Reno-friendly paving patterns

With spring around the corner, now is the perfect time to spruce up your outdoor entertaining area. The best place to start is from the ground up and for that, things like pavers, turf and pebbles are key. Pavers are a key element for both design and practicality – creating a solid foundation and starting point for your backyard. While the ease of installation is one thing that makes paving a great choice for DIY projects, it also gives you the ability to get creative with different patterns. “For variety, style and impact for your home, the flexibility that pavers provides is hard to beat. With any one paver, you can create four to six different paving pattern styles allowing you to find the right match for your home,” explains Adbri Masonry’s brand ambassador and Better Homes and Gardens landscaper Jason Hodges. Another important consideration is the colour and texture, as this will set the scene for the entire area. “Consider which paving colour will best complement your existing space by matching them with roof tiles, guttering, bricks or render,” he says. Here, Jason shares his tips on paving and an array of DIY friendly patterns.   [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fsGX746uYjY[/embed]   When laying a paver, it’s important to leave a 3mm gap between each paver – this is for jointing sand that is swept over the surface once you’ve finished the job. This sand will help to avoid the pavers from rubbing and chipping. The most important element for those looking at DIY paving projects is the fact that some areas and paving patterns require half pavers to fill gaps and this involves cutting. “Some paving patterns will require cuts via the use of a brick saw which can be hired from Bunnings or a local hire shop. While the hiring is easy, the operation of the saw requires caution and all of the required safety gear, so take your time or better still, engage the help of a tradesman,” says Jason. If you are using pavers that will be cut, there’s one great tip Jason recommends to ‘hide’ the smaller paver throughout the overall space: “I like to run a header course around all of my paving which means you won’t end up with a little paver on the edge.”  

Basket Weave

The Basket Weave pattern is a design that adds character, dimension and complements existing brick surfaces. To achieve a Basket Weave pattern, simply lay two pavers the same way each time, swapping in direction every “set” of two pavers and repeat. When choosing a paving colour, be sure to take a close look at the bricks in your home, as they will be flecked with a few different colours. You need a rectangular paver to achieve this.  

Herringbone

The Herringbone pattern is a savvy design choice that is making a stylish comeback. Using a smaller format sized paver, interlock the pavers on a 90-degree or 45-degree angle. It’s an eye-catching pattern that will make a great first impression.  

Mixed Euro Stone

This is a new trend for both residential and commercial applications that incorporates mixed pavers of different sizes and colours for a modern paved look. It’s a great option for families as the colour variation can easily hide any stains as opposed to one solid colour.  

Stackbond

This pattern is an excellent choice when paving feature spaces such as entertaining areas and patios where the finished look is important. Stackbond is a great paving pattern choice for large format pavers and can make smaller layouts appear bigger – a great design hack.  

Stretcher Bond

Stretcher Bond is the most common paving pattern as it’s DIY friendly, requires minimal cutting and leaves little wastage. It’s a traditional pattern that replicates the classic look of brickwork and can easily hide imperfections in the pattern. The pattern is simple to install by carefully laying each paver down by one corner, once laid you will see that all four corners of the pavers will meet. Keep in mind that lines do have to be straight, as this pattern will show up any imperfections.