The History of Haint Blue and Exact Paint Colors To Use in Your Home

Southern homes’ exteriors — and their porch ceilings in particular, like the one pictured above in Spring Island, South Carolina — have featured shades of what locals call "haint blue" for hundreds of years. The precise paint color that’s most representative of the tradition is the subject of lively debate; what haint blue is capable of doing, in turn, depends on whom you ask.

What Is the History of Haint Blue?

Haint blue is rooted in the traditions of the Gullah Geechee people, descendants of the West and Central African people who were enslaved and brought to work at coastal and island plantations in North and South Carolina, Florida and Georgia. They used crushed indigo — which was a common plantation crop in the 17th and 18th centuries — to create pigment for blue paint applied to their homes’ exteriors (as on the Gullah home above, on Daufuskie Island in South Carolina). According to folklore, the paint was believed to repel “haints,” or malevolent spirits, by representing water (which they couldn’t cross) or the open sky (which would encourage them to pass by); it’s also thought to have the non-spiritual benefit of deterring unwelcome insects like mosquitoes and wasps.

What Shade Is Haint Blue?

Some would argue that the saturated, indigo-heavy blue on that Daufuskie Island Gullah home’s shutters and trim is the only true haint blue. Luana M. Graves Sellars, the writer and historian who founded Lowcountry Gullah as a nonprofit to preserve Gullah Geechee culture, compares it to robin’s egg or Carolina blue; others note that what one considers haint blue gets lighter in the southernmost parts of the Lowcountry.

The Historic Charleston Foundation, in turn, partnered with Sherwin-Williams to create a Colors of Historic Charleston fan deck and paint palette that highlight Meander Blue (a light blue with teal undertones) as a traditional haint blue pick. All enthusiasts agree that haint blue, whatever it may be, is a calming and cooling addition to a home’s color story. Read on for paint picks and uses to inspire your own application.

Paint Colors for Haint Blue Porch Ceilings

Georgia designer James Farmer gave his friends’ built-in-1845, sort-of-Federal, sort-of-Greek-revival Alabama home a sense of lightness and historic character by painting its expansive screened rear porch haint blue. The shade he chose is similar to Benjamin Moore’s Palladian Blue, a soft, airy blue-green that pairs well with the darker blues on the porch swing’s cushions and the area rug.

The HGTV Dream Home 2020 on South Carolina’s Hilton Head Island provided the perfect occasion for designer Brian Patrick Flynn to carry haint blue paint from the front and rear screened porch ceilings to the ceiling of its interior great room, creating a seamless transition between the spaces. The high-gloss finish he chose for the great room’s ceiling (in Meander Blue, the haint blue option in the Historic Charleston Foundation’s color deck) takes full advantage of the color’s ability to mimic the open sky.

At this eclectic short-term rental home in Nashville, designer Allison Crawford developed a sense of southern hospitality (unless you’re a mischief-minded spirit) by painting the front porch ceiling haint blue. Here, the hue functions as an accent to the primarily black-and-white color palette rather than as its aesthetic thesis statement; to get this look, try a light ocean blue with warm green undertones like Sherwin-Williams’s Tidewater.

This Long Island Victorian home — with a boldly multicolored coastal palette that combines all of the versions of haint blue we’ve discussed, including Benjamin Moore’s bold-as-you-like Brilliant Blue and bright-and-cheerful Serenity — features its softest iteration in a waterside sunroom, where the blue-green is a gentle whisper. For a breezy hue like this one, try Benjamin Moore’s Antigua Aqua.

Haint Blue Isn't Just for Porch Ceilings

While haint blue may be most popularly used for porch ceilings, that certainly isn't the only way to use the hue to boost your home's curb appeal. Take a cue from the HGTV Dream Home 2020, and consider shades of haint blue for siding, doors, shutters and the porch ceiling. This iteration of the color is Windy Blue by HGTV Home by Sherwin-Williams, a breezy blue that brightens in the sunlight and feels a bit moodier beneath the roof line thanks to its gray undertone. The inky shutters are similar to Sherwin-Williams’s Indigo Batik (and closer to that saturated Gullah cottage blue).