How to DIY large, irregular concrete natural looking stepping stones

NEW UPDATE video is now available! Follow this link for update - • DIY Concrete Stepping ...
**I've also added product links below to help you with your project!!**
My favorite DIY to date!! This neglected corner of my pool area was given new life by digging a sunken fire pit and surrounding it with these giant concrete stones. You won't believe how cheap and easy it was to make the molds and they were poured right in place on the ground. Check it out and let me know if you try a project like this yourself!!
I purchase everything locally but if you cannot locate the products I used here are some great options. **Product Links Below**
Vertical Blinds - amzn.to/3jBTRJh
Vertical Blinds - amzn.to/2VxrELg
Concrete Colorants - amzn.to/37tqMtH
Concrete Colorants - amzn.to/3CuHRC6
Yard Stakes - amzn.to/3xpJ7CA
Mixing Tub - amzn.to/3AqJtLj
Garden Hoe - amzn.to/3lHc3Uk
Rubber Gloves - amzn.to/2VyPS8f

[@noneyabeezwax8865]

You obviously don’t have a husband standing around asking you “what the hell are you doing now?” Fantastic job!

[@deborahgross1045]

OMG...You know my husband!

[@hilarycherry6528]

Hahahahaaaaaa!!!!

[@kerridavidson5671]

Oh boy, can l relate to that!

[@jaybea3158]

Lol this is mostly my issue when I got ideas 🤭

[@ladyjasminek7816]

Ditto…I get that “What’s She doin now? ” comment all the time! lol 😊

[@khm9879]

as soon as I saw the vinyl blinds I was like " OMG that's GENIUS!!!" this is is the exact hack I've been looking for!!!! I can't even tell you how excited I am to try this!!

[@madama8004]

same here.. Ive been using boot trays for slate rocks but this will work so much better

[@abwicklung924]

A voice from Germany: this video makes me a little dissatisfied with myself! Why do others always come up with such great ideas? Seriously: a whole handful of ideas are brought together here and produce a stunning, highly professional result. Thank you for this wonderful tutorial.

[@dhd8850]

This is easily one of the best cement tutorials i have seen and by a clear mile the most informative - fantastic video 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[@uniquelyursula87]

Wonderful, so glad you liked it!

[@toddpnewton]

Texture with baggies? Blinds? Brilliant! Creative and great use of materials.

[@uniquelyursula87]

Thank you:)

[@jessemkahn]

What a great idea. Then vinyl blinds as forms is genius. And the coloring & texturizing you did is beautiful.

[@Tube009ish]

I have ben looking for some ideas like this. This is the ONE, thanks for sharing!

[@dachsymom5232]

Love it! Planning to do this in a "Campground site" we are putting in by our RV area so our guests can stay in RV for privacy. Awesome idea! Great job! Thanks!

[@durbanchichairsalonbyduche3893]

Thisss!!! This is what I have been searching for for weeks!!! I absolutely love it ! I knew there must be a cheaper way to do it !! THANK YOU !!

[@staciemarie5859]

I knew it was possible and if I kept searching I'd find my creative inspirational hero! Brilliant idea that came out incredible and your video makes it so clear and easy to understand. Thank you so much for sharing this, it's exactly what I've been looking for!! I knew I was saving that stack of old blinds for something....I can't wait to do this! ❤️

[@accordionchick]

Oh my goodness...what a great job you did!!! I LOVE IT! I’m DEFINATELY going to do this when I get to that part of my garden process. THANKS so much fo the idea!!!!!👍

[@bigmort6916]

We are so impressed, we have been looking for ways to do our garden path in a nice but inexpensive way and this is perfect! Thank you so much for sharing your patio looks amazing 🤩 👍🏻

[@SJmystic]

Wonderful! Thank you for sharing this and for the well-done illustration of what you did to make it work and the info about time and suggestion of a practice "rock." Will definitely try it myself!

[@marjamada]

There are natural oxide colors - black, browns, tans, yellows - that you can apply to make them look more like stone. In fact, you can mix some powdered color with a bit of white cement and white sand and put in a shaker with holes, like a salt shaker: Dry Shake.

[@KFerranti4]

Great job! I did the same. I used a ring cut from a cardboard box. Then I covered ring with duck tape. I was able to change the shape with every stone. I did not soften the edges as you did. I planted bluestar creeper in the cracks. I did not color either. I would have liked to but just let nature do it naturally. It has been about 5 years now and they look like flagstone.

