The Value of Concrete Countertops: Personalization Rises Aesthetic Charm and Property Investment for Homeowners

1. From top-dollar houses in the San Francisco Bay Area to sprawling hill residences in the Colorado Mountain ranges, differentiating property owners are demanding customized layouts and finishes in their kitchen areas. Particularly, they are seeking to share their originality and also unique style preferences with the quick expanding layout material of selection-- concrete. As a matter of fact, concrete kitchen counters have actually become rather of a standing icon for kitchen areas, rivaling granite and also other premium countertop surface area options. Consumer News Publication (August 2004) rated concrete greatest for its "personalization" as well as "exclusivity" among premium kitchen countertops. As a customized item, the quantity of time and also workmanship required to create concrete kitchen counters puts them as one of the most labor-intensive and also most expensive amongst leading countertop materials. Nonetheless, concrete counter tops are coming to be extra obtainable for those on a small budget plan. The most recent diy (Do It Yourself) fad to captivate homeowners as well as builders is constructing your own concrete kitchen counter. This sensation has gained popularity largely as a result of Cheng's best-selling book Concrete Countertops: Design, Types, as well as Completes for the New Kitchen Area and also Bathroom (Taunton Press, 2002). According to Cheng, there is little financial financial investment in making concrete kitchen counters, yet the innovative gains of collaborating with concrete are plentiful. THE SHOWSTOPPER Increasingly, home owners are moving far from the tedious, manufactured appearance of traditional counter top surfaces and picking concrete for its earthy, ageless allure. And also, the options for individualizing concrete counter tops are countless: one can tint, gloss, stamp as well as stain concrete or imbed individual items like stones, seashells and fossils into the countertop's surface area, adding sentiment as well as personality. Useful functions such as drainpipe boards, soap meals, and also trivets can also be incorporated to match the home owners' own requirements and also way of living. Concrete is gradually coming to be debunked as classically chilly as well as commercial. In contrary, this olden product is cozy as well as surprisingly tactile; individuals can not assist but touch their smooth, countertops laminate near me refined surface areas. Realty representative Pleasure Rasmussen, who has just recently offered her hill house-- a temporary financial investment residential property in Steamboat Springs, CO-- states her visitors' experiences with concrete: "When I had open homes, site visitors was attracted to the concrete countertops-- many individuals around below have actually never seen them". Joy's 2,265 sq. ft. hill house was customized construct by her other half, Ken Otterman, together with KJ Otterman, head of state of Classic Special Personalized Homes. They constructed pour-in-place concrete counters for the house's cooking area and three washrooms by utilizing Concrete Countertops as their guide. The sand-colored concrete counter tops were brightened smooth, after that paired with all-natural slate of differing shades-- like charcoal, corrosion as well as gold tones-- that develops the backsplashes in the kitchen and also baths. As a layout accent, small rectangular slate tiles were added to the edge of the washroom sinks, which provided an unique detail to the personalized vanities. When Delight as well as Ken chose to sell their residence, their investment in concrete counter tops proved its worth. "We were able to provide your home $20,000 over market value, and had no worry selling it," remarks Happiness, while discussing the lengthy list of upgrades throughout their house, consisting of knotty pine strong doors, all-natural slate wall accents and wood floorings. "The concrete countertops were easily the most special and also impressive of all the surfaces. I think they were a huge part in including worth to the home. Around here, all you see in houses are granite counter tops-- and also I actually believe buyers are getting rather numb with

2. granite." " Concrete countertops are a special offering to buyers who see the very same surfaces utilized in house after home they go to," explains Pleasure, supplying her observation as a skilled real estate professional. "Having concrete counter tops nearly provides you boasting legal rights-- you have something different from your neighbors." BREAKING THE MOLD AND MILDEW One more benefit of concrete is its flexibility in either modern-day or conventional setups, especially when combined with various other materials like diverse steels, timber or stone. "Concrete adds a lot of [opportunities] to rock, as well as the mix with slate, which is hugely popular here, offers the mountain houses a total warm, all- natural touch," says Pleasure. Delight as well as Ken have because constructed a much bigger house (4,000 sq. ft.) that offers extensive views of the Steamboat Ski Resort and also is meant to work as a long-lasting financial investment for the pair. They've additionally expanded their listing of custom-made coatings, including hand-troweled wall surfaces, elegant oil- rubbed bronze equipment, knotty ache doors that arch on top, closets in an all-natural, knotty alder, and their preferred-- concrete kitchen area counter tops. Unlike in their previous residence, KJ as well as his specialized team put charcoal-colored countertops utilizing the pre-cast method in the incomplete basement of the brand-new house. Prior to pouring the concrete, they sprayed a variety of semi-precious stones in the mold and mildew consisting of Leopardskin, Moonstone, Mother-of-Pearl and also Turquoise. After the surface was ground and lightly brightened, the finished result was an impressive blend of shades, "Without a doubt, the Mother-of-Pearl was one of the most incredible," says Pleasure. The L-shaped concrete countertop has a rough, rustic stone look, matching its rugged nation surroundings. An essential drain board as well as trivets gives function and added interest to the concrete counter top. All-natural slate backsplashes, distinctive wall accents, as well as a butcher block countertop at the kitchen area island all reverberate with the conventional heat as well as earthiness of the concrete kitchen counters. Joy as well as Ken's respective backgrounds in property and customized homebuilding, and as investment homebuyers, have assisted them understand that concrete kitchen counters can include tremendous aesthetic and economic worth to a residence. Concrete's personalization and "show-stopping" allure is like nothing else countertop surface area. Cheng is a supporter of psychological aesthetics as well as constructing residences that capture these feelings, as in the case of Joy and Ken Otterman. Cheng ends: "Individuals really want distinction, something personal, something custom-- and concrete can do that for them."