials for new houses, remodelings, and even when the house is getting re-painted.

Laymen, when re-doing their own house to whatever degree, would love the book because Ms. Hershman clearly and simply explains her points by use of examples (in beautiful photography) as well as the written word. For professionals, the book offers a collection of images and ideas that can presented to their clients so that they can understand that color is not a "paint job". Rather, exterior color is really an integrated system of materials and colors--and that system can range for the very simple to the very complex.

This book would be wonderful addition to anyone's library.