The Full Plate, in Walnut Creek, Calif., features Colormaker Floors’ Pentimento with integral color and a soft acid stain.

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Brian Vicari, The Concrete Colorist,
Benicia, California

Vicari observes that most of the building industry is leaning toward a handcrafted look again. “Everybody wants their projects to have a custom-handcrafted feel, and our graphics can fall into that category. We do a lot of visual color work.”

In fact, rather than referring to his work as decorative concrete, he prefers the name “visual concrete flooring,” he says. “When someone talks about decorative concrete flooring, the thing most people think about is stamp work and traditional integral color, but that’s not what we’re doing. We’re pushing the artistic side of concrete.”

In his blood
Although Vicari graduated from the University of Albany in New York with a degree in communications/public relations, he knew he wasn’t going to go into that field. (That could explain the minors he also earned in business psychology, Eastern Asian religion and philosophy.) He was born into the trades, he says. Both his father and grandfather were builders; his uncles were painters, masons and hardwood flooring installers. “Going back to the trades [after college] was a natural,” he says.

Vinci’s Restaurant, in Brentwood, Calif., features Colormaker Floors’ Pentimento, which was acid-stained. Vicari used dye washes for the tree graphic.

So, too, is transferring some of his prior knowledge into techniques that help him master concrete. For instance, he says, he uses a 220-grit screen rather than sandpaper to take the imperfections out of an architectural concrete overlayment — the same method used by most tradesmen on fine hardwood floors. “This allows uniform coverage for color,” Vicari explains. “It’s like sanding but it’s less aggressive and less likely to leave scratch marks. The holes in the screen allow the dust to come through instead of trapping it. You end up with a better finish.”

He adds that he uses a heavier grit screen on existing concrete to open the pores before staining.

At the top of the list: samples
One of the most important avenues to success in this business, Vicari believes, is the ability to create accurate samples on site. “It’s not just building a portfolio of samples for clients to choose from, but it’s being able to replicate that sample on site,” he stresses. “You need to learn how chemical stains react and how dyes work so you can be consistent through your process.”

The use of color and nontraditional acid stains — blending colors with dye and metallic washes — is Vicari’s specialty. “We like to push our clients to be creative and not to stick with traditional colors. We know we can achieve a wide variety of colors and that they will add new life to the environment.”

Once you have attractive samples, be sure they catch the public’s eye, Vicari advises. He posts a multitude of project pictures on his Web site at www.theconcretecolorist.com. “It’s my portfolio,” he says, “and it’s some of the best advertising dollars that I’ve spent.” He says he also has CD portfolios that he mails to perspective clients.

This patio was colored entirely with multiple applications of acid stain.

What the future holds
The biggest change Vicari predicts for the next 10 years is a color explosion. “We’re going to be losing the traditional terracottas, tans and browns which are so commonplace these days. People want more color selection. They don’t want to be limited to six or eight colors. They want to see the colors that are in the magazines on their concrete floors,” he says.

The polished concrete look will continue to flourish, and the use of acid stains and overlays will continue to grow as well, he says. More and more people are tearing up their carpet and hardwood floors and unifying the whole downstairs with a creative concrete floor.

“Give your clients options and continually try to push the trade,” Vicari urges. “Take seminars. Be creative. It will help you enjoy what you do and that will reflect in your work. Have fun. If you don’t enjoy doing what you do, you shouldn’t be doing it.”