5 seems like a bit much. any idea what they are and how they're to be incorporated? can they do a rendering that shows you?

I hope you're doing a metal roof. they look amazing w/the cedar siding, black windows, black and dark gray siding/stucco. lots of combos.

this one, below, has your 4-5 different materials.

Hey Beth! Wow thank you for all of this. Here is the current plan!..I would have loved to do the roof in metal, but the house came with a brand new roof when we bought it last year. I'm thinking that the garage and left side of the house should be the same color/material since they are the bookends.

I've also been told that if Im doing black frame windows, black garage door to avoid the blue siding as black and blue don't work well in design. But we thought some color would be nice.

The examples Beth H has shown are really nice. It seems that the different materials have a purpose to either highlight certain lines or to make parts cohesive. The proposed drawing doesn't seem to do that for me, especially the light color in the center. It makes your lovely house in the photo look like additions not well executed. What was the architect's reasoning for each of the material choices?

any chance you could do a wood garage door? It plays well w/your cedar.

if no wood door, then maybe something like this. that standard one in your picture just doesn't work w/your design

@tozmo- Thank you for the direction, very appreciated. I directed the architect that I wanted (3) materials- stone, wood, and metal. Generally speaking- I thought this was a good approach given the house is contemporary and if executed properly could be really cool! But I just dont think its working. Here a few pictures I really like, just not sure how to make it work on our house and looking for a 3rd party advise besides the architect . Kind of just worried about it being too dark and lack of color.

@ Beth- I like either the black frame metal garage door or the wood garage door. I guess whatever we do with the siding will dictate that. I had never seen that other garage door so thanks for sharing!

@Beverly- Couldn't agree more. Could I ask, what are your thoughts on the left and right pitched roof sections of the house dark gray, a wood cedar ship lap top (like it currently is) and a light-er gray as the center section/block of the house? Too boring?

Your house as it exists is more attractive than the proposed hodge podge of materials. I don't think you should feel you need to "push back" with your architect. He or she wants you to be happy. Did you try showing pictures of houses that you did like? In fairness to the architect, there is a currently consumer driven demand for more materials on homes. It is inspired by tract housing. People seem to want to order a home with "everything on it" as if it were a deli sandwich. I hope you will not go that way. . As someone else pointed out, material placement usually has to do with the design of the house while in the proposed image they seem to be placed randomly. I don't like so many horizontal and vertical lines when I cannot find meaning in them. It looks chaotic.

To my way of thinking you could leave the siding simple. I would be more concerned with changing windows and the porch roof.

Windows are not just for ventilation. They should enhance the architecture

I am also not loving the porch roof. I would like a cantilevered roof although I know that may not be possible if you get heavy snow.

I would love to connect with some builders and architects too! This thread has me more confused than ever! A lot of these design suggestions are great, but we are handcuffed to how the house is currently built with regards to drastically changing the windows, etc. If anyone is feeling brave and in the season of giving-I have both the Revit and Sketchup files if any pros wouldn't mind taking a stab! Thanks again!

Here are a few pictures that ive been contemplating- Please send me your vote!

One last thing- for all of them- we've ditched the architectural canopy above the garage door and are now just going with a few lights.

I agree with Beverly about three materials/colors max. Also, although this is beyond the scope of the advice you asked for, I would consider changing the slope of the roof over the garage so that it slopes up from right to left as you face the garage door. This way both sloping roofs point toward the body of the house at the center. Just more pleasing to my eye.

Just my opinion, but i don't understand the use of the material vertically that creates the wedge for the roofs. I know that treatment is similar to one of the pictures you liked, but in the picture you like, the material (or at least the same color) comes down the side in a contiguous line and also the other material on the side goes up into the roof line as rafters. The two are woven together. The most recent drawings above need the materials to embrace each other rather than sit on each other. My line of sight keeps starting and stopping with no help from the materials on where to go next. What if the entire front of the garage were cedar (Not the garage door, just the siding) and the sides (below the wedge) were grey and the cedar somehow came down the front of the part of the house on the left, either to the right of the windows (long narrow strip) or down the center between the windows, top to bottom? This suggestion might look awful when drawn. I don't have any drawing tools but i have a very vivid imagination. :-)

bpecelli,,i like the very last rendering. the dark/wood/middle lighter horizontal. however, that post support completely blocks the sightline of the door and just seems a little 'in your face'. any way to tweak that? Maybe it's just the drawing, but the wood cleat that wraps around under the angled porch roof, is there, why? I'd play around w/that a bit and see if you can ditch the posts....like they have here

ok,,maybe replace the white post for a cedar one,,,,and see if you can remove the hang down portion that is that red color. a copper roof would look great next to the black and the wood siding,,,,,that's if you just do those two on the front. otherwise, don't add another element to the mix!

great house and land you have!

Being a long time northwesterner I gravitated immediately to the colors and materials in the very first photo that Beth shared with you above. NW design is similar to Japanese design. You could look at some Japanese design to get some more ideas. The materials are very important, color less so and should be natural. I would not do a white or a light color on the house. I'm not even sure about the blue. Think Zen. Put the color into plantings such as rhododendrons, azaleas, Japanese maples. You might see if you can find some Olson Kundig examples to look at. You have a fabulous home to treasure.

Thank you for all the advice..I think ive landed in a great place