How about cut limestone on top of the slab and then edge it with the pavers and use the pavers for walk ways?

valinsv
I would love it if you could take some pics. I am leary about mixing too many materials, but am open to ideas if it looks good. Thanks

I would use the old pavers for walkways, looks like you have done the same in the front of the house as well, correct? and then I would stain the concrete, but I love stained concrete, so no surprise there ;)

Try not to mix too many materials. I'd simulate the stone/brick of your house for pavers, patio, etc.

You did a great job laying those pavers, what a shame to have to have pulled it all up. Do you have enough pavers to paver over the cement decking. Many people lay a thin layer of sand over their pool decking (thinsetting the ones on the edge to keep everything in place). I like the idea of one continuous product. I would paver the walkway. If you dont have enough to do the floor of the cabana...what about one row around the outside of the cement to tie the walkway to the cabana. I like the idea of staining the cement too. Can you take a picture showing how far this is from the house?

I can see the concrete base stained the color of the pavers. Then take the pavers and use to create a WIDE walkway and perhaps (if you have enough) a long wide apron along the front of the entertainment area. This apron would creat an additional overflow area for entertaining, be a landing pad for container planters, and use up some of those lovely pavers. The apron will also ground the structure to the landscape so it doesn't have the effect of being a pop-up structure at the back of the yard. By coloring the concrete and using the pavers you are complimenting the 2 different materials and creating a cohesive feel.

Be sure any walkway you create is WIDE. You want to be able to have 2 people walk side by side on it.

I'm a gardener w/ a small landscape design consulting business. One of the mistakes folks often make is not allowing for overflow movement in their hardscapes.

While I do agree you have to be very careful with mixing materials, I still feel you can combine to get a very nice look. Similar to using trim in a house around windows/doors to highlight certain architectural features. It all depends on your style and the look you wish to achieve. The pavers I had selected did not have a bullnose paver (some lines do) and so we ended up using bricks to define borders and for steps and our seat wall. I am very happy how it turned out. We were in a similar situation where we had poured foundation for our front porch and everything else was dirt. I always knew I wanted a slate porch, but didn't want to put it on a sloping walkway nor did we feel it was the best choice. I've seen slate edging and I hate the look as it's hard to get a smooth edge. I also wanted to cut on the diagonal so that it flowed from my interior travertine entry. The results I think turned out better than I imagined. We get numerous compliments on our front yard from neighbors walking by.

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In the backyard, we had a retaining wall. We extended the patio to meet the wall and designed a circular area which I call my outdoor dining room. I plan to put a wrought iron patio set there this spring. The material is fullrange Connecticut Bluestone. In addition, my contracor put a concrete mowing edge where the grass meets the retaining wall. He colored the concrete when it was poured to match with the grout. In the past, I've put color on a concrete front porch. Overtime the color would wear off so keep in mind it is different if you mix the color when you set the concrete vs. color after the fact.

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Another material which I *love* is the Connecticut Blue Stone tiles--purchased in about 4 different sizes and arranged in a pattern. However, I don't see the Bluestone working so well with your pavers so perhaps slate is a better choice.

I found most contractors tend to recommend materials they have experience working with--though some, like mine, have experience with all. I would choose what matierals you want to use and interview contractors which have experience in the mediums you wish to use. Going to a good matierals yard can me very educational about all of your options.

On looking at yor pics again, I think lyfia's suggestion would look good--mixing the limestone with your pavers. It looks like you might be able to use your pavers for the edging since they are worn around the edges. For the brick edging on my porch, my contractors had to build out from the existing concrete foundation since the brick was thicker--we also added the curve you see after the fact. If you need to use any type of brick for the edging and sides of the step--either because you do not have enough pavers or would like the smoother bullnose, I'd try to match to the bricks you have presently. Do you know if you can get a bullnose brick in that style? Personally as we have kids, I prefer the bullnose for the edging... it's rounded and less rough at the corners.

Not a closeup, but thought you might like to see a "before" shot:

We regraded the front so that the pavers form a gradually sloping walkway from the driveway to the left fence where we added a gate.

valinsv

Thanks for the pics. Your brick/stone work looks fabulous!! I like the idea of staining the concrete and doing the walkways, although that would mean more digging for yours truly. I also like the idea of the stone pavers as a border with limestone on the patio. But I think at this point the limestone pavers would seriously bust the budget.

Sidewalk in front is exposed aggregate, not pavers.

I took some pics of the pavers laid out on the concrete and it does not look that bad, hard to tell with the work still in progress, but they are posted below.

Liked the idea of making the "landing pads" and took a pic of the area in front of the patio. My concern was would more stone over the tree area hinder them. Took pics of that area as well. TIA

PAVERS ON PAD

AREA IN FRONT OF PATIO

do you have enough pavers to do most of the floor, if yes, then it might be good idea but you would need to build an edge around high enough for some sand and the pavers on top of it.

If you stain, you would stain the sides and you will get nice neet finish.

I think if you are really concerned about your trees, you might want to ask over on the landscaping forum. I had a similar concern with my birch trees in the backyard. At first we wanted to extend the rentaining wall to include the birch trees and then fill in with soil. I had about 3 contractors tell me it would be OK, but when I posted over there they told me the roots would root and trees die so we kept it back. I would think it would be OK for the trees, but depending on the type of tree, the roots could cause a problem. I do like the look of the pavers, though the step looks quite high in places.

punamytsike,

I should have enough paver, because it is roughly the same size as the patio I took out with the exception of about 3 feet on either side, however a large portion of that would be covered by the islands for the outdoor kitchen and bar space.

valinsv,
Just where I put the pavers is high all along that side. There will be steps by the sawhorses in the first pic and there is a side walk that is covered by the construction debris that leads onto the patio and only has a five inch step. The patio is really higher on one side due to the slope of the yard.

I like the look of the pavers but the contractor doesn't think I should put them back down. He suggests staining.

Well done, Alwaysgolf! I like stained and scored concrete, that's what we are doing on our terrace. I think a paver path leading to your lovely new outdoor living space would look terrific. Mixing materials will add some texture and interest; stained and scored concrete wouldn't muddy up the look too much.

How are you going to landscape around the new area? I love buildings covered in vines. Carolina Jessamine would look and smell great growing up the cedar posts. Rosemary would be beautiful spilling over the stacked walls around the pavilion. Put a big agave plant in a pot in the middle of a bed and it's like you have a living statue in your yard. They are my favorite plant right now!

Here is a link that might be useful: {{!gwi}}