The roof and siding are clad in natural Cedar shingle. The roof is a sawn shingle, as is the siding. We used a lot of copper as well. Thanks for the compliment! A

were these shingles painted white while they were on the house already? we saw a house we like that has grey shingles. Can we paint them white to look like this house?

Yes, they were painted after being applied to the house. There are a number of ways to treat a shingle. You may consider a transparent stain, which will preserve the color of the shingle, or you may use a grey transparent stain to simulate an 'aged' finish. The white doesn't look too bad either!

Does the white stain have a shorter life than other colors?

Generally speaking, the lighter the stain, the longer the life. (In terms of fading, etc.) More importantly, the prep. and application of the stain, and the orientation to the sun, wind, etc. will have a greater impact on the life of the painted surface.