Where do you live? Hot summers? I like them both but would lean toward to the pewter because of heat build-up.

I live in the South (Tennessee). My roofer said they would be the same as far as heat build up but not sure I believe that :)

I love a classic black roof and then you have the option to paint your house any color.

Pewter. Black overwhelms the house.

Pewter

Pewter definitely. It makes the house look much more inviting.

Pewter. the black is overwhelming.

I'd go with black. I don't think this rendering provides an accurate representation of what the colors would look like in real life. I prefer the crisp look of black.

I agree that the rendering is giving the house something of a cartoonish look that's probably not reading accurately. I like both mock-ups, but instead of thinking that the black overwhelms the house, I think the pewter might seem a bit washed out. I like the crisp look of the black with the black shutters.

I like the black and agree that it gives you more flexibility with color down the road. We have a black roof and DH was afraid it would look overpowering, but it doesn't at all. It looks great.

Pewter:)

Are you getting the dimensional shingles? I love that look. Mine are from Certainteed and the color is colonial slate. Another thing I highly recommend is getting an attic exhaust fan to remove hot air from the attic. I got one when I had a new roof put on this year and I cannot believe what a difference it made this summer.

The Certainteed site has an interactive feature that lets you try different shingles on different kinds of houses.

Here is a link that might be useful: certainteed

I like the pewter.

Be careful of the pewter gray. "Pewter" usually indicates a warm chromatic gray. Pewter ends up a warm gray because its root hue is between red and red-orange. Architectural grays are rarely if ever truly neutral -- they're all chromatic grays with root or parent hues. Don't be fooled by the label of pewter, odds are it is not neutral, it's a color.

Slate gray usually indicates a cool chromatic gray because its root or parent hues are blue.

A warm pewter gray and a cool slate blue is asking for color relationship troubles, IMO.

And that's why I'd choose black.

Do you have any limits in the brand/type of shingle? Color seems to be the last consideration. If you've narrowed the brand/type, please share that with us, so we can see the actual shingle on the manufacturer's website. I was looking at the Certainteed (a great shingle, BTW) website that dedtired posted. There are several "in-between" shades/shingles that are not stark black and not wishy-washy grey.

funcolors, great thinking (no surprise : )). What about if bichonlover could find a lighter color than black that shares the same root hue as the paint color? Which would you prefer then?

If you have a chance take the samples outside and look at them in the sunlight. Some samples with the grays have blue in them, some have green in them and some have brown mixed in with them. It really changes the look when you see the samples in the true light.

fly -- Silver gray, charcoal, *something* black, are typically the color names I'd be looking for with slate gray body. And, of course, would need to check actual samples.

Thanks for all the advice. I'm home and can show you more pictures. I put the decision off until Monday :)

I've attached a pic of our home (yes, those are leaves on the roof, darn trees). Please ignore the landscaping. Lots to do :)
We're putting on vinyl siding and a new roof. I know you're cringing but for now this is our reality.

The color we've chosen is Harvard Slate which is a medium gray. I've tried to photograph it but am having difficulty getting a true representation of it. I've attached the best one. I've also attached 3 different roofs: black, pewter and colonial slate.

I just want to get this right! THANKS for all the opinions. Hopefully, this will give you a better idea on what we're dealing with.

The middle one:

I'm open to all advice!

What a charming house! I'm repeating myself here, but I'd definitely go with the black. I like the way your current roof is dark and would opt to maintain that contrast with your new siding. Full disclosure: my house is similar to your Harvard Slate, though perhaps a bit deeper. My trim is a creamy white. I agonized about the roof when we installed it years ago, ultimately choosing black after driving around and looking at *lots* of houses. I am very happy with my choice. The mid-tone and two-tone roofs just look a bit washed out to me. Of course it's a matter of personal preference as well as a question of the look you're after, probably along with the light in your part of the country. These decisions are so major and so tough! Good luck to you.

Thanks, Daisy. So you don't think my house is too small for this color siding? It's the the best gray I could find but in bright day light it's greige.

Also, does anyone have any experience with Certainteed Black and Moire Black? The Moire Black looks like a deep gray instead of a deep black.

Goodness, no! I mean about your house being too small for this color. Honestly, I'm not sure why you'd even think that (I don't mean to be difficult here, I just can't imagine why it wouldn't look great). Your house is so pretty.

Have you held a sample of your siding up against the Moire Black? I'd think that would be the thing to do.

