A few weeks ago my family and I rented a house for a few nights down in Olympia, Washington so we could have a fun stay-cation with my in-laws who were visiting and my brother and sister-in-law, who live about and hour and a half away. My husband grew up in Olympia, and we love the small capitol city vibe there. We found the house (on a great discount since it was the off-season)
here.
The house had a beautiful view of the Puget Sound, and would have had a beautiful view of Mt. Ranier (if it hadn't rained all weekend-doh!).
It also had very interesting, gorgeous flooring in the kitchen and great room.
Isn't that cool? My sister-in-law and I spent some time trying to figure out what it was made of, and I finally caved and just called the owner of the property. She said that it was an epoxy cement that was troweled right over the sub-floor (including the tile that was already on the floor in the kitchen!). Then she had a local artist paint it. She said that she told him that she wanted it to look like the ocean and a sandy beach. This is what he came up with.
Ooooooo!
Ahhhhhhh!
{{Sigh!}}
On a practical note, she said it was followed with 4-5 coats of sealer. Being a beach house and a rental, it has seen lots and lots of traffic (the owner says it hosts several weddings a summer). It has been in place for seven years, and she is only now thinking it might be time for a recoat.
The downside is the cost--she said they paid $12 a square foot. Yikes. That's at least 3 times what I want to pay for flooring. And no, I didn't ask how much she paid outright--I have
some manners, after all. I did discreetly ask how the process compared in cost to other flooring options like tile and hardwood...then she dished up the details :).
Maybe I'm crazy, but this looks like a floor I could do myself. The cement is pretty smooth, but has some texture (i.e. you don't have to be a perfect cement person). Plus, there is no wrong way to paint the floor--it would probably be pretty fun. And I really love it. It is so versatile and unusual and organic-looking. The big question is: am I brave enough to pour cement on the floor and just go for it? Still mulling that one over...
