Hallelujah, the patio is finished!

After catching my breath and loosening up most of the sore muscles, I finally have the time and energy to share the final chapter of this patio project. We last left off exhausted and halfway through the paver installation, so here’s how I wrapped it up.

We took Saturday off for family time and an early Mother’s Day. On Sunday afternoon I planned to spend an hour or two finishing the edge cuts, but my quick plan turned into seven or eight hours of steady work. Curved edges mean lots of cuts, and I soon remembered why every step of this process takes longer than it looks.

To fit the edge pieces, I set a full paver in place against the border course and marked the overlap with a pencil. For cutting I used a wet saw borrowed from my dad. It worked, but it wasn’t ideal for 2.5-inch-thick pavers. The blade couldn’t cut through in a single pass, so I had to cut from both sides and, for some long pieces, make multiple passes. After two to four passes I still needed to chip out the center section with a chisel-like motion using a hammer and screwdriver to finish the cut.

Multiply that process by the 50+ pavers that needed trimming and you’ll get a sense of why the afternoon stretched so long. The big commercial wet saw would have sped things up, but I stayed with the borrowed tool to save money.

When a cut was accurate, laying the piece and tapping it into place with a rubber mallet was straightforward. The mallet helped the pavers settle slightly into the sand bed so they stayed level and secure. Uneven cuts and wet saw dust made some pieces look rough at first, but once sand was brushed into the joints those imperfections blended in nicely.

By the end of Sunday I had finished cutting the edge pieces and even had enough energy to re-hang a sagging gate that threatened to scrape the new stone. The patio looked great in its pre-sand state, and after a quick hose to remove saw dust the lighter edge pavers matched the rest of the surface.

I wore the evidence of the day: wet saw spray on my shirt and face, safety goggles to protect my eyes, and yellow-stained gloves from getting wet. Despite the mess, the results were worth it.

For the field pattern we used a repeating arrangement of 6×9 and 6×6 pavers that creates a structured yet slightly random look—some people call it an I, K, H, or J pattern. We chose it to match the driveway and keep a cohesive overall look. After laying the first few units, the pattern became easy to reproduce across the patio.

On Monday I finished the final step: sweeping sand into the joints to lock the pavers in place. I used leftover paver sand and a broom, pushing sand into the gaps and then misting the surface with water to help the sand settle. Because the sand initially slid around, I repeated the sweeping and misting several times until the joints were consistently full and the surface looked even. The wet sand looked darker and clumpy at first, but it dried to a complementary gray tone.

If budget allows, polymeric sand is a great upgrade—it hardens after misting and helps prevent weeds. We chose standard paver sand to save roughly $100, knowing we could upgrade later if desired.

After the sand step, I backfilled the patio edges with soil to conceal the plastic edging and create a finished look. Once the edges were filled, the transformation felt complete.

We staged the patio with temporary furniture from around the house to get a feel for scale and how we might use the new 300 square feet of outdoor living space. The setup is temporary—our long-term plan is a casual outdoor living area with a daybed or loveseat, a coffee table, and a place for a sandbox or small pool for Clara. For now, the grill found its permanent home on the new patio, and a small ceramic bird feeder that Sherry bought for the space became its crowning jewel.

We hope this gated, paved area will be a safe, fun place for Clara to play close to the house—chalk and small toys work much better on a flat surface than on grass, and the enclosed space eases our mind about street traffic.

From planning through cleanup, the project took about 30 hours. We encountered curves, stubborn concrete during demo, and a few setbacks, so results will vary for others. Here’s a concise budget recap:

• 300 sq ft of cottage stone pavers: $621
• Plastic patio edging and spikes: $69
• Paver sand: $107
• Gravel: $240
• Delivery for materials: $145
• Miscellaneous supplies (stakes, levels, string, hand tamper): $40
• Weed block fabric & crampons: $30
• Total: $1,252*

*We actually paid $1,332 but returned some bags for an $80 refund, bringing the final cost to $1,252.

We saved several thousand dollars compared with contractor estimates for the same curved patio and are pleased with the result. It was hard work—sweaty, dusty, and sometimes frustrating—but ultimately rewarding. Would I do it again tomorrow? Not immediately. I’ll enjoy this one for a while.

With the patio complete, we’re ready for summer gatherings and Clara’s upcoming birthday. Fingers crossed for good weather so we can enjoy the new space with family and friends.