You are reading

Low-Cost Luxe: 9 Pea Gravel Patio Ideas to Steal

SearchJoinLogin
Icon - Arrow LeftAn icon we use to indicate a rightwards action. Icon - Arrow RightAn icon we use to indicate a leftwards action. Icon - External LinkAn icon we use to indicate a button link is external. Icon - MessageThe icon we use to represent an email action. Icon - Down ChevronUsed to indicate a dropdown. Icon - CloseUsed to indicate a close action. Icon - Dropdown ArrowUsed to indicate a dropdown. Icon - Location PinUsed to showcase a location on a map. Icon - Zoom OutUsed to indicate a zoom out action on a map. Icon - Zoom InUsed to indicate a zoom in action on a map. Icon - SearchUsed to indicate a search action. Icon - EmailUsed to indicate an emai action. Icon - FacebookFacebooks brand mark for use in social sharing icons. flipboard Icon - InstagramInstagrams brand mark for use in social sharing icons. Icon - PinterestPinterests brand mark for use in social sharing icons. Icon - TwitterTwitters brand mark for use in social sharing icons. Icon - Check MarkA check mark for checkbox buttons.
You are reading

Low-Cost Luxe: 9 Pea Gravel Patio Ideas to Steal

SearchJoinLogin

Start typing to search...

Search
Advertisement
Pea GravelIssue 36 — Small Quarters

Low-Cost Luxe: 9 Pea Gravel Patio Ideas to Steal

August 18, 2020

At a cost of about $5 a square foot, a pea gravel patio is easy on the budget (especially if you open the 50-pound bags and rake the gravel yourself)–and can be a surprisingly elegant hardscape element in the garden.

Small, rounded stone pebbles feel good underfoot–and crunch satisfyingly when you walk on the forgiving surface. We’ve rounded up everything you need to know about pea gravel in Hardscaping 101: Pea Gravel.

If you’re considering a pea gravel patio, here are nine of our favorite design ideas to steal:

Lay a Magic Carpet

The courtyard in the Antwerp gallery-home of gallerist Veerle Wenes designed by Lens°Ass Architects features nothing but gravel, sparse vines, a single tree, and elevated concrete floor. Photograph courtesy of Verne, from Steal This Look: An Artful Gravel Garden in Antwerp.
Above: The courtyard in the Antwerp gallery-home of gallerist Veerle Wenes designed by Lens°Ass Architects features nothing but gravel, sparse vines, a single tree, and elevated concrete floor. Photograph courtesy of Verne, from Steal This Look: An Artful Gravel Garden in Antwerp.

Design a Checkerboard Effect

Garden Visit: At Home with Jeweler Kathleen Whitaker in LA. Match pea gravel&#8\2\17;s color with larger pavers and mix them to make a pattern. Treat the pea gravel like grout and lay the pavers equidistant from each other on a grid to create a checkerboard effect.
Above: Garden Visit: At Home with Jeweler Kathleen Whitaker in LA. Match pea gravel’s color with larger pavers and mix them to make a pattern. Treat the pea gravel like grout and lay the pavers equidistant from each other on a grid to create a checkerboard effect.

Define Garden and Vegetable Beds

Here, it&#8\2\17;s used to pave the paths between various raised gardens. Photograph courtesy of Charlie Hart, from Required Reading: Skymeadow by Charlie Hart.
Above: Here, it’s used to pave the paths between various raised gardens. Photograph courtesy of Charlie Hart, from Required Reading: Skymeadow by Charlie Hart.

Annex the Patio

A simple pea gravel border extends the living space. Seen here, a patio in a garden in architect Barbara Chambers&#8\2\17; garden in Mill Valley, California. For more, see Architect Visit: Barbara Chambers at Home in Mill Valley. Photograph by Liese Johannssen for Gardenista.
Above: A simple pea gravel border extends the living space. Seen here, a patio in a garden in architect Barbara Chambers’ garden in Mill Valley, California. For more, see Architect Visit: Barbara Chambers at Home in Mill Valley. Photograph by Liese Johannssen for Gardenista.

Set the Table

Above: Pea gravel provides the perfect flooring for al fresco dining. Photograph by Alison Engstrom, from Evening Light: A Painter’s Serene Summer Garden in Upstate New York.

Widen Your Horizons

Make a long, narrow space feel wider by unifying all the elements with a pea gravel border. Photograph courtesy of Foras Studio, from Steal This Look: Modern Brooklyn Backyard on a Budget.
Above: Make a long, narrow space feel wider by unifying all the elements with a pea gravel border. Photograph courtesy of Foras Studio, from Steal This Look: Modern Brooklyn Backyard on a Budget.

Apply Circular Thinking

Pea gravel&#8\2\17;s small size and shape makes it the ideal hardscaping material to create a non-linear patio. You can echo the shape of a central fountain or round pool by rimming it with a pea gravel patio. Photograph courtesy of Mosaic Gardens, from Rehab Diary: A Garden Makeover for a Ranch-Style House.
Above: Pea gravel’s small size and shape makes it the ideal hardscaping material to create a non-linear patio. You can echo the shape of a central fountain or round pool by rimming it with a pea gravel patio. Photograph courtesy of Mosaic Gardens, from Rehab Diary: A Garden Makeover for a Ranch-Style House.

Define a Destination

Carpet an outdoor room in a luxurious layer of wall-to-wall pea gravel. Photograph courtesy of Ten Eyck Landscape Architects.
Above: Carpet an outdoor room in a luxurious layer of wall-to-wall pea gravel. Photograph courtesy of Ten Eyck Landscape Architects.

