Curb appeal is an important factor in valuing your property. It’s what people first see when they come to visit you or drive past your property. To make an amazing first impression, add stone features. Stone is low maintenance and provides long lasting beauty.

4 Ways to Use Stone to Improve Curb Appeal

Line your driveway with stones

When guests come to visit, they most likely will pull into your driveway. Line your driveway with granite cobblestone or aggregates for a sculptured appearance that is sure to impress! Granite cobblestones are well known for their beauty and durability, and they are commonly used as pavement material. You can also alternate areas of your driveway with cobblestones and aggregates to create a pattern. Whether you mix the stone to create a dramatic first impression or blend them for a smooth transition, it will show you pay attention to the details.

Customize your walkway

The walkway to your front entrance can look amazing when you replace it with natural flagstone. It’s a great alternative to the concrete sidewalk that leads up to your front door. Flagstone has an abundant color palate and unlimited pattern options, including cut or irregular patterns to complement your home’s style. If you have elevation differences, add in a few bluestone steppers for a sophisticated look.

Apply stone on the façade

Your guests will be looking at your home and what it’s built with. Having stone on the façade is one of the most luxurious materials to create a great impression. Using thin stone veneer can make applying stone economical while enhancing your home’s architectural features. The best benefit: you’ll get the beauty of stone features that no other material can compare to!

Transform difficult areas with aggregates

A perfectly manicured lawn can be difficult to achieve and expensive to maintain. By using aggregates as groundcover to fill in areas where grass and plants are difficult to grow, you can transform these areas to a point of interest with a fountain, statue, bench or seating area. Further minimize your maintenance by placing aggregates around your trees, shrubs and flower beds in lieu of mulch. Decorative gravel comes in many varieties of size, shapes and color blends for long-lasting beauty.

Stone is the perfect material to create an amazing curb appeal that also can increase the value of your home. For assistance on selecting the right stone for your purpose, contact Fieldstone Center at 770-385-7708. They can help you choose from a wide selection of quality stone.

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Have you looked out in your garden lately and wondered what you could do to make it more appealing in the winter? If the warm weather isn’t appealing enough, then add stone into your winter garden. Stone is a beautiful and versatile material that adds interest to the garden.

A beautiful stone pathway

Since many plants and weeds are dormant in the winter, it is a good time to etch out a pathway in your garden. Flagstone is ideal for pathways because it is functional with its flat cut, non-slip surface and ability to handle high traffic. It comes in a variety of shapes and colors for every gardener’s style. Create a walkway with a pattern that weaves along in a casual way for an enchanted garden or is structured with well-defined lines for the sophisticated garden.

The perfect water feature

Place a water feature along your pathway for visual appeal and tranquility. A water feature can be quite easy to maintain in our mild winter climate. Design a unique, custom natural stone water feature that has character. Stack drystone to create a waterfall effect or place river rocks around a deep pool with a fountain to give the appearance of a pond. Using natural stone to design your water feature will give an authentic look that blends with your garden.

Textured groundcover of aggregates

Using aggregates as groundcover adds texture and color to different areas of your winter garden. You can place aggregates such as pea gravel or egg rock around your trees or use aggregates to replace large areas of grass. This decorative alternative to grassy areas not only adds interest to the landscape, it also provides a head start against weeds and helps to reduce maintenance come spring. Boost the creativity level up a notch by alternating different types of aggregates with layers of ground-hugging evergreen plants.

The intimacy of a rock wall

Building a rock wall can help dress up your landscape and provide vertical appeal to your winter garden. It also helps to divide up the space and create intimacy so that it doesn’t look so vacant in winter. Design a rock wall around a patio or to form a border. Drystack stone can be piled in a neat, organized manner for the meticulous garden or offset it in an irregular pattern for a more whimsical garden.

Decorative columns

There is something about columns in the garden that give a finished look. It’s that added detail that can provide an artsy flair or regal quality, depending on the type of natural stone material and design. Natural stone veneer is a popular material for decorative columns and is available in a variety of stones to match the style you want.

Fieldstone Center has a large selection of stone products for every project in your winter garden. Share your ideas and we can help you select the right stone for the application. Contact us at (770) 385-7708.

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How do you determine what type of landscaping stone to select with so many different types available? Each type has its differences. There are many factors to consider such as size, shape, weight, color, etc. Understanding the differences can help you decide which landscaping stone to use in your design. The two most common types are aggregates and flagstone.

Aggregates

If you love gravel and other small rocks in your garden, aggregates are a good place to start looking. This group of landscaping stone includes rounded aggregates, sand, crushed granite and boulders. They are great for solving drainage issues and adding texture to a garden. They are also generally inexpensive and easy to install. The rounded aggregates can range in sizes from pea gravel to beach pebbles and to river rocks. And if you want to add some size, opt for larger boulders.

