Just this morning, we flipped out a concrete countertop sink run cast in our “Slate” color which includes an integrated drainboard, as do many of our kitchens. New England residents love drainboards - maybe it is a hearkening back to our collective childhood, sitting in a grandparent’s kitchen with the big , old slate or soapstone farm sink and the wide pitched planes to each side where the dishes were set to air dry.  They are eminently practical and a perfect showcase for the three-dimensional versatility of artisan concrete. Each one is different from the previous, some subtly and some dramatically.

This drainboard uses an elemental reference to flowing water by incising ripples into the drain plane,  which is set to the right and slightly back from the undermounted sink aperture. This introduces a pleasing touch of assymmetry to the composition (any Slave to Rhythm would agree…). Immediately outside the New Hampshire window in front of which this concrete countertop will repose are the client’s lush perennial gardens; they are symbolized as well using the movement and vining shapes of the rippling grooves. Another reference wrapped into the design is the heavy roundover on the cabinet doors and their round wooden pulls.

Once installed atop the natural wood cabinets in the owner’s home, it will be apparent that this particular example of functional art was fully intended to be exactly there and nowhere else. Now, that’s integration!

The concrete countertop we cast in our “Terra” shade was installed last week in its final home, atop a natural birch cabinet vanity. The colors worked together as intended, with the warm orangey wood and the tan/beige marble baseboard tile bringing out the concrete base color as well as the circular ”Caramel” inserts. A little sprinkle of amber glass echoes the sink orb and contemporary faucet geometry, and lends a little motion to the vignette.  All in all, a fun project! The kitchen will be next…

We have finished the fabrication of our latest concrete countertop project, a vanity top for a home in the Upper Valley in New Hampshire. An earlier post dealt with the design sketch whch begins this process; there are many factors which are taken into account when a new element is conceived. The client’s preferences and inclinations, the immediate location, the nearby surroundings, the use patterns, and the concrete artist’s vision are among them.

This concrete countertop will be installed in a somewhat typical full bathroom near the public living area of the home. The walls are white, the floors are a very pale shell pink ceramic tile, the fixtures are white , and there is a thin strip of marble tile as a baseboard detail beginning to introduce a bit of color to the room. The dominating feature is the natural birch vanity cabinet which has large round wooden pulls. The new sink was to be a circular white porcelain bowl and the faucet a cylindrical, sleek chrome contemporary style (matching the towel bar). These are the influences from which we drew to create an appropriate addition to the melange.

The result – a long sleek top in “Terra” (an earthy, sandy tone which picks up the floor tile and baseboard) with the sink set obliquely at the right end. A small bow in front of the sink swells from the five and a half foot long edge, with a set back hand-drawn line following its delineation. Several varying circular insets of “Caramel” concrete pick up the birch cabinet’s shades, while a sprinkle of recycled amber bottle glass shadows the sink and faucet. The backsplash is a narrow 3 inches tall, in “Terra” again, with a pair of  inch-square glass mosiac tile inset at the centered seam, referring to the white porcelain bowl. The entire top is lightly ground to show the crushed glass and some fine aggregate, giving it a warm subtle texture. Install is coming right up – and the kitchen is next!

Design sketch

The design process for a concrete countertop can be a bit bewildering or daunting from the outset, given that the possibilities are nearly endless with the medium. Any color, shape, inclusion, theme… the options are limitless and the number of decisions may seem overwhelming.  But that’s why we are here to help, as the artisans and designers familiar with utilizing the material to achieve a functional and aesthetic goal.

We will visit the site, whether home or business, and discuss with the client their preferences, inspirations, and intentions. We strive to get a feel for the environment and the end-user, and then conceive of a design answer to that unique situation. This is why we do this, after all! This usually results in a sketch and a little back-and-forth discussion, all part of the collaborative nature of the project. Every commission is a completely custom approach, since it is intentional to a moment and place in time. There are no problems, only opportunities…