Concrete Decor's Current Articles

Williams and Witherspoon brought their brands — the Serena leisure apparel line and Draper James, Wither­spoon’s Southern-flavored women’s clothing label — to Neighborhood Goods in the Dallas suburb of Plano, Texas. The store is billed as a “new kind of shopping experience, with brands that will rotate in and out,” the Dallas Morning News reported.

Concrete overlays’ strength comes from combining specific amounts of portland cement, sand, water and polymer. Sand type is an important component in decorative concrete and concrete overlays because overlays are typically applied thinner than standard concrete, yet still need to withstand the forces of foot and automobile traffic.

Installing an overlay over existing concrete is a cost-effective way to update concrete surfaces by eliminating tear-out costs, minimizing product expense and reducing the manpower needed to overhaul the look and integrity of the existing surface.

Nine finalists were selected to receive Scofield awards out of 37 entries. For each of three regions of the United States, there was one commercial finalist, one residential and one selected for "Unique Application." The Eastern Region/Commercial winner J.L. Marshall & Sons Inc., of Pawtucket, R.I. took home the Grand Prize.

Masks, gloves and goggles protect your body from the damaging effects of concrete dust and chemicals used in beautifying concrete.

We're good, but we're not perfect. Once we start thinking that we know everything, or that polished concrete is right for every situation, then we are in trouble. In this economy, we cannot afford a single misstep. Now is the time to focus on running a business correctly, and that includes being aboveboard and ethical in dealings with our customers and vendors.

There is an increase in complaints about the final color not matching the sample or mock-up. In all cases, a small mock-up was created, finished and cured as specified, and eventually accepted by the client. Fast forward to the actual job placement, and all of a sudden the color no longer matched the mock-up sample.

Are you in decorative concrete and looking for more work? I bet you are, and if so, I have some good news. Let's listen to Dan’s auto repair business.

As for Hileman’s original vision of using actual coco logs in construction, remember “termites” and realize it is nice to fool Mother Nature — and human guests — in the name of maintenance.

When taking on pervious paving contracts, the San Diego-based contractor’s mix design is typically accepted by clients following mock-up, as custom blends can significantly increase a project’s difficulty. Yet, there are always exceptions, with the most recent being the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans).

"Decorative Dangers": The housing market slowdown, and how to survive it. Keeping your decorative concrete business profitable during periods of economic slowdown.

The challenge of dealing with water in vapor form is a primary concern of Paul Frankel, president of William M. Perkins Co., a San Diego painting and coating company with an extensive project portfolio that includes decorative and protective coatings on concrete.

Bart Rockett, 46, began working with concrete back in 1987 after joining Patterned Concrete Industries (PCI) and working for one of its local franchises outside of Philadelphia in southern New Jersey.

Creating a look reminiscent of cork or aged hardwood floors, this technique requires plastic sheeting and some well-coordinated teamwork.

Imagine getting a phone call from Shaquille O’Neal asking you to create a concrete floor in his house. Oh, and the floor is to depict a hole going down into a pit of fire. No problem, right? “You don’t say no to Shaq,” says Michael Jensen, president of Atlanta Concrete Artist.

There are some important, key factors that can help you be more successful with your concrete countertops. Here I will discuss a fundamental ingredient: water. We’ve all worked with concrete and water, but working with a material isn’t the same as knowing how it works.

If you want to install garage floor coatings properly and create a profit, you must understand that not everyone is your customer. The price tag on the kit in the box store has already created a perceived value or cost to complete the job in many customers’ mind.

Dylan Lauger has become a master in modern, industrial, experimental concrete furniture design and other artistic concrete skills while living on a remote peninsula in Wisconsin. Among other achievements, he once designed and cast an 8-foot-long GFRC sturgeon as a submission for a local arts competition.