paver stone border around concrete patio

by Jim
(Chicago, IL)

I have a 12' x 10' cement patio, and I want to put a paver stone border around this concrete patio to add sq footage.

My siding is off white (almost white, with a hint of yellow) with a black roof and shutters.

Do you have any recommendation for the color of the paver stone border? (Holland stone)

ANSWER
Hi Jim,
It sounds like your house is pretty neutral. Many paver companies make the holland stone paver, so I will just suggest some general colors.

A brick color would look nice as a paver stone border around your concrete patio. It would be a nice contrast to the concrete and your house colors, and at the same time create some interest. If you went with this color, perhaps you could add some terracotta pots on the patio to tie in the color.

Gray would also work. This would be more subtle but could be very pretty. I know some of the other pavers come in "blends" and I am not sure if the holland stone paver does. A blend is when different shades of gray (or another color) are used. Sometimes each of the pavers are a different gray color and at other times the different colors are mixed into each individual paver. The latter is particularly nice and gives more of a natural stone appearance.

When you add the paver stone border around the patio, make sure it looks right in proportion to the amount of existing concrete patio that is already there. At least a few rows would look right. If this is not enough additional square footage, you could also consider adding a protruding square or rectangle at an edge or centered along one of the sides. It could even be a curved space!

If you did this, you might consider adding another color as a perimeter border. For example, if you used the gray blend, you could add a darker gray border along the new square, rectangular or curved space. Whether it should be just around this area or continue around the entire patio would depend on how many rows of pavers you are adding to the existing patio.

I would think two rows of a blend and one row of a darker gray would work. If you are using a brick color, you might consider using a different shape along the perimeter as a border in the same color. The holland stone is 8" x 4" so a 4" by 4" size would work.

The best thing to do is to get some samples, bring them home, and actually look at them next to your patio and house. Be sure to get enough of each color so that you can judge. One piece won't tell you anything.

Good luck!