Ok I like the idea of painting or whitewashing (so we can see the wood grain)in the same color as the trim. If we white wash in the white paint would we need to seal it? And if so, some exterior sealants can turn yellowish, any suggestions there? Thanks again! You all are such a great resource!

The haint blue is common in the south, not just coastal, to reduce the number of bugs, primarily mosquitoes from hanging around the porch areas.

Lidia- I always thought that was a myth. Very interesting!

Everyone has different tastes, of course, but I don't find the grain of (fast growth) pine very attractive. The knots and wide face grain will make for a too rustic look for this house. More so, juxtaposed with the front door.

Paint the pine. Way too much gong on : ).......all the other trim too, other than the front door. White as the room beyond............

The Whys Behind the Blue Porch Ceiling

From the palest of powder blues to varying shades of aqua, teal, cobalt, robin's-egg, periwinkle and gray, blue porch ceilings are popping up all across the country.

Once just an old Southern tradition, the blue porch ceiling has made its way north...

Okay I agree with the majority and paint it is to match all the white around!

There ya go!

Again thank you all so much as white paint have not even been considered! Much happier now!

Paint it white...The door is gorgeous. Our daughter has mahogany doors.

Her trim is white and porch ceiling white. It looks neat and clean.

You would never be able to stain that pine ceiling to look like mahogany anyway.

Here is a pic of my daughters porch - showing the painted white trim and ceiling

and the light gray clapboard house...floor is painted darker grey... Hope this helps.

Cliff_and_Joann- just beautiful! Yes it keeps the mahogany the star of the show! When I recently looked up what our doors were made of from our suppliers invoice it said “Sapele Mahogany” I’m like which is it!? Hubby has personally finished and sealed it and it’s gorgeous so it deserves to be the star I guess! Thx for the pic as it does help! Your daughter must be so proud of her lovely home. Thanks again!!

Yes, your door is the star... your hubby did a great job with the refinishing.

Enjoy your home and best wishes.

Read here about Sapele... https://sixstringacoustic.com/sapele-vs-mahogany-whats-the-difference-and-which-is-better

can't find an exact match, but I love the palest of blue ceiling w/the Marshmallow trim

this would look great w/your door

don't forget the potted hydrangeas

OhmyGOSH, Miss Beth, that first photo in your post is amazing!!!

Sorry, I still vote blue! That is just crazy-gorgeous.

It does look beautiful and Beth H is an amazing designer!! I love to see what she suggests! I will show both options and see what hubs thinks. He actually does have a strong sense of style but this had us both stumped. I will be back and let you know what his tie breaker decision is as I like both!And I LOVE “grandma flowers.”Anyone down south here who had a grandma and a little cottage always had hydrangeas around outside and they always just warm my heart for that very reason!! We used to bury rusty nails near them to make the color bluer! Thanks all!

Jazz, thanks. make sure you seal those knotholes if you paint. use a spray Shellac or an oil based stain-hider primer like Zinsser.

lighter than this would work

and man,,,this super dark charcoal/black looks so good w/the creamy white, the blue and the door stain.

Yes, LOVE the black accents!! We are using SW Anonymous for the shutters that will be close by but not actually on the front porch where this door is. It is pulling a color from the colored brick that is wrapping the foundation slab lower area. All in all it’s turning out so pretty! Just this ceiling is the last decision on the exterior and then we move to inside color decisions so I’ll probably be calling on everyone again!!

Gorgeous!! Exactly as you have it in photos.

I love that color w/your brick. was going to suggest a medium gray for that. please post when you are done.

BTW, on your door,,,consider using a UV protector if your husband didn't already. Penofin has a marine oil with 99% uv blockage. I used it for my wood door

I agree with ODD and Beth that the ceiling should be Haint Blue.

Well, since this wood ceiling was hubbies idea, he voted for the white paint so I had to go with it.(choose your battles kind of thing) Beth, I think he used Waterlox to seal the door. (Not sure if it has UV protection)-It’s South facing and gets a bit of sun but is otherwise protected from the elements so I’m hoping it’ll just take a touch up once a year to keep it in good shape. Thanks all again!

Beth is the product to seal before painting that you were recommending?

yes. I've used that one. however, for easier application, it does come in a spray can. or you can roll that one one, but you may have to fine sand before applying your paint.

another quick option is to get the Shellac, in the spray can,

and use that directly over the knots. Then do a quick prime w/the white primer over all of the wood. This way you'll be doubly assured that the tannin in the knots won't seep through your paint.

(technically you could spray all of the wood w/the shellac, but the white prime coat gives a nice base for light paint colors.

If your other window and door trim is white, paint this one white as well.

Ok gotcha Beth! The spray can, I think, would be easier on the knot areas since he boards are already installed. And suezbell yes, agree trim should match the other window trim as well. Ok we’ve got our work cut out for us this weekend! Thanks again!

Can I ask an off topic question?? Love your door and all that glass. How see thru is it when standing outside on the porch. Hubby has an aversion to people being able to look inside. I love the look so picking battles. Thank you.

Smart woman regarding picking your battles and in a way you also won this one because the painted version will really help enhance your entry.

Sharon, you could always put a film on the glass. 3M makes excellent films that allow light to enter but are opaque to people looking in. We did that in our garage instead of getting shades or curtains that would have wound up getting dirty.

We have that on our storm door now and it has a mirror like finish on the outside. Just don’t know if I could convince him to get a door like this on our next house. We are moving south a bit and I just love that look. Thanks for the reply.

Jazz,,unless someone comes up and puts their nose on the glass, you can't see in. I have a beveled glass door and it's the same way. no way you can see anything from the sidewalk

But how about the UPS guy when he rings the bell. Our family room will be straight sight line from the front door.

