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CREATIVE CAIN CABIN

by dawn cain

You are here: Home / DIY / Concrete Counter Tops on a Budget

DIY

Concrete Counter Tops on a Budget

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Excuse the horrible photos taken with a phone.
“This Is How We Made Our Concrete Counter Tops“
First we formed the counter top out of plywood.  The plywood will stay under the concrete forever.  This is a pour in place method.

Tape off all the cupboards underneath with plastic.  This is a very messy job, and since we had the concrete company add black dye to the mix, it may stain the cabinets.

Pour the concrete into the plywood frame.  We had the concrete truck pull up to our front door, and we used a 5 gallon bucket to transport the concrete into the house. (At this point we only had plywood floors and didn’t have to worry about the mess.  Just wait for the concrete to dry and sweep it up.)  It took about 30 minutes to have it all in the frame. 

Hubby used his concrete tools to smooth the top of the concrete (who wants a bumpy counter top) and a vibrating tool to get any air bubbles worked out.  Vibrating is a must.  When the forms are removed from the edges you don’t want a honeycomb effect, you want a solid edge, and vibrating ensures that.
This is where the waiting game starts.
Everything is smooth and looks great.  Now we are patiently waiting for it to set up enough to pull the forms from the edges so they can be tooled, and made smooth.

Concrete is dry and all the form and plastic are removed.
At this point we wet sanded all the surfaces.

Here the edge of the sink was sanded to expose the stone.

Wait 30 days for the concrete to completely cure.
 Again tape off the cupboards and apply the sealer.

We used a roller to apply it and a heat gun to remove any air bubbles.

Once again we wet sanded the sealer to take away some of the shine.  It was like a looking glass before the sanding.

The look we wanted to achieve was more of a matte finish.

There you have it, how we saved big buck.  This project cost $400.00. (This would have been a $7,000.00 project to have them precast.) Good thing I have a talented, hard working hubby.  

Linking up with:
Lettered Cottage
Tatertots and Jello  
Savvy Southern Style 
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HOH 
Paisley Passions 
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Sassy Sites 
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Remodelaholic 
Funky Junk Interiors 
Debbie Doos 
Virginia House 
Bubbly Nature Creations 
JAG 



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61 Comments

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Comments

  1. Allison Shops says

    at

    Great job! The counters are amazing. What a big job and HUGE savings. Congrats!
    Dropping by from How To’s Day. Hope you’ll come see the informal picture wall I did for DD2.

    Allison
    Atticmag

    Reply
  2. lauren says

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    THAT was impressive!!! i love the sanded sink edge. thanks for sharing!

    Reply
  3. KellyH says

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    Fantastic. Love concrete counters!

    Reply
  4. Mommyblogger says

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    Way to go hubby!! I’m really loving the concrete coutertops idea 🙂

    Reply
  5. carolinagirl says

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    WOW! AWESOME JOB!

    Reply
  6. Shari says

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    So beautiful-now for some details. How did you get the rocks in there-is that a natural occurrence? What type of concrete was it? Next,what types of sandpaper did you use? What machine do you use to create the vibration? What sealant did you use? What tools did your husband need? How did you learn to do this?
    Can you tell I’m the youngest child? Sorry for all the questions, I just really love it and want to do it in my new kitchen (currently has purple and blue swirls!)

    Reply
  7. Sandy aka Doris the Great says

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    Gorgeous counters. But what a lot of work! (I have to go lie down now after all that.)

    Reply
  8. Renee says

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    I love it! They look amazing!

    Reply
  9. kris says

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    Amazing savings and no sacrificing style. You are one very talented woman. A “Jackie” of all trades!

    Reply
  10. Kim @ Savvy Southern Style says

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    That looks wonderful and great instructions. Thanks for joining WUW.

    Reply
  11. Lynn Richards says

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    unbelievable!!!! your husband is awesome at what he does. great job-
    xo
    lynn

    Reply
  12. alison says

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    you did a remarkable job…love love love these countertops and they look like they cost $7000! beautiful…thanks for sharing!

    blessings,

    alison
    stuff and nonsense

    Reply
  13. Shabby Soul says

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    Your concrete counter tops are awesome!!

