I think any one of your choices would work.

@houssaon Thanks for the input! what did you use to make that? I'm leaning towards Briarwood and Pavestone at the moment but will need to get swatches and get them all on the house before deciding. Still wondering how to handle the parging at the bottom of the stucco. Thinking of just taking it back to a dark gray like it was.

The stucco is really out of sync with the setting and the style of the house...and may be problematic in your climate?....the proposed porch may distract from that....but it feels to me like you are losing the authenticity of the cottage style...to continue in this direction a different roof would help...your setting asks for a cottage...your direction feels Greek island-ish

The stucco has been on it for many years...80% of homes here are stucco as its considered low maintenance in our area. Stucco is not really my style, but we certainly don't have the amount of funds it would take to redo the whole house with another siding or for changing the roof style....nor would we be able to recoup that when selling sometime down the road. What we can do is change the front entrance/deck and paint. The planned front entrance won't be the same as shown...the stone posts will be thick wood posts to match what we have going on in the back of the house. There will be some stone however that also matches the back entrance. I've been giving some thought to blue paint, but still leaning towards BM Briarwood.

Aha! The stucco looked new!....and the back of the home looks very cottage-y along with your newly refurbished shed...and back yard landscaping....of course the picture of the potential deck was misleading as well...but ....with the added info and a perusal of all your other posted projects I am sure you have the natural talent to bring all these elements together for a cohesive finished result... but the stucco still seems to me the most challenging element to incorporate...it also feels a little odd because there are no windows facing the entry / deck area....that probably just accentuates the stucco facade...

Since you mention blue as a color you might consider (and with the caveat that color is never reliable in the pictures) it look as if the stone is bluish and a grayish blue may be a good tone to consider ...the taupe is also good as it will be a nice subtle variation with the wood trims and added stone elements proposed....

The stucco is definitely the hardest element to work with and the front of the house is a bit "off" with the lack of windows and how they are placed, as well as the entrance being how it is (the house wasn't well thought through by the builder/designer.) So we are kinda trying to work with what we have without over improving for the area. We are already the nicest house in the neighborhood inside. No one else has renovated to this extent in our area which is alot of older homes, so we definitely stand out. Once the exterior is done it will really shine. Thankfully we are in a great area of town backing up against a green belt....so we are actually the nicest house in one of the best areas. Next spring we are doing a new fence, adding white board and batten siding to the detached garage, doing the courtyard area, painting the house and adding a new deck out front for an entrance. We plan to live here for awhile yet so these renos are for us, but with careful consideration of resale value down the road.

I was also thinking a darker grey blue or a navy because of the stone color...it does have a slight bluish tint to the cool gray in the stone. I'm kinda feeling like a blue will help add that cottage vibe and the new entrance will help break up the stucco visually, as the eye will be drawn to the extrance instead of the off placed side windows lol. With all the white trim, white board and batten and wood we are adding it will really help it feel more cottage as well. These blue cottage feeling houses have been my inspiration for the blues so far.

What climate do you live in?...will the darker color absorb unwanted heat or fade from sun over time?...will you paint the wood siding in the back the same dark color?...the color is nice but will it have a big impact on the dominantly solid front...with no white trim to break it up?

Your sample pics all have lots of contrasting trim and architectural interest....

In Houzz photos you may try “small stucco cottages” for some inspiration / ideas...

Just a couple of pics of our home that show that we are kindred spirits...tho our style is different...and our home has almost no “new” elements..except things we had to custom build to fit certain needs and spaces...

Old claw foot tub..antique cabinet for cabinetry

Bathroom update ...after 15 years of loving the first variation

Master with antique etched windows...very old mirror over old buffet base (for linen storage)with vintage art...

We saved thousands while at the same time adding a huge amount of character and quality by using old things that are still ....beautiful...functioning well ...giving visual pleasure...

You've done a lovely job on your home! Theres alot of work put into that I can certainly see. I'm sure its been a labor of love.

We live in a rather cool climate...western Alberta where we can have 9 months of the year be cold. So any extra heating up from darker paint we can take lol. I'd welcome it! haha

The white board and batten are staying white, the detached garage will look like the shed and we do have white trim on the house corners and along the top as well as the hexagonal vent at the top will all be painted a fresh white, plus there will be a thicker trim added to the windows....its hard to see the trim now as they blend in with the stucco too much and don't contrast. I think with the added deck, stone and wood for the entrance it will break up the stucco and blue enough. I haven't fully decided yet on blue but its certainly a thought thats going thru my brain instead of a neutral taupe.

As I expected you have it all covered.....and it sounds very interesting..these discussions go on forever so keep us all posted on your progress....

I like the idea of blue. Of the pictures you posted, I like the last one the best, it seems to have more gray in it. I think, I myself would pick a little lighter but, stay with the blue gray paint. It will all look great when its done.