How Sarsen Stone's National Trust range offers tiles for every style

The Italian brand Lapilli, originating from Sicily's Mount Etna, has pioneered a new approach to lava stone design, blending its ancient appeal with modern aesthetics. The brand is an offshoot of Magma Ceramiche, a company with over 40 years of experience in ceramics. Lapilli aims to elevate and enrich the lava stone from Mount Etna by transforming it into high-quality, forward-thinking products through advanced glazing techniques. These techniques enhance the stone's natural patterns and hues, moving it beyond its raw form to become a sophisticated design element while preserving its unique characteristics. Onofrio Acone, the commercial director of Lapilli, elaborates on the brand's journey and process. Magma Ceramiche began experimenting with lava stone in the late 1980s, driven by a passion for ceramics and a desire to explore new materials. Over the 1990s, they refined their skills in glazing lava stone, culminating in Lapilli's establishment as a testament to their innovation and mastery. Lava stone stands out due to its striking beauty and volcanic origin, offering high resistance to impact, foot traffic, and wear. Enameling with natural pigments not only enhances its aesthetic value but also makes it impermeable, broadening its application for various domestic and commercial uses such as flooring, wall cladding, bathroom and kitchen countertops, as well as surfaces for spas, wellness centers, and pools. The material offers a wide range of colors and decorative possibilities. The process of working with lava stone is intricate. It starts with selecting the finest blocks from the Nicolosi quarry in Sicily, followed by carefully curating flawless slabs free from impurities. The critical step is the enameling process, which is entirely manual and requires expertise, particularly in precisely dosing colors and glazes that only reveal their true hue after firing. This intricate process allows for extensive customization, with Lapilli offering bespoke services to architects and designers for creating prototypes of specific decorations and colors. Consequently, each lava stone project is inherently unique, reflecting the craftsmanship involved. Traditionally, glazed lava stone has been used for 3 cm thick slabs in kitchen and bathroom countertops. However, Lapilli has innovated with a new range of thin planks called Lava Plank, which are just 1 cm thick and can be up to 220 cm long. These planks are suitable for both indoor and outdoor flooring and cladding. Lapilli also provides non-slip and frost-resistant enamels for outdoor applications, emphasizing the preservation of the stone's natural textures and patterns through the enamel rather than fully obscuring them. This innovative application of glazed lava stone caters to the detailed demands of contemporary design, pushing the boundaries of its use in both design and architecture. #LavaStone #MagmaCeramiche #Lapilli #InnovativeMaterials #ArchitecturalDesign #InteriorDesign #SicilianCraftsmanship #SustainableMaterials #CeramicGlazing

Piatraonline, a Romanian stone brand, has introduced its new 'Raw' collection, which features natural stone tiles designed to highlight the material's inherent and rugged characteristics. This collection encompasses over 100 distinct textures, meticulously sourced from handpicked granite and marble. These versatile stone tiles are suitable for both flooring and wall applications, available in a diverse palette of earthy colors, including shades of rust, black, grey, and green. The primary objective of the 'Raw' collection is to celebrate the intrinsic beauty of natural stone, simultaneously infusing spaces with a sense of elegance and warmth. Mariana-Bradescu Constantinescu, managing partner at Piatraonline, emphasizes that exceptional projects necessitate materials beyond the ordinary, asserting that 'Raw' unearths the previously inaccessible beauty of nature. The collection benefits from state-of-the-art technology, which processes the stone surface to reveal the full depth of its character and intricate details. The 'Raw' range is specifically engineered for durability, making it an ideal choice for high-traffic areas within residential and commercial settings, such as bathrooms and kitchens. Its resilience ensures it can withstand significant wear and tear. Beyond interior applications, the stone can also be utilized for more ambitious projects, including hotel facades or large-scale installations. The collection offers considerable design flexibility, as the stone can be cut into custom shapes and sizes, enabling architects and designers to realize unique visions. Piatraonline highlights that the 'Raw' collection is an exclusive offering, specifically created to inspire creativity in custom projects, whether they are expansive endeavors like hotel exteriors or intimate, distinctive installations for innovative concept stores. The distinct texture of the 'Raw' stone is achieved through a high-processing technique that involves etching graphic patterns onto the surfaces of granite or marble, resulting in captivating and intricate textures. This advanced technique also facilitates the creation of thin slabs, which significantly simplifies the installation process. Constantinescu further elaborates that the 'Raw' collection presents a novel facet of stone, simultaneously raw and refined. The stone is finished to evoke an unfinished aesthetic, appearing rough yet meticulously chiseled to perfection. This paradox positions the collection as a focal point for a broad spectrum of design projects. Unlike conventional, highly polished, and glossy finishes, the 'Raw' collection's strength, boldness, and ruggedness impart a contemporary look to any interior design project, making it a distinctive choice for modern aesthetics. The collection is currently displayed in a dedicated gallery within Piatraonline's showroom in Bucharest, Romania, accessible by appointment, with further details and ordering options available on their website. #Piatraonline #RawCollection #NaturalStone #StoneTiles #InteriorDesign #HomeDecor #ArchitecturalMaterials #DesignInnovation #MarbleGranite

