Making Stepping Stones for Your Garden

Now that you have your veggie or flower garden planted, why not create a homemade stepping stone with your little one to embellish the beauty of nature?! This is a project you are sure to cherish for years to come, and perhaps something your child may enjoy in their own garden years from now as an adult. This project definitely needs the assistance of an adult, as it involves working with concrete (don’t be shy, it isn’t difficult!). Read on...

Materials Needed
- Mask
- Gloves
- Disposable Cake Pan
- Sieve
- 1 Bag of Quick-Setting Concrete Mix
- Disposable Container for Mixing Concrete
- Utensil for Mixing Concrete
- Decorations for Stepping Stone


Let’s Get Started
Before you start putting your stepping stone together, it is imperative that you work out your design; this should be the first step. You can do this either on paper or simply by arranging your decorations on a table. The concrete mix dries really quickly, so this is very important to do first! Use anything that screams “you” for your decorations! Small stones, seashells, marbles, bits of colored glass, beads, keys, special mementos (you get the idea!) all make wonderful embellishments for stepping stones. Wonderful mosiacs can be formed with just a little planning... get crafty!

Once you have your design worked out, it is time to prepare the concrete mix. Make sure to wear a mask and gloves when working with the concrete as you do not want to get it on your skin or in your lungs. For a smoother surface, sift the concrete mix through a sieve (which will remove bits of gravel) which will give your stone a smoother appearance. Quick-Setting Concrete Mix dries very quickly (usually within ten minutes you cannot work with it) so once it is mixed you need to work quickly! Of course, you could always choose to use a concrete mix that does not dry as quickly, whatever works best for you!

Mix your concrete mix per bag instructions. Since you will not be preparing the entire bag, the consistency shouldn’t be as thick as modeling clay, but not runny either, somewhere in between. The more water you add, the longer it will take to dry; just make sure not to let it get too thin, your embellishments may go a little deeper in the concrete than you want!

* Note: If you want to make a stepping stone with a handprint or your initials and date, don’t use a quick-setting concrete. Purchase a concrete mix that sets in a couple of hours. Follow the directions on the bag and wait awhile for the concrete to thicken slightly. Make your imprint and wash your hands right away. Within a day or two, your stepping stone will be ready!

Once you have your mix ready, fill your cake pan roughly 1/2” from the rim. Moving quickly, transfer your embellishments to your stone and gently lay them on the surface until your design is complete. Gently press each embellishment into the concrete mixture, making sure they do not “sink” below the concrete. Put in a dry place to set (in the sun is great!), and wait 24 hours before returning.

Once your stone is set, it is time to take it out of the pan. Simply pull the rim of the pan away from the edge of the stone, carefully turn the pan upside down and remove your stone!

Happy Fun!
Heather W.
Fairview Greenhouses & Garden Center