Pea Gravel

These small, rounded rocks are about the size of a pea with 1/4 inch, 1/2 inch and 5/8 inch being common sizes. Their color can range from white to tan and to brown. Lay down pea gravel for pathways, in place of mulch for garden beds and in the crevices between flagstone for your walkway or patio.

Beach Pebbles

Another small, rounded rock that is slightly larger than pea gravel, beach pebbles are usually more uniform in color for a sophisticated option in a decorative garden. Line them along garden beds or patios. They are ideal for contemporary or Zen-like gardens.

Crushed Granite

Also good for covering and filling in spaces, crushed granite is small but not as smooth as pea gravel. Use it along pathways or in place of mulch for garden beds. It works well if you want a more refined and contemporary.

River Rocks

River rocks are larger aggregates, typically 1 inch on up in size. Use them for edging or pile them to create a structure such a retaining wall, fountain or dry creek bed. Depending on the look you want to achieve, you can use similar or different sized river rocks for your structure.

Boulders

Large rocks that are found in fields or quarried, boulders come in any number of sizes. Use smaller boulders as an accent or border to a garden bed or water feature. Place large boulders near a property edge for a visual division or use a few for a statement piece to add natural variety to your garden.

Flagstone

A familiar landscaping stone, flagstone is widely used in a variety of landscaping projects. It is versatile for decorative and functional purposes. It is cut flat and available in a number of diameters to suit your intended use. Frequently, it is used for stepping stones, walkways and patios. It is available in a variety of colors, sizes and shapes depending on the rock. Flagstone encompasses a wide range of rocks that include limestone and sandstone.

Limestone

Known for its earthy appearance, limestone gives softness to an area where you want to add subtleness in your design. It is a sedimentary rock that includes shells and corals, giving it a unique and rustic appearance. The color range is limited but the stone can be sanded smooth to provide a very soothing look. Limestone works well for patios and walkways.

Sandstone

Sandstone is noted for its loose grains and rough texture. It has an amazing range of colors, including multicolored stone. Bluestone is a specific type that is well known for outdoor hardscaping. Use if for patios or add bluestone steppers for an elegant entrance.

When you want to choose the stone that is perfect for your landscape, contact Fieldstone Center. We have a wide selection of aggregates, flagstone and other stone in a variety of styles, patterns, colors, and sizes available. Contact us at 770.385.7708 for more information.

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You can enhance your existing garden with a simple change in color and texture from aggregates. From gravel to pebbles and egg rocks, there is a wide range of colors, sizes and types of stone aggregates available. Their variety provides a number of ways to use them in your landscape. Here are some ideas:

In Place of Mulch

When used in and around garden beds and shrubs, aggregates can aid in moisture retention and provide protection from the hot summer temperatures. Its low maintenance means that it won’t need to be topped off each season like mulch. Our gold or grey pea gravel is visually appealing when used in place of mulch and will add a new dimension to your landscape.

As a Groundcover

It can be used in large areas of your garden such as for covering slopes and placed along the edges of pathways where you might often think of adding groundcover plants. It’s flexible for filling in any size or shaped area and can reduce invasive problems of many groundcovers. We suggest pea gravel, pebbles or egg rock for a decorative layer in your landscape.

For the Surface

Lay it down as the surface for sidewalks, driveways, and other landscape projects. It will help provide natural drainage. It has the durability as a rock material while giving a softer look compared to concrete and pavement. And it’s the perfect transition material when moving away from a home into a larger garden or other area. Crushed slate, granite gravel #57 and pea gravel are great options for surfaces.

As a Replacement for Grass

It does well for areas of the yard where plants don’t grow well or when you want to reduce maintenance with less irrigation. And if you have bare areas where grass is hard to grow, consider covering the area with a decorative display of boulders and smaller aggregates. Since you are dealing with rock, the color won’t change over time. And it’s a cost effective way to cover an area.

In Place of Grout

When laying down pavers, choose smoother aggregates that don’t have sharp edges to fill in the space. Stones are very durable and offer a unique textural contrast with the pavers. Because aggregates come in different sizes and colors, you have options for how much spacing you want to fill between pavers. Our crimson pathway and mixes Mexican beach pebbles are beautiful choices to use between pavers.

As a Rock Border

Aggregates lined along path and garden beds give a finished look to a landscape. They can add a natural look to your garden while keeping plants contained in beds. Planting groundcover behind the aggregate border creates another effect when the groundcover starts to spread over the rocks for a casual look. Also popular is lining rows of different sizes and types of aggregates, such as beach pebbles, for a creative look.

When you use aggregates in your landscape, you are adding functionality along with the natural beauty of stone. Depending on your purpose, be mindful that some aggregates do not compact like others do. Fieldstone Center, Inc. has a wide selection of aggregates and can assist you in selecting the best ones for your landscaping project. Contact us at (770) 385-7708 for more information.

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