First, cedar siding never gets painted.

Too much oil in the cedar so the best you can do is stain it.

Who's stain do you plan to use? You can use a transparent stain on the house and match it with a solid bodied stain on the garage. Not sure what siding material you used on the garage.

Have you tried to clean the cedar first? It will have to be washed before any finish is applied and cedar rejuvenates when washed. Here are some before and after pics of cedar that has been washed with the proper ph balanced cleaner.

Color selections for homes in the city are not the right selections for cottages in the woods. You don't want them to stand out or look too perfect IMO.

IMO a color scheme like this would be better for your home and garage. I think you could easily duplicate this appearance since you have wood trim on the windows.

https://www.southernliving.com/home/decor/natural-georgia-lake-house

Thank you Beverly for your feedback the plan is to paint the garage which is a Hardy board in the same width as the house It does have a slight texture Then to stain the house with Sherwin Williams product After pressure washing it and the roof. .My understand is that they can replicate the stain to come very close to the paint i choose for the garage. I have seen the pictures you shared and they seem similar to what we picked with the light grey weathered look . Im thinking a flat paint would achieve the dull grey look??? My main problem is finding the light grey paint with no green or blue undertones. Stone hearth by Benjamin Moore is a color ive sampled but Im afraid it will be too light. My biggest fear is that it will turn out looking like a house in the city with a high contrast or the two structures not looking cohesive. I would be very thankful for any help.

No sense using flat paint on siding. Select one with minimal sheet and it will flatten over time.

I don't get light gray for the house at all. Stone Hearth is in the greige or taupe family but I think it's too light of a color. No matter the paint or stain it will fade over time and this will look like nothing in a few years.

I found this SW color but IMO it's too light

You may have to prime over that yellow on the garage so it doesn't bleed through. Yellow is notorious for doing that.

Here are your options for stain.

SW Stain Colors

You didn't mention anything about your plans for the house, I like the colour as it is, perhaps trim the windows but that's really up to you. Here's a look at the garage in a colour that coordinates with your house as it is now, at least on my computer screen...

We are planning to move here sometime in the near future. Hubby really loved the silver grey color. i liked that there was not a huge contrast in color on the trim. My preferance would be the same color(or lack of it) on walls and trim. Ive sampled several greenish greys for the walls but my husband just really does not want a green house. We have a retaining wall made from the cobblestones across the lake side of the cabin with a raised deck of the natural wood and rimmed with beautiful huge pink azelas. Most of the lake side of the cabin is made up of screened porch ,deck, and Bronze windows. White trim is something we both agree we do not want. We want something a little fresher/lighter looking but still understated if that makes any sense. Inside of the cabin has cedar cypress walls/white trim/several large stone walls and fireplace that are simillar in color to the grey cobblstones. the pictures of the cabin really make the house look small but its actually a 2200 sq feet home. The thing im having the main trouble with is the green roof, but as soon as the cabin roof is cleaned it will match the garage roof.

Thank all of you for your input.

I love your inspo photo (I will file it away for a future project of my own).

I am wondering if BM Collingwood or BM Pale Oak is a good body color? The green trim is a statement with the green roof. I'd sample a few like a rosemary, or this SW Relentless Olive or SW Shady Lane

Thank you Lyn. These may be keepers. Ill look online then get some samples

Oh now I get it, the Dilemma is not what color but which shades of gray and green.

What color are the garage doors behinid the plastic dropcloths? Same as the double side doors? That might make a difference.

Because the gray side doors on the garage could clash with the siding in gray if they have similar light/dark value. Like you tried to match the garage doors and the siding but didn't quite make it if you get my drift.

Some contrast might be needed.

The garage doors as well as the other 3 doors on the new build will need to be painted. The third door is on the other side of the garage. It doesn’t show up in the pictures but is a single door with probably cement pad and steps. we want a awning of some kind but haven’t gotten that far.

The color is really up in the air right now The stoney grey house in the picture is the only combination we have found online that we liked with a green roof. Neither of us like the dark grays or greens we have seen. We want a lighter fresher but soothing look.

Thanks for your help

This is fun...I used ai to try and envision your house colors and yard with teal accents and front door, rustic furniture and ferns and white flowers.

Looking at the image, the garage doors to match the siding for less contrast. The eye would be drawn to the wood trim and front door of the porch.

FYI, paint companies have visualizers online, you can upload a photo of your house and "paint" it using their colors.

I like this paint color. Do you know wha it is.The trim is a little in your face but a softer green might work for me Maybe a more monochrome look. I tried t he apple visualizer but I need to get a better picture. Thank you so much for your help

It's not a paint color, I just asked for a soft gray, forgot to ask for soft green, but I think if gives an idea that gray will work in your setting and look soothing and serene.

I do like my idea of natural wood for the porch and teal or blue for front door...a color of water being on the lake.

Here is a nice color palette with your Stone Hearth and Cedar Path which is a soft green with your roof.

I used Ben Moore Personal Color Viewer which is their visualizer.

