A Journey Through Time: Color in Historic Home Design
Brownstone homes and green painted accents are a timeless pairing. Continue reading to discover the historical significance of these complementary colors in 18th- and 19th-century home design, along with a Minneapolis remodel keeping this iconic brownstone style alive today.
The Story Behind the Iconic Reddish-Brown Brick
Brownstone homes are aptly named for their signature brown ‘stones’, and were commonplace in the 18th and 19th centuries. Once abundant, the soft brown sandstone used to build these classic American homes has been largely quarried out of the Northeast. This scarcity has created high demand for the iconic brownstone architecture found in historic homes across the country. In contrast to the familiar warm reddish-brown brick, brownstones are often adorned with striking green-painted accents.
“Grateful to the Eye”: The Historical Use of Green
George Washington’s Mount Vernon home, built in 1743, features a bold green interior paint color in the dining room, which he famously called “grateful to the eye” and slow to fade. Washington’s sentiment captured the 18th century fondness of the color green in architecture and home design, valued both for its aesthetics and its believed pest repellant properties. At the time, green paint was commonly made with high levels of arsenic, which was thought to keep bugs out. Thus, homeowners applied the paint to exterior trim, shutters, and window casings to protect their homes from insects. Although this has since been disproven, the historical significance and timeless beauty of these stunning green accents lives on in brownstone homes today.
A Minneapolis Brownstone Garage Restored
In this breathtaking Minneapolis Brownstone Garage Remodel, the homeowners’ top priority was maintaining the rich history of their Clarence Thomas design brownstone home. Dissatisfied with an impractical, disheveled garage, the homeowners worked with our team at TreHus to design a historically accurate remodel without sacrificing practicality. This new garage is coated with Benjamin Moore’s Lafayette Green HC-135 paint to match the trim of the original home and adorned with a charming cupola, adding character while maintaining high standards of historical accuracy in an often-overlooked exterior feature. Remodels like this preserve and restore beautiful historical American architecture from centuries past to carry on for centuries to come.