The annual ceramic-tile and natural-stone conference, Coverings 2023, held in Orlando, Florida, showcased a significant trend towards graphic-driven designs in tile and stone. The event highlighted innovative and visually compelling products from various manufacturers, emphasizing both aesthetic appeal and advancements in material science and sustainability. The selections from the exhibition demonstrate a move towards bolder patterns, sophisticated textures, and environmentally conscious production methods. Anthology Tile presented its Matisse Moonstone ceramic tile, which features a distinctive design inspired by artistic aesthetics. Emilceramica, through its Ergon brand, introduced Pigmento Amaranto indoor/outdoor porcelain wall/floor tiles and large slim-line slabs. These products draw inspiration from the appearance of hand-troweled cement resin, offering a blend of rustic charm and modern durability suitable for various applications. Ceramica Bardelli featured Storagemilano’s Volume white-body porous single-fired wall tiles, distinguished by their extra-glossy finish, adding a luxurious and refined touch to interior spaces. Vidrepur showcased its Belgirate recycled-glass mosaic tile, underscoring a commitment to sustainability and innovative material use. This mosaic tile offers an eco-friendly option without compromising on design quality. Sicis contributed with its Ragtime ceramic mosaic tile, which presents intricate patterns and a classic aesthetic. Lea Ceramiche highlighted Ferruccio Laviani’s Pigmenti, a collection of carbon-neutral, ultra-thin, laminated porcelain stoneware slabs. This product line is notable for its environmental responsibility and its advanced manufacturing techniques that allow for slim profiles and vibrant pigmentation. Ceramica Fioranese’s Riggiole Nero Mix porcelain tiles combine traditional influences with contemporary design. These tiles offer a rich visual texture and are suitable for diverse design schemes. Lastly, Ascot introduced the Joyce Decor Optical porcelain stoneware tiles, which feature dynamic optical patterns. These tiles contribute to creating visually stimulating environments, leveraging geometric and abstract designs to enhance interior aesthetics. Collectively, these highlights from Coverings 2023 indicate a strong emphasis on innovative design, material diversity, and a growing consciousness towards sustainable practices within the tile and stone industry. #Coverings #TileDesign #StoneDesigns #CeramicTile #PorcelainStoneware #InteriorDesign #ProductShowcase #SustainableMaterials

Smartstone, a prominent Australian supplier of engineered surfaces, has significantly expanded its product offerings with the introduction of the Sintered Collection. This new range of surfaces is designed to meet the evolving demands of both residential and commercial projects, providing enhanced performance characteristics alongside sophisticated aesthetics. The Sintered Collection features materials known for their extreme durability, resistance to high temperatures, UV stability, and scratch resistance, making them suitable for a wide array of applications, including kitchen benchtops, splashbacks, outdoor entertaining areas, and high-traffic commercial spaces. The collection is initially launching with three distinct designs: Bianco Angelico, Nero Puro, and Taj Mahal. Bianco Angelico presents a luminous white surface with subtle grey veining, designed to mimic the classic elegance of natural marble while offering superior practical benefits. This design is particularly well-suited for creating bright, expansive interiors and can serve as a versatile foundation for various design palettes. Nero Puro, on the other hand, offers a deep, uniform black surface that exudes sophistication and modernity. Its rich, consistent tone provides a striking contrast or a bold, monolithic statement, ideal for contemporary and minimalist designs. The third addition, Taj Mahal, captures the warm, creamy tones and intricate veining of its natural quartzite namesake, offering a luxurious and inviting aesthetic that can complement both traditional and transitional design schemes. Smartstone emphasizes that the Sintered Collection is manufactured using advanced technology that subjects natural minerals to extremely high pressures and temperatures, replicating the Earth's natural processes of rock formation. This manufacturing method results in a non-porous material that is highly resistant to stains, chemicals, and impact, ensuring longevity and ease of maintenance. The surfaces are also designed to withstand direct heat exposure, making them ideal for areas around cooktops and fireplaces, and their UV resistance prevents fading, even when used in outdoor environments or spaces with abundant natural light. Beyond their functional advantages, the new surfaces are presented as a solution for designers and homeowners seeking materials that combine high performance with refined beauty. Smartstone’s expansion into sintered surfaces reflects a commitment to innovation and a response to market trends favoring durable, versatile, and aesthetically pleasing materials. The company anticipates that the Sintered Collection will be particularly appealing for high-end residential projects and demanding commercial applications, where both visual impact and long-term durability are paramount. This launch reinforces Smartstone's position as a comprehensive supplier of engineered surfaces, now offering a broader spectrum of choices to cater to diverse design requirements and project scales. #Smartstone #SinteredCollection #EngineeredSurfaces #ArchitecturalMaterials #InteriorDesign #KitchenDesign #OutdoorLiving #BuildingMaterials #ProductLaunch

