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| Cast in place concrete countertop installation by Dave Pettigrew, Diamond D Company. Kitchen Design by Marty Fiorovich |
Secrets of Concrete Counter Tops
Handcrafted and distinctly unique, concrete countertops are finding their way into more and more homes and commercial venues. The versatility of the medium, as well as its unpredictability, is part of the attraction. It's a growing trend and proving to be a boon to concrete artists.
by Susan Brimo-Cox
L.L.C. in Cary, North Carolina, says, "The number one feature of concrete countertops is that they are completely customizable — any shape, size, thickness, embedded items. If a client wants cobalt blue, I can give it to them. If they want something that looks like a beach with seashells and beach glass, I can do it."
"Concrete can give a real ‘Old World' feel," observes Tom Ralston, owner of Tom Ralston Concrete in Santa Cruz, California. "It's one of the most unique surfaces in that no one else will have exactly the same thing." Ralston has embedded seashells, exposed the aggregate, hand troweled a finish, polished the surface, and sand- and glass-blasted the surface, all to achieve different effects.
Stuart Zumpfe, president of Concrete Effects Inc. in Langhorne, Pennsylvania, has impressed real ivy leaves, used traditional stamping skins, and embedded coins and custom tiles into countertop surfaces for distinct results. On one job, he reports, he sprinkled titanium dioxide on the surface before sealing to achieve a gold-flecked look.
Various contractors also use integral color, acid stains, color hardeners and micro-toppings. There is virtually no limit to what you can create.
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