CONCRETE ORIGINALS: Profile > Our Process

Creating Interior Concrete Products

1. DESIGN
Our creative process involves sketches, research, and collaboration between our draftsman, designers, and artisans to create beautiful functional pieces of art.

2. MOLD CREATION
Our next step is taking our initial design or template and creating the product. We use our drawing to create a custom mold. 

3. MIXING CONCRETE
Now we are ready to create our concrete mix. Our concrete mix is a proprietary blend of additives, concrete and cement based products. Added strength is given to our concrete products with the use of fiber reinforcement and water reducing mixtures. We use structural reinforcements including steel, wire mesh, fiberglass, and fiber mesh.  We often combine two or more reinforcements to create the strongest concrete products.   We also add color pigment directly to our mixes to achieve a greater depth of color when combined with concrete stains.

4. FILLING THE MOLD
At this stage we pour our concrete into the mold in various ways. We use a variety of techniques to allow air to escape from the concrete mix.   The concrete is consolidated by hand and through mechanical assistance.

5. CURING
Curing time varies per project.

6. MOLD DISASSEMBLY
We carefully remove the mold from the concrete. 

7. POLISHING
Polishing or grinding the concrete surface allows for added aggregate exposure.  Our mixes may include stone, 100% recycled glass, and other aggregate options.

8. STAINING
During this step we create one of our 41 custom colors or match a specific color request.  We use soy based stains and others, often in combination to create stunning depth of color.

9. SEALING
All our concrete products are sealed with our maintenance free sealer. Our sealer protects against stains, mildew, scratches, and heat. We offer three sealer finishes matte, satin, or gloss. Each finish offers the same level of protection.  The choices are purely aesthetic.