The first time I saw stamped concrete I honestly didn't like it very much. It seemed like a good idea, but I didn't really think that it was worth the extra money that it cost. I guess the thing that I didn't like was that it was all one color and didn't really have very much dimension to it...in other words, it looked fake! As time progressed I noticed that there were a few jobs that looked considerably better than the rest that I had seen. The look much more realistic and made me wonder how the look was achieved. I researched the topic thoroughly and came up with a few ideas that I thought would make each job look amazing. The first thing that I did was write down a set of guidelines that I would follow to insure that every job has good color variations, a good mixture of light and dark colors and an excellent imprinted image with fine detail. After I tried my process I was honestly amazed and the incredible 3-dimensional look that I had achieved. From that point I decided to always follow my guidelines and not compromise them at all...even if it meant that my prices needed to be slightly higher. I decided to never cut corners but to deliver the best quality stamped concrete available. So what are the guidelines that I developed? Well, there are three basic things that I always do to insure that every job comes out as best as possible. 1. Every stamp must be completely pressed into the concrete to insure that the full detail of the stamp is transferred to the concrete. This may sound very obvious but it is surprising that most contractors don't actually do this! I guess they are in too big of a hurry! There is a very small window of time that concrete stamping is at its best. If you miss this window the concrete will not hold the full detail of the stamp.

2. The surface of the concrete can not have any free water.

This basically means that the concrete must be poured without using too much water. If you use too much water you will not get a sharp image. Most contractors do not realize that concrete has the potential to replicate even the finest details of even the grain of the stone...but only if these guidelines are followed precisely.

3. Always select the right color combination.

Most stamped concrete contractors will only use one color in their mixture. However, if you want to to have a natural color variations that actually looks like stone you need to use a minimum of two contrasting colors. In my opinion this is what makes one decorative concrete job stand head and shoulders above another one. If you look at natural stone, marble or granite you will notice that it is never one solid color but a mixture of many colors.

In Conclusion

You must always realize that no stamped concrete job is ever 100% perfect...but neither is natural stone. Also, don't simply assume that decorative concrete will have the exact same coloring and shading of the stone being replicated, however the shape and texture will be exact. Stamped concrete certainly has its own unique look and the ultimate idea is to make it look like something natural instead of something that is man-made.

Whenever you are choosing a stamped concrete installer make sure that you look at pictures from several jobs as well as view one job in person so you will know exactly what you are getting.