The middle one.

the 2nd- first choice
the 4th- second choice

hmmm... tell me why, Annie - normally I'm right in your camp with color/decor but that one isn't grabbing me. I like the far left or the second from left but that depends on what will happen with the cedar. Kiwigem - will the cedar be left to age or will it be clear coated?

The one in the middle, #3.

#3 would be my choice.

Thank you all for chiming in!

dlm2000: For now it will be clear coated and the Hardie accent areas will be a very dark grey/black. However, there is part of me that entertains the notion of one day painting the Hardie a Scandinavian red or staining the cedar ebony. (We just figure you only get one chance to have the cedar be natural because once you stain or paint that's it, so we're going with natural for a while).

I actually have been leaning toward the middle stone because it seems the most neutral/versatile, and it looks like the stones in the creek near our house; so it conveys a "local-ness" as opposed to an "imported" look if that makes sense. I don't know if anyone would notice that but me, though. I expected to "want" one of the veined stones, but for some reason they aren't singing to me the way I thought they might.

#3 first choice and #5 2nd choice I think. #5 looks interesting.

I like #1, 3 or 5.

2nd from the left is my preference, followed by #5.

The middle one.

Some options and some that don't seem to work.

Beverly thank you for doing that! That really helps!

Middle.

Were you thinking of falu red? Love that, early on I considered that. Also considered charred black cedar, seems we have similar taste!

If you want to stay true to Scandinavian then my vote is no stone. If it is just exposed foundation that you'd put stone on then a gray one would be more appropriate especially with "falurött".

But natural wood color siding isn't something you see much either except on log cabins. Most wood siding is stained or painted. Never seen anybody just let it naturally gray over time as the wood naturally available generally is not a wood you'd want to leave unprotected.

first one/far left

The one in the middle #3. It's a warm neutral with a touch of the gray that ties into the gray stucco.

The 1st one is too warmish brown for the gray wall and the fourth one is too pink.

The 2nd and 5th should work if you want cooler, gray tones. However, I'm not sure I see any of the stone as a Scandinavian look.

Another vote for the middle one.

Thank you all!
Sochi- falu rodfarg and shou sugi ban, yes!
Lyfia- those are some wonderful points!!! I supposed I should say Scandinavian "inspired" or "flavored" to be more accurate. It wont be a literal interpretation. We still want the house to look as though it belongs in its own context, which sadly is not in scandinavia among the happiest people on earth:-). Regarding the natural-toned siding, the cold honest truth is that I can't convince my husband to paint the house black...yet :-)
Juddgirl: the stucco is not part of the equation, it's our rental house which I used to prop up the samples. I can't believe I didn't think to say so! I will need to edit the original post.

This post was edited by Kiwigem on Fri, Oct 10, 14 at 7:58

I like the middle stone. It sounds like your house is going to be lovely!

Here is a link to Google images of black stained houses. Maybe it could help influence your husband

https://www.google.com/search?q=svart+hus&rlz=1T4GGNI_enUS522US522&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=TsU3VI-uD9DooAS0kYD4DQ&ved=0CCIQsAQ&biw=1600&bih=728

If you want to do black I would stain instead of paint. My votes are for 2nd from left or middle one.

This post was edited by lyfia on Fri, Oct 10, 14 at 7:44

I think the middle one has the warmth that the wood does and a certain brightness to it. I've never been a fan of gray stone. But it has enough gray in it so, if you chose to let the cedar go gray, it would still work fine. I'm also a fan of having it look like your local stone so it make the house look like it belongs.

We used natural new england field stone on our house and it blended perfectly with all the other stonework we did using the stone we recovered from when we dug the foundation. It really make the house look appropriate to the area. Other people have used like arizona red rock on their house which would be fine for the SW, but to me, looks out of place here.

Ok, I have taken all of your input and think I may have found a perfect compromise.. A caveat, I haven't seen this in person, but it is mined in our state I believe, and it looks just a little more to the grey side than #3 which has been in the lead.

If you want gray, go with it. But I'm still preferring the middle one...

You win, Annie! I met someone from the quarry, and it turns out that the stone coming out of the quarry right now is just a hair greyer, so #3 is the official choice :-)
thanks again, everyone!

Oh Kiwi, I am so glad you are going with the middle one. I saw this about the time you first posted but I didn't have time to reply. The middle one just seemed to jump out at me as being the perfect stone.

Thanks, holly-kay! It feels like the right one. We're excited!

Anxious to see pics when completed!

Yes, please do post when it's done.

I will! We will place the order next week and it will be installed as soon as possible.. we're racing the cold. Seem as though it always works that way. When we began construction in June it seemed as though we had all the time in the world.