How to Create a Beautiful Brick Walkway

Brick Walkways add a classy look to both formal and informal landscaping designs. You can impress your friends by designing a new walkway to the front entrance of your home. You can also build a path to a shady garden spot in your backyard. Whatever your motive is for designing a walkway, follow these tips to make it as beautiful as possible.

Design, Style, and placement: Before you start digging, take some time to plan a walkway which will be both attractive and functional. A broad, graceful sweep from the driveway to the front entrance of your home is an attractive option. Straight walks are more appropriate for practical applications, such as walking from the back door to the garage. Remember: Formal sidewalks should be at least four or five feet wide, so that two people can comfortable walk side by side. Whereas, pathways need only be two or three feet wide.

Laying the Walk

1. Lay out the walk using stakes and string. Use a flat spade to remove the sod, excavating to four inches. Make sure the path you have dug is wide enough to accomodate your pattern.

2. To create a smooth edge for laying the brick, pound a 2 by 4 against the ground where the edging bricks will be placed.

3. Lay edging bricks on their sides along the edges of the path.

4. Spread a two-inch layer of sand along the path. Level the sand with a 2 by 4, then lightly wet the sand with a garden hose and tamp it down.

5. Lay the bricks using a mallet to tamp them together as closely as possible.

6. Frequently use a level to check for uniform height. An uneven walk looks strange and creates a safety hazard. If a brick sits too high, remove some sand from underneath and reset it.

7. When you are done, dump dy sand over the bricks and sweep it into place, finally, spray the walk gently with a garden hose.