How to Paint Concrete—a Patio Makeover
Since we’ve been remodeling for over two years now (can you guys believe it?!?), the inside of our house has improved significantly. The outside, however, is a slightly different story. Yes, we’ve added some improvements to the back yard, but our front yard has been put on the back burner. Sorry neighbors. Well, no longer! The front yard is up on our “to do” list, and I am SUPER excited about how everything is turning out!
This post contains affiliate links.
I have always dreamt of a house with a wide, wrap-around front porch. This house doesn’t have it. Boo! But that doesn’t mean that I can’t get creative with the space I do have. For years I have been looking for an outdoor rug that will fit the narrow front porch we have, and have had no luck. Recently it dawned on me—why not paint a rug on the porch? After doing some research to verify (1) yes, painted rugs are a thing and (2) yes, my husband was on board, I wasted no time getting a plan together.
One of the things I learned while researching about painting concrete is that you have to have a super clean surface to start. A lot of people even went as far as recommending using acid to wash the surface. Yikes. That was a little hardcore for me!
Luckily for me however, I was given the opportunity to partner with Proctor & Gamble to try out their new product, Tide Oxi. I knew Tide was awesome in the laundry room, but I was unsure if it would excel in concrete-cleaning abilities. I decided to give it a shot, however, before turning to acid. Luckily for me, Tide Oxi did not disappoint and no acid was needed, yay!
Supplies Needed
- Porch cleaner (we used Tide Oxi)
- Scrubbing brush
- Large bucket
- Concrete paint (we went with Behr Premium Concrete & Masonary Waterproofer in Sudden Fog thanks to the recommendation from the paint counter!)
- Painter’s tape
- Paint Roller
The first thing we did when we got home was to remove the old furniture off the porch. I was SO happy to get rid of all the ugly brown, but you all are going to be grossed out when you see what was hiding underneath all of it. Look how nasty our porch was!
The next thing we did was use a push broom to sweep off all the dirt, leaves and debris we could from our porch. We then mixed the Tide Oxi into warm water. I used a full scoop since our porch was so dirty. I’ve gotten to work with a lot of cleaning agents and products over the years, and I promise you guys—this was the best smelling one! Both Scott and I were joking that our porch was going to smell like fresh laundry.
After we had our solution mixed, we worked in small areas at a time. Scott would pour some of the solution onto the porch, and we both used these scrubbing brushes to scrub the stains and dirt off.
Check out this brush—yikes!
The directions on the box clearly say to keep away from plants, so we were very careful to not allow any run off into the garden. We would continually use the broom to push all the water down the stairs rather than let it drip into the garden.
It took us about 30 minutes to scrub down the entire porch. Before we could start painting, we had to wait for the concrete to dry completely. In the Texas summer heat, that took about 4-5 hours. Check out how much better things were looking already!
Here’s a before/after shot so you don’t have to scroll back up to compare. 🙂
(click above, here’s a sneak peek for you!)
Tania Griffis is an accomplished writer, blogger, and interior designer with a Journalism degree from the University of Oklahoma. She started her popular blog, Run to Radiance, in 2011, demonstrating her design expertise through the personal remodeling of six houses to millions of readers across the globe.
Tania also owns The Creative Wheelhouse, a respected ghostwriting agency for bloggers, further showcasing her talent for creating engaging and informative content.
Wow, what a fun idea! it looks great!
I like the pic of the two of you enjoying your new front porch.
Love the colour of your front door btw.
Thanks Samantha! It’s always really nice when Scott and I can be in some photos together AND not be covered in paint or something. 🙂
Wow! What a cool look. It really brightens up the front of the house
Thanks so much!
This is the cutest thing!! And you are a great artist, whatever! I have been looking for Tide Oxi since I saw the commercial with Jonathan from property brothers but Kroger is always out. I should try Home Depot! Can’t wait to see the shutters.
Thanks Jen! Yes- I have heard Tide Oxi has been selling out a lot of places, but I didn’t have a problem finding it at The Home Depot so definitely try there!
How cute and creative! I love it 🙂 And I am totally admiring your photography skills!!! I ordered my first dslr this week and I can’t wait to try it out 🙂
Thank you Naomi! You will love it. DSLRs are so much fun to play with! Can’t wait to see your photos!
I love it and the fringe really does make the whole project! Great job!
Thank you Lisa! I agree…star of the rug show, right? 😉
Oh my goodness! this is SO NEAT! Probably one of the coolest projects I’ve seen yet! Love the rug idea, super clever and the arrangement at the end looks amazing. You truly have a way with styling and putting things together. Love it! Always a treat to come back here and be surprised and inspired by the projects you take on 🙂 thanks for sharing!!!
Thank you so much for your kind and encouraging words Volta! I so appreciate it!
What a great idea! I can’t get over how different your porch looks—so clean and cute. When can you come do this to my porch? 🙂
Thanks Megan! Haha, yes girl let’s do it!
Adorable! love the fringe!
Yay thank you Christina!
Ahhh, that fringe is my favorite!!! Nice job!
Than you Kris!! Mine too!
