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Do you simply love the idea of a stone-surrounded firepit for nights of solo stargazing? Maybe you need to paint an outdoor pathway from point A to point B but don’t want to settle for concrete. Or you’re hoping to add a natural look to garden edging. Flagstone might just be the answer.
Flagstone is sedimentary rock often used for paving, installed in configurations that range from random and asymmetrical to neatly pieced together. It comes with a textured or smooth surface, unfinished or finished, sand or gray-green in color—options are plentiful. A good place to start: Consider how the stones will enhance the purpose and overall feel of your patio.
While you decide on which purpose it will serve (it could be one or many), use these five Domino-vetted flagstone patio ideas as a blueprint for your ideal design.
Highlight the Hot Spots (in This Case, a Tub)
Instead of digging up the entire yard to create space for an in-ground pool, Working Holiday Studio founders Whitney Brown and Carlos Naude used half of the grassy hillside knoll in their Los Angeles backyard to add extra amenities. First, they placed large, jagged flagstones on top of a gravel base. Then they added a few outdoor chairs that match the cedar-clad hot tub (in this case, a set of natural wood Adirondacks) along with an iron firepit to complete the dreamy relaxation station.
Landscape With Some Cottage Charm
When he first set eyes on his future home—a 1920s cottage on Chicago’s North Shore—Crate & Barrel’s vice president of product design, Sebastian Brauer, was instantly enamored with the property’s undeniable character, including the cozy, entertainment-friendly flagstone patio. The large stone pieces enhance the already present vintage charm, but smaller pieces, turned on their sides, also function as a subtle space divider, separating the seating area from the landscaping.
Keep Natural Flooring Going—Outdoors
Jurjen Van Hulzen, creative director and lead designer of Ibiza Interiors, revamped his client’s 1970s house on the Spanish island’s south coast with the goal of making it feel as large as possible. One of the solutions? Extending the interior’s natural stone flooring to the patio, as well as to the retaining wall and outdoor kitchen area. He also prioritized sustainability by sourcing the stones locally, and their naturally cooling properties help the space feel more comfortable during summer.
Pair Cozy Rustic With Cool Modern
Butcher’s Daughter founder Heather Tierney decided on a modern-meets-artsy aesthetic for her tucked-away Venice Beach bungalow, and the flagstone-paved patio played a major role. The stone’s unfinished appearance coupled with a natural wood table grounds the space. The choice of a more modern, geometric design on the surface of the fireplace and a simple retaining wall offers a great example of how a pair of opposing ideas can meet (successfully) in the middle.
Pave the Way to the Main Attraction
Deter guests from trampling over a well-maintained lawn with a flagstone pathway, like the one in this Maestri Studio–designed home’s spacious backyard. Two outdoor seating areas give occupants a bit of elbow room, and the stone pavers offer easy access to the firepit. But there’ll be no stumbling over one another to get there: Two walkways start from the patio nearest to the house, then merge into one.
Let the Stones Fall Where They May
In order for the patio in her Ojai, California, home to fully embody a sense of unwinding, photographer and director Thayer Gowdy allowed the stone placement to come together organically. “I didn’t want it to look all brand-new…or too precious,” she previously said of the backyard renovation. Throughout the process, Gowdy instructed her crew to “be messy” and “a bit more crafty,” which eventually produced a naturally cohesive pattern.
Even the color of the front flagstone walkway occurred by happenstance. “We didn’t seal the top of it, so it took on this deep, almost peach color. Then we ended up putting a cement glaze from the mortar across the top of it,” she recalled. “I fell in love with it.”
After It’s Built: