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I am looking to maintain a small patch of loose rock/pebbles in my yard:
There's a fair bit of weed growing through the pebbles. I am hesitant to use Glyphosate as its an over kill and I've heard has carcinogens.
How could I make an effective weed killer at home ? (Preferably using everyday ingredients (like vinegar etc), and not harmful chemicals)
You won't get very far with ordinary vinegar. Here in the UK some local authorities have tried using acetic acid (vinegar is a dilute solution of this chemical) as an alternative to glyphosate but without much success. Acetic acid does appear to kill very small annual broadleaf weeds, but not kill larger weeds. Also, in no sense is acetic acid not a "harmful chemical". Three of the downsides of acetic acid given in this University of Maryland study of vinegar as an alternative to glyphosate are:
I would suggest you're better of using a proper weedkiller, such as glyphosate, which is used worldwide. Follow usage instructions to the letter. Choose a dry calm day. Spot treat weeds every two or three weeks.
Instead of thinking chemically, think pyrotechnically - but only if you're in an area that's not subject to wildfires. A weed torch is relatively easy to use and kills all types of weeds. Here's a photo of one in use from a supplier's web site (note that I'm not endorsing this vendor). See the text under the photo for some additional information. This particular model uses propane (IIRC, I've seen others that use LP gas).
EDIT
Given that the added photo shows a fence (and car tire), then torching the weeds is not really viable for much of the area in the picture. I think using a string trimmer weekly would be a better solution. If you have dandelions, then spot-treating with a broadleaf killer (like Weed-B-Gone) would work well - you could mix up a gallon, pour it into a hand-sprayer, and spray only the offending weed.
The important point is to never let weeds set seed. If you can deadhead them, then you'll reduce the number of seeds in your own yard (you'll still get some airborne seeds and their sprouts because of your neighbors, of course). The more annual weeds that you can prevent from sprouting, then the fewer annual weeds you'll have - this cycle could make the area relatively weed-free in about five years (it's worked well in my vegetable garden - no intensive weeding, even without mulch.
You could use salt - but it poisons the soil, may leach sideways into the rest of the garden, and destroys all the microorganisms within, so I would not recommend it. If you want a longer term solution, scrape off the top layer (an inch or so) of what's there, pulling out the weed roots too, cut some weed membrane (also known as landscape fabric and no, I don't mean plastic!) to fit, then cover with stones or slate or whatever. Over time, dust and bits of soil will build up in the stones, and that means weed seeds will eventually germinate in it, but not for a couple of years. I'd use larger stones, like pebbles - when weeds eventually start growing in between them, they're easier to scrape off from the weed fabric and brush off accumulated debris, then sweep over and clean up the weed fabric, then put the stones back. This procedure is next to impossible with shingle or very small stones. This way, you use no weedkiller or toxic household substances at all.
Gasoline kills plants but I expect it is politically incorrect. A few drops on individual plants. Or pour a little on a small weed patch ,wait a few minutes and light it on fire . The wait is necessary to give vapor a minute to disperse or there may be an unpleasant flash. Safety is necessary ,like close the container and put it 50+ feet away before any flame.
