Has anyone ever made their own CEMENT stepping stones for a garden?
Answers:
I make my own stepping stones out of Quikrete. I get quite a few out of a bag that costs about $4-5 depending on where I go to buy it.
You can buy special dyes for concrete at $5 or so per bottle. It goes a long way, too. I've never tried mixing paint in. Paint could have an adverse reaction on the durability of the set stones, I really don't know. You can stain concrete, though, and I've done it quite easily using stains like you'd use on a deck or house. (I used a redwood color and it came out great.) I've also painted a few but the paint wears off in a year or so if they are walked on a lot.
By far the cheapest method I know to make a path is using Quikrete or a similar concrete product. Check the instructions to see if you need to add anything other than water to the mix, though, as some concrete products require the addition of other elements.
Also, the smaller each stone is, the less likely it will be to break. I made some large ones that I quickly discovered were too thin for anything other than decorations. If I'd done them more than an inch thick they might have worked well, but my mold was only 1" deep.
PS I usually only make two or three stones at at time by taking only so much mix and so much water and stirring in a big old plastic bowl. You don't have to mix the whole bag of concrete at once. It's hard to stir that much mix! I also make most of mine now using an old cake pan instead of building or buying molds and sometimes add some old screening from a broken screendoor for extra strength. Saves money!
Other answers:
They have kits at the craft stores, they may not be economical, but what I did was I bought a kit and then just used the plastic mold that came in it, and just bought the cement at the hardware store where it was cheaper.
I would caution though, the kit I bought had glass pieces for decorating (making a mosiac) and now they are several years old and many pieces of the glass are falling off. I did make one with some rocks and stones I found in my travels and 9since they are larger perhaps?) they seem to be staying put.
As for the color I wouldn't use paint but you should be able to buy colored cement or cement pigment, from the hardware store.
Hope that helps.
Good Luck and have fun!
They have kits at the craft stores, they may not be economical, but what I did was I bought a kit and then just used the plastic mold that came in it, and just bought the cement at the hardware store where it was cheaper.
I would caution though, the kit I bought had glass pieces for decorating (making a mosiac) and now they are several years old and many pieces of the glass are falling off. I did make one with some rocks and stones I found in my travels and 9since they are larger perhaps?) they seem to be staying put.
As for the color I wouldn't use paint but you should be able to buy colored cement or cement pigment, from the hardware store.
Hope that helps.
Good Luck and have fun!
I thought this was a great question so I did a quick search. Here is an in-depth article on some of the things you can do. It mentions cement dye as a way to color them, but you can also paint the finished stones.
http://familycrafts.about.com/cs/steppingstones/a/040201a.htm
You can color cement with acrylic paint. Buy big bags of cement,it is cheaper that way, and then I used aluminum pie plates for a mold,they are also cheap if you buy in bulk, I also added marblels and different kinds of things to the plate before adding the cement. Gives it character.
i did that about 2 years ago and all they did was "crack", and they looked terrible. i might have mixed the cement wrong,i dont know. i may try it again,though. good luck,susyq47
If you are just making a path that will not be shoveled, look into cost of crushed granite (tiny size, comes together very hard, cement like).
When working with concrete, just make sure you give it time to set correctly otherwise you may have cracking.
Yes. I buy the clear plastic drain pans for plants (around 10-50 cents each, depending on size), mix up Quikcrete following directions on bag. Cover inside of pans with waxed paper, pour Quikrete into pans and mix in concrete dye. Cover each pan with light cloth (old pillowcases, sheets work)and set aside for 24 hours. Remove from pans and set aside in a warm, dry place for 7 days. They are ready to use after 7 days. These should hold up well even in winter.
I've heard you can mix in some pea gravel but I've never tried that.