Paver Patio and Stone Steps

Since moving into our home we’ve needed to do something about our 1960s deck. I know it’s taken nearly 10 years but I’m delighted to share our paver patio and stone steps!

This is how our brand NEW patio was looking the other night – we christened the new space with some friends!

Mr. Stewart (the second owner of our home) built our old deck in the 1960s out of pressure treated wood and it’s amazing just how long it lasted. For years, we couldn’t afford to make an update so I’d cover it with an outdoor rug to prevent the boys and dogs from getting splitters. From years of harsh winters the decking began to go and we needed to do something about it.

But before we get too far along let me show you a before and after:

For years I’ve torn out magazine pages and pinned inspiration for our backyard. The thing was I always thought we had quite a small backyard until we tore the deck and all the wisteria down. Now I realize we actually have quite a spacious yard and adding the patio opened up the space and makes it perfect for entertaining.

Preparation

We decided to prep the area ourselves to save money. We hired a dumpster for Memorial Day weekend and we enlisted the boys to help us tear down the wisteria, the deck, and the old shed. I’ll share more about the shed in another post.

Both the shed and deck were rotting so we didn’t expect it to be too difficult to pull down. Boy, did we underestimate things! On top of that we had a skunk under the deck and Poppy got sprayed so we were all very wary and worried that we’d all get sprayed by said skunk.

Luckily for us the skunk decided that under our deck wasn’t the best home. It may have been playing NPR 24/7, spraying the sprinkler under there, putting Irish Spring soap shavings, filling it with moth balls, or shining a bright light. In any event, the skunk was gone by the time Demo Day Arrived.

Conor was excited to break stuff. Ha! ha! We worked really hard getting this area ready.

Not to mention we spent a second weekend getting rid of all the wisteria – it looked like something out of Stranger Things…

The Inspiration

I love our 1927 home and I wanted the patio and stone steps to honor the tradition of the home. I told our mason that I wanted the patio and steps to look timeless and give the appearance it was always this way!

Look how beautiful the steps and patio turned out! Our Mason, Joe Truglia and his team, did such an amazing job! You may remember that we used Joe to reface our fireplace a few years back. You can see the fireplace makeover and more about our cozy fireplace. Joe is such a nice guy and so good at what he does.

His crew worked so hard in the middle of a heat wave. I couldn’t believe we had these beautiful stone steps and patio in just over a week!

Here’s how our yard was looking before the started after the demo:

Bluestone Tread and Stone Risers

The treads on the steps are made of bluestone and I love the natural texture they have. The Nantucket rounds are veneer and they give a wonderful Nantucket / Martha’s Vineyard – coastal feel to our backyard. I LOVE them. You can’t tell it from the photos but these steps are pretty wide. It really feels like there is a landing when stepping out from the sunroom onto the patio.

Poppy loves laying across the top step – I think they get nice and warm from the sun.

Step Installation

It was fascinating watching the process of the patio and steps. First, Joe’s guys had to make the area level for the patio and then they poured a footing for the steps which had to cure.

Then they built the steps using cinder blocks and filled that in with rubble and bricks then faced the stone with veneer.

Once they were finished with the stone they placed the bluestone tread on top. They are so beautiful in person and we couldn’t be happier.

Paver Patio

The patio is quite large in comparison to our 12 x 12 deck. This patio measures 25 x 12 and really uses the space behind our home nicely.

We decided to go with concrete pavers because we loved how they looked and they were more affordable than bluestone or other natural stone. We actually went up to Plymouth Quarries to look at all the stone and concrete products. I highly recommend doing the same thing so you can really see the colors in person.

The pavers we went with are Beacon Hill Smooth in Fossil by Unilock. I originally chose Bristol Valley in Fossil that had more of tumbled look but due to Covid they weren’t making them.

Paver Patio Installation

Once the steps were finished Joe’s crew go to work on the patio. We had our plumber come and move the sump pump pipe under the patio and Joe’s guys also ran our down pipe under the patio too.

They added a layer of crushed stone, then sand, and then they laid the pavers. We have a dip in the back of our yard so Joe had loam delivered and we planted grass seed. This is partly why I’m sharing the patio now.

Patio and Stone Step Video

I took the last few months and condensed it into a 2 minute video.

What We Love About Our New Patio and Stone Steps

Gosh, there’s so much, but here are some things we all LOVE!

• It feels warm and inviting with all the stone and beautiful textures
• The patio really opened up our backyard and side yard. Guests can move freely from the pool area to the patio and now over to our NEW shed (which I’ll share in a separate post).
• The patio lights (installation post coming soon) make it feel like a large entertaining space even at night.
• It’s so spacious and can feel intimate but also is very large to hold lots of people
• No maintenance!!!!

What It’s Like Enjoying this Space

We LOVE it. I find myself bringing out cups of coffee and a book or magazine. Luke and I enjoy having lunch outside in the sunshine and we are finding more and more excuses to have dinner Al Fresco.

We celebrated my mom’s 82nd birthday out here and John set the table for the celebration and Conor did all the cooking and serving:

The other night we invited a group of close friends over “christen” the deck and it really was wonderful to share this space with our friends! It was everything and more than I could have hoped over the last 10 years planning what we should do.

This post is kind of like a mini reveal because I want to do more planting and such which we can’t do until the spring. I also think the table Luke built is just a little small for the space now. Instead I’d like him to build a modular table that we can have all together as a long farmhouse table but could also break up and have more of a cafe seating plan. I’m excited to share more of this space as we add new elements to it, but stay tuned for a post all about the string light installation.

What do you think about our new patio? Do you love it as much as us?

Let’s keep in touch…

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