Every now and then, a client gives me a nickname that sticks. I’ve been called a color wizard, a tone therapist, even the undertone whisperer—but one label in particular hit differently:
Dream Killer.
Let me explain.
I arrived at her home for an exterior color consultation, ready to work my magic. She had a beautiful property with green-gray stonework, a medium gray roof, and windows that leaned greige. It had a cool, grounded vibe—elegant and a little moody in the best way.
Her vision?
Modern Farmhouse.
White siding. Black trim. Black everything. Basically, “fixer upper” chic.
Unfortunately, the house said something else entirely. It was cool-toned, not crisp. Layered, not high-contrast. The stone had depth and a touch of mossy green undertone—gorgeous, yes, but completely incompatible with stark white and black.
So I did what any True Colour Expert™ would do: I gently (but clearly) explained that the modern farmhouse look wouldn’t work with her home’s fixed elements. It wasn’t just a no—it was a physics-defying no. Her dream house and her actual house were speaking different color languages.
That’s when she paused, looked at me deadpan, and said:
“Wow. You’re a dream killer.”
Honestly? Fair.
But I wasn’t going down without a fight.
I mocked up her house in full “farmhouse fantasy”—white walls, black trim, the whole TikTok mood board. Spoiler alert: it looked like her house had dipped itself in printer ink and then forgotten who it was. The cool stone turned greenish and blotchy. The windows looked disjointed. The vibe was less “chic barn” and more “design identity crisis.”
She saw it. I saw it. We laughed.
And then… we got to work.
We leaned into what the house was already doing well. A soft greige for the body, a slightly deeper tone for contrast, and trim that honored the stone’s undertones instead of battling them. The result? It was layered. Calm. Beautiful. Her.
Color consulting isn’t about chasing trends—it’s about translating a home’s materials, context, and personality into a palette that actually works. The modern farmhouse look is beautiful—when it fits. But it’s incredibly specific. If your roof, stone, and windows aren’t playing along, no amount of white paint and black trim is going to save it.
In the end, my client got something even better than the dream she walked in with: a color story that made her house look like it had always meant to be this way.
So, yes, maybe I’m a “Dream Killer.”
But I like to think I’m more of a Tone Translator.
Because nothing kills a dream faster than the wrong undertones.
Want to see what all the fuss was about? Scroll for side-by-side mockups of the dream vs. reality. Because when it comes to exteriors, the truth always shows up in the stone.