We actually tested a sample of Cedar Path on our house to lighten up our green trim and it is a nice soft color. One patch on the fascia and one patch on the window trim:

I don't know anything about these colors but trying something a shade darker for the siding.

Tracefloyd these are really great! With the application you are using can you add the green roof?

With Benjamin Moore Personal Color Viewer, you can upload a photo of your house and "paint" it using their colors. So your real roof, with the new house colors, would be in the picture.

Sherwin Williams is called Color Snap Visualizer and will also take uploads.

I used one of Visualized above, and made a sketch using a patchwork of shots of your roofs. Your roof seems to have some teal in it, a different color from you inspo, which is why I chose CP.

The siding is Valley Forge Tan (aka Plymouth Rock1543) with Cedar Path trim.

Plymouth Rock1543 on a real house

https://www.thephinery.com/blogs/color-consults/plymouth-rock-craftsman/

Stone Hearth on a real house

https://www.livingletterhome.com/benjamin-moore-stone-hearth-984/

Thunder on a real house, even more gray

https://westmagnoliacharm.com/benjamin-moore-thunder-af-685/painting/

Thunder on a virtual house with Gettysburg Gray trim which is a green.

Indeterminate colors like this Gettysburg are rich looking.

Plymouth Rock and Crownsville Gray..also a green. Charleston Brown doors or could be used as a front porch color as I proposed in my ai.

This last one seems to have the least amount of contrast but still a hint of green:

PR and GG

very nice with your roof....

Here is a paler version, Thunder and Herbal Escape

We preasure washed the siding on the cabin. Mike fell in love and dose not want to change the color. i know I can not match this for the garage. The painters come this tuesday!! Dose anybody have any suggestions on a beautiful color to use.

I’ve been to Sherwin Williams and Benjamin Moore today looking for Browns. BM suggested either Davenport tan or Whitall Brown. SW Leather bound came from doing a color match on the wood sample i had. I also got a sample of Banyan Brown and Covered Bridge from SW. my plan is to paint some of the Hardy board to see if these might work.

The last picture is of the side of the garage that is closest to the cabin. we will landscape the yard but we will still have the cender block which gets taller around the back of the garage to paint. I’m thinking the same color for cender block and all doors and trim?

I like tracyfloyd's inspo photos. Or you could go darker. These are wood shakes, but the stain colors work well with treen. It depends on your setting as well.

Shingle Style Carriage House - Side Elevation · More Info

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You do not want the house to change color, but it will darken again over time if it is not stained. I'm a bit confused.

I like the current windows with the plain wood trim. Or paint the trim the same gray as the windows.

So no green trim anymore? You could paint the front door green.

For the garage, I would paint the cinder block the same color as the siding. It does not need to be an accent color. Depends on the siding color, but maybe a shade darker.

I could not find Banyan Brown. Covered Bridge is red and I hesitate using red and green together.

Okay, I think I see what you mean. The answer is a natural cedar wood stain for the house, clear or semi-transparent. Then get the same color but in solid for the garage if you want

BUT..

The garage does NOT have to match. The roofs and trim are the unifier.

Has anyone used SW3049 Monterey tan on the exterior of a home? both visulizers I’m using can’t find this color.

Good advice already - not a pro but the green roof is a strong element, I’d focus on deep colors that complement it - I wouldn’t have any white on the garage at all, that seems like the biggest disconnect

I'm not a pro either but Behr AE-5 Chocolate Brown is a close match to National Park Service brown for their park buildings and looks good with a green roof. Would look great on the house and garage...like a compound in a National Park. The green roofs are very woodsy.

As a Certified Color Specialist, I can tell you your roof color will drive everything. You have to stay in the same color hue of the roof for a cohesive look. There is no gray I can see in the metal roof so avoid gray toned options. A deep brown is wisest choice. Complimentary color and works so well especially in natural settings. SW Semi-permanent stain might be good option in their Hawthorne color is beautiful. Might get a sample of that. If your siding isn’t wood they can color match it with exterior paint. SW Urban Bronze comes to mind. It has some graying so might be a good compromise for hubby. I prefer the Hawthorne with your roof.

As a Certified Color Specialist, I can tell you your roof color will drive everything. You have to stay in the same color hue of the roof for a cohesive look. There is no gray I can see in the metal roof so avoid gray toned options. A deep brown is wisest choice. Complimentary color and works so well especially in natural settings. SW Semi-permanent stain might be good option in their Hawthorne color is beautiful. Might get a sample of that. If your siding isn’t wood they can color match it with exterior paint. SW Urban Bronze comes to mind. It has some graying so might be a good compromise for hubby. Also, best to do both structures the same palette. It’s more cohesive overall look.

Here is look at those two options.

Love your inspiration photo…we had some cottages in upper michigan around a golf course that had cabins that were painted to blend into the trees and foliage..so beautiful..here is a color combo that may be very close.

A few more photos.

Flo we were both adding more photos! great minds think alike….such a gorgeous spot on the water!