I Need Help Color Matching My Old Stucco Color!

Wes has a 40-year-old home in South Florida with a linen-colored stucco that has never been painted. He’s having trouble finding a supplier that can provide a matching stucco mix or batch and is looking for recommendations to restore the home’s original look.

Question from Wes:
Good day. My name is Wes. I have a house in South Florida that we were finishing up doing some repair work on and the house was originally stuccoed in a linen-colored stucco.

I'm having trouble trying to find a supplier that can supply that colored batch and/or mix. I do realize that color has faded some through the years. The house is 40 years old and has never been painted. Do you have any recommendations?

Linen Colored Stucco Repair Area
Linen Colored Stucco 2
Linen Colored Stucco

Answer:
Hi Wes, Thanks for your question! Matching an old stucco color can definitely be a challenge, especially when the original material has faded over the years. Here are some steps and recommendations to help you find the best match:

Size of the Repairs...

If the repair areas are as small as the patches in the image you sent, experimenting with a close color from a color chart is your best bet. These areas are small and will blend fairly well with a little bit of testing using a couple of colors.

If there are larger areas, then you will want to get the color much closer, as it will stand out more prominently and not blend in as much as smaller areas.

Test Small Batches of Colors:

Look for Major Brands: Companies like LaHabra, Omega, or Sto often have a wide range of color options and may be able to replicate or come close to the linen color you’re seeking. If those manufacturers are not available in your area, then look at color charts from other manufacturers to see what matches the closest to your existing color.

An Example: LaHabra's Platinum Plus Color Chart
LaHabra has four colors—Chablis, Aspen, Egg Shell, and Oatmeal—outlined in red in their Platinum Plus color chart that are close matches to your Linen color.

These could be great options to experiment with, especially since the patches in your photos are relatively small. Testing these colors on small areas first can help you identify the best match. You might need to adjust the amount of base material and color slightly for a closer color match.

LaHabra Platinum Plus Colors That Are Close

I recommend ordering a color chart from a stucco manufacturer or looking at stucco color charts online and identifying a few colors that look close to your existing stucco.

Purchase small amounts of those colors and mix them up in small batches to test on an inconspicuous area of the home or a sample board of some sort and let the colors dry a day or two. This will give you a better idea of how close the colors are once applied and dried.

Consider the Fading Factor

Since the stucco has never been painted, the color you see now has likely faded from the original linen shade. When matching the color keep in mind:

Match the Current Shade: Make sure you are comparing colors in the repair areas and not on other walls that could be lighter or darker in color, making your repair more noticeable.

Try Color Matching Services

Many stucco manufacturers and suppliers offer color-matching services, but they usually require you to bring in a sample of stucco to get an accurate color match, which is usually done using pieces from the areas that needed to be repaired. It seems that the repair is already done and I'm not sure if you even have those pieces at your disposal anymore.

Bring a Sample: If possible, chip off a small piece of the existing stucco (preferably from an inconspicuous area) and take it to a local stucco supplier. They can analyze the color and create a custom mix for you that will match fairly closely.

Alternative Option: Painting

If finding the exact stucco match proves too difficult, painting the stucco after repairs could be a practical solution. Let me know if you have any other questions or need further assistance!

About the author

The Stucco Guy

My name is Ryan and I have been a licensed stucco contractor for many years and I feel that there is a huge "knowledge gap" when it comes to stucco, in particular. I hope you find the information here useful, and if you have a question for me fill out this Q & A form, so I can answer those questions better. Thanks for stopping by!

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