How to Make a Pebble Mosaic

with Mark Powers, This Old House magazine

Shopping List

Supplies You Will Need

1. Sand and scrap plywood to make a box in which to lay out the mosaic's design. (Or spread the sand on a plastic tarp.)

2. Mosaic stones. Choose flat pebbles or cobbles in colors you like. We used green and slate black from the Signature Stones collection at Stone Decorative

3. Paver base

4. Stone dust

5. Concrete mix, such as Quikrete.

6. Topping mix. Also known as sand mix, it's finer than concrete mix and contains no aggregate. Quikrete and other companies make it. You'll add it like grout between the joints after laying the stones.

7. Pavers, bricks, or bluestones to surround the mosaic and hold it in place.

8. Plastic tarp or sheeting

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Tools List
Tools You Will Need
- Spade to dig out the base
- 2x4s to screed the concrete and hold a tarp in place as the mosaic dries
- Garden sprayer or hose with fine-mist attachment
- Two large nails and string
- Garden spade
- 4x4 to set and level the stones. It should be about the length of the mosaic's radius so that you can work on one small section at a time.
- Rubber mallet
- Paint brush to spread the topping mix.
- Stiff-bristled brush to shape and dress the topping mix.
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In this video, TOH senior technical editor Mark Powers shows how to create a whimsical pattern in a garden pathway:

1. Create the pattern by sorting the stones into like sizes and then laying out the mosaic pattern in some sand.
2. Lay the base for the stones: Dig out an area 6-8 inches down.
3. Tamp 6 inches of paver base and 1 inch of stone dust onto the base.
4. Pour concrete mix onto the base and screed it to a 2-inch layer. Dampen the mix.
5. Mark the mosaic's shape in the concrete.
6. Start laying the mosaic with the center stone. Lay the adjoining stones alongside the first.
7. Fill in the pattern, working from the center outward.
8. Finish the field and saturate teh base.
9. Grout the stones by spreading topping mix to cover two-thirds of the stones' height.
10. Saturate the mix and shape the grout lines with a stiff-bristled brush.
11. Allow the mosaic to cure under a plastic tarp. Mist it occasionally over the next few days as it cures.