Patio Paintjob

Check out what our concrete patio looked like since moving in 2 and 1/2 years ago:

 You need a close-up of all that chipped-up finish? No prob!

Ugh. It had been driving me BONKERS! Mike and I agreed it was high time we did something about it - we needed beautify that baby.

We love the idea of covering up the concrete patio with cobblestone-like pavers (Lowe's has a great tutorial for it on their Creative Ideas site), but we couldn't go with that option right now for 2 reasons: A- I can't do all that heavy lifting in my pregnant state, and B- even if we DIY'd the labor, the supply costs are out of our budget right now.

Oh but how pretty would this be....sigh



Eventually, I still think that's in our long-term plans for this space, but for now the cheapest (and quickest!) option was simply painting the existing concrete.

We researched what Lowe's had to offer in their outdoor paint options and liked these two products from Valspar:



We first considered the Skid-not version (which has a textured finish) as opposed to the smooth finish of the satin Porch & Floor paint. BUT we soon changed our minds and decided on the smoother Porch & Floor paint when we recalled what a dirt debacle the fireplace tiles were afer painting that a textured finish.

So we bought a gallon of that in a color called Elkhorn Cactus (crazy name, but nice earthtone color), moved our furniture off the patio, and started cutting in around the perimeter.

Oh, and I should mention that prior to all this we prepped the surface by power washing the patio, which removed all the old chipping and flaking paint.

After the cutting in came the fun part. This is Mike's favorite way to paint - easy rolling:

The first coat went on great.

And it was already looking soooooo much better.

Here it is after the second coat was drying:

GLOOOORIOUS!

We still need to paint the vertical side of the step up there, but grass on either side of it should hide the exposed concrete (we're trying to get some to grow there now).

Here are two more finished shots from different angles (I tied up the burlap curtains so they wouldn't be in the way):

 

And compare that porch photo above with this one from 2 summers ago (before we took down the walls):

Yay for open porches! :)

So once more, here's a side-by-side before and after the painting:

After letting the paint dry and cure for just over 24 hours we moved our DIY patio table and other furniture back onto the porch. We're spending more time sitting on it now (watching Winston run around like a crazy dog) and enjoying it very much!  :)