Suggestions for terracotta patio - Help!

[divvydeb]

Hello, I'm new to this site and hope someone out there can help.

I'm in the process of redesigning my garden as I had done very little to it since moving in 4 years ago. The first thing I did was paint all the fencing in forget me not blue, with dark iris blue posts. I'm not normally a fan of coloured fencing but I have to say it looks pretty good.

Once that was completed, I spent quite a bit of time looking for inspiration as to what to do next. My partner suggested a beach theme, with grasses and pebbles etc but I wasn't keen as that's not really my style. I have now decided on a Moroccan theme, as this kind of garden seems to contain more grasses and greenery than flowers, and I am an expert at killing every flower with just a look.

My garden is roughly 8m wide, running across the whole of the back of my house, with the living/dining room looking directly onto the garden. I have french windows that open out onto decking that currently runs across the whole of the back of the house.

The decking has long past it's sell by date and I want to replace it with paving. Again, this will run across the whole of the back of the house. The garden is almost square shaped, albeit slightly longer than it is wide, being approx 9m long.

I have looked through old posts for information about terracotta paving, as I think this is what will look best. I have spent hours searching on the internet but many of the links that come up are older and the products they show are no longer available. Does anyone have any suggestions as to what would make a practical patio? The garden is primarily used for entertaining or relaxing as my son is of an age where he rarely plays in the garden any more, especially as we are lucky enough to live on an estate with plenty of safe, open, green spaces for kids to play.

If anyone has any other suggestions I'd be glad to hear them. I've already bought lanterns, tea lights, wall shades etc as they seem to be everywhere in shops at the moment, and at very goods prices too.

Oh - the garden is south facing, and gets full sun all until about 4pm, when it becomes increasingly shady, due to the proximity of 13 huge sycamore trees planted about six feet outside my right hand boundary fence (but that is another issue altogether). Can't think of anything else I might need to tell you at this moment, sorry.

Thanks for reading this very long post! I look forward to your suggestions.

Divvydeb

[GB_Groundworks]

terra-cotta and blue seems to work well for the theme

[divvydeb]

It certainly does - I have a folder of pics gathered from the internet for inspiration and ideas and that is one of them!

The problem is mainly that terracotta paving is not cheap and so far I have not come across any in the builders merchants etc to give me an idea of what it looks like laid down. Pics are a good starting point but not enough to see the actual colour and texture.

Thanks for the pic tho

Divvydeb

[divvydeb]

Quick update - think I might go with Old Provence tiles but as they don't come cheap it means more saving for a while. Unless of course anyone out there knows of a cheaper alternative. I did find some tiles that looked ok but patio would have looked like a kitchen floor. Looks like I'll just have to bite the bullet and splash the cash, I'm sure it will be worth it in the long run.

Divvydeb

[Tony McC]

Old Provence might be a tad expensive but they are, by quite some way, the best of the terracotta-likes.

A few years ago, one of the European block manufacturers brought to England (only: not the rest of the country) a range of 'antiqued' pavers that were available in both terracotta and blue. Garden designers went mad for them, but the distribution network was never properly established and they became increasingly difficult to obtain.

There's a range of imported sandstone usually sold as "Mango" that is particularly blousy and ostentatious, but it does have a lot of terracotta shades within it. Might be worth hunting down?

[divvydeb]

Oooh just tracked this 'Mango' paving down online to have a look. What can I say.............. looks like I'm still saving up for Old Provence

Last night I was looking at limestone paving as I worry about terracotta looking too 'orange'. I've found a builders merchants in my area where they have lots of paving on display, in mini gardens so to speak, which will make it much easier to see what different products actually look like when laid as a patio. Wish me luck, and if anyone else can think of a viable alternative do let me know.

Believe it or not, my partner is a landscape gardener, but says it is a long time since anyone asked him to use terracotta paving. He suggested Bradstone mellow terracotta tiles.

At this rate I'll be painting all the fence again and abandoning terractta altogether (kidding - ish).

One more thing - I saw some Stoneflair paving last week called Glendale, but the man working in the builders merchants was less than helpful and simply handed me a price list when I asked for more info. On closer inspection the paving I had asked about wasn't even on the list! Nice. If anyone can tell me more about this product I'd be grateful.

