Concrete Countertops: Designs, Forms, and Finishes for the New Kitchen and Bath

This book re-invents the countertop with a single material: concrete. Although this method of building kitchen and bathroom countertops is currently very popular, not one book on the subject exists ? until now.

Enter Fu-Tung Cheng, master of design and construction. Here at last is a complete, start-to-finish book on creating concrete countertops. Cheng takes you step-by-step through the process of making a concrete countertop ? from building the mold and mixing and pouring concrete to curing, grinding, polishing, and installing the countertop.

You?ll be inspired by the 350 color photographs that bring this exciting medium to life. And you?ll discover that the possibilities for creative expression with concrete are endless. Countertops made of custom-formed, colored and finished concrete can look like marble, granite, glass or sculpture ? the look is limited only be the imagination.

Throughout the book, Cheng offers valuable troubleshooting advice and useful tips on maintaining a concrete countertop.

"Concrete Countertops will give architects and builders the know-how and confidence to draw and/or build what discerning homeowners are requesting in work surfaces these days. This is the tool they've been looking for to help bring their clients' concrete dreams into concrete reality!" Sarah Susanka, author, The Not So Big House

"Over the past decade, the most requested article from our back issues has been about making concrete countertops. And more than anybody, Fu-Tung Cheng has been the innovator calling the public?s attention to concrete as a material worthy of the finest interior detailing. This is the kind of book that will make you see a common material in a whole new way, and maybe even make you want to roll up your sleeves and play with it." Chuck Miller, editor, Fine Homebuilding

"This book celebrates the beauty of design drawn from nature...Fu-Tung Cheng demonstrates that we can bring art and creativity back home in sustainable architecture that is both timeless and elegant." Alice Waters, celebrated chef, culinary author, and owner of Chez Panisse

"It may very well be the first tell-all book on concrete. Not a typical how-to, but a lesson on capturing beauty and creating a unique concrete countertop for your home." Michele Dawson, The Concrete Network

It's hard to get excited about counter tops, and even harder to view such everyday items as works of art, but this book offers the key to doing both. With plenty of color photographs, it illustrates the possibilities of concrete as a material and countertops as an aesthetic site. What's more, it provides a beginning-to-end guide to designing, planning, constructing, and finishing concrete countertops. The book is equally as beautiful as useful. Cheng is a designer.
Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

It's hard to get excited about counter tops, and even harder to view such everyday items as works of art, but this book offers the key to doing both. With plenty of color photographs, it illustrates the possibilities of concrete as a material and countertops as an aesthetic site. What's more, it pro

In 1975 Fu-Tung purchased his home in Albany, California, just north of Berkeley. It was a "near-wreck" built in the 1880's, and Fu-Tung rebuilt the house while living in it, salvaging and recycling used materials. His experiments in his Albany "laboratory and showroom" added significantly to his firm's hands-on approach to building and design.

Fu Tung Cheng was born in Los Angeles in 1948 and grew up in Van Nuys, California in a family of artists. His mother was a color artist at the Walt Disney Studio, and three of his brothers are professional artists. Fu Tung attended UCLA, where in 1968 he won a junior-year abroad scholarship to Japan. After a year of studying Buddhism, Japanese culture and Shorinji Kenpo, in which he now holds a second-degree black belt, he transferred to the University of California, Berkeley and graduated with a B.F.A. in Fine Art in 1971.

Soon afterward he began the lifelong process of learning tai-chi, continuing his studies of the exercise/discipline with the same master for more than twenty years. He is currently the head instructor at the Wen-Wu School of Martial Arts.

His deep involvement in his own cultural heritage had a strong influence on the development of his design aesthetic.

In 1987 Fu Tung incorporated his consulting firm as Cheng Design and Construction. The company has become known nationally for its sophisticated, understated look in design. Recently Cheng's third and fourth custom homes have been built, as the company expands into providing full design services, from the ground up.

Cheng Design has won many awards, and has been featured in many publications, including the prestigious Architectural Record.

Awards

2000
American HomeStyle & Gardening Kitchen & Bath Design Contest, First Place Fisher & Paykel Design Competition, First Place

1998
Architectural Record?s Record Houses Sub-Zero Kitchen Design Competition, Second Place ASID/Sunset Design West Awards, Stellar Award

1997
Metal Construction Association Merit Award, Scholarship Award Sunset Magazine/AIA Western Home Award, Honor Award Metal Architecture Design Awards, Honorable Mention

1996
Sunset Magazine Interior Design Awards, Award for Excellence (2)

1995
Sub-Zero Kitchen Design Competition, First Place ASID Interior Design Specialty Award, First Place

1991
Northern California Home & Garden Design Achievement Award