Concrete Proves to be a Gem forDiamond D CompanyDiamond D Company owner David Pettigrew knows all about the 4 C's — and they don't have anything to do with diamonds. It's concrete, concrete, concrete, and concrete — colored, stained, stamped, and engraved. When Pettigrew was a kid he loved to draw all kinds of artistic designs, primarily interesting geometric shapes, which he would color in and then use to cover his textbooks. Today he's applied this passion to concrete, creating unique, brilliant pieces of art on floors, driveways, countertops — anything concrete. Diamond D Company is located in Watsonville, Calif., and provides an array of concrete services: decorative concrete, countertops, engraving, demolition, pool decking, staining, driveways, pavers, and cleaning services.
"I've always loved this miracle material that you can mold into whatever you want," Pettigrew said. His exquisite concrete floors — one in geometric patterns of amber, sage and gray — have been awarded the 2000 Bomanite Gold Award for Residential Patene Artectura. Pettigrew stumbled into concrete as a journey carpenter — almost literally. While working on a series of homes in Scotts Valley, he was facing challenges with the way the foundations were being poured. As the carpenter he was being forced to specially cut each rafter because of the sloppy foundation pours. He then announced that he would be pouring the foundations and appeared to be a natural. "I had them dead level and dead square," he said. Since then, he's done everything from burial crypts to curbs and sidewalks to foundations. He even poured concrete for 80 houses after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake in the San Francisco Bay Area. But then about 11 years ago, Pettigrew saw someone working creatively with concrete. It was at that moment he knew he wanted to do it, too. Now, 20 years later, Pettigrew has learned about the nuances, the challenges, the limits, and the strengths of concrete. "After 20-plus years of doing concrete, I know what the material can do — it's open to the imagination. I also know what it won't do," he said.
One of Pettigrew's most recent projects was the "Heppener House" on Branciforte Ridge in the Santa Cruz mountains. The round home sits on a mountaintop and boasts a spectacular view of Monterey Bay. The project included many parts, processes, and challenges. For starters, the concrete floors involved integral color rather than staining. Pettigrew created a soft, pillowy look by using a white cement with an integral color in a nickel gray color. The steps and borders were a natural gray — a striking complement to the lighter, softer grays.
Pettigrew said he saw the contractor playing with the stucco pieces. That sparked the idea to stain the stucco pieces once the usual stucco stages were complete. The result? A house with a look of a 1,000-year-old Tuscany villa, complete with a copper roof. He also acid-etched the asphalt curves on the driveway that meander out to the road. But Pettigrew said his favorite project of all time is the La Honda house. Pettigrew was basically given free reign. He and his friend Catherine designed the various rooms of the house.
In the living room, patches of a sea-colored blue-green — one of the most difficult colors to achieve in concrete — intersect with varied shapes of earth tones. A gameroom floor comes to life as large circles of blue-green intersperse with a rich, dark red and a burst of yellow flashing across the room.
It took six weeks to color the 6,000 square feet of floors after three full days of scoring the designs. "Everyone who comes in the house can't believe it's concrete," Pettigrew said. Pettigrew has done about every concrete project imaginable — even a lizard. Based on a t-shirt with a picture of a gecko, he made a template, then stained and grouted a stained-glass-style lizard on the floor. His favorite projects involve using color and stained-glass-style effects. Pettigrew gets calls from people as far away as Australia, Great Britain and Canada, many asking his secret to achieving such dazzling colors. "They want to know, 'How are you getting these colors,'" Pettigrew said. Pettigrew has mastered the coloring process, achieving rich vibrant hues in a range of colors. "The learning curve is brutal," he said. "To get the colors down just right is brutal. There are so many times when my stomach just does flip-flops waiting to make sure it comes out all right." While many are just discovering concrete, Pettigrew's exposure came at a young age. "People talk about concrete being new ... But I remember my grandmother's mud room. I remember reaching hold of the countertop — it was a concrete countertop with a double-sink basin," Pettigrew said. But now concrete countertops have a whole new meaning for Pettigrew. "It's a whole different way to make a living ... To create colored floors and countertops, or piece of furniture," he said. Pettigrew said one of the greatest compliments he received was when one of his clients defined art: "He said when he's in front of the fireplace with a good book and looks up (and sees my work) that I'll always be there with him. I think that's the greatest compliment you can give." With memories of his grandmother's mud room firmly intact, Pettigrew is excited about what the future holds for concrete. "We have stamped concrete, slate, stain, overlays, Spanish tiles, Arizona flagstone ... It's just amazing what technology has done," he said. "And we have no idea where it's going. It's advancing all the time." Diamond D Company  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. Find a Concrete Contractor 23 Services in 200 Metros -- U.S. and Canada © 2008 ConcreteNetwork.com None of this site may be reproduced without written permission |
Site Sponsors |
Free Magazine For Contractors Sign-Up Today!
Vertical Stamping
Concrete Polishing
Tools, Seminars,
Concrete Crack Repair
Radiant Floor Heating
Training By Bob Harris
Concrete Floor Stains
Concrete Countertop
Professional Grade
Products & Training
Repairing Bowed
Synthetic Rock Training
Concrete Homes
Concrete Countertops
Prepackaged Admixtures
Foundation Repair