Ideas for Adding Decorative Touches Decorative Finishes Today, colorful concrete is available in more colors and textures than ever. Integral coloring admixtures provide beautify durable color throughout the slab and can be placed with a range of finishes. Concrete can be troweled smooth for beautiful interiors or finished with a variety of textures, such as salt-finished, swirled, or heavily brushed, for added interest and slip-resistance. The surface appearance can be softened with sandblasting or acid etching or a more customized look can be achieved by exposing coarse aggregates, scoring, staining, using shake-on color hardeners and release agents, or imprinting (stamping) to resemble other materials like brick, tile, wood, and stone. Float and trowel finishes- Patterns can be made on the concrete, such as swirls, or different size arcs. The texture created can be coarse, medium, or smooth depending on the tool used to impart the pattern. Wood floats create coarser textures. Metal floats or steel trowels create medium or smooth finishes. Broom finishes- Broom finishes can be light or coarse depending on the bristles of the broom you choose. This is not a fancy finish but provides a non-slip surface. Rock salt- Water softener salt crystals 1/8" to 3/8" in size are broadcast onto the fresh concrete. A roller is then used to press the salt crystals into the concrete. The surface is later washed, dissolving the salt and leaving small holes for a decorative look. Learn More Concrete Lifestyles can help if you’re interested in decorative concrete patios, concrete pool decks, decorative concrete floors and concrete driveways. Each of these can be accomplished with more than just gray concrete, such as stamped concrete, stained concrete, pattern concrete, and colored concrete. Contact us and learn how a decorative concrete driveway can cost less than other alternatives.