Now let me just add that I have no training whatsoever; I only know what I like. So if funcolors or others with expertise come along and say that for your style house a mid-tone roof would be better, I'd advise you to listen to them!

After seeing the photos of your house(it's really cute) I'd change my vote to the Colonial Slate. You see a lot of the shingles, so I think the more mottled gray will look lots better. It will also complement the brick on the lower level. Good luck!

Cute house! It will look great! I am not an expert but have you considered white siding? I saw this and it looks so much like your home!

Here is a link that might be useful: White siding/black roof

My sister has a moire black roof. It's a textured black, but still...black.

I prefer a gray roof for your house. The textural contrast will make a logical division from your siding, but the lighter color will make the house look more whole instead of chopped in two.

I thought black might be too dark for a roof, but after seeing your mock up, I prefer the black because of the contrast and how it ties in with the black shutters. I see, though, that your actual house (which is really cute, by the way) doesn't have black shutters. I think the slate siding and gray roof may blend together too much.

THANKS for all the posts and ideas.

I'm frozen with fear of making a wrong choice!

Karoloke, no shutters now but I am adding them.

Newlywed, THAT's EXACTLY WHAT MY HUSBAND WANTS! It does look pretty..... Maybe he (and you!) are right. It's classic and timeless. More confusion.....

Thoughts on white siding anyone? My order goes in Monday. My poor siding man.....

What peonies said. Don't discount the brick. It is permanent and needs to be considered in both your choices.

I love, love, love the gray siding. Don't change your mind. My roofer actually nailed sample shingles to my roof so I could see how they look in real life. What a difference. He also gave me the addresses of houses they have done with different shingle colors so I could see a wide expanse of the different colors. I am very happy with the Colonial Slate. My house is brick on three sides. The front also is brick on the lower level but had been painted when we bought the house. The rest of the front is cream colored.

I think the Colonial Slate would give plenty of contrast with the gray and also work with the brick.

"I'm frozen with fear of making a wrong choice!"

Well, don't be. Either roof color will be beautiful. You can't make a wrong choice here! Flip a coin :)

Hi Bichon! You're smart to take this decision seriously, because these are elements that you can't easily change. I ask the same question a few months ago, and didn't get this much feedback, so this is great. Anyway, our house has gray siding, and we went with Owens Corning Williamsburg gray architectural shingles. It is a med-dark gray without a lot of variation. I didn't want the roof to be the star of the show, just be a nice blend with the rest of the house. It turned out a lot like our previous roof color, which is fine, since we liked it for 15 years. I wouldn't pick out something with a blue cast, but not too brownish either, if you're going with gray siding. I don't typically like solid black, because it stands out, but I also don't like too light, because it's bland and stains show up fast. Anyway, I hope you'll show us a pic when it's done. Happy Thanksgiving!

Although we used Hardi Plank siding one thing I did was ask where I could view full house of the gray's. I loved the small samples but when we saw the full houses done all I could see was to much blue. Maybe you could ask the siding company for address of the grays. We ended up going white and gray slate roof.

Ha ha! Toss a coin? I don't think so :) This is a HUGE decision and a costly repair. I will not be changing it as long as we live in this house, and with the economy the way it is it may be forever! I just want to love it. Is that too much to ask? :) I want to drive up in my driveway and be happy with my choice and be proud of our home. Dislike and regret are not an option. Small decisions are easy for me but large ones are more difficult.

I think our vinyl is called Victorian Gray by Alcoa. It was a thicker version, so I think it was considered an upgrade (this was years ago, so all this may be different now). We chose vinyl at the time, because my DH and a friend could DIY it, and Hardiplank was very new at the time. It doesn't look blue as some grays tend to, and we've been happy with it. I would post a picture, but I'm not on my computer that has MY pics on it. You can search my post about searching for shingles and see an older pic (w/o new roof), but it's not a closeup of the siding. I hope it all works out for you, cause you have a great house.

The work is (almost!) finished! The shutters and guttering have to go up but the roof and siding are complete! The Azaleas will have to wait until Spring until pruned but I hear from neighbors that they are a bright pink!

We love it! Thanks for all the input!

Wow! I really like the combo! Congrats!

Which roof color did you end up choosing?

Wow! This thread is old! I picked black!

Thank you for the rapid response. GAF Charcoal or Certainteed Moire black?

bichonlover - the color combination looks great. Love the contrast. Love your dormers too!

That is beautiful! You did a great job!