The Ultimate Wine Cellar Finally, after two years of planning and many renditions the client has finally pulled the trigger and put down a deposit.In the same week another more eager client with an even bigger wine cellar pulled the trigger as well.That's two massive wine cellars back to back that will be covered in this new series.I'm totally stok...
November 6, 2017 by Todd Gilmore ISCS and Prezi big presence at Dreamforce 2017 If you're in town for Dreamforce 2017, keep an eye out for ISCS and Prezi. Prezi CEO, Peter Arvai is presenting with Jason Katz, Story Supervisor at Pixar, about how big screen trends are inspiring people to do business bigger, better, and bolder. Included in their pre...
Posted on November 2, 2017 ISCS Welcomes Nathan Giffin Nathan Giffin joins ISCS as head trainer for vertical decorative concrete, foam core construction and safety. Nathan has been sculpting decorative concrete since 1998 and in 2007 he launched his own firm Vertical Artisans as a means of educating contractors around the world. In add...
Should I Use Paint or Stains When Coloring Vertical Decorative Concrete? By Nathan Giffin of Vertical Artisans This is a tough topic to talk about.There are many angles to this conversation but I will offer up my experience over the last two decades and hopefully you will walk away with some understanding on the topic. When I first started my caree...
It's the Marketing team that gets the consumer to the ticket booth. By Jody Smith I was asked by Nathan Giffin to share some thoughts on how important internet marketing is with his members of Vertical Artisans. I enjoy talking about the way I have marketed my own businesses over the years and created many brands along the way. In 2007...
GoingCoastalWeb.com offers something different to the world of decorative concrete. Going Coastal Web is a business that offers all kinds of advertising and creatives. These are all created from the view of a decorative concrete artist. The owner Jody Smith owns and operates a decorative concrete business called Coastal Rock Productions and ...
SALES MISTAKES THAT COULD BE COSTING YOU MILLIONS by Thomas Nestor There's a truism that every sales professional knows all too well. The longer the sales cycle, the bigger the risk. When I worked for Tony Robbins, we were trained in the Law of Diminishing Intent… or what we called LODI. Basically, the longer the sales process, the l...
As a decorative concrete trainer I have seen many people take courses and learn a great deal about vertical decorative concrete over the last decade.They come from all walks of life which was a great surprise to me personally as I was under the belief that most people interested in the craft would be from the decorative concrete realm.However, thi...
Whats started out as a challenge with a local landscaper turned into a wonderful opportunity to make a masterpiece. The clients want a Mickey Mouse shaped patio environment with accompanying seat walls. Introduce Hardscape Systems. This project was started and the final sealer was applied on the third day within 2 hours. They a...
Just so you know the video footage of what we have accomplished at the WOC event is being edited and will be posted in the CORE course on Vertical Artisans
This Blog post is for those of you who want a early overview of the process.
First Set out your foam sub straights.
Walttools Releases Their New Ultra Performance Concrete Bond Coating Mix
Walttools is announcing the availability of Structure Coat, their new concrete bond coating mix for use in the decorative concrete arena as the ultimate product for reinforced scratch coat applications.
"It is an excellent structural coating. Whether I shoot it or lay it up by hand, one half inch is as tough as nails. My structure is sound and ready for my carve coat", says Nathan Giffin of Vertical Artisans
Morris, Illinois (PRWEB) October 24, 2014
Structure Coat made its first public debut at the 2014 Concrete Décor show in Ft. Worth Texas last month in the hands of Nathan Giffin of Vertical Artisans. This product is designed to offer the contractor a highly reinforced base mix, ideally used as a scratch coat for application of a decorative vertical concrete overlay such as their Tru Pac admix, cultured stone and other stone veneers. It excels as a bond coat on structural foam and EPS foam, but also on cement board, clean concrete, and other related surfaces without the need for a bonding agent. Structure Coat was engineered for superior strength and water resistance that far exceeds traditional mortars used in that capacity.
It can be applied via hand or proper concrete pump/spray application. Additional applications for this product is that it serves well as a high strength patching compound.
