Hardscape Contractor in St. Charles, MO – Paver Patios, Retaining Walls, Outdoor Living
ICPI Certified since 2015. Belgard Authorized. Angie’s Super Service Award every year since 2008. Owner-operated by Tom Watson, serving the St. Charles and St. Louis area within a 30-mile radius.
Get a Free Consultation Call (314) 973-2103
Locally Owned. Family Built. Serving St. Charles and St. Louis Since 2006.
Finishing Touch Landscape Company has been building outdoor living spaces across St. Charles County and west St. Louis County since 2006. Tom Watson started the company with a simple idea – homeowners deserve a contractor who shows up, gets it right the first time, and stands behind the work years later. Almost two decades later, that philosophy still runs the business.
We specialize in residential hardscape – paver patios, retaining walls, outdoor fireplaces and fire pits, seat walls, walkways, and landscape design. We are an ICPI-certified installer (since 2015), a Belgard authorized contractor, and BBB A+ rated. Tom personally walks every job from estimate through final walkthrough.
Our service area covers a 30-mile radius around St. Charles, MO – including O’Fallon, St. Peters, Wentzville, Lake St. Louis, Dardenne Prairie, Cottleville, Chesterfield, Ballwin, Wildwood, Manchester, and the surrounding communities.
What We Build
Paver Patios & Walkways
Custom-designed paver patios, walkways, and driveways using Belgard pavers and natural stone. Every installation includes proper base prep, edge restraint, and polymeric sand jointing.
Learn more →Retaining Walls
Engineered block, natural stone, and boulder retaining walls built for Missouri clay soils. Proper drainage and footing depth on every wall – that’s why ours last decades, not years.
Learn more →Outdoor Living
Outdoor fireplaces, fire pits, seat walls, patio columns, and patio lighting. Build a backyard you want to spend evenings in.
Learn more →Landscape Design & Installation
Full-property landscape design with planting plans built for Missouri climate. Trees, shrubs, ground covers, and beds that age beautifully.
Learn more →Landscape Construction
Site grading, drainage solutions, prep work, and the structural side of landscape. We solve drainage problems other contractors won’t touch.
Learn more →Seasonal Services
Spring cleanups, fall leaf removal, mulch installation, and residential snow removal for existing clients.
Learn more →Why Homeowners Hire Finishing Touch
ICPI Certified Since 2015
The Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute certification means we’ve been independently tested on proper base prep, geotextile placement, and installation standards. Most hardscape failures trace back to base work – ours don’t.
Belgard Authorized
Direct manufacturer authorization gives us access to Belgard’s full product line, technical support, and warranty backing on every installation. Factory-grade work with factory-backed materials.
17 Consecutive Super Service Awards
Angie’s List has issued the Super Service Award to Finishing Touch every single year since 2008. Seventeen straight years of customer-rated quality – not a one-time recognition.
Owner Walks Every Job
Tom Watson personally estimates, designs, and supervises every project. You won’t get a salesman, then a crew lead, then a project manager – you get the owner from first call to final walkthrough.
Real Projects, Real Results
70-Foot Retaining Wall · Ballwin, MO
Replaced a failed 3.5-foot retaining wall along a Ballwin driveway. Original wall was leaking water across the driveway. We rebuilt with proper drainage tile, gravel backfill, and Belgard segmental retaining wall block. Wall has held perfectly for four years. Project cost: $3,000. Competing bids ran $6,000 to $17,000 for the same scope.
Paver Patio with Seat Wall · St. Charles, MO
Custom-designed paver patio with integrated seat wall and fire pit area. Belgard pavers, polymeric sand jointing, full drainage prep. Designed for outdoor entertaining and finished in nine days.
Front Yard Redesign · St. Louis County
Full front yard redesign for a shaded property. Custom planting plan for shade-tolerant species, decorative rock layout, and landscape lighting. Completed within target timeline.
Where We Work
Finishing Touch serves a 30-mile radius around our St. Charles, MO base. That covers all of St. Charles County, the west half of St. Louis County, and parts of Lincoln and Warren counties. Our anchor service areas are St. Charles, O’Fallon, St. Peters, Wentzville, Lake St. Louis, and Chesterfield, but we work throughout the region. If you’re not sure whether your address falls in our coverage zone, call (314) 973-2103 and we’ll let you know on the spot.
