Building a Paving Stone Sidewalk

If we could do it, you can too! Our front sidewalk is much longer than our back sidewalk, so we decided to use paving stones instead of field stones.  The paving stones gave us a smoother, more even surface.  We decided to extend it across the front of the porch and wrap it around the side.  (Later we removed the porch railing and ended up with a larger porch area.)

First we marked out the shape of the sidewalk with spray paint.  We removed the sod, laid down landscaping fabric, a layer of limestone gravel, and then a layer of sand.  That all has to be tamped down before you start laying down the paving stones. You can rent a tamper from many hardware stores.

We decided to curve the shape of our sidewalk leading from the porch to the driveway.  This design gave it a little more interest than a long straight sidewalk. We used boards to frame the straight part of the sidewalk in front of the porch and landscape edgers for the curved section.

The end result is a sidewalk that encourages you to slow down and take it easy.  Some landscape plants and a porch swing are additional encouragement for taking a break and relaxing. That's our goal--to make life simpler and more relaxed.

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