Michael Davidson wrote: >or the most excellent Mike Edison right here on our list serv; how bout it Mike.< Wow, how can I NOT respond to that sort of challenge! It's true that we have seen our fair share of custom/aesthetic concrete repair projects. Currently we have 67 "standard" concrete formulations in our custom repair mortar line (got curious myself and counted), with new ones added as needed. Our overall repair mortar line for various types of masonry is now something like 900 formulas and colors. We generally work from submitted samples, but for those with little time and less stringent requirements, our dealers around the country have cured sample chips of the 30 or so most commonly used formulations. For custom matching, send samples and correspondance to Edison Coatings at 25 Grant Street, Waterbury, CT 06704. What's the sparkly stuff? Quite possibly mica, which would appear silver to grey under low power magnification. It could also be calcareous stone, as we have found little bits of marble in calcareous sand can be very shiny after the cement cover weathers away slightly, as we have noticed in our marble patches after five years or so of natural northeastern weather exposure. Under the microscope it is clear that these particles are white, not silver, and it's just the smooth surface that is reflecting sunlight. I suppose oyster shells could do the same thing-- let's face it, the composition isn't that different! Mike E.