It used to be that there was only one option for the color of concrete around your home—grey. Unfortunately, concrete grey is not a very attractive color, and if you are trying to dress up the exterior of your home, you might think that limiting the amount of concrete you use is your only option. On the other hand, if you are looking for a profound visual impact without spending a pretty penny, then you need to look into concrete coloring. 

Solid Colors for New Installations

If you are building a new home, you can work the color you wish to create right into the mixture of the concrete you use. For example, if you want a sandstone red driveway to mimic the look of a slab of rock, you simply need to contact a concrete contractor with the facility and equipment necessary to color concrete. You should have several colors to choose from. Once the driveway is set, you will have a durable color. In that the color extends completely through your slab, a little damage to your concrete will not detract from the color of your driveway. 

Acid Stain and Patterns

If you have an existing driveway, or you want to create a pattern in your concrete, then you should consider using an acid stain. The acid in the stain will change the color of your concrete, not just add color on top of it. Thus, you will get a color that should stand up well to the elements and heavy traffic without the need to rip out and replace your driveway. Furthermore, with the right technique, you can create a pattern in your driveway. For example, if you want to mimic the look of pavers, you could use a few different colors to create variations in the color of the "pavers" used on your driveway. Since subtle differences in color are common in pavers, using different colors should help to make your driveway look more authentic. 

Color is just one of the options to consider when pouring a concrete slab, but color can have a more striking visual impact than other options such as adding texture. Thus, if you are trying to create an aesthetic impact on a budget, then you should look first at color, and then consider adding texture if you have room in your budget to do so. While you can add acid stain to a driveway on your own, you will typically get a better quality finish if you leave coloring your concrete up to professionals from a company like Pyramid Concrete & Consulting Ltd.