[@ginahudson6152]

WOW. Exactly what I was thinking about doing, and I saw through your video that it was possible. Thank you. You did a fantastic job.

[@murrayjamieson9502]

Perfect! Exactly the look I am going for for my fire pit area, thank you :)

[@PAlex-us4ov]

This looks very good to me. I was planning to concrete an area that needs paving, but this looks so much cooler! Well done.

[@wht240sxka]

This is soo cool! I always thought about doing something like this and just never got around to it. Funny part is I have everything to do this in my garage! Thanks, you’re a genius;)

[@theresecowap7333]

Hi, you are amazing! You made it look so simple. Love the way you used the blinds and shaped them into the shapes you wanted for the rock/slabs. You designed, sourced materials, made each rocks/slabs, layed out each rock to create the shape you wanted around your fire pit and "Hey presto," you made an incredible space to, chill out in your back garden where, you and all your loved ones can enjoy, Well done! Your Bespoke patio/fire-pit looks fabulous. You could make a lot of money and make your customers very happy. Thank you soo much for inspiring me. 💛 You should give yourself a pat on the back.

[@Dcvmnaturalist]

I love this! Easy to understand instructions & a great result. I think I’ll try this.

[@5eagans]

I love that you shared this video. I'm going to share it with my daughter, who is going to flip and want to do this project! Many thanks!

[@tammimccoy8233]

This is the PERFECT👍🏾👍🏾 idea for my backyard. Thank you so much for this tutorial.

[@maddychloe1]

After looking at flagstone cost I knew there was another way actually many.Seen many videos on this and finished product by far is the best.Appreciate any diy’er willing to video and edit their work and post,as if the project wasn’t enuff then to show a how to video,it’s a lot of work.Honestly it’s to much for me to video,edit then post so I really do appreciate it.Sharing is caring

[@florence1334]

wow, I think I found the solution to what I need to make my walkway, thanks you did a great job.

[@rizzleriz4457]

That's interesting. Looking forward to seeing something else from you. Like how you took this on single handedly.

[@annhysell6064]

Wow, they look great! Been looking for a way to make a path without structure to our new firepit. (our back yard can be "soggy"). Just me..(and a teenager), this is perfect. Thanks!

[@redkaleleaf1lastname422]

I am a scant two minutes into the video. I can already tell that I freaking love your style. I do not feel talked down to information is being presented in a interesting and visual way. I’m hooked.

[@thekissofthegoddess]

You did a great job! Thank you for the video!!! I was wondering if vertical blinds could be used for molds. So excited that I found someone who has already done it! Blessed Be!!!!

[@Kindlycallmecarebear]

You have really awaken a vision for this little corner of my back yard where I buried my beloved Dog Chopper. I am going to transform it with this wonderful idea of yours. Thank you!

[@AnxiousCowboy]

Why would you have a dog chopper!? how many dogs have you chopped and WHY???

[@sgueymard]

@@AnxiousCowboy 🤭🤪

[@krodkrod8132]

I did something like this too. I picked a nice flat spot and mowed it really short. I dug out the shapes about 6 inches deep and added some metal mesh and fiber to help hold the concrete together. Plus a little dye. I filled all the holes with dry concrete and mixed in a little water until it was perfect. Some of the dirt mixed in with the concrete which made it look more natural. After a week of curing i dug out the rest of the dirt and added stones.

[@flowerchild777]

How many? How big? Could you give an approximate cost total? Thanks

[@krodkrod8132]

@@flowerchild777 The concrete bigger stones i made were about pillow sized and different shapes with a 3 to 4 inch gap between them. Once they cured, i dug all the dirt out and filled with crushed concrete aggregate. Once the crushed aggregate is watered and tamped down it never moves. It locks everything in place. Plus it prevents weeds. The spot i did was under my steps that come down from my deck and under the deck. About 12x24 with 4 spots left open for my kiwi vines that go up 4 columns to the pergola over my steps and half the deck. I'm adding 4 more Kiwi vines right now and 4 magnolia vines this weekend. My backyard is a 1 acre food forest. I have hundreds of trees and bushes going all kinds of weird stuff. Trees: apple, pear, plum, cherry, and pawpaw. 30 or so in total. Bushes: Hazelnut, blueberry, raspberry, honeyberry, sea buckthorn, goumi berry, miracle berry, service berry, teaberry, nanking cherry, spice bush. about 100 bushes around the back yard and a couple thousand planted in the forest behind my house. Vines: Hardy Kiwi, and soon to be magnolia. I make close to 10,000 pounds of fruit nuts and berries a year now. I give most of it away though.

