Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Fire pit area

It's about time I finished this fire pit area,
built right next to the diy floating deck I built a few months ago.
I have used pavers we bought at Lowes 7-8 years ago, 
when we I made a pathway to get from the driveway to the sidewalk that takes us to the front of our house.
The walkway had become partially overgrown and just needed to be redone...
which I will show you soon what I ended up doing there.
So, back tot he fire pit area.
I dug up all the pavers to the backyard, and used free rocks found on craigslist.
I decided to work on the fire pit area with material I already had.

Here is what I did.
First of all, 

make sure that the ground is leveled.
Not necessarily flat, just leveled in a way that does not have rocks, roots and such things sticking up.
Then lay down flattened cardboard boxes.
Cardboard is GREAT when used for landscaping area.
It will kill any grass underneath, and block weeds.
Plus is free.
We have used it many times, replacing the more expensive weed blocking fabric.
I can assure you the cardboard works MUCH better than the fabric.
Anyway, lay the weed blocking material (whichever you choose),
lay the pavers.

And you are done.
I decided to mix the pavers and gravel to give it an "organic feel".

I already had all my material (pavers, gravel) + free boxes.
We will be enjoying this very much, now that temperatures are cooler.
this will be painted this weekend. lol. I have been saying that for the last 3 months...

 Floating deck Project HERE


Stay Frugal,
Daniela

p.s. The lower floating deck is the only part left to be painted/stained.
The rest is all done!!!!




16 comments:

Marissa said...

The pavers and rocks really do look amazing and who knew about card-board?..
I have looking in HOUZZ (an app) for ideas to inspire me. And let me say this is so inspiring.
I am sure there will be lots of enjoyment this winter as you gather to keep warm.

Kelly said...

That fire pit area looks so nice. I never thought of using cardboard as a weed barrier before. Good to know that it works well. We have been filling in bare spots in our yard with dirt and then seeding grass over it. Trying to take advantage of this cooler weather.

Our Hopeful Home said...

Love the geometric design and the mix of textures (rocks). I will definitely have to mention the cardboard tip to to my husband, he has used the ground cover "blankets" but they can sometimes be a real pain to use.
xoKathleen

Sonny G said...



Looks great Dani~! ya'll enjoy every moment out there. roast a marshmellow or 2 for me.

Dawn- Blessed Beyond Measure said...

LOVE it, Daniela! You did a wonderful job! :)

andi filante said...

This is beautiful! I'm heading over with all my ingredients for s'mores, along with a couple bottles of wine. :)

-andi

Carla from The River said...

Cardboard, great idea! We have a lot of that too. :-)
I like how it turned out.
I really like the mix of the rock and pavers.

NanaDiana said...

Great idea, Dani. I use cardboard all the time as a weed blocker. I also edge along my beds with old roofing shingles and then put rocks on top of them leaving about 3 inches of the shingle sticking out along the edge of the bed-then I can mow right up the edge of the rocks and don't have to weed-eat. xo Diana

Mary Palumbo Collings said...

Sei bravissima Daniela!
Un abbraccio, Mary

Maria Elena said...

It looks wonderful! Love the idea of the cardboard. Perfect solution.

Mindi@MyLove2Create said...

You laid the pavers in such a pretty pattern around the fire pit area! I love it, and totally appreciate the tip about the cardboard. I am going to do that next spring when I lay some pavers on the side of my yard! Thanks Dani!

Mariette VandenMunckhof-Vedder said...

Dearest Daniela,
Don't even try to apologize, you are such a busy bee!
This entire area turned out amazing and it looks very natural, not an articial pattern. Smart way, with lots of digging and hard work but great end result.
Look forward to the rest of it.
Hugs and happy weekend.
Mariette

Heather @ The Beating Hearth said...

Can I use cardboard in my flower gardens to keep the weeds from growing? I'm sure the husband will think I'm nuts when I suggest it but...I am sick of weeds! This looks wonderful, you did a great job.

Cristina Garay said...

It looks awesome, Daniela! I had no idea the cardboard is a good weed blocker. I need to begin collecting cardboard boxes!

Tania Pelletier said...

Wow, looks great! I'm excited to learn about the cardboard vs. weed block fabric too. I have my little shed to set up and the bricks that go underneath and where I'm planning on putting the shed still has some grass. Since I've just moved I have PLENTY of cardboard boxes that I can cut up and use! Thanks for that great tip!

Tania

Libby said...

The fire pit area is amazing. I love how you mixed the pavers with the rocks too. :-)