Another House Project Continued Part 2

My hubby and I decided for our back yard a simple patio would be the best.  We already have a deck that came with the house when we purchased it.  The bad thing about the deck is that is blocks almost all the sun in our backyard meaning that it is really hard to grow plants... but for some reason weeds have no problem growing. 

We sat down a short time ago just to design what we would like.  Ideally we decided the less lawn maintenance we have the better.  So we decided to cover approximately 340 sq feet leaving two areas (in two separate corners for planting).  The two areas are also the only space that gets sun- so it made the most sense. 

With that decided, we needed to think what we wanted out of a patio.  I started to research the different options- stone, brick, stamped concrete, etc.  My parents have a stone patio and their neighbors have a stamped concrete patio so I head over there just to look at them.  So both are equally as nice.

Then I started researching the price and I almost had a heart attack!!!  This is where the home garden show helped because I was able to obtain a decent amount of information and pricing in a short amount of time.)  Keep in mind our backyard is TINY!!!  I found stone can cost anywhere from 22-40$ a square foot!  The stamped concrete cost about 12-17$ a square foot.

I talked with my parents neighbors (who is a lawyer and researches everything with a fine tooth comb) regarding their decision to go with stamped concrete.   They told me about the pros, the cons, the maintenance (which is very low), the companies they looked at, the different estimates that got.
Basically, they made my job so easy for me. 

So I ended up call the Stamped Concrete company that they used called  Creteman Custom Hardscapes.

I have an appointment set for tomorrow- so we will see!!!

So what is stamped Concrete???

It is basically concrete laid in different colors- that is stamped with a pattern before it drys.  The Creteman lets you pick from 8 different shape designs and then has 15+ colors

Here are one picture below just so you can get an idea. 

This is not the color we would go with... Since our house is brick we are thinking of something along the brick color scheme, but we will see. 

So Tomorrow- I have an appointment with the Creteman.

Wish me luck!!