Interior Designer Swayed by Convincing Concrete

The 2004 Parade of Homes project is located at the foot of the Wasatch Mountain Range, on the eastside of Draper City in the Salt Lake Valley. The Steeple-Chase subdivision is an upper-end community with breathtaking views of the valley. Stone Passion had the opportunity to create and install concrete countertops and a fireplace for one of the homes in this subdivision. Here's the story of how they got involved and what they ended up doing.

The project's interior designer, Sarah Eidet was originally skeptical of using concrete in the home, until she was introduced to Stone Passion president, Bret Reimann. "Rick Scherbel of Architectural Cabinets told Sarah that she needed to meet us," recalls Reimann. "So he basically kidnapped her and forced her to look at our concept of concrete countertops and products." At first Eidet was reluctant to use concrete at all, and only willing to consider the possibility for a smaller bathroom in the basement. However, after meeting Reimann and hearing first-hand about his development of concrete countertops and viewing his samples, she completely changed her outlook and design plan for the home. Convinced of the benefits and possibilities of using concrete, Eidet wanted concrete elevated and used throughout the home. She wanted all of the countertops and the main fireplace to be made out of concrete. "This abrupt change put all the design issues on a fast track," says Reimann. "Since the project was already underway, we had to work night and day to get it done."

The main feature in the kitchen is the island with the serpentine French edge. Carved corbels add to the overall beauty of this piece. The island also features a hammered copper sink inlayed into the countertop and base trim adds to the impressive look. Colors used included golden tan, earthy brown and light travertine cream. The option of altering the standard colors is one of the benefits that Sarah enjoyed. This flexibility allowed her to dial-in to her desired look for the kitchen.

Each of the bathroom counters was designed to be unique but complementary to each room. Each featured a different style of edge, from pitched or modified bullnose to a custom French edge. Cast with integral sinks these vanity tops have the look and feel of handcarved stone.

The laundry room countertop was enhanced with a custom rope edge detail

In the laundry room the contractors were able to have a little fun with a custom rope edge treatment. This old world look captured the essence of artisan stone work and helped to tie in the cabinet design.

The main fireplace area needed an old world stone look. To accomplish this, a French provincial fireplace design was chosen.

Stone Passion
Salt Lake City, UT
Phoenix, AZ

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