Hi Aletla, If your apartment is part of a strata make sure that you get their permission before painting anything (best ask then fall foul of them as many courtyards are deemed as common property for exclusive use meaning that the Strata has the last word). If you get permission, I'd be tempted to lean towards a mid gray the same colour as the exterior building so that you're able to blur the lines between vertical and horizontal areas and make the area look bigger. You could think about putting in modular decking that will change the look of your courtyard that can be pulled up and that can be stained to any colour you pick. You would have to ask your strata but if you let them know it's modular and can be pulled up when you leave they should be OK with that as long as it cant be seen easily from outside the property boundaries. Regarding putting up shade - strata will not have any problem if you invest in a large outdoor umbrella as long as you make sure that it doesn't become a hazard during high winds/storms - you wont have to ask them. You can put up outdoor awnings but you'll need to get permission, supply all the engineering specs and your Strata may have restrictions regarding colour and style and may require you to: provide a structural engineers report on the impact, indemnify the building and put the awning on your insurance (a lot of work) and if necessary pay for a change of by-law. If you decide that you cant/don't want to change the colour of your outdoor flooring and as beige and grays are really popular, you could always tie the two together more with outdoor cushions for your seating that feature both of the colours. If you can get a high pressure hose and remove dirt and flaking paint to see exactly what the condition of the tiles are, you could ask your strata to pay for their reconditioning (if you offer to paint them and give them the colour and say you're happy to pay for that then they'll probably say "OK" to avoid costs to the strata as they're responsible for the external parts of your building - remember you only own the airspace of your apartment).

We rendered our 80's home, and painted the roof colorbond Shale Grey. Out of all our reno work we have done I think the rendering had the most impact. If you like the wall colour I can go back through my files. Colorbond have a great websit check it out. you are going to be amazed when your job is complete

Rellish, did you have trouble getting matching grout and silicone? We're about to use the exact same tile in our bathroom. Also, did the tiler have any trouble due to the embossed pattern? Our builder thinks we need to install the tiles on top of the vanity as the tiles are not flat and it will be difficult to get a good, clean seal if the wall is tiled first.

Could you use the same glass as behind your cooktop for behind the sink? Kitchens generally use the same material for all the splashbacks or it can look disjointed. Have a look at photos of kitchens on this site to get some ideas.