Tried stamping concrete with a homemade template made from a plastic tablecloth

Honestly, I thought it would save me 40 bucks at the supply house. Laid it down on a fresh driveway in Fresno last Tuesday and it just melted into the wet mix. Ended up with this weird, wrinkly blob pattern instead of the brick look I was going for. Had to grind the whole thing down and start over with a proper mat. Has anyone else tried cheap alternatives for stamping that actually worked?

4 comments

4 Comments

haydenburns4d ago

Plastic tablecloth" - man, that brings back a memory. My cousin tried using a shower curtain liner once for a small patio pour. Looked like a nightmare straight out of a sci-fi movie, all bubbly and warped. He left it on way too long too, thinking it needed to set. We had to chip the whole thing out with a jackhammer. Sometimes you just gotta bite the bullet and get the real stuff.

sethp263d ago

@angelab62 yeah I winced too. That's a hard lesson.

angelab623d ago

Waited til I read the part about leaving the shower curtain on because he thought it needed to set and I actually winced out loud. That's the kind of mistake that haunts you for years every time you walk past that patio. Bet he's never looked at a liner the same way since.

hayden7203d ago

Any of you guys ever tried using a heavy duty tarp instead? I was thinking the thicker material might hold up better but now I'm second guessing myself after reading this.