    Reply
  14. Becky says

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    I love that you added black to the mixture. We are hoping to do concrete in our kitchen soon.

    Reply
  15. Melissa says

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    I love this idea! I wish I could borrow your hubs now to re-do my countertops! I would love the concrete! Thanks for sharing and nice job on the photo taking!

    Reply
  16. Karen says

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    The counters look amazing. That was a big job, but you guys nailed it. I’m now following, I’d love it if you would come by for a visit.

    Reply
  17. AllieMakes! says

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    Holy Moly Lady! I am so jealous! I have been threeatening my father for ages that he was gonna do this for my mom, as he is a concrete mason… Now he has NO excuse!! LOL
    You should come link this up to my weekly Thursday through Sunday Making It With Allie Link Party! I think it would make a Fabulous addition!
    AllieMakes.Blogspot.com

    Reply
  18. Esther Lynn says

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    I am obsessed i love them!! Thank you so much for sharing. I will be sharing on y blog today FYI…

    http://createthelifeyourlllove.blogspot.com/

    Reply
  19. AllieMakes! says

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    I printed this post out and put it in my father’s inbox! LOL
    Thanks for linking up to Making It With Allie! I can’t wait to see what you have for next week!
    AllieMakes.Blogspot.com

    Reply
  20. kristy.lynn @ kristy.makes says

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    WOW. i love concrete counter tops & always thought they were so expensive so never even considered it… this is just fantastic!

    thanks for sharing! hope you enjoy them! 🙂

    Reply
  21. Terry Stone says

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    OMG! I have been wanting concrete countertops forever and thought they were way out of my price range-THANK YOU!!! They are lovely and have revitalized my dream of having them in my kitchen!

    Reply
  22. Terri says

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    Wow…they are beautiful!

    Reply
  23. Ann @ makethebestofthings says

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    Most excellent tutorial and they look great! You have almost given me the courage to try this.

    Reply
  24. House Revivals says

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    Your counter tops are gorgeous! You and your hubby did an outstanding job — they look completely professional!
    ~Amanda

    Reply
  25. Jenn says

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    Wow, thanks so much for sharing! I don’t think my hubby would be up for the task, but I sure am going to try to talk him into it!

    Reply
  26. Ellie says

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    I love how your counters turned out! Thanks for the step by step and all the pictures. New follower!

    Reply
  27. shabbylisaw says

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    Does your hubby want to come by my house and do mine? He did a fabulous job!

    Reply
  28. Jacque says

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    those look great! i know the hardest part about any REmodel is the waiting game….i have no patience!

    Reply
  29. Hi, I'm Suz!! says

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    Dawn – – I’m your newest follower!! I love this project and the end result!! I posted your project on my blog. Please come visit and grab a button!!

    Hugs ~~ Suz

    inspiringcreativeness.blogspot.com

    Reply
  30. ⚜ ↁℯℬℬᴵℰ⚜ says

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    Holy Toledo, that is amazing! What a great tutorial too. Thanks Dawn for joining the newbie party. Have fun!~

    Reply
  31. Pam @ Our Adventures in Home Improvement says

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    Hi Dawn,

    I am SO impressed!! Those countertops are FABULOUS!

    I’m here from Debbiedoo’s Newbie party and am your newest follower. I hope you’ll come by and visit my new blog too.

    Have a great day.
    Pam

    Reply
  32. Donnie says

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    Wow, you did a fantastic job. Very stylish.

    Reply
  33. Vicki says

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    Cool!! We are re-doing our kitchen this summer and want to do Concrete Counters. This post will certainly help our project. Thanks for the info.
    Now following you~
    ~Vicki~

    Reply
  34. Hi, I'm Suz!! says

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    Hey, Dawn –

    I got your email. Not sure why you couldn’t get to my blog, but here’s the link (I hope!!)

    http://inspiringcreativeness.blogspot.com/2011/02/inspiring-projects.html

    You may have to copy and then paste it in your browser search bar.