[@krodkrod8132]

@@flowerchild777 If you lay out a piece of string for each shape it makes it easy to dig out the shapes you want. Leave a 3 to 4 inch space of dirt and grass border to keep them all separate. Once it cures pull out that border and fill with any kind of stones you want. Add lots of dye though to make a good contrast.

[@HeyWatchMeGo]

Do you think a person could use old household paint as a dye? Thanks. Your project sounds really good.

[@krodkrod8132]

@@HeyWatchMeGo Nope. The dye you use in concrete is just acrylic paint. Laytex house paint will screw up the concrete

[@emmaschauer5409]

The vinyl blinds for molds is absolutely genius. Well done. I am not sure I would have been able to come up with that.

[@luism.5999]

You can always just buy 200 acres of land and place your house wherever your want or learn to not spend 5 million dollars like sime dumb ass people and have thEir neighbors fkn their wives,.. sick mofos. I h8 fakes. Ok, .... that was a little much, I apologize. Peace and Love, ...... IF YOU SHAKE MY HAND AND LOOK ME IN THE EYE MOTHER FKR BELIEVE ME I WONT EVWR BE THE FIRST ONE MAKING A MOVE ON YOUR GIRL OR WIFE. RESPECT.

[@user-by1dv1el5h]

Great idea! You can use different materials from nature to decorate the surface of the stones: sea shells, pebbles, sand, pieces of charcoal, and even rusted pieces of iron sheet.

[@lukei6255]

Fantastic job. Clear and concise video. Thank you so much for this!

[@GODSPEAKS898]

Wow!! 😯 What a brilliant idea! 💡You did a fantastic job, beautifully done. 👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾 Thank you so much for sharing. 😊❤️

[@TheVilarn]

Thank you so much for this idea! Total solution for something I have been thinking of for years.

[@wyndiefeatherstone948]

Oh I am so glad to see you did this! I have had the same idea for 3 years and have saved all the old vertical blinds to do it with. Now I know Im not crazy, it does work!!!!! What I had loved about the idea was being able to form each stone to fit into any area!! I cant wait to get out there and do it now! Your project turned out great!

[@flowerchild777]

I hope you can maybe post any 10 second video (leave a link here) to show us how it comes out. That would be terrific

[@politicalpartyagnostic268]

That looks amazing!!! Nice work!!!

[@janerwillson6218]

Wow….thankyou Ursula for your brilliant DIY stone-making ideas and process!

[@coreenalbertsen1764]

Fabulous idea with the vertical blinds! Love, love how they look~

[@GeorgeSaint666]

Great idea! I need a natural looking path. This is the way to do that. Thanks! I also had some idea for a birdbath and such. I can use this method as well. Though I think I will put mesh in it to strengthen it a bit more.

[@simonesmit6708]

This is exactly what I need to make a path beside my house. Thank you.

[@candicebrock7064]

That looks great! Very natural and a fraction of the cost. It’s a win!

[@kristinaginorio1344]

Good for you!! I love a challenging, less expensive DIY project.

[@timstroud2112]

OUTSTANDING!!!! You did a great job for sure. I am stealing this idea for sure. The only thing i am going to do differently in to add a commercial grade landscape fabric down for vegetation control between the stones.

[@tmorrison5965]

Definitely keeping this video for future reference. Love how these turned out!! 🥰👍 Thank you so much!

[@csabanemeth]

Amazing good looking stones you have created! The best tutorial video on this subject! Thanks!

[@barbarat5729]

This was brilliant, and so very generous of you to share.

[@grandmaraps]

Absolutely brilliant thinking outside the box.

[@vicbaker8367]

This is it! I saw one project where the fellow used metal strips to frame his stone, and I was trying to come up with something easier. Slats from blinds!! What a great idea. I start tomorrow!

[@CS-gk1kn]

Brilliant! Love the ingenuity and end product looks fabulous!

[@kathysteffen4331]

This is genius! And your stones are beautiful. Thank you so much for sharing this and making your instructions so clear! This is my summer project!!!

[@rogermccaslin5963]

Nice project. The "stones" look pretty realistic and since they were poured in place, they should be steady and also plenty strong. I've been thinking of making borders for my yard but haven't seen anything simple that I thought would work for what I want to do (freeform). Now I have. The blinds are a great idea. I think I can modify your approach to do what I want.

[@beentheredonethat5495]

Ziploc baggies will shape into brick sized "rocks"

[@andrewaajohnson7584]

Beautifully made a work of art.

