cement stepping stones

We spend a lot of time in our backyard garden and as time goes by we continue to add fun little embellishments to the space. This year we wanted to add a fun little step stone path and decided this project would be the perfect opportunity to dig into our family shell and rock collection.

The first thing we did was pull out all of our shells and pick select our favorites. Then using slices of a product called Quick-Tube, we traced circles onto an old piece of plywood.

Quick-Tube is fiber building tube made for concrete columns but you can also slice it up and create really simple forms for stepping stones. (FYI- you can also use an old cake pan as a form) 

We had fun arranging our shells and rocks.

Next, Andy mixed up the cement- we used Cement All and added a little bit of pea gravel to the mixture. Then we poured the cement into the forms and on top of our shells and rocks. 

Andy braced the forms with some 2 x 2 pieces of wood to keep things from moving around.

Once the cement cured (we let them sit for about 24 hours), then we popped them out of the forms.

I created a little path with our stepping stones and large river rocks. 

Needless to say, the entire project was a HUGE hit with Lucy! And I love that all those shells and stones that we have collected as a family are embedded into the path.

the backyard project part 1

If you follow me on Instagram you will know that we have been hard at work for the last couple on months on a backyard project. Now that we have been in our home for almost two years we are starting to make time to tackle bigger projects. The project that has been topping our list is turning our backyard into a place for all of us to play! We have lots more work but we are happy that stage one is complete! Here is a little peek-

We live on a lot around the corner from the beach and our yard is WET because we back up against acres of wetlands. And while these wetlands are beautiful, they also provide some tricky obstacles for landscaping. The ground is wet and very full of clay and our yard also slopes into the wetlands so we had to figure out what would work best with these challenges. The plan we came up with was to split up the space into different sections- a grassy play area and then a fenced in garden.

The project started with clearing TONS of berry bushes, beach grass and small trees. This was a HUGE job that Andy tackled all by himself!

When everything was cleared, it was time to level things out. It was at this stage that we discovered the back of our lot was MUCH MORE wet than expected which meant we had to rethink a couple of our plans but it was only a minor set back.

Once the ground was leveled (as much as possible) and the soil turned, it was time to start the garden. Last year we built raised bed planters  for our front yard and now that the backyard is clear (and the dirt way too full of clay for planting vegis) we moved our planters to the back yard.

Last, Andy built a picket fence around the garden. We still have some decoration to add to the fence posts, a pathway to the garden and LOTS of planting in and around the garden but we are so thrilled with the results and even more thrilled that our back yard project is moving along. Stay tuned for more!