Sharon, are you guys doing something on the couch when you get deliveries? Even if you are, most delivery guys couldn't care less, and do not stay and linger by peering in the glass. they almost throw the package on the porch and get the heck out of dodge. At least my delivery guys do. None stand and the door and spy.

Let’s just say it’s always possible 🤪BUT husband works in an industry where trust no one is a mantra. He’s just very private and for some reason front door sight lines are an issue. I guess I’m not getting the door I’d like. 👀👀👀

lol. well, there are certain privacy glass options. like the beveled, or the frosted or wavy.

go look for a house w/that type of door and see if you can see in from diff depths. if the person comes out to ask what the hell you're doing, just tell them you love their door and was wondering where they go it!!

I would use regular shellac in a can, either clear or amber, and roll it on with a small roller and a long paint pole. That would minimize the need to climb up and down a step ladder to get close to the surface with the spray can. I find my hand gets tired using the spray can, especially overhead.

My suggestion would be to apply the shellac to the entire surface of the pine, not just the knots. You wouldn't need to get it between the boards, just on the surface. Yes, the oil primer seals the boards, but nothing works better than shellac for sealing stains and knots and it won't bleed through. You will be disgusted if in a few months or years, you see blotches coming through your pretty blue paint. There is a lot of time and effort going into that ceiling so consider buying the insurance with a coat of shellac under the primer.

That will be a beautiful porch when it is finished!

lyndee,,,that stain blocker primer also works well. I've used it on mahogany and pine boards both. the shellac is just extra insurance against the knots.

Thanks Beth. You give great advice and I admire your posts helping out so many Houzzers.

Hi, Sharon-so yes privacy was an issue when we were discussing what type of glass. This is the Flemish glass so as to add a distorted look. Like someone said if you were butt naked behind it, you’d be able to tell that someone was nude but you couldn’t make out discernible body parts. We had it with our last wrought iron door and loved it! I do much prefer plain glass but the privacy wins out. Function over form I guess but we also wanted our foyer with more natural light as well. We are in the woods so don’t have to worry about anyone seeing it from the street. Lyndee Lee, ill give hubs both options and see which way, roller or spray, he wants to go but agreed we don’t want to see crud bleeding through. Thanks all and so glad we got all this valuable input!

Experience has taught me to use two coats of pigmented shellac on knots and water stains. Also, shellac is recommended as a spot primer on exterior surfaces. A porch ceiling--??not exactly exterior but not exactly interior either. I would ask a real painter for an opinion on using it as an all-over primer on the ceiling.

Personally, I would spot seal the knots w/ 2 coats of shellac and then go over with another primer. Might be a bit of overkill but considering that it is overhead work on tongue & groove material (not a real fun painting job), you don't want to be doing it over anytime soon.

Sharon don't know if you missed my post above where I mentioned about the 3M window films. These are professionally put on by people trained by the company. Here is the window film on my glass door on my elevator to give you one example. Later I can take a pic of the window film in my garage.

First pic is the door looking in. (Note they have more opaque window films too. I have one that is more opaque on my garage windows. Plus they have patterns like this rice paper pattern as well as "solids".)

That looks lovely and we have something similar in our en-suite. I need as much natural light as possible so that is an option. Thank you.

following for the update

That looks lovely and we have something similar in our en-suite. I need as much natural light as possible so that is an option. Thank you.

That's the beauty of both the one I chose for the elevator and the ones over my windows in my garage. Both let in lots of natural light although the one in the garage is more opaque in feel.

Sharon, spraying anything on a ceiling is going to difficult to do without creating a mess of drips. including drips on you.

While I like a natural wood finish where practical, it may not be the best option for your porch ceiling -- it will draw attention to the ceiling and detract from whatever you want to be the focal point of the front of your home -- your home itself or your front entry door or your landscaping or the arrangements of flower pots or welcoming front porch seating ...

My inclination would be to choose a light blue or stark white for your porch ceiling and, using a paint roller or paint brush, paint a light coat over each dark spot and knot, then let that dry, Then paint the entire ceiling.

A pale blue porch ceiling can confuse some of the bugs that like to hang out or even build nests in soffits, eaves, porch ceilings -- they seem to confuse it with the sky and move on.

Keep us updated on how your project turns out.

suezbell,,,when I mentioned the spray cans, it was for ease. and it doesn't drip.I use them all the time. if done in a sweeping motion, not too close, puts out the right amount to cover w/o drips or blobs. I don't think she's going to break out a HVLP paint sprayer for that small area.

And at this point in this build if it’s a bit easier and works(especially at our age and with the least trauma to our necks-ask me how I know)we are all for it!

I've used a lot of spray paint cans (RustOleum 2x mostly, at least most recently) and, yes, spray cans can be used without a drip problem if carefully done.

That said, painting the underside of anything you cannot flip over to paint can be a real chore, in this case, including climbing up and down a ladder as well as risking having spray go where you don't want it. Alternately, most of the ceiling could be done with a roller and long wand while standing on the porch floor, using a brush and ladder for the edges. Keeping the paint where you want it to go, especially if a breeze comes up, will be easier with roller and brush.

Sounds good all! I’ll give hubs all options and see what his plan of attack is! Thanks again!

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Love the brick as well as the door, pull out a medium to charcoal color from the brick for the paint. Then your whites and the brick will flow together and the door will still be focal point.

Solution we use: we have thermal drapes inside that we close over our glass front doors when we want privacy/aren’t home/don’t want to answer the door. Current house needs the thermal as door is old, but will do same solution in new house so we can have glass and privacy at our control!