Sometimes a simple solution is all you need to greatly improve your home. For our clients in Westfield, they needed an easier way to access their backyard patio, and their solution was adding a paved walkway. However, they weren’t looking for anything big or fancy. Their yard had a few other challenges as well, so they called us in to build the path.

Our clients didn’t want to break the bank for this project, but they also wanted the walkway to complement their yard and be able to serve its purpose for a long time.  Additionally, the new path had to meld with the existing patio.

Our design was a curving walkway that connected three areas—the driveway, the patio, and the side of the house where their AC unit and hose were. Our clients liked the free-flowing style of the design; they appreciated a more natural look. The walkway makes it much easier for the homeowners and their guests to navigate around the house.

We used a plain concrete paver in a simple “running bond” pattern, laid in lines. Not only is this an easier pattern to install, but it also emphasizes the flowing, natural style. We used gator sand to firm up the path, which helps water sheet off the surface and makes it a more permanent structure. To join all three parts of the walkway, we had to do some spot-on cuts, the only intricate part of this hardscape.

While putting in the new path, we regraded and seeded that whole side of the yard so water would fall away from the house rather than seeping into their basement. Sometimes patios are put in without proper leveling or grading, and water drains towards the house. In this case, the new path could have aggravated any existing issues.

The final touch was an organic one. We planted a birch tree close to the patio space to provide some shade. A grown birch provides screen-like cover, not a thick canopy like oak or maple. The tree also softens the hardscape structures in the backyard and provides a vertical contrast to the other low growing plants.

This simple walkway is the perfect example of installing a functional tool in your yard that still looks nice without it having to be really ornate or involved. The improvement it makes is substantial even though it is relatively simple.

Eagleson Landscape Company provides landscape and hardscape services in the Greater Indianapolis area, including Carmel, Zionsville, Westfield, Fishers and Geist.