White Concrete Desk Project

Since the last project was black, time to do something white. We built a closet in our guest bedroom and left room between the window and the closet for a built-in desk. The room is green with orange accents and blond birch trim. The plan is to build a white concrete countertop for the desk with exposed blue and green recycled glass.

Below is the black fireplace with the slate tile and new carpet.

Wood strips were secured to the studs to support the plywood top and eventually the concrete. There is a hole in the back right for cords. The countertop will be 1 1/2" thick and cap the front to end up flush with the wall. Truly white ground concrete is a difficult animal. First, you have to use white cement. Second, traditional aggregates have color and tend to make the concrete grey or tan, so you have to use something else. This mixture will be a mortar (no coarse aggregate) and have white cement with pure silica sand. Silica sand is often used as ashtray sand. Some metakaolin clay (a bone white SCM) will add strength. Blue and green bottles will be crushed and laid into the surface. It should produce an interesting effect.