Thanks for the welcome, Ken. Concrete IS a fascinating substance with which to work. So facinating, in fact, that some of us womenfolks are becoming "hairy legged" because we no longer have time to shave our legs between pours!

I think having a sense of humor must be a requirement to enjoy concrete. That was hilarious about becoming hairy legged. I am glad my wife does nothing with concrete except listen to my whining!! Thank you all for giving us some real enjoyment. :p

[ July 27, 2002: Message edited by: ken ]

You guys are too funny. I would just like to add my legs only get hairy in the wintertime when I wear alot of pants. (That's a girls secret just like why we all go to the bathroom at the same time.)Just thought you should know. But anyway...I bought the limestone because I thought it would give a nicer color. I am trying to avoid that parking lot gray. What I REAlly am trying to achieve is something like that creamy white chocolate. Do you share recipes too? Or is that like asking for Aunt Mable's blue ribbon cheesecake recipe that she'll never part with?
Hmm.. I think I'd better get a signature now too...

Love the signature! Yes, I'll be glad to share, but just like Aunt Mable's cheesecake, a lot of making things come out like the original recipe is HOW it's made. I don't pretend to have a corner on the "great recipe" market. Mine is very similar to the ones posted on Cole Sonafrank's website and the one contained in the manuals from Silicon Folly. I'd strongly suggest that you download those as well as mine.

As for the grey color - the mix you are using is undoubtably based on grey portland cement. Portland cement comes in grey and white. For art purposes many people prefer the white because it can easily be tinted with a rainbow of pigments (again, available from Butler's) which are mixed in with the dry stuff before the liquid ingredients are added. I really have no preference one over the other. I find that with the formula I use, the castings come out a really light grey, which I personally don't find objectionable, but other folks seem to think it looks like caca! To each their own! Sometimes white portland can be a little hard to find, since it's primarily used for masonry & pool work. I would not expect to find it at the local home building chain store, but have heard that some folks DO find it there in their particular area of the country. It took me a couple of months to find it in my area, but that's because I was trying to avoid driving to the big city for a $10 bag of cement! Since I was new to the game (and still am), I was perfectly content to use grey portland for the time being. I still use it for some statuary work and when I want a more rustic look to a piece. It's only a little less expensive than the white, so cost isn't a real factor.

I'll get you the recipe, but it will be later on this evening (or the wee hours). Do remember that experimentation is a good thing - my doors are held open by, and the potholes in my driveway are filled with many experiments! Do try to read up on the process a little, because mixing concrete in small batches is an art in itself. Because of the small volume, chemical changes occur much faster, little mistakes become major malfunctions, etc. Expect some less than perfect results until you "get the hang" of it. Don't be discouraged if things don't always turn out perfectly at first - there is a learning curve with this. I have learned from trial and error (LOTS of errors) that sometimes it's better to think a project through and study the prior results before pouring again. Like I said before, don't experiment on a project that will break your heart if it doesn't turn out as planned. Patience is the key here.

Gotta run. Some of those leaves I have been eyeing are just the right size for imortalization by concrete and are "calling" me. Got to make hay while the sun shines! Talk to you later.

I got a chance to cruise those sites and I'm glad to have gotten them. When I would search before I would get alot of commercial stuff that did me no good. I will take your advice on practicing on small things. Baby's sleeping so I gotta get out there and try another....I may also experiment with some top staining or verdi gris maybe...
I saw the forum about the leaves also and it peaked my interest, let us know how it goes.
Hopefully sharing some of this info will eliminate some boo-boos maybe I can pass some experience on to someone in the future. I would like to check out your recipe though, thanks for the good feedback! Gotta go--happy casting!!

Haven't forgotten to email you my recipe - having to take some time out to make $$$. I just hate when real life interferes with my concrete life!! Keep checking - I'll send it soon. In the meantime, do print out those manuals from Silicon Folly & read them a few times. Although I personally don't do things exactly as it says there, it's a great starting point. Take care & I'll be writing you soon!

could someone please email those sites to me?

Hey Ken - RU out there? Can we move this "topic" from "Concrete Additives" to something more relevant, like "Stepping Stones & Statuary" or "Concrete Art"? The questions/answers are good, but not very "findable" especially since most of this forum serves folks in the Bigtime Concrete Industry. I learn a lot from those pros, but the amount of concrete folks like me use is minute, and the problems are different. I'm not even sure that this topic belongs in Decorative/Architechtural Concrete - seems like that refers to patios and concrete floors, which, again, are very different from the small-time artsy stuff some of us do. Hey I even read that someone out there is making concrete jewellry! Sure would like to see some of that!!! I picture itty bitty "This Mud's For You" trucks on a bracelet...LOL
By the way, I really enjoy this board. Despite the engineering stuff that is way over my dyscalculate head, I learn a lot here. Thanks.
Beth

Hi Tony - Sure. Didn't mean to be so rude. I'll post 'em for everybody and I hope that others "lurking" out there will post some new ones that I don't know about, too! The sites to which I referred in my post to Laura are dedicated to the stained glass stepping stone arts, which is not to imply that the information there is limited to those using glass in stones. Folks make all sorts of things from concrete. I do hope that if you have any questions, you'll bring them here, too, as this is a fresh environment for open discussion and everyone learns from everyone else, yaknowwhatImean.

First, I referred to a supplier who specializes in "stone" stuff. They are Butler Craft Supplies and their web address is: http://www.butlerscraftsupplies.com/
Their website is messed up, but they have most of their important items/prices posted. Email them if you need something you don't see or have questions. They're very good about responding and are nice, helpful folks.

The next links are other websites/boards dedicated to making art stones/objects. LOTS of good info, as well as ideas.

Silicon Folly is a website for stained glass artists and stonemakers. The link below takes you to the main page where you can find both forums (glass & stone) as well as lots of info (look at the "Manuals") and links to other relevant places. Their gallery shows nice stuff, but is not up to date. Many of the folks use Picturetrail albums to share their work. There is a "formula" for stepping stone concrete mix contained in "The Manuals" that many folks use. http://www.dmentd.com/folly/

Cole Sonafrank did a ton of research on the subject of making stepping stones and his site is a wealth of info about this art. He is a busy man and hasn't updated his site in a while, but the information and links are fabulous. His "formula" is the basis for many others who came after. http://www.elvesofester.com/mosaics.html

Steve Cole has a website and forum for stones, also. One can order a very handy spreadsheet from him that calculates quantities of ingredients for several "recipes" from the amount of mix needed. I found this to be an invaluable tool as I can't consistantly multiply & divide worth a flip. I trust spreadsheet calculations - I don't trust mine!!! You can also get to his forum (which, sadly, lost all its old messages a couple of weeks ago...) from the main page of his website. http://www.colebrothers.com/

Those were the main places I used when I started making this stuff (notice, I said "main" - it's a BIG web out there...). I used information from all of them, but I don't worship at any particular alter. I did a side-by-side comparison of as many formulas as I could find before coming up with my own mix. Same with techniques. I looked for commonalities among folks working in this medium, tried them, then made my own observations from my successes and failures. Still learning, still observing!

That should get you started, but don't be a stranger here! Come back and let us know what you find.
Good luck.

Hello Beth - Thank you, I create faux rocks and faux rock waterfalls. At times we make small waterfalls that can be transported, so we are always experimenting with addatives to make them stronger and lightweight. I hope these discussions will thrive in this area. In the past they always seem to dwindle away.