Concrete Bars

There are many reasons to choose concrete as a surface. It is very durable, stain resistant and completely design specific! Bars are great because there is a lot of freedom for design and to explore something different. Especially commercial applications where bar/restaurant owners are looking to draw attention and interest. I have preview pictures of a residential bar we just finished, designed by Faux Real Designs. The bars are concrete, the shelf separators are made of concrete and the lit panels are also made of concrete. We used our unique color inlay technique that won us a Best Decorative Finish award back in 2008. Not shown are the coin collection from all over the world in the bar top along with fiber optics.




I am including many bar pictures because they are such a point of interest and if you are looking for some unique ideas here are just a few.













Notice the bag tags, divot forks, sand trap sink, and antique golf clubs used for beer taps and towel bars!

Their Sucess set in Concrete

Published by the Daily Record
Since it was last featured in this section two years ago, J&M Lifestyles has continued to grow and achieve success.

Owners Michelle Radley and Jeff Kudrick have built a reputation for innovative and exciting designs, specializing in creating home furnishings and other home elements out of concrete. Their services include, but are not limited to bar tops, counter tops, vanities, sinks, shower pans, shower and fireplace surrounds, wall panels, furniture, entry surrounds, interior and exterior moldings, lighting, water features, aquariums, design research, period design, modern design and more.


Recently, J&M was awarded the Best in Show and Best Decorative Finish awards in the 2010 CHENG Concrete Circle of Distinction Design Challenge. The company's designs also have been seen on HGTV's "Dear Genevieve." Future TV appearances include "Man Cave" and "Royal Pains."

Why did you start the business?
Michelle Radley: t Love of design and functionality that concrete as a medium allows.

If you could do it again, what would you do differently?
Nothing.

What's the best business advice your have ever received?
Always be willing to adapt.

What personality trait helps you the most?
Commitment and hard-working.

What's the most difficult part of the job?
Finding enough time to balance production and creativity.

The easiest?
Creating new and different functional things.

What's your least expensive product or service? The most expensive?
What we do is all custom work.

Describe your most unusual customer, job or work experience.
Creating an alligator pond in a residential area.

When you leave the business, what will you do?
Start another one.

Briefly, tell us why customers should shop here.
Very experienced, highly engineered custom creations. Everything is unique and different. We enjoy the whole process and building relationships. We engage clients from beginning to end.

A New Spin on GFRC

Article by Concrete Whisperer

Location: New Jersey

Project: Remodeling a Master bathroom with Spa

Installation by: J&M Lifestyles

Material Supplier: SureCrete Design

Total Sq Ft: 80 sq ft



Products Used: Xtreme GFRC Face Mix, Xtreme GFRC Backer, Xtreme Slurry, ARS 400, custom shower drain, blum drawer slides

So put yourself in this homeowner’s shoes. You have gutted your master bathroom with the intention of creating a European style oasis. Your search begins for the right look, color and design for your countertops, sinks and bath surround. As you exhaust yourself looking at granite and other natural stone you realize nothing is matching the look in your mind.

Six months have passed and well, tensions are rising over getting this project finished. And thats when they found the perfect medium to custom create the design in their minds. The solution was GFRC, glass fiber reinforced concrete. Immediately they fell in love with the diversity of designs, colors and could now create a functional master bath with clean lines and useful applications. Let’s t take a look at how this project unfolded.


The team at J&M Lifestyles, in New Jersey, had the task of integrating the stand-up shower, tub surround and match that with the countertop and other surfaces in the room. After templating each area, they realized that they were in need of material that could help in making this design come to life by reducing the amount of seams that would be visible. J&M Lifestyles choose the Xtreme Series GFRC mix design.

They began the process by creating their mold and casting surface. Incorporating a custom color blend from SureCrete with the Xtreme Series GFRC Face mix, they sprayed the cream coat on to all the surfaces. After letting that setup for about 10 minutes they followed behind the candy shell surface with the same custom color mixed in the Xtreme Series Backer mix. This material provides the structural and flexural strength to the ultra smooth, pinhole free surface of the GFRC face coat.

With each piece finally casted and made, it was allowed to sit and cure. The Xtreme Series GFRC is the ideal mix design for Glass fiber reinforced concrete users, as it allows for a faster cure and demold time, as little as 6 hours. And delivers the ability to begin the next stage of design, secondary coloring or sealing within 8-10 hours after pouring. Additional positive attributes of Xtreme GFRC is it’s ability to save time and labor on each project by allowing you to maximize the tables you cast on and increasing the down time between the next station or stage.

The next important step was to apply the appropriate sealer. With many quality choices out there, the team at J&M Lifestyles chose ARS 400. A break through in nano-technology sealers, ARS 400 is an excellent GFRC sealer, and has the ability to penetrate and bond to the almost 11,000 PSI surface of the Xtreme GFRC.

The installation of the precast GFRC panels and GFRC countertop vanity was down with multiple products. The vanity was installed with standard wall mount bracket. The GFRC wall panels for the tub surround were installed with an acrylic mastic.