seaweed-350The Black's Beach Floors evolved from a conversation between the homeowner and Tom Ralston as they were discussing what would happen if a fierce storm hit the Santa Cruz Beach homes. Ralston suggested that there would be remnants of seaweed strewn about on the floors and the rest is TRC interior floor history. The homeowner, a sailor, took his boat out and harvested seaweed from the Monterey Bay and used pieces to make molds that were in turn used to make stamps. TRC only had 3/8" space for concrete thus an engineered cement was used. TRC built catwalks to emboss the seaweed into the quick drying topping mix; the seaweed was then carefully stained with 2-different brown colors delivering a very authentic looking piece of Monterey Bay seaweed. The remainder of the floors were stained a combination of green acid stains to mimic the Monterey Bay. Read more about it in CONCRETE Moves Uptown-San Jose Mercury News July 2011, Jan 2011 Concrete Decor-Project Profile and June 2007 Concrete Decor - "Special Effects With Concrete Stains Tips and Tricks that will Help Artisans Get Creative.