    Have a great week. You’re getting some awesome comments on your countertop. As well you should!!

    Hugs ~~ Suz

    http://www.inspiringcreativeness.blogspot.com

    Reply
  35. Farmer's Wyfe says

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    That’s fantastic! Wish I could have those made!! Super neato!!

    Reply
  36. Daniella says

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    WOW! That is awesome! I love how they turned out!
    xxDaniella

    Reply
  37. AshTreeCottage says

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    I love concrete counter tops. What a great job!!

    Love,
    Susan and Bentley
    xxoo

    Reply
  38. Theresa says

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    those look great!! I found you at Debbies newbie party! 🙂 and I am your newest follower.

    Reply
  39. Amy @MaisonDecor says

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    found you at Kims WUW party. These are incredible. How brave you and the hubs were to do this!! I do a lot of DIY projects, but this takes the cake. They came out awesome! I wonder how hard it would be to do this in a finished home on a renovation. Also, I wondered how you made the form around the sink, as it is curved…was that hard?

    Reply
  40. Allyson Pecilunas says

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    What an awesome job!! I just found your blog and am now your newest follower. Come check me out if you get a chance.

    Noplacelikehomeally.blogspot.com

    Reply
  41. A Vintage Green says

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    Incredible. What a great husband you have too. I just found your blog.
    – Joy

    Reply
  42. Catherine says

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    Amazing! Good to know it takes 30 days, too, wow! (Found you via Just a Girl)

    Reply
  43. Kimra says

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    omg, i’ve always loved concrete counters. i can’t believe yall were able to them yourselves. so jelly!

    Reply
  44. Corn in my Coffee-Pot says

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    How VERY adventurous!
    30 day?
    Y’all deserve a pat on the back for a job well done.
    Good job!

    Reply
  45. Santa's Gift Shoppe and Ideas says

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    Hi
    Just wanted to let you know that I “ Featured” you on Santa’s Gift Shoppe Blog Hop today for your great project & inspiration! Be sure to grab the “I was featured” on Santa’s Gift Shoppe Button/Code for your sidebar! You deserve it! Thanks so much..If you’re not a follower already we’d love for you to join us…Have a WONDERFUL Week!!
    Barb

    Reply
  46. Rhiannon says

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    AH-MAY-ZING!!! this is exactly what we want, but i have to say i dont have a handy hubby hes more mechanical! LOL

    Reply
  47. [email protected] says

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    did you add any re-bar to the counter before you poured in the concrete? Back before concrete was really popular we had it in our home and I remember the guy that did it laid re-bar first before he poured. I just wondered if that was an unessisary step he did. I’d love to Do It Myself one day because the minute it became popular the price trippled!!! It was crazy (all to say I didn’t have the $ to do it in the next home we built!)LOVE your look, they turned out awesome.

    Reply
  48. Remodelaholic says

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    I am totally planning on concrete counter tops! I love how yours turned out! I would be SO happy if you would consider writing a special guest post about this project for my blog Remodelaholic. Please let me know if you are interested, and I will send you the details!

    Thanks,
    Cassity

    Reply
  49. Inspire Me Heather says

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    Awesome post!!! I’ve always wanted to do concrete and if we ever do – I’m going to follow everything you say to do! Oh, I linked this to my countertops post today so you just might have more people over here having a look!

    Reply
  50. Anonymous says

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    WOW! They are amazing! Hubby and I may have to do this in our own kitchen! LOVE THE LOOK!

    Reply
  51. Lori says

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    Love the look. came over from Debbiedo’s.

    Reply
  52. Connie says

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    love your concrete counter tops! We made ours too but it’s a lot smaller. Newest follower.

    Reply
  53. Sakshi ChemSciences says

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    Counter look amazing! this post gives the idea about pour the concrete on plywood surface..Such a lovely things share by this article to renovate ourself.

    Reply
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