Structure Coat will be available through select decorative concrete supply distributors.
Dan Sawatzky's company–Imagination Corporation–creates a land of whimsical wonder with concrete, colors, and creativity. Just completed is the Cultus Lake Adventure Park in B.C, Canada, and it has opened to rave reviews.
Dan Sawatzky of Imagination Corporation in Chilliwack, B.C. Canada has a company mantra: “We simply do not do things like everyone else.” That may sound a bit lofty, maybe overstated, but after a few minutes of taking in the whimsical wonders on his company website, anyone will certainly come to the conclusion that his mantra is wholly understated. Imagination Corporation is in the business of creating wonders, true landmarks, if you will. From signs and small structures to whole amusement parks, their goal is to create 3D environments that will let the imagination run wild.
Their latest completed project is nothing short of earning accolades of wonder. One of the biggest “wonders” is that they do much of their magical creation with concrete–yes concrete, that boring gray stuff walked on by everyone, every day. In this case, this special concrete was a specific mix design from Walttools, a decorative concrete supply manufacturer that specializes in the formulation of carveable concrete mixes. One may say that most construction is made from concrete anyway, so why is this notable? It is not that the construction was done with concrete in as much as in what methods the concrete was used and the manipulative artistry involved.
The Cultus Lake Adventure Park, Cultus Lake British Columbia, Canada was a 10-month project in which the Sawatzky crew used TRU PAC X (a specialty concrete add mix) to perform their artistic transormations. "Our first order(to try the product) was for 150 bags and the first day we put it into use we were converted," wrote Sawatzky. "I placed a second order for 600 bags that same day. It allowed our newer people to apply the concrete like our seasoned veterans, and our veterans to work their pure magic. The ten-month project is now complete and turned out fabulous.” What Sawatzky and his crew can do with this concrete is amazing. It is nothing short of an art medium and this talented crew or artisans can certainly show that off.
Almost every structure to be seen at this family amusement park was covered with carved and colored concrete. His crew gives caricature-like life to inanimate objects with intricate design details throughout the park and will provide a visitor a great view in any direction.
I love to teach Living Tree Art. I just didn’t know it yet, that is, until I got to Lorane, Oregon and the West Coast Training Center Class No 3 put on by Nathan Giffin of VerticalArtisans.com. What a great experience that started with my stay at a bed and breakfast called the Blue Rooster. Let’s start with a video and some photos of what a magnificent place this is to visit.
On the way here with Nathan Giffin and Jody Smith, we saw about a dozen elk strutting across a field like this. What else can I say. The Blue Rooster sits on the historic Oregon Trail in a most beautiful valley. The proprietor, Nancy Pelton, is the former owner of a restaurant that ranked in the top 25 in Wisconsin. I’m not sure if restaurants are rated at four or five stars, but all of the breakfasts at the Blue Rooster were definitely five star. Lots of great chats and interesting history. I didn’t want to leave. I asked Nancy if she would adopt me. Here’s a picture of the barn built in 1880. This was erected back in the days when neighbors would help neighbors to do barn building. We may be going back to that someday, soon, I hope.
I was talking to Don at Walt Tools the other day
And we began to discuss several problems in the indusrty .... so here is a FAQ on their Tru pak line....
I will add comments in RED
What are the differences between the Trupac X and Trupac V?
Tru Pac V is a 20 lb ad pac that is added to a 60 lb bag of TYPE N MORTAR MIX. It is a traditional vertical mix in that it is designed to be applied from 1-4 inches thick, is considered lightweight and has a long working time. It is recommended for both indoor and outdoor with a proper water proofer. It should always be applied into a proper scratch coat.
Tru Pac X is a very versatile, high strength 16 lb ad pac that is added to an 80 lb bag of TYPE S MORTAR MIX. It can be applied from approximately ¼ inch up to 4 inches on properly profiles scratch coats. It is non-lightweight, resin and fiber modified and used both indoor and outdoor. Its uses range from decorative vertical, countertops, furniture and some flatwork overlayment.