Thanks TXgal. Love your home! I also like the idea of "flush mortar."

Where did you get your brick?

Terry

Allstate Brick in Houston. Salesman is Max and you could give him a call and ask what you could find in your area that's similar, if you like the look. He is very knowledgable and helpful. You will not find many fans of flush mortar joints on this board. I posted a question about them while building and was told that they are "for commercial applications only" and were dangerous as far as moisture issues developing. I used to see the joints like this all over the place where I grew up and the buildings had been standing for years! You can't really see the mortar joints in the pictures but I could take a closeup if you needed it.

Here is a link that might be useful: Allstate Brick

Moisture issues with flush mortor joints? Can anyone elaborate?

Txgal...I know of one local building... an upscale restaurant... that used flush mortor when built five years ago. It really looks "old" and wonderful.

Thank you for your help.

I'm attaching a link to the BIA. You can read all about the different types of mortar joints. The concave, "V" and grapevine joints are the recommended joints by the BIA for exterior brickwork. If you are looking for an old world look, have you considered a grapevine? That's what we used for our home. We based our brick decisions on most of the older homes in this area of the South, which generally used a grapevine mortar joint. We used a whitish brick as well.

Also, your original question about matching bricks...I'm not sure if there are ever going to be any guarantees as to brick availability down the road. However, if you go with a standard reddish/orangish brick then you should generally always be able to find something that is complementary. As to having an exact match between the pavers and the brick, that is not typically done in my area. It doesn't provide any contrast. The walkways are your chance to highlight the house...subdued, yet a focal piece of their own. Have you seen many homes or designs which incorporate this matching approach? I'd be interested to see how it came together!

Here is a link that might be useful: Mortar joints

Thank you for the link Dixiedoodle!

I think I've seen some old plantation homes where all the brick seems to have come from the same old brick foundry including the walkways. It looked great to me. I suppose that the needed contrast can come from many different building materials other than brick.