Meandering pathways can bring a welcoming dimension to a green space. They can provide access to nooks and crannies that you may not otherwise notice–a secret haven!  But designing these features can be a daunting task. Where should they go? What type of materials should be used? Do we really need pathways? In this post we will attempt to give you the answers, ideas and detailed instructions to help you on your way.

Why build a path?

Pathways can help to separate areas in your community park or school ground that serve different functions, or provide a boundary to areas that should not be walked through. Most importantly, though, they can help to engage people in the greening project by directing them to new places to explore.

Here are some things you may want to consider when designing your path:

• Provide a variety of path choices to enhance variations for play and exploration
• Observe where natural paths occur and try to construct your pathway in the same places
• Design pathways to form intersecting circles to allow for continuous movement
• Include pathways that provide above-grade vantage points to capture interest

What about materials?

This is the fun part, and your chance to get creative!

Westwood Elementary School in Prince George, BC took their pathway design to a whole new level by creating concrete mosaic tiles designed by the students and staff at the school and making a path out of them. Diane Sales, former teacher at the school provided us with detailed how-to instructions and photos.

You will need:

• large piece of cardboard at least 4″ bigger than the finished size of the stepping stone
• coloured glass, floor tiles, small flat stones, plastic alphabet letters and numbers, glass tiles, glass beads, other found objects such as keys, broken china etc.
• a sheet of plywood bigger than the cardboard
• clear contact paper
• duct tape
• 2′ x 4′ lumber
• nails
• concrete finishing tools and/ or a large metal drywall float
• edge tools/smoothing trowel
• chicken wire
• wire cutters
• concrete
• sanded grout
• rubber gloves
• a putty knife
• sponges
• a disposable bucket such as an ice cream pail
• hose
• Exacto knife
• short wooden stakes
• sledge hammer

Step 1: Using the 2′ x 4′ boards and nails, construct frames for your stepping stones. You decide how many you want and what size they should be. Having a carpenter help you with this part might help. Using wooden stakes and a sledgehammer, set the constructed frames into the ground where you want them. Be sure to dig out the gravel or dirt within the frame so that the interior surface is flat.

Step 2: Design the visible surface of your stepping stone! Get the kids involved and have them design on paper first. Large, simple designs similar to colouring books work best. Transfer or redraw the finished design onto a piece of cardboard that is the size of your wood frames–leave a couple of inches around the edge of the cardboard. Place the glass or tiles on top of the cardboard design. Make sure that you leave at least a finger width between each item–otherwise the concrete will not be able to seep between the tiles.

Step 3: Cut the contact paper so that it covers the whole piece of cardboard. You may have to use several pieces to cover the whole piece, but try not to use small pieces because it will show in the cement. With the help of a buddy, lower the contact paper onto the design–make sure you lay it down straight! Rub each tile to make sure that the contact paper is sticking to the tile. If the tile doesn’t stick, cut out the piece of contact paper above it and stick some duct tape over the hole so that it is touching the tile.

Step 4: Place a sheet of plywood under the cardboard and (with your buddy) carry the stepping stone outside and set it next to the wooden frame, which should be in the place you want your stepping stone to be. Cut your chicken wire so that it will fit inside your wood frame.

Step 5: Pour concrete into the wood frame so that it is about half full. Use shovels and rakes to even it out. Place the chicken wire in the concrete pushing it down with the shovels and rakes. Pour in more concrete to top of the wooden frame. Smooth the tops and edges. Make sure to tap the sides of the form so that trapped air moves to the top.

Step 6: Westwood used two different methods of transferring their designs that were dependent upon the weight of the tiles.

Step 6a) For lighter tiles: If you can pick up the contact paper without the tiles falling off, stretch the contact paper over the concrete and gently lower the tiles onto the concrete. Rub and press tiles into place. Use a concrete or drywall float to even press tiles into concrete.

Step 6b) For heavier tiles: Leave the cardboard or plywood under the design. Lay the cardboard on top of the finished concrete. Have two people firmly hold the contact paper in the correct spot and carefully slide the cardboard out from under the contact paper. Lower the tiles on top of the concrete and press tiles in as above.

Step 7: Allow the stepping stones to dry for a couple of days (depending on weather) before removing contact paper. Then, carefully peel back the paper…

Step 8: Take time for troubleshooting. If any tiles have not adhered, use a strong exterior adhesive to glue the tile in place. If there is concrete covering the tiles, use a putty knife or scissors to scrape it off. If there are large gaps between the tiles, wait another couple of days and then fill gaps with sanded grout (an adult job).

Step 9: Enjoy your beautiful new stepping stones!

This entry was posted on Tuesday, July 27th, 2010 at 1:45 pm and is filed under Green Tips, School Ground Greening, Vancouver. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.