We have a 1937 brick cottage in Charleston.

I'd like to put in a front walk, to the street - prior owners did a lot of terrible things to the house/some good ones.

Does anyone have any ideas? My guess would be irregular blue stone/maybe gravel?

The cottage is dwarfed by the live oak in the front yard, so it tends to inherently look rustic.

It currently had solid brick columns, which I will swap the upper half of for the trapazoidal ones

First thought would be flagstone with no defined border. If the house is a bit more formal, maybe crushed granite. Pics would def help

Tough to say without pics, but let me offer my $.02.

If you are modifying the columns, keeping the brick base/pedestal to around 30-36", then wood/composite columns on top of that, I would look to introducing some matching brick in the walkway. Just putting bluestone, cut or irregular, on the walkway and having brick column bases seems a mismatch.

Maybe do a perpendicular (soldier course I think its called?) border of brick going down the perimeter of the stone. Then put a 2" thick bluestone 'cap' on the brick columns that the trapezoid columns will sit on? If you do a bluestone (Pennsylvania bluestone is good stuff) walkway, I would do the 1" thick (it varies from 1" to 1 1/8") rather than the 3/4".

Not sure whether you are setting in mortar, or stone dust. Here in PA, we get a fair amount of freeze/thaw and heaving of the ground. Most set walkway stone on a 4-6" gravel base, then final leveling with stone dust. This way over time you can pick up the stone easily to re-level if necessary. You would have to do a thick reinforced concrete base to do a mortar install.

Not sure what the conditions of freeze/thaw are by you, probably not too much of an issue. I am in the trades, but not a landscape guy. I have done a few walkways for myself and usually go to the local stone supplier to shop, but also to get advice on techniques from them if you are either doing it yourself, or need to find someone.

Send some pics if you can.

Found some pics





We are reworking the gable, and the porch swing is now painted white.

It dates back to when the area was a large plantation. It's too well built to have been a sharecroppers house/one for the labor, but it doesn't seem to be designed for summer occupancy.

Not sure what it was. Maybe a hunting cabin?

Yeah I'd try to use some of the same looking brick...possibly outlining nicely finished square concrete "steps". Or maybe bricks steps with black star gravel surrounding. I think you'd want something relatively minimal/understated looking so as to match (and not overpower) the small/minimal facade. I would not do crushed granite or similar as it tracks into the house. Hated that stuff when we had it.

Really like the idea of the bluestone cap.

Bluestone, oddly, is one of those traditional Charleston materials, so neat idea of how to work it in.