Flagstone Patio Protocol – What Makes One Better Than Another?
Not all flagstone patios are created equal. Unlike roof installation, flooring, or even poured cement (all easily quantifiable and pretty much uniform and predictably priced), a stone patio will vary greatly from one builder to the next. One installer may be in the business of cranking them out at high volume, piecing it together in [...]
Flagstone Patio Design – Hand Mosaic
My client wanted me to come up with some kind of embedded design in this rather large patio. After drafting up several ideas, which included a sun, a saturn-like planet and a horse, I hit home with the idea of making a large hand out of flagstone. We used a combination of Pennsylvania Lilac and [...]
Anasazi Stonework in Chaco Canyon
I ran across these gorgeous photos taken by Owen Geiger. It is fascinating to me to imagine pre-Columbian Americans stacking stones with such care and skill. I have not yet been to Chaco Canyon, though I was close by when my wife and I took a tour through New Mexico and visited the Bandelier National [...]
Wilkeson Flagstone Walkway – Paving with Local Stone
This is an entryway that we overhauled on Capitol Hill in Seattle. We used Wilkeson Flagstone, which is now only sold straight from the quarry in Wilkeson, WA, and the pieces were custom-sawed for this project. Many old building facades and cobblestone streets in Seattle were made of this material, as was the rotunda at [...]
Before and After – Travertine Fireplace Remodel
This project was an unusual challenge. The client had a two-story brick fireplace with another hearth in the upstairs bedroom, and he was interested in going over the brick with stone. The house had a very Italian Villa look to it, and the brick just wasn’t doing it for them style-wise. In the interest of [...]
Adding a Stone Veneer to an Existing Home
Installing a stone facade on your house can not only make it more attractive, if executed well it will actually increase the value. Perhaps you thought a stone veneer could only be included on a new home? Not true. In fact, there is always a way to retrofit a building with a stone exterior, whether [...]
Mark Shepherd
With over 15 years of experience crafting beautiful stonework & amazing landscape designs, Mark Shepherd invites you to share in articles on stone materials, building practices, history, and documenting his projects as they happen.
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Flagstone Patio Protocol – What Makes One Better Than Another?
Not all flagstone patios are created equal. Unlike roof installation, flooring, or even poured cement (all easily quantifiable and pretty much uniform and predictably priced), a stone patio will vary greatly from one builder to the next. One installer may be in the business of cranking them out at high volume, piecing it together in [...]
Flagstone Patio Design – Hand Mosaic
My client wanted me to come up with some kind of embedded design in this rather large patio. After drafting up several ideas, which included a sun, a saturn-like planet and a horse, I hit home with the idea of making a large hand out of flagstone. We used a combination of Pennsylvania Lilac and [...]
Anasazi Stonework in Chaco Canyon
I ran across these gorgeous photos taken by Owen Geiger. It is fascinating to me to imagine pre-Columbian Americans stacking stones with such care and skill. I have not yet been to Chaco Canyon, though I was close by when my wife and I took a tour through New Mexico and visited the Bandelier National [...]
Wilkeson Flagstone Walkway – Paving with Local Stone
This is an entryway that we overhauled on Capitol Hill in Seattle. We used Wilkeson Flagstone, which is now only sold straight from the quarry in Wilkeson, WA, and the pieces were custom-sawed for this project. Many old building facades and cobblestone streets in Seattle were made of this material, as was the rotunda at [...]
Before and After – Travertine Fireplace Remodel
This project was an unusual challenge. The client had a two-story brick fireplace with another hearth in the upstairs bedroom, and he was interested in going over the brick with stone. The house had a very Italian Villa look to it, and the brick just wasn’t doing it for them style-wise. In the interest of [...]
Adding a Stone Veneer to an Existing Home
Installing a stone facade on your house can not only make it more attractive, if executed well it will actually increase the value. Perhaps you thought a stone veneer could only be included on a new home? Not true. In fact, there is always a way to retrofit a building with a stone exterior, whether [...]
