Hello, everyone! I have returned, and I bring with me exciting photos of... concrete! ;)
The old concrete slab patio in my back yard was worn and cracked. It was oddly shaped, with a weird cutout for plants on one side, and ended a few feet short of the corner of the house. It was also slanted - so much, I had to park the lawnmower diagonally to keep it from rolling down the patio. :P There was a little makeshift deck for the back door (which had originally been a window).
The new patio is a rectangle with rounded corners, and it extends all the way to the corner of the house. The deck is gone, replaced by a single step.
 |
| old |
 |
| new |
 |
| old |
 |
| new |
The new patio is stamped concrete. The stamping process is interesting to watch. The concrete was first poured and leveled, then it was stamped. Starting on one end, two men used a set of interlocking stamps to their work way across the patio, standing on one stamp while they picked up and moved another.
The stamps gave the concrete the texture and appearance of slate pavers. A definite upgrade from plain old concrete! :)
