If you have someone who loves to explore your garden, these Hopscott footsteps are the perfect playful addition. It’s easy to create your first foray into DIY concrete, so let’s show you how to make it yourself!
These hopscott footsteps stones are not traditional kids’ hopping games, nor are they typical of garden paths. I created these as part of the play garden designs I have been developing since my son was born.
The idea behind Play Garden is to create an attractive space for kids while being aesthetically pleasing for adults. I plan to start with these Hopscott Stepping Stones and show off the pieces I’m working on along the way.
Making numbered hopscott stepping stones is pretty easy and can be done one afternoon. How should we show it!
I’ll cover this post…
How to make Hopscotch stepping stones
Choose a sunny day to work on this project. Concrete takes 24 hours to fully strengthen, so be sure to explain this time in your plan.
material
(Create 10 stepping stones and dragonfly numbered 1-9)
make!
First of all, let’s talk about safety. Concrete is toxic and corrosive to the skin. No matter how tough you are, protect your hands with gloves. I know they don’t enjoy working with them, but stay healthy. Also, when using power tools, use safety gear to protect your eyes and ears. You’ll only get four of them!
Use a hand saw or handheld circular saw to cut the concrete shape into 10-inch thick molds. Use paper wrapped around the tube as a guide and carefully cut the first ring from the tube. Use a box cutter to open and slice the width of the ring. Place the cutting ring on the tube and use it as a guide for all remaining cuts.
Tape the rings together and if you are using a hand saw, at least 2 inches from the end. Alternatively, if you are using a handheld circular saw, place it where the guide will run.
Next, plan how to create numbers. There are several ways to do this:
You can first lay out the stones and simply transfer them to concrete when ready, or get lots of house numbers to use as a guide. You engrave the house number and use it to set the stone in place.
Set the ring on a plastic drop cloth and mix with standard concrete according to the packaging instructions. Fill each mold of concrete and use a trowel to smooth it out. Take care to remove any air bubbles. This basic layer gives the strength of stepping stones.
Mix the toppings or repair the concrete and add it to the top of each footing stone. This layer gives the footstone a smooth and refined top.
It’s time to add stones when the concrete works quickly before it hardens. If two people work together, one can pour concrete to smooth out, while the other sets the stone.
I used the house number as a guide, but I could do it freehand, using form numbers, or just outlined with a stick. Once you have the method, start adding stones one by one, like a puzzle, until you’re done 1-9.
To set it up quickly, gently press the concrete a little around the stone with your fingertips. If it falls off, you can always glue it. I’m happy to report that one of our stones hasn’t fallen! It surprised me in a very good way.
Cover the footstone with a plastic cloth and allow it to dry for 24 hours. The next day, cut the mold and remove the mold, and place the stone in a well-ventilated area for a week, treating it before moving to the garden or lawn.
I set a hopscott footstep stone in a garden surrounded by wool thyme. I used 56 plants so it should be a vague, fragrant carpet surrounding the hopscotch soon!
More ideas for play gardens
With a city girl who learned to garden, it changed everything. Author, artist, master gardener. A better life through plants.
