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Flagstone walkways bring style and character to any outdoor space, and the options for how they can be designed and installed are nearly limitless. Whether you're looking for a walkway to the front door or one through the middle of your English cottage garden, the flagstone walkway is the way to go. Keep reading for our favorite flagstone walkway ideas.
Stick With Curves
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When planning a long flagstone walkway through your outdoor space, remember that outdoor elements look most 'realistic' when curved—after all, forests and meadows don't grow in perfect squares. Add curves to your walkway to give a similarly thoughtful look.
Install Near a Wall
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Walls and fences are natural spaces to place a flagstone walkway. They offer a convenient route through a property, and their location near a border gives them purpose, rather than just being a random walkway.
Embrace Variation
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Flagstone walkways look best when there is a slight color variation, rather than monochrome These subtle differences in color make the stone look more natural and elegant. Use a variety of shades of stone to get this effect in your own home.
Add River Stones
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The space in between your stone walkway can be filled with a number of things, including grout, grass, or pea gravel. But you can think a little bigger too—add river pebbles or similarly medium-sized stones to fill the gaps in between the pavers.
Offset Your Walkway
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For a unique walkway look, offset your stone pavers. This adds an unexpected touch to an outdoor element that's often forgotten about.
Consider a Border
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To make your flagstone walkway further stand out, add planted borders. We like what Pure Salt Interiors did in the walkway above, adding ornamental grasses along the path to the door.
Wrap It Around
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For a fantastically flagstone look, consider wrapping a flagstone walkway around the entire house. It's a great way to define and highlight your home and bring style to your outdoor space.
Don't Forget Drainage
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If your flagstone walkway goes downhill or includes a space where rainwater could potentially pool up, make sure to add a drain or two. This will prevent your walkway from flooding during heavy rain and leaving behind sediment and grime.
Create Seating
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If your flagstone walkway is wide enough, consider adding a small patio chair and foot rest. It's a great way to take advantage of excess space and provide extra seating.
Add a Garden
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Circular or keyhole-shaped flagstone walkways leave plenty of room for a lush garden, like Finding Lovely's in the backyard above. Use a small tree as your focal point and add medium- to small-sized plants surrounding it.
Get Geometric
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Flagstone is most often found ruggedly cut, with random shapes and edges. But if you want a neater look, install stones that have been cut to be perfect rectangles and squares. This works well for a more modern outdoor look, or as a contrast to a lush and more wild garden.
Keep It Short
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Flagstone walkways don't need to be long. In fact, the best length for a walkway is exactly how long you need it to be. Take the walkway above: though it's not very big, it serves its purpose well—defining the patio above and providing an extra spot to stand.
Learn to Love the Rugged
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When designing a flagstone walkway, don't be afraid to give it some rugged edges. The variety of nooks and corners a flagstone walkway can create can become the perfect home for a lush ground-cover like creeping jenny or wild strawberry.
Make It Historic
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Flagstone can often bring a historic look to an outdoor space. Emphasize that even further by pairing a flagstone walkway with salvaged or vintage brick.
Bring in Brick
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Flagstone and brick can also be combined in the same walkway for a blended and visually interesting look. Brick is great at filling in the spaces that flagstone may be too big for, like edges, borders, or extra-curvy offshoots.
Get Flexible
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The flexibility of flagstone makes it easy to play around with different shapes, like the walkway above filled with wide, yet short, stones.
Don'r Forget Plants
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Flagstone walkways look all the better when they are installed alongside lush plant life, as the entryway to Dazey Den's home demonstrates. Add small plants that fit in the gaps of the stones and taller ones to border the walkway for the best look.
Repurpose Forgotten Walkways
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Sometimes, flagstone walkways can fall to the wayside and need time and effort to restore them that you may not have. When that happens, don't abandon the stone entirely. Instead, repurpose it for another use, like as a small dining area, until it can be restored to its former state.
Mix and Match Materials
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Flagstone in the backyard doesn't exclude other types of pavers and stones from being there as well. In fact, flagstone can look all the better when paired alongside pavers in a contrasting material or color.
Install an Arch
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Want to make your flagstone walkway really stand out? Add an arch or two (and some trellising vines) on top of it. This unique addition to your landscape will make it feel like it belongs in a European villa.
Use It in Porches and Patios
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Flagstone isn't only for walkways—it can also be a great flooring choice for outdoor patios or porches too. But if you use it in both a porch and a walkway, make sure you use the same type to maintain some cohesion.
Build Out Your Walkway
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https://www.findinglovely.com/
Looking for an extra space to entertain in your backyard? Build out your flagstone walkway to create space for an outdoor sofa or two, or a set of table and chairs. Remember to create rounded shapes as much as possible for the best look.
Use the Edges
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The edges of wide flagstone walkways are a good spot to put a garden bench or two, as well as some ornamental garden décor.
Make It Southwestern
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Flagstone walkways aren't just for cottage-style backyards. Flagstone in a terracotta color is the perfect fit for a southwestern-style space too.
Pair It With Wood
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When pairing wood with flagstone walkways, nearly any type will do. But one kind that looks especially great is light-colored wood, as its natural stain fits well with the earth-hewn feel of flagstone.
Let It Grow
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Of course, you don't need special plants to add between the gaps of your walkway—you can let whatever regularly grows in your lawn fill in the space between too.
Add a Focal Point
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Consider adding a focal point to your flagstone walkway, like a water feature or seating area. Doing this will make the space feel more put-together and complete.
Use Gravel
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Want to continue your walkway without installing more flagstone? Consider gravel. When installed in the same color as the flagstone, it offers a cost-efficient way to create a walkway that's used less or more out of the way than the main flagstone one.
Consider Staircases
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Flagstone is a great pick for stairs too, not just walkways! We love the interspersed plantings in this set of steps from Lady Landscaping.
Don't Forget About Grout
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If you're adding grout to your flagstone walkway, make sure it's one that will age just as well as the stone will. Bad grout can make any walkway look bad too.