Thanks again.

[divvydeb]

This picture shows why I keep coming back to the Old Provence. I have painted all my garden fence in this colour blue (although the aim is for most of it to be eventually covered with climbers etc) and this paving just looks so good! Sigh.

http://www.pavingandflooring.com/imagecr....max=500

[Tony McC]

Glendale is just the range name that BradStoneFlair give to their imported Indian sandstone. You need to know the colour, such as Modak, Russet Brown, Silver Grey, etc.

[lutonlagerlout]

This picture shows why I keep coming back to the Old Provence. I have painted all my garden fence in this colour blue (although the aim is for most of it to be eventually covered with climbers etc) and this paving just looks so good! Sigh.

http://www.pavingandflooring.com/imagecr....max=500

thing is deb,that picture looks like it was taken in provence

i see from your profile you are in Bedfordshire like me, now i know i am from the sarf of the county,but it does rain a fair bit

just something to bear in mind when looking at photos taken on sunny days and in foreign climes

LLL

[divvydeb]

Hi LLL

Yep - it sure rains

When I painted the fence in my garden blue it was purely to make the whole place look brighter and fresh, as previously it was a very dark brown and incredibly gloomy. Once the climbers, shrubs and grasses have been planted, much of the fence will be covered, so it won't be quite so in your face!!

As for the paving - if anyone can suggest an alternative to terracotta I'm all ears. I have a few Moroccan lanterns etc to dress the garden with once it is done, but what I don't want to do is reproduce some Mediterranean/Moorish courtyard. I would prefer the Moroccan feel to come from the accessories such as lights and furniture, so that the garden itself is more of a blank canvas. Therefore I am wide open to any suggestions anyone might have about alternative paving to terracotta. The original plan was to simply replace the worn out decking, but I have to confess to preferring the idea of paving.

Any suggestions anyone?:)

Thanks

Deb

[J H Clifford]

Westminster Stone's Old Provence Tiles may not be as expensive as you expect! - If there is not stockist in your county (check the map on their website) then you can buy direct at discounted prices - www.pavingandflooring.com - download their brochure on the website too.

If you can't get exact quantities that you want, then give a call 01978 710685, and you can buy split packs at the same square metre price.

If you need more images, give a call, and we can email as many as you like!

Good luck!


Cheers, John

PS - Westminster Stone also offer an Indian Sandstone product directly equivalent to BradStoneflair's Purestone Glendale.

[lutonlagerlout]

dunno how your courtyard is situated debs ,but if its north facing it will be green in 6 months,this is the same for most north facing stuff in the uk
even south facing stuff can get a build up of algae
the reason terracotta and stuff looks so good in the south of france and spain ,is that when it rains there ,it rains hard then the heat evaporates what doesn't drain away fast.

not trying to put you off ,just trying to make you aware that it probably wont look like the catalogue in 6 months,after red wine ,rain,bbq spillage,baby sick etc etc.

personally i would go for something harder maybe a baggeridge brindle or red paver,you can still dress it up the same, just harder wearing than terracotta

my mate had a hot tub installed in his garden in stevenage,cost him a bomb and he used it 3 times in 5 years

LLL

[divvydeb]

Hi John

Thanks for the info about Paving and Flooring - I have your website listed in my favourites, as I have surfed the net and discovered that you do indeed sell Old Provence at much better prices that anywhere else. I've now been round a few places with garden displays and still think this product is the best thing I have seen.

Good to know that packs can be split as they seem to come in 10 sq m, and I'll probably need about 25.

Thanks again

Deb

[divvydeb]

To LLL

Garden is south facing so gets sun for most of the day, apart from evening when it is in shadow, due to the row of trees just outside my boundary (think I need another advice site for that!!).

I asked my partner his opinion about paving going green, and he said it makes no difference what we use, every patio needs maintaining and cleaning every once in a while.

I'm still opting for Old Provence (have now looked at weathered limestone as an alternative but it is more expensive than Old P so ...)

[lutonlagerlout]

as i said ,go for it but be prepared to clean it weekly with a broom and annually with a power washer
will look nice i am sure
are you going for faux shutters too?
i love the shutters in france and italy,but never seen proper ones in the uk

LLL