Ideas for the Brick Color for Exterior Walls

Red

• Red brick is a classic color that is not a true red, but rather an earthy, brown-tinted red. Red brick is often used on homes in the Georgian or Southern Colonial style but is also used in many architecture styles today. Red bricks that have lots of orange may look too bright or too cold while red bricks on the more brown side of the scale look warmer. Some shades of red brick have no variations from brick to brick; others have white, brown and even black bricks mixed in to soften the stark red.

Brown

• Brick selections in the brown family can mimic stone and other natural surfaces for a natural appearance. Some browns can be too dark and make your home look like a black hole, so choose a brown with plenty of lighter shades mixed in. Light browns and even tans fall into this category. Brown brick is often used on Tudor-style homes.

White

• Light, bright and cheerful, white bricks offer a clean slate for your roof, doors, shutters and even landscaping. If you love the look of limestone but find it prohibitively expensive, use cream-colored bricks for a similar look. White brick with a heavy application of white mortar can mimic stucco.

Gray

• While gray has a reputation as being boring, a gray brick house need not be bland. Gray is a color that works well with many accent paint colors, such as dark red, blue and green. A gray looks attractive and really stands out when surrounded by lots of green landscaping. Gray brick comes in shades ranging from very pale to very dark to a mixture of the two, so select your shade thoughtfully.

Mortar Considerations

• Mortar is also available in a number of colors, and the mortar color is another choice you'll have to make. A dark brown mortar, for example, will give a white brick home a much different overall look than a white brick home with pale gray mortar. Additionally, brick masons can use mortar to create different effects, such as leaving much of the mortar on the brick instead of scraping it off, which can dramatically change the overall look of the house.