4 Ideas For a Bold Driveway in Middleton and Fitchburg WI Areas

If you want your landscaping to turn heads, start with the driveway. A basic poured concrete or asphalt driveway doesn’t do much for the curb appeal of your home. It works… but lacks character. A paver driveway, by contrast, offers a unique opportunity to express your personality, add value to your home, and boost your home’s curb appeal. 

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Colors

Begin by choosing colors that tie your driveway in with your home’s dominant colors; a couple of shades darker will create a more stately and sophisticated look, while a couple of shades lighter can brighten the space, especially if your lot is wooded. When choosing colors, keep in mind that oil stains from vehicles will show up more on lighter pavers. However, don’t let that stop you if you fall in love with a light-colored paver. Thorough and frequent sealing will keep your paver driveway looking new.

Concrete pavers are available in a huge variety of colors from solid colors to blended colors. For a more personal look, don’t stop at one color. Up to three colors together can make for a stunning magazine-worthy driveway. 

You could choose a paver that comes in several complementary colors, and have your landscapers blend two or three colors on site. This technique works well when you are using flagstone- or bluestone-look pavers, and it will give you the same random and natural look you would get by using natural stone. This is also a great option if you’re really struggling with making the final decision! The trick to doing this successfully is choosing pavers that come in a variety of colors that are complementary and close enough so that the driveway doesn’t look like a crazy quilt. Take inspiration from natural bluestone or flagstone patios, which have a range of color and texture differences between individual stones.

Next, choose border colors. A border is an artistic statement, and it can be subtle or dramatic, as you like. You could choose one color for the main field, and create a contrasting border using another color and/or a different paver altogether. Or, create a more subtle using the same paver with a different alignment and laying pattern. If your driveway paver choice is relatively dynamic (highly textured, or blended colors) then keep the border simple, to prevent an overly busy look.

A driveway made using pavers that resemble light gray granite cobblestones, could be accented by the rich colors of brick, or timeworn small black cobblestones. For a more dramatic look, you could even combine the brick and small cobbles.

Textures

You’ll achieve a more rustic look using textured pavers that mimic the look of natural flagstone. A more modern look can be achieved using smooth pavers, or a combination of smooth and brushed-finish for a dramatic look. The classic texture of brick is a timeless look that works with nearly any architectural style. Brick also makes for wonderful borders and inlays due to the smaller sizes.

Individuality

Once you’ve decided on the field and border pavers, you can introduce custom artistic touches such as an apron at the entrance to your driveway in the same stone as the border, for a wonderfully cohesive look. Another artistic touch is a custom inlay: perhaps your family’s initials, a geometric pattern, or a design that reflects something important to you.

A Finishing Touch 

Finish the look with entry pillars for a “gated estate” look and a low masonry wall that follows the driveway to the front entry walkway. This is an opportunity to add landscape lighting which will further define the driveway but in a much more sophisticated way than the old-time single light on a post.

Related: How Updating Your Driveway Can Improve Your Landscape Design in Madison WI