Thursday, January 24, 2008

Concrete

I am in love with concrete counter tops. They are heat resistant and anti-bacterial, and more importantly, beautiful. Concrete? Yes, concrete. Think Pottery Barn's cash register counters. Think chic and urban. Think warm. Yes, warm. Think endless color possibilities. I have found a few places that will make and install, but I don't know how much maintenance is involved. Does concrete need to be sealed often? Will it crack? (No, but I had to throw that in since everyone thinks of sidewalks when I mention this product). And then there's the price. Yikes!

12 comments:

abby said...

Wow, I didn't know about concrete countertops but now I don't think I can live without them. What a cool idea. Anything is better than our turquoise vinyl.

Nancy said...

I think they're cool too. And I love, love subway tile, I've always had in the back of my mind to put it somewhere in my dream kitchen, it would be nice in a bathroom too.

elizabeth said...

I love it when you blog.

I agree. Concrete rock and so do you for saying "concrete" and not cement. (A pet peeve I've picked up since working for a construction company.)

Sarah said...

Liz, thanks.

Emily said...

I really wanted concrete countertops when we redid our kitchen, but I didn't know where to begin and our cabinet guy talked us out of them, I think because he got a referral fee from the granite dude. Next time. . .

pepper said...

I have heard that concrete maintenance is similar to granite, but you would have to do your research. A friend of mine mentioned the other day that she wanted (I can't remember the name of it) the stuff that you had in your science classes in high school. It was probably black counters there, but she said you could get all sorts of colors now. I will ask her what it is called. She said it wasn't porous like concrete and granite. Worth checking into...

Sarah said...

Pepper, it's called soapstone. For awhile I was set on that. I really like its beautiful matte finish. It IS non-porous, but relatively soft and a knife could leave cut marks on it. I guess everything his its downside. I see people using soapstone in magazines where they want to modernize an old kitchen, but keep its vintage charm. It's quite pretty.

Jourdan said...

My dad just put in concrete counter tops for me. I ground them last Saturday and will seal them tomorrow. I'll send you pictures if you like. I love them.

Naylor Family said...

Concrete countertops are neat! Jeremy(Jaime's boyfriend) makes and installs concrete countertops, you'd have to talk to him. I saw some pictures of his work and it's amazing!

Sarah said...

Shellee,
Really!? I had no idea he did concrete work? Or maybe I just forgot. Is that a full-tim or side job? I'd love to talk to him. I'll have to catch him at church sometime!

jourdan,
Yes, I'd love to see some pictures. That seems like such a huge do-it-yourself job! I will email you. Thanks.

Naylor Family said...

Jeremy owns a concrete company-full time job. He was trained to do the counter tops by, I think, one of the head guys of the whole thing. They're so unique, very heavy duty!

Jourdan said...

I finally posted a picture of the final product here:

http://rjboynton.blogspot.com/
2008/03/merry-christmas-to-us.html

Love them, love them.