Planted

Young's Nursery delivered and planted our Japanese maple. Harry came out to oversee the proper placement.

I was told to keep the tree watered in this extremely dry and unusually warm weather. The Japanese maple is fairly bug resistant and deer typically do not eat the leaves. Hopefully the tree will have a long and healthy life.


I am amazed by how different the walkway and stone wall look, now that the tree is in place.

Picture Spot

Cooper and Otis seem to approve of the new walkway. Unfortunately, Otis will run down the hillside, instead of using the stairs, if he is not on leash

Before & After

 This was the original walkway.

This is the new walkway.

Having spent our entire budget on hardscaping means the landscaping will wait until next year.

I really like the new walkway. Harry at Young's created a great design and his crew brought it to life beautifully. I think that our curb appeal has definitely increased.

Let There Be Light

 

The column and stair lights have been installed.

500 Pounds

Jeff wanted to have a solid piece of bluestone at the entrance to the front door. Our landscaper, Harry, called the Pennsylvania quarry to check if they had such  a large piece. The quarry said that they could cut a piece of stone to match the required dimensions. It would weigh about 500 pounds.

When I heard that a crane would be needed to lift the stone, I checked that Young's had insurance. In my mind, I pictured this stone crashing thru the front door. Luckily, the stone was delivered and installed with no problems.

Pathway

The lower landing and pathway are now complete.

A light will be installed on top of the stone column.

Bluestone

The lower bluestone landing is almost completed and the upper stair treads are in place. The landing is not big enough for a cafe table, but there is a sense of openness/space that our old stoop lacked.

We tried out the sitting wall and decided it was pretty neat.

Getting Closer

If the weather is nice next week, the walkway should finally be completed.

The 3 sets of stairs have been constructed and the bluestone treads are sitting in the driveway. Some grading needs to be done and then the bluestone  pathway will be installed.

Our latest project has attracted some neighborhood interest. Not that this is surprising - between the chiseling and cutting of the stone with a saw, there is quite a racket coming from our home.

Up Close

When we were interviewing landscape companies, we were warned that our walkway would contain A LOT of stone. We were told that it might take a while to get used to the new look and that we should live with the walkway for several months before landscaping.

I think that the stone wall is beautiful. Up close,  I can see the intricate details. I am still amazed how the mason made all the pieces fit together.  We may eventually add some slight landscaping, but I do not want to hide this creation.

Stairs

The first set of stairs have been installed in our new walkway. If you look closely at the top step you will see the light is embedded in the stone.

The Belgian block is now in place. The Belgian block is to protect the stone, in case someone gets too close to the edge of the driveway.

And this is what the complete project looks like.  The vertical stone work is complete, so it should not take long to install the blue stone pathway.

Slowly

The walkway will NOT be completed next week. The rain storms are keeping work to a minimum and the stairs have not been started. The first walkway light is installed and the pile of sand is much smaller. We are slowly creeping towards completion.

I wanted the lower landing to have a sitting wall. This means that the inside wall must be smooth (even). For this to work, the stone cutting and fitting must be precise. It takes hours for a few stones to be installed. I think that the stone work is beautiful.

Next Steps

Work on the stairs will begin this week. We are having lights embedded into some of the steps, so visitors can find their way to our door.

I can't wait to see what the finished product will look like. Right now I see a jumble of rocks and dirt as our paper design slowly becomes reality.

Half Way

Week 2 of the walkway construction has come to an end. The project is half way finished. You can barely see the old concrete stoop. I think the stone wall adds character to the house.

Getting Taller

The wall continues to get taller and longer. The tarps are to protect the new mortar from the rain.

A new supply of rocks was delivered.Jeff thinks we may need even more stones to complete the project.

Building the Wall

The frequent rain storms are slowing construction of the walkway. The concrete footers have been poured. The field stone wall, which will encase the existing stoop, is being built.

Even though there are only a few stones in place, I can already see how much nicer the natural stone is compared to the gray concrete.

The landscaping crew carefully selects the stone and then chisels or cuts the stone to fit in the wall. It is as if a puzzle is being put together.

The driveway and front lawn are a complete mess

New Walkway

At 8:00 am, Harry, our landscape architect called and said his crew could begin work on our walkway. I said that was fine, but no one would be home. Harry responded that there was some measurement and prep work to do. We could meet the next morning. I said that would be fine.

When I arrived home, I  thought I would see a delivery of stone  and the new walkway staked out. You can imagine my surprise at seeing the old stairway completely removed! 

Walkway

As the pictures show, our existing walkway is an eyesore. It certainly does not increase our home's curb appeal. Even worse than how it looks, is the fact that the stairs are not evenly spaced. Obviously, this was yet another  project that a previous owner did incorrectly.

One of the biggest problems with our home, is that the front door is eight feet above the driveway. This is a huge distance to have to cover in a relatively short space. How to balance a large quantity of stairs  and not look like a Mayan temple was a problem that we struggled with.

We spent this winter interviewing landscaping companies and discussing designs. We have chosen Young's Nurseries and the construction should begin in April. It will take about one month to complete this project.

I thought a month was a long time.  However, I was told that building an 8 foot high stone wall takes a lot of time, skill and material.