How-To Make Concrete Trivets

Project and photography by Brittni Mehlhoff of Paper and Stitch

It's the season of sweet potato casserole and big turkey dinners, so why not make a few trivets to protect delicate surfaces while holiday entertaining (or any time of year). These textured concrete trivets are easy to make and you can customize the pattern with common household items.

What You'll Need:

• circular kraft box lids (like mine) or soft plastic container
• olive oil or cooking spray
• rapid setting cement mix (I use one from Amazon)
• something to create texture (like bubble wrap of flexible tubing)
• old rag or paper towels
• container for mixing 
• disposable spoon for mixing
• water

2. Mix concrete with water, according to the packaging instructions. Typically, you’ll need 4 parts concrete to 1 part water.

Note: Rapid setting concrete starts to set up relatively fast, so be sure to move quickly while adding water and mixing.

3. Pour or scoop the mix into the molds you coated with olive oil or cooking spray in the first step. Gently tap the container to get rid of bubbles and smooth out the surface.

4. Then, as it's starting to set up, add pieces of tubing or bubble wrap on top, as shown in the photo. Be sure to press them down into the concrete a bit, so you'll get an indention. Let sit for 3-5 minutes, then remove the bubble wrap or tubing and allow the concrete to fully set up according to the instructions on the packaging. If you’re using a rapid setting concrete, like mine, it should be completely dry in 1-3 hours (depending on the temperature, etc).

5. Once the concrete has completely set and is hard to the touch, snip a few lines into the top of the lid ridge and pull the lid away. If using a soft plastic container, pinch the sides of the container inward to loosen up the trivet than turn it over and it should fall right out.

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