Since I let vegetation grow in the rocks of my front yard (see my Live and Let Grow post), it has become a little bit more difficult to travel among the plants. I decided to clear a few paths in strategic locations and mark them with stepping stones to make them more enjoyable to walk on than river stones, especially barefoot! After looking at different methods for making stepping stones, I decided to create my own using papercrete. But what on Earth is that? Why did I choose that material? And how do I make it? You will find all of those answers in this article.
What is papercrete?
Papercrete is a short form for paper concrete. Regular concrete, which can be purchased premixed in a bag or bucket at the store, is a mix of cement, sand and gravel, in different proportions depending on the desired use. Papercrete is made of cement and paper pulp with either perlite or sand, depending on the properties wanted. People use it to make planters, bird baths and even houses. It looks like concrete, but is lighter and more environmentally friendly.
Why use papercrete?
I decided to make my stepping stones using papercrete for the following reasons:
Durability
Like concrete, papercrete is strong and permanent. For the time it would take to make them, I wanted my stepping stones to be long-lasting and weatherproof (rain, snow, frost).
Customization
I could have bought stepping stones at the store, but they would all have looked the same. I wanted to use unique stones to send a message to passersby looking at my yard. Therefore, I chose to carve or sculpt images of nature (sun, flowers, leaves, elements) and stamp key words for fighting climate change.
Price
At $8-$10 a stone, buying premade stepping stones is starting to be expensive to build paths in the yard of our rented house. With free flyer paper, an 18-dollar bag of cement and an 8-dollar bag of sand, I can make at least 20 stones. It amounts to about $1.30 a stone.
Heat
Regular concrete gets very hot in the sun (see my How to Reduce Urban Heat Islands post). I didn’t want to heat up my yard. Paper has the advantage of being a good insulator: as much as it protects against the cold when you build a house, it also protects against the heat. Papercrete stepping stones stay therefore cooler than regular concrete stones. No more burnt feet!
Weight
Concrete stones are very heavy to carry around. Papercrete is lighter. I still chose to use sand (instead of perlite) in the mix so that the stones would be heavy enough and strong enough not to move when we step on them.
Ecology
Finally, since I want to use my stepping stones to promote the environment, I wanted to use a relatively green material. Handling speaking, it would have been easier to work with regular concrete, but papercrete has the advantage of recycling paper, requiring less cement (whose manufacture emits greenhouse gases) and using a lot of local materials (paper, rainwater, sand), thus reducing the transportation of heavy materials.
How to make papercrete stepping stones?
To make papercrete stepping stones, you will need:
Materials
- paper (e.g., a roll of flyers, ideally shredded)
- water (enough to cover the shredded paper)
- Portland cement (4 cups or 1 litre)
- sand (2 cups or 500 mL)
- chicken wire (to reinforce the stones)
- sealer
Tools
- 2 buckets (1 to soak the paper and 1 with holes in the bottom to drain the paper pulp)
- paint mixer attachment and drill to blend the paper pulp
- cutters to cut the chicken wire
- round or square stepping stone mould (I use a 12-inch or 30-cm diameter mould, big enough to fit one or both feet on it!)
- bowl or wheelbarrow to mix the papercrete (If using a bowl, keep in mind that you will no longer be able to use it in the kitchen. Eating cement is not super healthy!)
- gloves (to protect you from cement burns)
- mask (to protect you from cement powder)
- tools to carve and sculpt paper concrete
Steps
- Make paper pulp.
a. Soak (shredded) paper in water for at least 24 hours.
b. Blend the paper as evenly as possible with a paint mixer.
c. Drain the paper for at least 24 hours.
- Prepare the mixture and accessories.
a. Gather your tools.
b. Cut a piece of chicken wire the size of your stepping stone mould.
c. Oil the mould.
d. In a bowl, wearing your gloves and your mask, mix 3 parts paper pulp, 2 parts cement and 1 part sand. To measure, I use plastic glasses of 16 ounces (2 cups or 500 mL). It takes me 6 x 16 ounces (96 ounces, 12 cups or 3 litres) of materials per stone.
- Cast the stepping stone.
a. Pour half of the mixture in your mould and compact well.
b. Place the chicken wire on top of the compacted mixture in the mould.
c. Cover the chicken wire with the other half of the mixture.
d. Decorate your stone as you wish (engraving, bas-relief, pebbles, mosaics, letter stamps, etc.). If, like me, your stone drawing skills are so-so, you can cut a drawing and trace it on the papercrete with very good results, or take a tree leaf or a flower and press it on the papercrete.
- Let the stepping stone dry.
a. Place your mould in a plastic bag for 24 to 48 hours.
b. After 48 hours, unmould the stone and let it dry and cure on a grid in the sun, out of the rain for a few weeks. I use my mini greenhouse for this purpose. So, it’s used for seedlings in the spring, stones in the summer and drying food in the fall!
- Treat the stone.
a. Lightly sand the stone.
b. Dust the stone thoroughly to remove all dust and dirt.
c. Coat the stone with a concrete sealer if necessary, to protect it from water. Allow the sealer to dry for the time specified in the instructions.
To learn how to make papercrete, I watched Char’s Nest videos on this topic. For more information, feel free to view them!
Conclusion
As you can see, it’s a fairly lengthy process. Since I use only one mould, I can make a stone every two days because of the drying time before unmoulding. But, with several moulds, you can do more.
You will see how satisfying it is to make something with your own hands, whether it is making stepping stones, growing a garden, knitting a scarf or baking bread! Good luck with your projects!
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What is papercrete? Why did I chose that material? How to make stepping stones using papercrete? You will find all those answers in this post.