[@franb5964]

Genius! Thanks so much for sharing your technique! I have made pavers with a plastic mold that I purchased. I can't wait to try this.

[@GODSPEAKS898]

Wow!! This was very relaxing to watch and I really enjoyed this video for the second time and you made this look so easy, and you did such a beautiful job! Thank you for sharing. 👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾❤️❤️!

[@margaretgomez8643]

Definitely inspired to try this out!! I've been looking for some inexpensive ways to xeriscape, and this is perfect! Thanks

[@madelinemercado6850]

LOVE IT!!!! ❤️❤️ great job!! Thanks for sharing

[@jendanielson6982]

Thanks a million for this video. I am heading outside now to map out the area. So excited!!!!

[@charliem.7492]

WOW!!! Amazing!! They look like they are real Gigantic rocks from a quarry somewhere!!! Amazing! Love love love this! God bless you always hon. :)

[@cottagekey]

Brilliant idea, my husband wants to try it. Yay!

[@ramanichols9759]

This is brilliant. It is beautiful. I’m definitely going to be trying this.

[@jimmy2745]

Great job, ma'am! The vinyl blind hack is very ingenious!

[@freda2758]

Okay, this is brilliant. Thank you for sharing this idea!

[@crazy_dreamer7616]

Great idea! Great work! Thumbs up! Greetings from Germany, Robert

[@VK-qo1gm]

Your project looks awesome! This 1 video has exploded into 100's of ideas that I can use in my own yard. Thank you for sharing!

[@uniquelyursula87]

That's awesome! :)

[@taffykins2745]

This looks GREAT!!!! 👍👍 Thanks for making and sharing the video. It's the perfect solution for me! 😀👍

[@SmutchyBritches]

What a clever idea! Love the finished project!

[@VIKTOR-ck3dx]

Great ideee 👌 , thanks 👍 !

[@Trish.Norman]

Brilliant! I’m doing this for my backyard garden walkway.

[@jere5555]

Impressive! Good job and smart use of the ugly vertical blinds 👍🏼👍🏼

[@PurringMyrrh]

Whaaaat?! Genius! Totally doing this! Have had a huge stack of blind slats laying around forever because I thought I could ring plants with them to keep water in....but now...just fabulous! 😍😍🤩🤩😍😍🥳🥳🥳

[@lindaglover7194]

You did an amazing job. They look so real . Got to try make smaller ones for a front yard project, thanks for sharing. 💖🌸🐿

[@sjr7822]

This is beautiful, being 80 I would advise doing such projects early on in life!

[@judichristopher4604]

"Amen" ... and wear knee pads.

[@wyndiefeatherstone948]

I agree at 68 I am not as strong as I used to be nor do I wish to do further damage to my back! Yes, do it while you are young or have a helping hand around!

[@judichristopher4604]

@@wyndiefeatherstone948 I totally agree.

[@accordionchick]

Well, I’m 70 and I’m DEFINATELY DOING THIS... even if I only do one a day!

[@helenclayton8259]

I’m 35 but bad mobility, in the middle of this project. Takes much longer than the average person but I’ll get there and get to say I done it myself ! 😊

[@bornfree0507]

I love how you did it with blinds!! So cool! I love working with what I have.

[@amberjay5361]

Vertical blinds!!! Thank you so much! ❤❤❤

[@Azel461]

Brilliant, absolutely brilliant. Looks so good!

[@MrJohnnyboyrebel]

The stones look terrific. Have any of them cracked? I will make some but drop a layer of chicken wire in the center.

[@uniquelyursula87]

I just posted an update video after two years. No crack or chipping yet. I did use a "crack-resistant" concrete so if you don't have access to that I would reinforce with the wire:)

[@sparkygreen6298]

@@uniquelyursula87 excatly, if you use the fiber based concrete, it eliminated the need for wire!!! Looks great by the way!!

[@CG-mb2iu]

Oh good idea I might do some chicken wire mesh to help not to crack overtime

[@terriepehrson3103]

That's a Terrific idea.. Lasts longer I think. Thanx 4 the Tip!!

[@lowellirish]

@@uniquelyursula87 where do you live? I'm in -20F Northern NH....everything cracks....lol

[@fernandobatas3482]

VERTICAL BLINDS!!! WOW!! I'm going to use your idea on my current project to shape the edges of a concrete table top. Thanks for sharing!

[@uniquelyursula87]

Yay!! So glad to help:)

[@ItsMeHello555]

Gorgeous results! I’ll have to try it too! Thank you.

