How to Add a Custom Touch to a Concrete Driveway and Patio in the Reno, NV Area
A custom concrete driveway can be an eye-catching addition to your front Reno, NV Area yard landscape design, making the entire outdoor space feel new and fresh. Or, you might be thinking about having a new patio designed for your backyard. Either concrete outdoor feature can have custom touches that make it a one-of-a-kind landscape element.
Custom Concrete Driveway and Patio Ideas
When you envision a concrete driveway or concrete patio, you might think of the type that looks like an airport runway but that is not the driveway or patio style a skilled landscape professional will deliver. There are so many options for putting your own stamp on a new patio or driveway that you might have a hard time choosing only one.
Exposed Aggregate Concrete
Exposed aggregate concrete driveways or patios have a textured surface that adds dimension and interest to the driveway. There are various aggregate choices including colored stones, pea gravel, crushed stone, crushed glass, quartzite, crushed granite, and crushed limestone among others. This can give a new driveway or patio a distinctly custom appearance that you won’t see everywhere.
Colored Concrete
Within the options for colored concrete, there is almost every color imaginable. Shades of brown, tan, and beige can work well with a house exterior that has rockwork on various parts of the exterior. A neutral, earth-tone concrete driveway can tie this natural color to the stone and mortar for a unified appearance.
Colored concrete can also combine well with the stamping process to create the illusion of real stone on the patio or driveway. You can opt for an accent color on the surface that fills in the cracks and crevices to give the surface a custom appearance and authenticity you might love.
You don’t have to choose only one color as a landscape professional can create designs and segmented areas of another concrete shade for a dazzling surface that wows your guests.
Stamped Concrete
Stamped concrete has an imprint that leaves a pattern or texture like wood grain, tile, or pavers. It can look like flagstone or brick but in reality, it is really durable concrete.
You can opt for all the concrete to be stamped or just specific sections. They can stamp the edges even on a circular patio since the shape of the concrete driveway or patio doesn’t hinder stamping certain areas.
Broomed Concrete
Brooming is the most common finish for concrete. This is when a landscape professional brings texture to a concrete driveway or patio with a broom that creates tiny grooves. It is long-lasting and gives a non-slip surface.
Broomed concrete can be combined with color for a textured finish on a custom concrete color. It can also be accented with a stamped border or edge for more definition and interest. Broomed concrete is versatile and can be used for many outdoor living concrete features.
Other Custom Touches for Concrete Driveways and Patios
Another amazing feature about using concrete for driveways and patios can be the variety of shapes and curves that can be incorporated to fit them to the space you have available. You can opt for unique shapes and widths that add the functional spaces you want with an attractive finished surface.
About the Author
A respected leader and influencer in the design/build industry, Ron founded FireSky in 2016. With a quarter-century of experience in landscape architecture, construction, entitlements, real estate development, Ron has led projects for high-profile customers, including Williams Sonoma and Pottery Barn, Brenson Communities, Shell Oil, Trammel Crow, FORMA, General Development Inc., and the City of Albuquerque. He chairs the American Society of Landscape Architects’ Design Build PPN.