Link: http://www.pacificpavingstone.com

Now that we've looked at the many possible paving stone designs available using uniform paver shapes, let's open a new can of worms: the almost infinite variety of designs that can be created using different mixtures of size, shape and color.

There are so many possibilities it can make your head giddy just trying to visualize them all, but for simplicity we can start with a popular pattern that Paveloc, Inc., a manufacturer in Illinois, calls the "Huntley" pattern.

As you can see, this pattern has a semi-random look, but is actually built of regular repeating sections. This approach allows a very precise budgeting of quantities (and costs!) for a job and simplifies the process of installation, while retaining a very old world, hand made look.

This design, like many similar ones, creates a small number long joints and many shorter ones, with overlaps and staggered joints adding additional strength to the installation.

Designs such as this are commonly used with ashlar (square cut stone with very narrow joints) paving stones. They are suitable for very large areas as well as small ones, and work well in patio paver designs and pool decks.

The Angelus Block company, a prominent Southern California manufacturer whose products are frequently installed by Pacific Pavingstone. This photograph from their website shows an example of this sort of pattern using a mix of colors in addition to the mix of shapes.

We take advantage of the wide range of colors Angelus manufactures to create harmonious designs unique to a home or a particular location.

Link: http://www.pacificpavingstone.com

We've looked at the variations of pattern available using a single rectangular size of paving stone. Of course, not all paving stones are rectangular, but keeping with the theme of making patterns from one consistent paving stone design, here is a look at the simplest of all shapes: the square.

Square blocks have been around at least since the time of the pyramids. The Romans used them, and you'll find them as cobblestones, large and small, on countless streets and roads in Europe. As with rectangular stones, the two basic patterns for square pavers are stacked and running bond.

Stacked bond lays the stones evenly, in a simple grid pattern, while running bond offsets alternating rows by half the width of the stone, as in the familiar pattern of a block wall.

The term "stacked" is fairly obvious when you look at the pattern on the left, except of course that interlocking paving stones are laid flat, so the stacking is visual, rather than actual.

This is a pattern that looks well in a patio design or a walkway.

Running bond adds even more strength by eliminating long continuous joints between the columns of pavers, and this pattern is excellent for driveway designs or any other application of paving stones to a yard or wider areas such as a forecourt or plaza.

Link: http://www.pacificpavingstone.com

If you've been following these posts on the subject of patterns, you'll have noticed the similarities between how paving stones can be installed and other materials, like bricks in a wall or even woven materials such as basket work.


Here is another paving stone design that borrows from a different field: parquet flooring.

Instead of small wood panels, of course, this design uses interlocking paving stones, but the benefits of an attractive look on the one hand, and the physical strength of the interlock on the other, are the same. An entire patio design or paving stone deck can be laid out in a parquet pattern and will just look gorgeous. Although this design is a little more complex than some of the others we've looked at, it requires no additional time to install and still uses only a single, rectangular shape in a repeating pattern to achieve its effect.

The pattern can be laid square, as it is in the diagram on the left, or "offset" as in the one below. The square pattern creates long, straight seams that can be an effective design element in a walkway, for example, or in situations where you want to complement the shape of a narrow patio or deck.

The parquet pattern works well with a single color of paving stones, but varying it with two or even three colors can create and exciting finished look that speaks volumes about the elegance and beauty of a home and its environment.

In upcoming posts, we'll look at what can be done with square stones, and the almost infinite variations that can be created by mixing different sizes and shapes of paving stones within a single design.