Add Interesting Texture To A Paver Walkway By Changing Its Setting

"Details make perfection, and perfection is not a detail," stated legendary Renaissance man Leonardo da Vinci. Little bits of beauty in your landscape contribute to perfection, and a walkway of stepping stones surrounded by decorative stone can be part of this. If you're considering a makeover for your home's walkway, nestling pavers into a bed of landscaping stone is a concept that you can adapt to your taste. This type of path adds polish to any type of yard, whether you have an English cottage garden, a lawn that looks as good as a golf course, or you're delving into the xeriscaping trend.

This DIY takes boring walkways from drab to fab. Square pavers surrounded by tumbled black river stones or jagged lava rock look modern, while irregularly shaped stepping stones encircled with multicolored rocks mimic a stream bed. We are just scratching the surface of how to integrate decorative stones into your walkway.

The layout of your stone-set paver walkway is entirely up to you. Just a few basics to keep in mind are that the standard width for a walkway is 36 inches, and standard depth for decorative stone is 2 inches. You can keep your path a straight line or give it meandering curves. Widen your path with two parallel rows of square pavers, or interlay an appealing brick pattern with stones. There's no rule for where to put your landscaping rock filler. Leave small gaps between each paver that still allow enough space to fill with stone, or set them flush against each other with a border of rock.

To build your own stone-and-paver walkway, start by laying out your path. Stakes and twine are useful for marking straight paths; for meanders, demark your path with either spray paint or string curved in the configuration you want. To be sure your hard work will stand the test of time, make sure you've got a solid base for the path. Dig a trench about 8 inches deep that follows the full length and width of your future path. Fill it with 7 inches of gravel, smooth it out, tamp it down, and top it with a 1-inch layer of sand.

Fit the pavers into the sand in the pattern you'd like, and surround the pavers with landscaping stone. To keep your final product looking good, give the decorative stone a coating of mulch glue. This spray-on product is safe for your garden and will help you clear away yard debris without disturbing the stone.