Thanks for the response. Agree that the Azzuro would have looked funny next to Sandlewood or Autumn Red. I used your Sketchup templates and modeled the patio with the colors. Not perfect but it seemed to work well. Couldn't find Monticello, but there were other slabs in Azzuro color. We ended up liking Champ Grey with the Azzuro for the field and surprisingly the autumn red for the wall. The house is a red/brown brick and the "wall" is really just going to be filling in for one to two steps of height, not a big retaining wall. So the splash of red kind of disappeared into the grey and green of the grass and patio. We are also getting a real bluestone/flagstone walk put in from the back to front yards in the grass and the Azzuro seemed to match that better, at least picture to picture. Pic, champ grey with azzuro -- mock up, actual patio will be different patterns and layout.

Between the two walls, the Allegheny Blend has greater appeal to me. The Slate Blend is a little colder and looks more institutional. I would have the same concern about the "matchy matchy" aspect with the pavers you're showing. I would consider changing the pavers. I would also consider making the field darker and the border "piping" lighter .. the reverse of the scheme you're suggesting. The darker field (though not suggesting black) has less sun reflection and a lighter edge shows better in low light, which might or might not add safety. A light limestone grey -- the color of plain concrete -- makes a nice border and goes with nearly any color/blend of pavers.

I assume the installer used a gas plate compactor and those are the high spots the plate touched. Those areas will fade into the rest of the stone eventually. I haven’t had this exact paver, I’ve had the smaller cobble type and the marks did fade. I would point it out now though so he sees it in case it doesn’t.

Hi everyone! I'm currently prepping my compacted A-Gravel base for freestanding Techo-Bloc Brandon and Borealis walls to surround a fire pit. @Yardvaark has been an amazing help throughout my journey and has prepared the grading plan below: My embedment plan for the walls is shown below: These are the instructions from Techo-Bloc (and I circled the most relevant section): In case you're interested, this is my progress so far :-) A few questions: 1.) The grading plan shows that within the fire pit area, there's up to a 3.5" elevation change (i.e. from 32.5" in the NE corner, to 29.0" in the SW corner). I presume that I'm supposed to install the walls perfectly level (rather than following the grade)? In other words, the grading will be accomplished in the area surrounding the wall stones after the wall stones are installed? 2.) If the walls are installed perfectly level then they won't follow the grade in the area -- I guess this implies that the seating wall will be 4" shorter at the NE corner compared to the SW corner? 3.) If the wall stones are installed perfectly level, then should I set the level of the pad based on the lowest elevation point within the fire pit area (i.e. 29.0")?