Can you please post a photo of the front of your house and driveway? Impossible to be of help without a picture…

Yes, we need a picture with no cars in the driveway and sunlight on the house.

I will wait for pics posted here in a comment DO NOT start another post.

Photos sure help.

Concrete pavers on a driveway usually improve the curb appeal of a property over an asphalt or plain concrete driveway, but your particular climate will dictate whether it makes sense to go with pavers.

Huge concrete driveway in front of house is going to be an eyesore. Just get rid of it.

I cant see the photos. can you upload? :)

Searched for inspo images using the phrase 'Carriage House Courtyard' and got some ideas for you. Most involve breaking up the expanse of concrete with pavers, brick, gravel or grass in places and other landscaping....pots, vines on arches, tree shadows etc., to soften the lines and provide focal points other than the concrete.

Here's a picture

You could simply use concrete paint on the driveway and walkways.

Thanks for your response, Beverly. We had considered that option, it's cheaper and we could probably DIY, but we want to move away from that barren cement/asphalt look. We are looking for something more inviting, where we could also hangout.

Thanks, tracefloyd, those are very inspiring pictures. We've considered pavers, but I'm not sure they can be installed over concrete. Breaking and demolishing all that concrete doesn't seem like an option due to the sheer amount of work it would take.

For me the top thing that would make this a more inviting space would be more plants. Some small trees/large shrubs on that bank between the driveway and fence would add an inviting lushness. A columnar evergreen left of the bay window, a tree or trellised vine on the wall left of the staircases, another trellised vine on the blank wall of the garage.

I agree, some larger landscaping nearby, and possibly a few large evergreen shrub containers, depending on climate & exposure. Of course can do blooming plants & annuals container, again felon your maintenance tolerance & climate. Then you just let the concrete be.

If you plant “ hangout “, I assume you need seating. So would be thinking about do you want a few “ permanent “ all - weather classics like teak, or a bit more movable heavy aluminum ( can’t remember the term), or do you want just to store some fold- up items. Consider also cushions & storage/ cleaners for that. In my climate outdoor cushions are problematic, due to rain, pollen so don’t work well to leave out year- round. I use them but don’t invest in the big ones or the California Instagram look; I use thinner ones I can store sometimes in a couple of garage bins & use chairs that are acceptably comfortable, if not cushy, at times of no cushions. And Zero-gravity chairs, also fairly easy to store.

Now that I see the house, I see what you mean. To me, it's not so much the concrete but also the mass of the structure.

I thought about concrete stain or paint, but I'm afraid that much stained surface could draw even more attention to it. But you could consider painting the bare retaining walls the house color.

Use vertical landscaping to soften the lines and cast dappled shadows. A few medium trees along the drive (I'm thinking wispy desert trees like Ironwood or Palos Verdes), some trellises and vines on the house and garage, along the driveway, should be enough. And very large plant pots.

Here is a concept with trellises and one trellis that is perpendicular to the house-- next to the balcony-- to provide a little privacy for a couple of Adirondack chairs and umbrella (in blue).

Oh yeah, string lights.

Here I am not suggesting red for the pots...just shows a concept.

Very interesting ideas tracefloyd, everyone. We like the large pots and the trees on the right side. Right now we have no large pots and we have Mexican Bush Sages on the right side where you put the trees. They grow bigger than what the picture shows, but not enough to cast shadows on the concrete, much less on the house.

We also thought about concrete decorations like in the picture attached here, but not sure this is long lasting enough, or if it won't turn gross in a couple of years. Also not sure if it's going to bring more attention to the concrete. It will definitely create a focal point on the driveway

Hi Salazars!

Oh this could be spectacular with white- washed brick on at least half, a truly spectacular courtyard! Yes, you can do pavers! A few low walls and even a fountain or basin pools if feeling Lake Como or Spanish Garden vibes! Make it so, Engage! ❤️

I think if you do the compass point, the whole drive would need something. We stained our front porch and created a compass point and after 10 years it still looks great. Just make sure you spray the concrete stain in a random pattern--- no sweeping in rows-- two light coats. It looks rather like tortoise shell You can use a regular garden sprayer. Or as suggested, solid paint would give a uniform look. Just be aware a dark surface absorbs more heat and gets hot.

I was thinking a pergola but simply posts and string lights give the same effect. And the compass point part of a larger pattern, like an area rug appearance to define the entertainment area.

A water fountain would be nice. A wall mounted type takes up no space.

You could also use a large outdoor carpet or two you can roll up. Plastic straw is lightweight.

Here is my concept for your compass point. The perspective is a little wonky...crappy software.

Concrete stain done right in this pic. And it doesn't peel like paint. Lay out your design first using tape and newpaper to block any overspray...it needs to be bare concrete...and sponge it on.

And which is the front door? That could be better defined.

How about a non-slip product for concrete something like below in a light colour which is much nicer than plaint paint?

https://www.advancedconcretedesigns.com/slip-resistant-concrete-topping/

As to what to suggest for the area, what king of gathering exactly did you have in mind?

I presume you still use the garage for cars so can't block the entry?

Here's another view of the driveway, The house below starts from the wood retaining wall.

@lisedv, I didn't know about the slip-resistant-concrete-topping, I'll try find more about it. Are those etched onto the concrete or is it a new layer on top of the existing cement? As I said at the start, we don't use the garage for parking, The previous owner had a home-day-care she operated from the huge garage, and it's all carpeted, etc, so we kept, no point in dealing with this now, but we may in the future. As long as there's space for 1 car in the driveway we should be fine for the future.

@Jana Kadlicová - JK Deco, I had thought EXACTLY of that. The wife is still opposed, I'm doing my best to convince her :) It's a great Idea, together with the fountain idea from

@tracefloyd, (which I had also thought of, and the wife also opposes, for now. The string-lights might convince her, she loves those.)

But that still doesn't solve the massive cement look, which in my opinion kills the entrance and makes it look like something you just want to walk on by and not stay. Well, maybe the slip-resistant-concrete-topping will fix this, let's see.

@tracefloyd, the front door can be seen in the last picture I sent. It's kinda hidden because of the stairs. It's painted red now. That red-brown concrete painting color in the picture you sent, we could change it to a lighter color and add simple decorations like the pictures below, to create some interest and break the boring concrete (we saw them at an open-house. they look worn-out, but you get the idea.)

@picurata salazar From what I understand it's simply applied like paint. Since you're not using the garage, I'm presuming you'll be installing some furniture, perhaps a pergola or some sort of structure, large potted plants, so the flooring won't be the 1st thing you'll notice. Will you be holding gatherings in that area or mostly for family use? If family, how many people in your family? That info would help to plan the area.

Family (4) mostly but gatherings also, say 20 people max. We have space for a pergola in the back of the house where it's more adequate. The house is south facing, so we get a lot of sun in the front all day, and we don't want to hinder that with a pergola in the front.

It's a very large area and I'm not sure I understand what you mentioned about the pergola, either it's possible to install one here or you already have one somewhere else on the property.

I show below:

- a seating area under the pergola

- a lounge chair area with umbrella

- a fire pit area with 4 chairs

- a dining area with umbrella and BBQ

If you like this floorplan, I can go into more details as to the style of furniture or let me know what style you like (rattan, wood, colour, etc...).

Note: I don't have any dimensions but it look like the pergola would fit under the windows.