Repel Weeds

Beneath a pea gravel patio in Northern California is a weed barrier. Photograph by Mimi Giboin for Gardenista, from Every Garden Needs a Teepee.
Above: Beneath a pea gravel patio in Northern California is a weed barrier. Photograph by Mimi Giboin for Gardenista, from Every Garden Needs a Teepee.

Take the Heat

In a hot climate stick with light colored gravel to reflect the heat (darker colors will absorb heat). Photograph courtesy of Ten Eyck Landscape Architects.
Above: In a hot climate stick with light colored gravel to reflect the heat (darker colors will absorb heat). Photograph courtesy of Ten Eyck Landscape Architects.

Rein in Rainwater

Sited on a steep slope in an oak forest in California, a pea gravel patio by RADD directory member Feldman Architecture aids drainage and prevents runoff. For more, see Garden Envy: \10 Dramatic Drainage Ideas to Steal. If runoff is a problem, lay a permeable pea gravel patio to filter rainwater.
Above: Sited on a steep slope in an oak forest in California, a pea gravel patio by RADD directory member Feldman Architecture aids drainage and prevents runoff. For more, see Garden Envy: 10 Dramatic Drainage Ideas to Steal. If runoff is a problem, lay a permeable pea gravel patio to filter rainwater.

Finally, learn how to successfully use gravel in a hardscape project with our Hardscaping 101: Gravel guide.

Are you also planning a Decks & Patios project? Learn everything you need to know on to get started with our Hardscaping 101: Decks & Patios 101 guide.

(Visited 14,591 times, 8 visits today)
You need to login or register to view and manage your bookmarks.
Add to Collection
New Collection

Explore Deeper Into These Areas

Previous Post

Before & After: DIY Above-Ground Pool Makeover

August 17, 2020
Next Post

Gardening 101: Hyssop

August 19, 2020

Have a Question or Comment About This Post?

Join the conversation (2)

Related Stories

Read all recent posts

join us on Instagram Logo

v5.0

×
Join the Remodelista Family of Websites

Become a Member at no charge

When you register as a free Member of the Remodelista family of websites (Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home), you gain access to all current posts plus 10 archived posts per month, our internal bookmarking tool, and the community bulletin board.

Member benefits include:

  • Access to all posts published in the past year
  • Access 10 archived posts (older than one year) per month on each site
  • Use of our internal bookmark tool, so you can save products, posts, and other pages for quick reference
  • Access to our community bulletin board so you can ask and answer design-related questions
  • Unlimited access to the Product Catalogs, Design Travel sources, and Architect & Designer Directory listings
  • Choose from our ten newsletters to keep up with the latest on the sites

Or Subscribe for Maximum Value!

For $5/month ($59.99 paid annually) you'll enjoy unlimited, ad-free access to Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home and all the benefits of Membership.



Subscriber benefits include:

  • Unlimited access to all three sites
  • Weekly access to subscriber-only content
  • Ad-free browsing environment
  • Unrestricted access to 30,000+ archived posts
  • Receive the full-text daily newsletters
  • All features that Members have access to
  • Annual subscribers pay 50% off the monthly subscription price of $9.99
×
Subscribe to the Remodelista family of websites

For $5/month ($59.99 paid annually) you'll enjoy unlimited, ad-free access to Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home and all the benefits of Membership.



Subscriber benefits include:

  • Unlimited access to all three sites
  • Weekly access to subscriber-only content
  • Ad-free browsing environment
  • Unrestricted access to 30,000+ archived posts
  • Receive the full-text daily newsletters
  • All features that Members have access to
  • Annual subscribers pay 50% off the monthly subscription price of $9.99
×
Sorry! As a registered member you get 10 free posts from our archive (posts more than a year old) every 30 days. You have reached your limit for this 30-day period. If you would like to access unlimited posts from the archive (ad free, too), become a subscriber today, and keep reading as many articles as you want.

Full Access Individual Subscription

Benefits include:

  • Unlimited access to Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home sites
  • Ad-free browsing environment
  • Unrestricted access to 30,000+ archived posts
  • Receive the full-text daily newsletters
  • All features that Members have access to
  • Annual subscribers pay just 50% off the monthly subscription price of $9.99


×
Sorry! You have reached your limit of three (3) free posts from our archive every 30 days. You can increase this to 10 posts by joining as a free Member, or read unlimited posts with no ads by becoming a paid Subscriber.

Subscribe to the Remodelista family of websites

For $5/month ($59.99 paid annually) you'll enjoy unlimited, ad-free access to Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home and all the benefits of Membership.



Subscriber benefits include:

  • Unlimited access to all three sites
  • Weekly access to subscriber-only content
  • Unrestricted access to 30,000+ archived posts
  • Receive the full-text daily newsletters
  • All features that Members have access to
  • Annual subscribers pay 50% off the monthly subscription price of $9.99

Become a Member at no charge

When you register as a free Member of the Remodelista family of websites (Remodelista, Gardenista, and The Organized Home), you gain access to all current posts plus 10 archived posts per month, our internal bookmarking tool, and the community bulletin board.

Member benefits include:

  • Access to all posts published in the past year
  • Access 10 archived posts (older than one year) per month on each site
  • Use of our internal bookmark tool, so you can save products, posts, and other pages for quick reference
  • Access to our community bulletin board so you can ask and answer design-related questions
  • Unlimited access to the Product Catalogs, Design Travel sources, and Architect & Designer Directory listings
  • Choose from our ten newsletters to keep up with the latest on the sites

Login to your account

Lost your password?

My Account

Your member profile is powered by memberstack