St. Charles · O’Fallon · Wentzville · St. Peters · Lake St. Louis · Dardenne Prairie · Cottleville · Weldon Spring · Chesterfield · Ballwin · Wildwood · Manchester · Town and Country · Des Peres · Ladue
What Clients Say
“Finish Touch gets 5 stars from me. They built us a beautiful looking retaining wall at the rear of our house four years ago this month and were the low bidder by far – the bids ranged from over $17,000 to under $3,000 for Finishing Touch. I waited to post a review until now because build quality of a retaining wall can’t be measured until after passage of time. Their wall has held up nearly perfectly over four years now.”
– Angi review, Ballwin MO
“This is the second project Tom Watson and Finishing Touch Landscape has done at our home in Ballwin. They replaced an approximately 70-ft long, 3.5-ft high retaining wall along our driveway. They completed the work within a week and the finished project looks amazing. Tom is a pro. We will use him again.”
– Angi review, Ballwin MO
“Tom Watson and his crew were excellent in every aspect. Tom gave us ideas on what plants work well in shaded areas, plus a layout for rock to be added in front of our house. This project was completed in our needed time frame with no problems.”
– Angi review, St. Louis area
Read more reviews on Angi, BBB, and Yelp.
Common Questions About Hardscape Work in St. Charles
What’s the difference between hardscape and landscape?
Hardscape is the structural side – paver patios, retaining walls, walkways, fire pits, outdoor kitchens, anything built from stone, concrete, brick, or block. Landscape is the living side – plants, trees, lawn, beds, mulch, irrigation. Most outdoor projects need both, and they have to be designed together. Drainage, grading, and how the hardscape transitions into planting beds matters more than most homeowners realize. We handle both sides under one project, so the patio and the plantings work together instead of fighting each other.
How long do paver patios last in Missouri?
A properly installed paver patio in Missouri should last 25 to 30+ years before any significant restoration is needed. The lifespan depends almost entirely on the base – six inches of compacted gravel base, proper edge restraint, and polymeric sand jointing. We install to ICPI specifications, which is the industry standard. Missouri’s freeze-thaw cycles are hard on concrete slabs but pavers handle them well because individual pavers can shift slightly without cracking the whole surface. The most common failure mode is base settlement on cheap installs – never the pavers themselves.
Do you build retaining walls for Missouri clay soils?
Yes – most of our retaining wall work is in Missouri clay. Clay soil expands when wet and contracts when dry, which puts lateral pressure on any retaining wall. The fix is proper drainage tile behind the wall, gravel backfill instead of just dumping clay back in, and adequate footing depth. We use Belgard segmental retaining wall block for most jobs because it’s engineered for these conditions. We’ve built walls in Ballwin, Chesterfield, St. Charles, and across St. Louis County that have held perfectly through years of Missouri seasons.
Are you ICPI certified?
Yes – Finishing Touch has been ICPI certified since 2015. ICPI stands for the Interlocking Concrete Pavement Institute, and certification means an installer has been tested on proper base preparation, geotextile placement, edge restraint, paver pattern alignment, and polymeric sand application. It’s the industry credential for paver work. Most hardscape failures come from base preparation shortcuts, which is exactly what ICPI training covers. Belgard requires ICPI certification for their authorized contractor program.
What’s a typical timeline for a paver patio project?
For a standard residential paver patio – say 400 to 600 square feet with edge restraint and polymeric sand – we typically complete the work in 5 to 9 days, weather permitting. The phases are: site prep and excavation (1 to 2 days), base installation and compaction (1 to 2 days), paver laying (2 to 3 days), edge restraint and sand jointing (1 day), final cleanup. Larger projects with retaining walls, seat walls, or fire features add days. From first phone call to project start, we’re typically scheduling 3 to 6 weeks out, longer in peak spring season.
Do you serve homeowners outside St. Charles County?
Yes – our service area extends 30 miles in any direction from St. Charles, MO. That includes the west half of St. Louis County (Chesterfield, Ballwin, Wildwood, Manchester, Town and Country, Des Peres, Ladue), all of St. Charles County (St. Charles, O’Fallon, St. Peters, Wentzville, Lake St. Louis, Dardenne Prairie, Cottleville, Weldon Spring), and parts of Lincoln and Warren counties. If you’re unsure whether your address is in range, call (314) 973-2103 and we’ll confirm before sending an estimator.
Ready to Start Your Project?
Tell us what you’re thinking about – a paver patio, a retaining wall, a full backyard redesign, or something else entirely. Tom will walk your property, talk through options, and put together a written estimate. No high-pressure sales, no upsells you didn’t ask about. Just an honest conversation about what your space could be.