I remember viewing an image of someone’s backyard. It had a beautifully paved stone path from their patio leading to a small gazebo. It was simple, gorgeous and just felt like paradise even though it was just someone’s backyard in the suburbs.
That image stayed with me for a long time and when I had a house with a small backyard, I knew what I wanted. I was going to build a patio with a paved path around the garden. That is all that I wanted and I was already having dreams of all the lovely evenings I would spend on my patio every day.
Unfortunately my dreams soon had to face reality when I learned how much patio stones cost. What was even worse was the labor charges. I realized there is no way I could afford the patio of my dreams with a beautiful stone path across the garden.
Being someone who does not accept defeat too easily, I soon started researching on cheap patio paving ideas. I knew there had to be a way for families like mine to afford a paved path that felt as gorgeous as anything else but did not create a huge dent on our pockets.
My main focus while researching were as follows:
- The cost of materials should be affordable.
- It should be something that I can do myself to avoid the huge labor costs involved with professional patio paving.
- There will be no compromise on quality as well as aesthetics.
It sounded like I was asking for too much but luckily after just a bit of looking around, I found not one but several solutions.
So here are my amazing cheap patio paving ideas without any compromise whatsoever.
Reusable Patio Paving Molds
Say hello to my new best friend.
Reusable patio paving molds are the best thing that happened to me for my beautiful garden patio.
Basically they are molds mainly made of Polypropylene Plastic (PP) Resin. They come in all kinds of shapes and sizes from artistic patterns to circles, rectangles, squares to a combination of shapes.
These patio paving molds typically have a depth of 2 inches and have about one inch gap between the shapes where you can fill in premixed concrete. Once the concrete has been poured, you need to smoothen it out and let it get to a semi-dry consistency.
At that time, simply remove the mold and reuse to create the rest of the patio or pathway that you are building. Depending upon the type of mold, thickness and shape, you can remove the mold for reuse almost immediately after wet concrete has been poured and smoothened.
Patio paving molds make your work so much simpler, it is quite unbelievable. They are cheap, makes building your patio or garden pathway a quick and easy job and you can buy concrete to mix with water at any home store.
You can even purchase multiple paving molds of different shapes to create unique patterns around your patio or garden.
Salvaged Stone
If you have your heart set on patio stones but are having budget issues, then maybe you can look for salvaged or reclaimed stone.
Similar to the concept of using reclaimed wood in construction, salvaged stone is that stone that has already been used in a property in the past. This stone is usually salvaged for further use if the property goes into any kind of reconstruction, renovation or is damaged due to any reason.
If you get lucky, you can get excellent stones ranging from granites or limestones that have been salvaged from old constructions such as historic buildings, walls or even railroad projects.
Salvaged stones provide a strong character to your patio and depending upon its previous use, you can have a piece of history in your backyard.
However, you need to remember two things when purchasing salvages stones.
First, they usually come in inconsistent sizes and may be a bit off from its original shape. This is because of the natural wear and tear they have gone through over time and how they were salvaged. The age of the property where they were used previously also plays a role on how salvaged stones look when they are resold in the market.
The other thing you need to remember is while these stones may be cheaper than buying new ones, they still do require a lot of work to properly place on your garden patio or wall. If you are not used to construction or building things, it can get tough to do it yourself.
One clever use of salvaged stone is using them as stepping stones in a pathway around your garden. That way, the uneven sizes of the stones actually end up looking quite artistic and is much less labor intensive.
Overall if you do not mind the work, then salvaged stones are a good way to build beautiful budget friendly patios.
Patio Bricks
If you are not too stuck on using stone for your patio or garden, I strongly suggest to look at patio bricks as an option.
Patio bricks are usually small rectangular shaped bricks that come in various shades. You can choose to have one shade across your patio or mix multiple shades one after the other to give an artistic effect.
Patio bricks can also be placed flat on the ground either horizontally or vertically. Some homeowners prefer to create patterns by alternating between horizontal and vertically laid bricks on their patio.
One key advantage of patio bricks is that they are quite light but at the same time durable. Being light weight, any one can handle them easily.
You do have to bend your back a bit to ensure the bricks are placed firm on the ground with cement and are also even when walking around. Uneven bricks can cause accidents if people trip over them.
However, if you can handle them, then they are a good low cost alternative that is pleasing to look at and provide a robust, long-lasting feel to your patio.
Interlocking Pavers
Interlocking pavers are a great option if you want to make things simpler for yourself. They can be placed quite easily to create a beautiful patio in your garden.
Interlocking pavers have been used extensively in building footpaths, streets and walkways all across the globe.
Just like patio bricks, interlocking pavers are light but sturdy. Since they have an interlocking mechanism between the bricks, they are easy to install even by homeowners.
Interlocking pavers can come in various shapes. From rectangles to cosmic configurations. This means you can create some really interesting, artistic flooring for your patio.
They can come is various colors as well. A red brick type shade to greyish shades, you can opt for whichever goes best with your overall outdoor design.
Final thoughts
Whether you are building a patio or a pathway around your garden, cost should not come in the way of your dreams.
There are various cheap patio paving options available for all budgets and skill levels.
Just take some time initially to go through all the options and choose the one that speaks to you the most. It is also possible to mix and match options such as using patio bricks along with molds and salvaged stones strategically placed around the garden.
The only limitation is your imagination. So go ahead and build the patio that you have always desired.
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