Design ranks at the highest level of importance when it comes to building a custom patio in your yard.  This is because a hardscape is basically a type of flooring.  Just as a floor inside your house provides a foundation for lifestyle and activity, so too does the hardscape outside of your house create a foundation for an outdoor lifestyle that you are spending a great deal of time and money to create. 

One of the worst mistakes you can make is to simply have a slab poured behind your house to use for holding lawn furniture.  This can diminish the entire aesthetic of your property by simultaneously working against your home architecture and the vegetation surrounding it. 

To avoid this costly mistake, take the time to talk to a professional landscaping company who can help you plan and develop your custom patio.  This will ensure a maximum return on investment for you in the form of something that is functional, durable, and decorative.  Building it in relationship to the landscape will also allow the plants soften the hardscape and differentiate outdoor living from indoor living. 

Some people who only want a custom patio often begin looking for a masonry contractor who they can directly hire to build it.  This is not advisable.  Masonry contractors are generally subcontractors who are far more comfortable working under a general contractor’s invoice.  They also typically lack experience developing a comprehensive landscape master plan. 

This is where a professional landscaper will prove invaluable in the long run.  Your landscape designer can plan your custom patio in relationship to the rest of the yard, and he or she can subcontract the appropriate masonry contractors if and when it proves necessary to bring in special teams, tools, and expert knowledge to complete the project. 

Working with such a professional designer takes a great deal of stress off of you, the homeowner.  All you have to do is make a list of all the things you plan to do in and around your patio.  Think about the nature of the activities you will have there, and how many guests, if any, will be present.  Be bold and creative.  We will review the items on your list with you and use them to create you’re the exact design specifications the contractors will need to build the structure itself.

This consultation process will give our team a clear picture of what your outdoor lifestyle will be like in the future.  This is the type of data we need to build you a truly custom patio whose size and shape provide a working platform for activities and make a strong aesthetic impact on the surrounding Houston landscape as well.  

Custom patios can be built from a wide range of materials.  Stone is the most popular material because it is natural and can lasts for decades, if not longer.  The only drawback to stone is the cost.  Even less expensive stones, so to speak, are going to be more expensive than some of the other materials used to build hardscapes.  If you are a concerned homeowner who is working on a budget, it may be much better to use an alternative to stone for your patio. 

Brick would be an excellent choice for this.  Brick has a historical look and feel that goes extremely well with many different types styles of architecture.  Brick is also extremely enduring.  It comes in a variety of colors, and it can be arranged in all sorts of interesting patterns.

You may also want to consider concrete.  Plain concrete is the cheapest material you can use to build a custom patio, but it looks somewhat drab in with most landscaping styles.  (However it can work very well with modern landscaping and contemporary landscaping).  Otherwise, a better choice is colored or stamped concrete.  The methods we use to create these designs are actually able to make concrete look appear like stone or brick at a fraction of the cost.

You can also have your professional landscaper design and build you a special hardscape made from pavers.  Pavers are flat pieces of concrete.  They can be all sorts of colors, and they can be arranged in many different patterns just like brick.