Designs on Concrete

It may very well be the first tell-all book on concrete. Not a typical how-to, but a lesson on capturing beauty and creating a unique concrete countertop for your own home.

One of the country's leading designers wants to remove the mystery and expense that stands between the average do-it-yourselfer and the versatile, unique qualities that concrete can bring to the home. So Fu-Tung Cheng, whose Berkeley, California-based firm, Cheng Design, has won numerous prestigious design awards, decided to write a book about how and more importantly, why concrete is a desirable material to use for a kitchen or bathroom countertop.

Design, Forms and Finishes For the New Kitchen and Bath: Concrete Countertops, published by Taunton Press, is set for a March release.

Cheng Design is known internationally for its innovative design work in kitchens, bathrooms, and custom homes. The use of concrete is abundant.

But many do-it-yourselfers aren't familiar with the versatility and creativity that concrete offers and often turn to popular materials like granite or Corian. That means the concrete market is small, $5 million compared to Corians $500 million and there are only a couple hundred fabricators.

"Were so used to seeing concrete in its worst forms. We don't often see it in beautiful, luminous countertops with inlays," said Cheng. This book will bring it more into the profession and create a certain level of expertise.

In 1975 Fu-Tung purchased a home just north of Berkeley, Calif. Described as a near-wreck, he rebuilt the house through experimentation and his innate artistic and design skills.

"I have an art background and I was always trying to be inventive," said Cheng, whose mother was a color artist at the Walt Disney Studios and three of his brothers are professional artists.

Cheng was immediately drawn to the virtues of concrete.

"It is easily sculpted, it takes any guise, and it mimics whatever you pour it into," he told Concrete Network. "I poured a kitchen countertop in my house and it was a rousing success."

Fu-Tung Cheng founded the Cheng Design in 1978. The staff includes architects, designers, and a fabrication crew.

Cheng's own kitchen countertop laid the foundation for the many innovative, artistic creations to follow. As the word spread, Cheng Design was inundated with inquiries.

Cheng Design responded to the demand by developing a Cheng's line of modular kitchen and bathroom countertops made from a proprietary, light-weight concrete trademarked as Geocrete.

The natural luster finish on Geocrete comes from the mix formula and the casting process, polishing and buffing are not required. A light buff every month or so will eliminate fingerprints and give the surface an extra sparkle.

Cheng said he wanted to get the word out about concrete and find a way to make it even more affordable. The upcoming book release, coupled with the launch of a sacrete mix that consumers can use to pour their own concrete countertops, is the first step. The mix will be sold in home improvement stores.

Cheng explained that the book offers do-it-yourself consumers the opportunity to make little monetary investment yet large creative gains using concrete as a medium.

He explains: "Twelve 60-pound sacks of the high-quality mix runs about $5 a bag. A cabinetmaker can make your mold for about $500. Mix the mix in 5-gallon buckets. Flip the mold over after two or three days. Pull off the mold. Grind it using $30 pads. Let it cure, then wax it."

"And, the greatest benefit of all," Cheng says, "is the ability to add your own style. Do-it-yourselfers can use some of their favorite tile, break it up, and accent with different colors and various types of stone or glass, to fashion a look thats all their own."

"It's every mans way of achieving function and artistry," he said.

Cheng says the whole movement toward do it yourself leaves out the vital component of creativity. Not anymore.

"Here's a chance to buy the standard stuff that is easy to do and gives off a lot of personality," he said.

Cheng also wants people to realize that, just like other materials, concrete has its vulnerabilities. Over time a patina may develop, which may enhance the character of the surface, much like a mature wood floor.

One of the greatest challenges Cheng faced during the book writing process was getting agreement on the books vision. Cheng didn't want the book to be a typical how-to manual. Instead, he wanted to emphasize why concrete is so unique, and why so many artists, designers, and architects use the material.

"I want everyone to see the beauty in it," he said.

And Cheng should know. Cheng Design has received numerous awards, including second-place recognition for its Geocrete product line with the "2001 Innovative Product of the Year" from Kitchen and Bath Business for the Geocrete Siargo Island concrete top, part of the Pelago series of concrete countertops a collection of five designs centered around sinks, drain boards, cutting boards, and soap trays.

Cheng Design also received the "2001 Bath of the Year" award from Kitchen and Bath Business in its annual, national competition of professional designers and architects.

In addition to the upcoming book and do-it-yourself product, Cheng Design has also introduced a new Geocrete Pangea Series Workstation, a module that plugs into a new or existing kitchen.

The workstations are designed around specific functions like pastry-making, brass or stainless trivets to be designed near a cooktop, fitted cutting boards or chopping blocks and integral fruit bowls. All are designed with Cheng signature artwork and inlays.

Despite the accolades, the feature articles in national magazines, and the growing client list, Cheng still puts his artistic signature on the Geocrete counter inlays. He hand-selects fossils, bits of interesting stone, and other appealing objects by scouring rock shows and visiting salvage yards in the San Francisco Bay Area.

These interesting accents, coupled with the flexibility of concrete, allow designers and clients to create their own artwork that combines form with function.

"Marble may be considered formal, and concrete is more earthy. I like to think of it as naturalistic," Cheng said. "You can create your own topography and your own landscape."

Cheng Design
Fu Tung Cheng
2808 San Pablo Avenue
Berkeley, CA 94702
Phone: 510 549-2805 X217
Fax: 510 849-3274
Send Mail Now - Click Here
www.chengdesign.com

Michele Dawson writes each week on one of the contractor members of The Concrete Network (www.concretenetwork.com). She has written about the home building industry for several years and was on the public affairs staff of the California Building Industry Association.