frazighyhk

From top-dollar homes in the San Francisco Bay Location to sprawling mountain homes in the Colorado Rockies, differentiating home owners are demanding custom layouts and also surfaces in their kitchens. Particularly, they are aiming to reveal their individuality and also unique layout choices with the quick growing design material of choice-- concrete.

In fact, concrete countertops have actually come to be rather of a condition symbol for cooking areas, matching granite as well as other premium counter top surface options. Customer Information Magazine (August 2004) ranked concrete highest for its "modification" and also "exclusivity" among premium kitchen area counter tops.

As a customized product, the quantity of time as well as craftsmanship required to generate concrete countertops positions them as one of the most labor-intensive as well as priciest among leading countertop materials.

However, concrete countertops are becoming more easily accessible for those on a modest budget. The most recent do-it-yourself (DIY) fad to captivate homeowners and home builders is constructing your very own concrete counter top. This phenomenon has gained popularity greatly because of Cheng's very popular publication Concrete Countertops: Style, Types, and also Finishes for the New Kitchen and Bathroom (Taunton Press, 2002). According to Cheng, there is little financial financial investment in making concrete counter tops, yet the creative gains of dealing with concrete are plentiful.

THE SHOWSTOPPER

Progressively, homeowners are relocating away from the tedious, manufactured look of traditional kitchen counter surface areas and picking concrete for its earthy, classic appeal. Plus, the options for individualizing concrete countertops are countless: one can tint, gloss, stamp and also tarnish concrete or imbed individual objects like rocks, seashells and also fossils into the countertop's surface area, including belief as well as character. Useful attributes such as drain boards, soap recipes, as well as trivets can also be integrated to match the house owners' own demands as well as way of life.

Concrete is slowly coming to be debunked as typically chilly as well as commercial. In contrary, this age-old product is warm and also surprisingly tactile; people can not aid however touch their smooth, refined surfaces. Real estate representative Delight Rasmussen, who has lately sold her hill house-- a short-term financial investment property in Steamboat Springs, Carbon Monoxide-- recounts her visitors' experiences with concrete: "When I had open residences, visitors was attracted to the concrete kitchen counters-- lots of people around here have actually never seen them".

Joy's 2,265 sq. ft. hill house was custom-made build by her partner, Ken Otterman, together with KJ Otterman, president of Classic countertops denver nc Special Custom-made Houses. They built pour-in-place concrete counters for the residence's kitchen area and 3 shower rooms by utilizing Concrete Countertops as their guide. The sand-colored concrete countertops were brightened smooth, after that paired with all-natural slate of varying colors-- like charcoal, corrosion and gold tones-- that develops the backsplashes in the cooking area and baths. As a design accent, small rectangle-shaped slate tiles were contributed to the edge of the shower room sinks, which gave a distinct information to the customized vanities.

When Delight and also Ken chose to sell their residence, their investment in concrete counter tops confirmed its value. "We had the ability to detail your home $20,000 over market price, as well as had not a problem marketing it," remarks Pleasure, while talking about the lengthy list of upgrades throughout their home, including knotty ache strong doors, natural slate wall surface accents and also hardwood floors. "The concrete countertops were conveniently one of the most distinct and also impressive of all the coatings. I believe they were a massive component in including value to the residence. Around right here, all you see in homes are granite kitchen counters-- and also I actually assume buyers are getting quite numb with granite."

" Concrete countertops are an unique offering to homebuyers that see the same surfaces utilized in home after home they go to," describes Delight, providing her observation as a skilled real estate agent. "Having concrete counter tops practically gives you boasting rights-- you have something different from your next-door neighbors."

BREAKING THE MOLD AND MILDEW

An additional benefit of concrete is its flexibility in either modern or traditional settings, especially when coupled with other products like different metals, timber or rock. "Concrete adds a lot of [possibilities] to stone, as well as the combination with slate, which is extremely popular here, offers the mountain homes a general warm, natural touch," says Happiness.

Delight and Ken have because constructed a much bigger home (4,000 sq. ft.) that provides expansive views of the Steamboat Ski Resort as well as is implied to function as a lasting financial investment for the pair. They've additionally expanded their list of custom-made finishes, consisting of hand-troweled walls, elegant oil-rubbed bronze equipment, knotty ache doors that curve on top, cupboards in a natural, knotty alder, and also their favorite-- concrete cooking area counter tops.

Unlike in their previous house, KJ as well as his specialized staff put charcoal-colored countertops making use of the pre-cast method in the unfinished cellar of the new home. Before putting the concrete, they sprayed a range of semi-precious stones in the mold and mildew including Leopardskin, Moonstone, Mother-of-Pearl as well as Turquoise. After the surface area was ground as well as gently brightened, the finished outcome was an excellent mix of shades, "By far, the Mother-of-Pearl was the most amazing," says Joy.

The L-shaped concrete counter top has a rough, rustic rock appearance, complementing its sturdy nation environments. An essential drainpipe board as well as trivets supplies feature and added passion to the concrete countertop. All-natural slate backsplashes, distinct wall accents, and also a butcher block kitchen counter at the kitchen island all resonate with the standard heat as well as earthiness of the concrete counter tops.

Joy as well as Ken's corresponding histories in real estate and also custom homebuilding, and also as investment property buyers, have actually aided them recognize that concrete countertops can add significant visual and also monetary value to a home. Concrete's modification and "show-stopping" charm is like nothing else countertop surface area. Cheng is a proponent of emotional looks as well as developing homes that capture these feelings, as when it comes to Pleasure as well as Ken Otterman. Cheng concludes: "People really desire distinction, something personal, something custom-made-- and also concrete can do that for them.