I have seen a program where they teached to do so. It was a spray and its' name is something like Plasti-Kote.

In the UK they have a word for this, but I can't think of what it is. It was, for a time, a popular home exterior finish in certain areas.

I'd like to suggest that if you can't find this, you might want to try (I think it's called) the River Rock collection from Ralph Lauren, which has this sort of stone look, but it's NOT really all that pebbly.

I've used it before and I really like it. You'll have to give it more than one coat, and don't be surprised that the first coat will look terrible, but the second coat will make it all come together and look nice.

For concrete, it's called "exposed aggregate." It has to be done when the concrete is first placed. What they do is spray a retarder on the surface of the concrete so that the top layer of cement/water/sand does not set. When the rest of the slab sets, they spray off the unset cement/water/sand. What remains at the surface is the larger sand and the gravel, which is held in place by the by the set mortar (water/sand/cement) below.

The method to create the surface on the planter above may be from just smearing an adhesive on the surface of the planter and pressing in the pebbles (sort of like sprinkling glitter on glue). They do this to concrete slabs to make them look new again. This is probably what you want. Could DYI, but I could see it getting messy w/o some practice.

i was just so excited that i had a "good question" ;)

bibikonn and curtis, plasti-kote and paint effects seem like a good alternative if i cant do this real-pebble-in-cement thing, thank you!

jon_b, ahhh i see, hmmm i wonder if this is even possible for the covering of a pole then... cuz its round all over...

any idea on suppliers of little pebbles for this kind of a project?

My stepfather was involved in this business. It's epoxy and little river rocks and is mixed in something like a cement mixer and then hosed onto the cement.

It's horrible stuff. He would come home from work reeking and it was all stuck to his boots. I reckon the epoxy's not great for you at all.

You can also get a pourable kind of epoxy. It does not set up as fast and you can pour it over the surface. It's awful.

Yup - the planter is concrete with a pebble aggregate. Not something easily applied to an existing condition. Aggregate is typical in many concrete paving situations. The exposed stuff photos above is pretty rough and can really cut up your skin. Average pebble size for something like this is about 1/8" - 1/4".
You may want to google 'pebble mosaic' for methods of applying pebbles of surfaces and sources for pebbles.

The pebbles you see in bathrooms and spas can be purchased with an applied web backing (same stuff as used with ceramic tile) and is applied just like tile. It is pretty popular right now and should be available at Home Expo or similar. The size of the pebbles is typically pretty large - about 1" or more - and they are very smooth like river stones. This should be do-able on a round surface assuming the diameter of the curve is not too tight.

I think the word Gotham Tomato was thinking of is pebbledashing, but I can think of another less polite one!

Telly are you sure you want to live with this finish? I'm all for exposed aggregate concrete for floors and pavements, but applied as a surface finish over an existing structure pebbledashing can look like you're trying to hide something nasty (maybe this is just a British hangup, but here people are ripping it out not putting it in). Having said that I loved Michael Landy's eerie pebbledashed house in Tate Britain last year:
http://www.24hourmuseum.org.uk/exh_gfx_en/ART23026.html

I am from Toronto, Canada. There's a store here that sells pre-fabricated stone tiles called Ocean Stones. Here's the link: www.oceanstones.ca

The other option is to get a vinyl print with the stone on it (seen it on a Debbie Travis show a while back). That might be easy to get on the pillar, but probably not as nice looking as the real thing.

Try www.coverallstone.com. I've used them for several projects with good results.

They offer small pebbles and larger river rock in a lot of colors and blends. You can buy the stones mesh-mounted on 12 x 12 sheets or loose.

In Florida, we called it Chattahoochee Stone, and it is frequently found surrounding pools, since it stays cooler than most other surfaces. But according to these folks (link below), it is an epoxy-based mixture that is troweled on, not incorporated into the concrete then exposed with power washing...

http://www.stonebondconstruction.com/epoxy.htm

It also (imho) ends up looking like Rice Krispie Treats.

Whether it can applied to vertical surfaces is anyone's guess.

The spa-like river rocks or pebbles you describe are actually (larger) pebbles affixed to a backing mesh and installed like tile. Available form home improvement stores and high-enders like Ann Sacks. The trick would be finding a size of pebble tile that would wrap the pole.

I'm having a hard time picturing how this finish will end up looking as the support pole in your living room.

Have you thought about maybe covering the pole in a beautiful wood veneer instead? Or even just a nice coat of paint - maybe a high-gloss black to give it some "oomph" and style? Or nice molding at the top and bottom to make it look more like a formal column, but then painted neutral to fade away?

Somehow I just sense that the pebbly covering will not improve the "strange"ness of the pole...

Like a huge shaft of Rice Krispie Treats.

The "Chattachoochee Stone" is what I was trying to describe in the second paragraph of my earlier post. And it does look like Rice Krispie Treats.

Hello! Our Canadain Tire stores here in Toronto carry a product called, Rust-Oleum Stone Effects... (www.rustoleum.com) search their products by 'finish' and see what they've got...

the bottom of their page has an 'international' link... alternately, call up a Canadian friend and have them buy and sell it to ya.

good luck!

Since you give no clue as to the diameter, and maybe it's because I'm (originally) Southern, but I'd be wanting to wrap that pole in a column, and then add a few half-columns, or perhaps some pilasters, elsewhere in the same room. That won't really work in quite every style of home, though.

wow!

thank you all for the advice and alternatives! it has really helped me weigh my options.

to clear it up, i just like the organic look of the pebbles and i've always been very interested in textures, I thought since that area is so small that if i do get sick of it i can change it without interrupting my everyday life. the pole is only 6 inches wide.

i think i'm going to take a crack at the pebble tile though i've suddenly become very interested in concrete, it seems the tile is the most efficient for what im trying to achieve, i hope to have results to post ::crosses fingers::

and if not, i'll suck up the humility and try the painting effects that i didn't even think of!

any other ideas keep em coming, thank you!

and i have a sudden hankering for rice crispy treats...

Hello,

The item you mentioned is composed of epoxy glue and a bunch of little river rocks. In my experience it is not really super durable.

I have done the pebble effect for my kitchen backspash and shower pan by using pebble interlocking tiles and absolutely love them!

I got mine from here: Pebble Tile

I have also ordered from Natural Pebble Tile and love both of these products!

Send pictures when you get done!