DIY Gravel Fire Pit Idea

Wood burning fire pits are wonderful and fun additions to any backyard! Come see how we created and styled a gravel fire pit using several sources we had on hand!

Building the Fire Pit

Our fire pit has been a slow labor of love as time and money have become available, and I’m thrilled to finally have it complete! Last summer, my husband cleared a heavily weeded area below our retaining wall to create a fire pit. We didn’t have the proper tools to do so, but he used a shovel and some sweat equity to level and clear the space. Our property contained a lot of leftover stones, pallets, bricks, and broken debris from previous renovations. We used these materials to carve out the exterior boundaries and “edging” of the fire pit and then paid a landscaper to deliver a truckload of pea gravel to the space. We raked the pea gravel to the edges and used old pallets to create some steps down into our blackberry patch.
Click Play to see how we transformed this space!

To make the actual fire pit, we used bricks, stones, and cement pieces from our property. The bottom of the fire pit is dug out and filled with a layer of gravel. The fire pit measures about 4 feet wide and 12 inches deep. It’s not the fanciest or most sophisticated one, but it burns and contains fires beautifully and was completely free to make!

We love having friends over for s’mores! I found the galvanized tray and glass jar containers at Walmart. The s’mores sticks were only $1 from Christmas Tree Shop. I keep this station stocked all summer long and just grab it from our kitchen counter when needed.

Fire Pit Styling: Furniture and Accessories

For our fire pit furniture, I went on the hunt for chairs that were affordable, comfortable, and matched the vibe of the rest of our outdoor spaces. While I love the classic and traditional look of adirondack chairs, I don’t love sitting in them. The steep recline in the seat doesn’t seem conducive to s’mores, and I always end up awkwardly perched on the end of the chair to reach my stick to the fire. So I was thrilled to find these Better Homes & Gardens Wicker Chairs! They match my outdoor sectional and are rustic yet beautiful. They also are stackable making them easy to transport to another area of the yard or store in the shed during winter.

Most of my planters were purchased from either Walmart or At Home Store. I love the pop of color the flowers add to this space!

The solar-powered string lights from Amazon were a bit of a splurge but totally worth it! I bought two strands and connected them together with electrical tape. The lights don’t produce as much light as most standard plug-in string lights, but I love that they can be placed anywhere without an electrical source! They come on automatically every night and make me smile. I used twine and zipties to attach them to the trees.
When entertaining, I bring out my solar powered mason jar lanterns for some extra light and ambiance. You can see them next to the planters in the picture below. They are so great to have for outdoor parties!

Gravel Fire Pit Area Pics

I couldn’t resist capturing a few pictures of the fire pit all lit up at night! We’ve had so much rain this summer that building a fire with my cutely-styled sticks took more work than I anticipated. I was able to get a tiny one started just for the photoshoot but then this one fizzled out.