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).

there are way too many colours going on here. Your home is a traditional style and yes the cream and green are traditional colours with the reddish brick however why did you put grey around the windows??also you have red scollops above the grey and it doesn't do the house justice. What colour was there before you painted the grey?? considering grey is a more modern colour I think you were attempting to modernise the externals. in saying that the roof would have been better to paint charcoal the cream in white and then the grey and then the driveway would be done in a grey stain. but if you leave it the way it is and cover the red scolloping above the windows the same grey and the bricks below the windows near the ground grey as well then get the drive way restained to the reddish colour of the bricks on the house and then it would blend more and look inviting.

Hi mluh You've obviously done your research on these products, so it's most likely going to come down to personal preference. As you've mentioned, a natural stone is going to come with an amount of maintenance but the beauty of Travertine is within its variation. Once sealed with a good quality sealer (I recommend Guard Industry), the maintenance is really quite low and most spills are lost within those natural variations. 99% of spills can be cleaned up without too much trouble. Porcelain, on the other hand, can be quite difficult to clean once it's been marked. That said, the external porcelains have a great non-slip texture and are very hardy when used as paving/tiles. I'm personally not a fan of using them as pool coping, but many people love it. Again, both have their advantages and disadvantages so I would recommend using the product that you're happy looking at for the next 10-20 years. - Jordan

A light grey large format tile (600 x 600) would be great. You wouldn’t get the glare that you get with white, will look almost as light as white in the sun. It’s modern and would go with the Monument colour.