[@Virtual-Media]

Great idea for shaping stones, i've done concrete work for years and never considered this. Thanks!

[@paparobert9267]

@Kabir Flynn jerk

[@diannenaworensky6698]

This is a very COOL idea. Thanks for putting it on the "Tube"

[@bluecollardadventures2338]

this is great!! going to use a lot of your techniques for our project =)

[@noniamaus]

Wow! Vinyl Blinds-brilliant idea! I have old vinyl runners that I cut up for my stones ($0 because office was tossing them out). This involved a lot of cutting. Thrift stores often have vinyl blinds for $5 or less in my area and dismantling these would take almost no time and give approximately 60 slats to work with. Guess what I am doing later this month?! Thank you, Ursula, for sharing all of your great tips and techniques! I can hardly wait!!!

[@barbaraholzmann946]

love it - I already know where I am going to use this method -- you're a star!

[@guardrailrumblestrip4804]

I was thinking how it would look in a large bathroom if the floor would hold the weigh

[@dilbarae]

Thank you for sharing. It looks great! So easy too....

[@davidshettlesworth1442]

Thank You for this excellent video. I learned a lot and will be attempting this in the near future. I love the creative Molds idea. Using 3 inch vertical blinds with painter's tape. Great idea. Carry On!

[@vickiemuich2582]

Enjoyed your video. Thanks for sharing your DIY project. Quite inspirational.

[@zaijian4377]

Excellent idea. What i might do is buy a couple of flagstones with diff surface textures and press them into the concrete as they dry to get that natural look rather than try to sculp some design with brushes or trowel. Thanks so much for making the video.

[@betterstill100]

TY for this idea. I’ve been trying to figure out a way to make the stones appear more natural,

[@hannahs_house]

Thats a great idea!

[@SD-qf1ln]

Looks Amazing! This is what I was looking for! Thank you very much!

[@mannygujjar]

👌👌👏👏👏👏👏👍👍👍👍👍👍just loved it .

[@Earthy-Artist]

This diy is fantastic! Will refer back to this video when I make these, thanks for sharing!

[@purplewombat1923]

Wow, what a great idea! Thanks for sharing. This is exactly what I have been looking for.

[@jefferyyasenchok3521]

Oh my GOD this is amazing. I love this. It looks so natural. How in the hell did you ever think of this? It's so brilliant. I'm doing this in my yard that's how much I love this.

[@uniquelyursula87]

I swear it's just that I'm cheap and didn't want to pay someone to haul in natural stone:) LOL! I'm glad you're going to do the same!! We've been so happy with it. Let me know how it goes.

[@polaristara]

This is the most amazing video, I want to do this in my yard. How big a stone would one bag of concrete make, just so I have an idea. Thks for sharing, you are obviously very creative!! Good for you.

[@uniquelyursula87]

Thank you!! The smallest stones in my video were one bag.

[@betha8761]

Brilliant! Inspires me! Thank you so much for sharing!🕊💜🕊

[@joycemcinnis5457]

Wonderful job. I just built my firepit yesterday. I may do this instead if what I planned.

[@carpenterfamily6198]

Wow - great - I’d like to use this to make stepping stones through a wooded walkway area that some times gets soggy.

[@thelmalouise1128]

You can also purchase the 4 in wide rolls of insulation, roll out along the inside the edges of the molds, add the cement and when you remove the molds, the edges will be like real flagstones!

[@LoganAddisMusic]

Can you explain which type of insulation please? Thanks!

[@louisbeach6492]

Absolutely beautiful thanks for sharing. Before the internet when I started on a similar project to make my own stones to save thousands of dollars the only resource available was the library. I thought up the project in my mind I did not use blinds which is brilliant, I used a bendable board they sell cut it up used rebar to hold the mold. Not even the books had anything close to this only how to mix sand and cement to then pore into a stepstone or similar. I ordered up a small dump truck of sand had it delivered and bought cement as I would prep the area build the molds then pore on my days off over several months since I was doing a huge area. I only wish what you did here was offered as an example back then there were no cell phones around either, what you have shared will greatly help others to inspire people, this to me is art what you did it also raises your property value and had to be so satisfying to accomplish. Congratulations. This is the first video I have seen of yours I hope you have others I will be looking for them. The tip about coloring the top layer is one of the best it makes each stone unique .

[@CAMERONYIP]

Amazing concrete stone work and looks very neat and simple steps to do and I will definitely be follow to work on my little Chinese feature garden maybe adding a small water feature as well 😂👍