It looks amazing!! You did an incredible job freehanding the fringe!
Thank you Rachel! It was a little nerve-wracking but I’m really happy with it! 🙂
So lovely! The painted rug turned out really well.
Thank you so much Char! 🙂
Love the creative look!
So cute! Love how it brightens up your fromt porch. Now you have an extra specail space to say Hi to your neighbors on walks. Pinned.
I love it! You are so creative and, of course, extremely talented. I would never think of painting a rug on concrete but it’s an awesome DIY. LOVE the fringe! Makes it a complete rug ~ 🙂
Have you used the Tide Oxi on anything else? I haven’t heard of it so just wondering. Love the chairs too ~ do you mind sharing where you found them? I have a small balcony and need a couple of chairs.
xo
Pat
Ah! It’s so cute! The “fringe” was the perfect touch and those chairs are to die for! It’s looking great! 🙂
That is so cool! And I love how you even did the tassles!!
I need that bucket too 🙂
Yes!!! I LOVE this fringe rug! So creative and of course you’d think of it without knowing it’s an existing thing! So innovative. 🙂 Love the hand-painted fringe. Now the set-up matches the rest of your house! 🙂
This is SO adorable! I LOVE the fringe you added! Want to come over to my house and paint a rug for me? 😉
ooo yay! i would use an ipad mini for some reading / entertainment for my future middle-of-the-night feedings. 🙂 🙂
This is amazing! I was just wondering if you sealed it in any way before putting furniture on it. If so, what kind did you use and if not, how has the painting held up?
Hi Robyn! No wear at all and we did not use a sealer! Keep in mind it’s on the front porch so not a high-traffic area but also it has held up against all the weather elements! 🙂
I was wondering the same thing~ does the paint come off or scratch if the funiture is moved or scrapes against it? I love the rug….beautiful job!
Olá, os meus parabéns. Está uma ternura e com muita simplicidade.
Beijinhos e felicidades
The beauty of concrete is that it can be restored and made into something new over and over again. Your patio “rug” looks amazing – and the cleaning did wonders too. Thank you for sharing!
Gosh, I have the same brick as your house does. I bought the house that was just down the country road from mine (my house burned 6 years ago) along with 38 acres, a big red barn and lots of timber. I now have 5 horses, two pot bellie pigs, 40 chickens, 4 guinea’s, a rabbit and a goat….hehehe, and I love them all and they love me. OH YES now have a little cat that took up at my place and at some point she lost half her right leg, looks like maybe she had gotten caught in a trap or something but it is completely healed and nicely. Being she is hand-capped my little Grands named her Handy…SWEET HUH? Anyway back to the house and porch. I have a front porch about like yours with the door offset on the porch. I LOVE your rug and now I know just what to do with my little porch…Thanks for sharing…Lots-o-Love…Becca from South Alabama….:)
I had no idea that was paint! Seriously, thought it was a rug the entire time. Tide and Blue tape, who knew?!
Hi Tania, you’ve inspired me to try this on my porch. Can you tell me what width tape you used to mark off your stripes and the width of the painted stripe you all marked off? Thanks for the great tutorial! Beautiful job!
Stacey
Oh my gosh, I love this paint job! It comes across so well that it almost is like a built in rug on your patio. Amazing job!
LOVE this idea! Such a beautiful way to dress up your cement patio. Stopping by from Create Link Inspire Party 🙂
What a cute update! We once had an outdoor rug, but it ended up being disastrous for our deck. The Husband won’t let me get any more now. I’ve been thinking that a painted rug would be a fun alternative. Thanks for the tutorial…I agree that the fringe makes the whole rug look complete!
How can I see the pictures of the completed work?
Love the fringe!
Your free hand fringe just makes the look. I love this idea!
Love the rug, the fringe and your purple dress! Great look!!
I painted rugson my concrete basement floors then used sealer they have held up well for 3 years but a creamy white rug background was not agood choice for under my offic e chair as the wheels make it look dirty my 3 background rugs with stenciled flowers have held up well including the 2 not sealed in my laundry room I used acrylic paint for the stencils on top of concrete paint for the backgrounds
I had trouble getting tape to stick on my concrete when i went for a checkerboard look but it worked well for stripes for borders
Wow, had I nt seen your step by step DIY making of your rug, I would have thought that was a removable rug. One you laid there. In other words, you and your husband rocked with, yet another beautiful DIY .
I love the rug idea and the fringe was a great added touch. Love the door color and the chairs! A window box under the window would be a great addition to your porch!
I love this idea. It’s a great way to jazz up a patio space without having to worry about a carpet getting all dirty!
I’d love for you to share this post with me over at my party, Make Life Pretty Monday. You can find it at http://www.theorganizeddream.com
I’m a little late coming to this party, but I love this! Did you put any sealant on it to prevent weather and muddy shoes from messing up your artwork?
The amount of pop ups on one page is extremely off putting. You might have good tips that I would revisit your page for but based on just the one annoying experience I wouldn’t be back. May be beneficial to decrease the pop ups in order to increase your foot traffic. Just a thought.