Front Patio - Brick Stoop - Concrete Pavers or Bluestone

We have a front stoop that we are going to have repaired or replaced. It's a brick stoop with limestone steps and a concrete top. We are debating on what to have done. Any suggestions on blue stone, pavers and concrete. The body of the stoop will remain red brick. The mason suggested pavers on top? Are there there any "Do Nots". Any suggetions greatly appreciated. Thank you!
Erin and Jason

ANSWER

I happen to really like bluestone and brick together, although it should also look well with your walkway. Depending on how large the top of the porch is, you could use patterned bluestone or even bluestone all the same size in 12 or 18" squares. Either way, you can lay them straight or on the diagonal.

You have a few choice with the steps themselves.
1. One piece of bluestone along the entire tread and stone risers.

2. Pieces of bluestone with stone risers. Make sure the joints between the bluestones alternate with the next tread.

3. Solid bluestone treads. These are large pieces of bluestone that will be both the tread and riser. Picture a large rectangular stone.

See these pages:
Bluestone Patios

Bluestone Steps

Sometime it's difficult to find the right paver to look good with brick. This is because they are similar in shape and tend to fight each other and do not blend well either. If you decide to use pavers (bluestone will be more costly), be sure to get some samples and bring them to your house where you can see how they actually look with the brick.

Another option is to use the bluestone treads with brick risers. However , the problem with this is that it will most likely be difficult to match the existing brick.