Stamped Concrete

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Stamped concrete is a testament to the diversity of concrete as a building material. Not only can it hold up your home, but it also gives your flooring, patio or walkway the look of brick, natural stone and other building materials - even wood!

One might call stamped concrete a type of faux finish. In addition to the number of materials the procedure can emulate, you have the choice of several patterns, colors and a wide variance in cost. However, stamped concrete is typically much cheaper than the real deal, making it a deal in its own right.

The 3 Steps to Stamped Concrete

1. Base color - Your base color is added to reflect the color of the material being emulated. This is done in one of two ways: either the base color is added to the concrete before it is poured from the truck, or dyed to the concrete surface after pouring is complete (the concrete must be wet to perform this procedure).
2. Accent color - This secondary color provides the texture and accents (i.e. the appearance of grout) to the concrete. The accent color also acts as a release, which will prevent the stamp from sticking to the concrete.
3. Concrete stamping - Finally comes the stamping itself. This step is really rather simple. The stamp is pressed into the concrete and pulled up, leaving the desired pattern in place to be made permanent as the concrete hardens.

Most often, concrete is stamped to look like other patio paver materials, such as brick, flagstone, slate or other materials. But the beauty of stamped concrete is its ability to be customized. Stamps can even be homemade and patterns can be as basic or complex, wild, modern or postmodern as you like.

Revival in Stamped Concrete

Older concrete stamps were made of metal and somewhat limited in the looks they could create. Newer versions, however, are made from polyurethane and come with the ability to replicate textured stone, vastly increasing the options available to homeowners and signaling a revival in stamped concrete.

Photo Credits: Mohscrete & WayCoolConcrete

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