Concrete Countertops

At their showpiece house, the artisans at Flying Turtle Cast Concrete let their imaginations soar.

Principal artisan Tommy Cook’s use of color, stain, gleanings from nature and even customers’ souvenirs takes this full-service firm to a different plane

With the economy in doldrums, it is commonly accepted that homeowners are looking to stay in their homes longer rather than sell. Therefore, the renovations they are undertaking are seen as representing their tastes rather than what they hope a buyer may like.

Fu-Tung Cheng announced the winners of Cheng Concrete’s 2012 Circle of Distinction Design Challenge honoring design and craftsmanship in decorative concrete. The Design Challenge featured nine entry categories.

Self-consolidating concrete is a highly technical mix. It is not an easy mix to create, since it requires an understanding of how all the ingredients work together. What’s more, specialized testing is required to characterize and optimize the mix.

Catering to his client’s passion for fine wine, Scott Cohen, owner of The Green Scene in Canoga Park, Calif., crafted this striking outdoor serving counter, which incorporates more than 200 recycled wine bottles.

Rather than the utilitarian mainstay of most interior precast manufacturers, the countertop, we will instead discuss how to design, engineer, fabricate and install a concrete stove hood.

The DIY Network is taking the lead in producing TV show episodes about decorative concrete.

Five veteran contractors and artisans provide insight by explaining where their decorative concrete journeys began, how their skill sets grew and how diversification has affected their careers.

Concrete countertops are more than a trend. As more and more homeowners and designers specify concrete countertops in new homes and in remodeling projects, concrete is making a permanent place for itself as a material of choice for countertops across the country.

A closer look at one of the country’s most stylish countertop fabricators - and one of the industry’s most charismatic characters.

Outdoor kitchens are a popular request no matter where you live, but typically when you read a book or see a television show featuring outdoor kitchens, the contractor is doing them in a warm climate.

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.

Concrete Decor asked artisans around the country about their experiences installing projects during cold weather. They faced freezing temperatures, snowy weather, and even challenges indoors during cold spells. Each artisan found his own solution for handling work during the winter months.

Concrete hoods are an easy sell for customers who are already buying countertops, but this hood - Concrete Jungle’s first - was purchased by a homeowner with a kitchen in mid-renovation who had already committed to granite countertops.

Trying to manage ultraviolet light exposure in California isn't an easy thing to do, particularly when it comes to its effect on concrete sealers. For Napa, Calif., homeowners, contractors were able to get a handle on the situation, creating a countertop for an outdoor kitchen that still looks great more than a year later.

At a wine and cheese gala held during the WOC tradeshow, Concrete Exchange presented awards to the winners of its first concrete countertop design competition.

Many concrete countertops are plain slabs with square corners. This solid farmhouse look is simple to achieve by pouring a concrete countertop mix into a simple form. Wood forms lend themselves to shaping square corners, but it is difficult to use wood to achieve rounded corners and curved edges.

Concrete Countertop Solutions, headquartered in Scott Township, Pennsylvania, received more than 400 images in its recent photo contest that commended quality craftsmanship and creativity in projects that featured various Z-form components and products.

From day one, we put a lot of thought into the covers for each issue of Concrete Decor magazine. Because it isn’t available on newsstands, we don’t have to try to appeal to the average grocery shopper standing in line, but we definitely want our cover images to be attention-grabbing.

Along with his focus on quality work, Chris Becker makes education a priority — for homeowners, builders, architects and landscape designers.

Science has continued to perfect specialty compounds for mold-making. These compounds are designed to address the very specific challenges associated with very different mold applications, including architectural and decorative precasting.