The Acme Brick, Tile and Stone location in Florence serves the entire Florence and Tri-Cities metropolitan area, offering a comprehensive range of building materials for residential and commercial projects. This outlet provides a wide selection of bricks from various manufacturers, including Acme Brick, Belden Brick, Old Carolina Brick, Cherokee Brick, Columbus Brick, Lawrenceville Brick, Lee Brick, Meridian Brick, Palmetto Brick, Pine Hall Brick, Ragland Clay, and Sioux City Brick. Customers can choose from different brick sizes such as King, Queen, and Modular, as well as Thin Brick and surplus inventory options. Beyond bricks, the Florence showroom features an extensive collection of flooring materials, including hardwood and tile sourced globally. It also offers a variety of stone products, including cast stone and natural stone from numerous manufacturers and suppliers like Coronado Stone, Horizon Stone, MStone, Majestic Stone, ProVia Stone, and Stonebrook Thin Veneer. The facility also showcases architectural features such as cladding, fireplaces, glass accents, and iron doors. For outdoor living spaces, the Florence location provides outdoor furniture, pool coping, turf, grills, kitchen components, and outdoor heaters. These offerings allow customers to create integrated culinary and entertainment areas. Acme Brick, Tile and Stone in Florence is committed to providing resources and support for architects, designers, and builders. This includes architectural services, environmental product declarations (EPD), innovative building products, and a project inspiration gallery. Technical resources like the Pocket Guide to Brick Construction and Technical Services Digests are also available, alongside Health Product Declarations (HPD). Educational and support services include continuing education programs, case studies, and access to The Acme Technical Center. The company also offers virtual reality tools such as Virtual Mason, Masonry Designer, and Revit for design visualization. The showroom highlights a variety of specific brick products, including Abbeville – Queen – Heritage, Academy – Modular – Heritage, Aden Blend – Queen – Heritage, Adobe Wells – King – Heritage, Allendale – King – Heritage, Allendale Rustic – Queen – Heritage, Allentown – King – Velour, Allentown – Modular – Velour, Alluvial Light – Modular – Ruff, Alluvial Light – Modular – Velour, Alluvial Medium – Modular – Ruff, Alluvial Medium – Modular – Velour, Alpine – King – Heritage, Amaretto – Estate – Velour, Amaretto – King – Velour, Amaretto – Modular – Velour, Americana – Modular – Heritage, and Ansley Park – Modular – Heritage. The store operates Monday through Friday, with Saturdays and Sundays being closed. Detailed store information indicates a focus on providing diverse options for both indoor and outdoor applications, catering to various design preferences and construction needs. #BuildingMaterials #HomeDesign #InteriorDesign #ExteriorDesign #ConstructionSupplies #Flooring #StoneProducts #OutdoorLiving #ArchitecturalFeatures

This article explores the unique design elements of Glace Candy, a viral new candy shop in New York City, and how these elements can inspire residential kitchen design. Glace Candy is the sister shop to Glace, an ice cream parlor, both located on the Upper East Side near the Guggenheim Museum. The interior design, crafted by Brooklyn-based studio Faber/Hughes, blends 19th-century Parisian apothecary aesthetics with a historic New York institution feel. The co-founder, Audrey Hughes, describes the candy store as a "special little jewel box" designed to fit the high-end boutique and museum context of Madison Avenue. The shop's distinctive style incorporates an unexpected mix of walnut paneling, mint tiling, striped stone, and cloud-like lighting. The designers, Hughes and Levi Shaw-Faber, suggest how homeowners can integrate these rebellious design choices into their kitchens. A significant design takeaway is the attention given to the ceiling, often an overlooked space in kitchen design. Glace Candy features a curved walnut ceiling with wood paneling that forms a grid, framing cylinder lights and creating a cozy, retro ambiance. Shaw-Faber emphasizes that in limited spaces like the candy and ice cream shops, intentional ceiling design makes the spaces feel all-encompassing. Homeowners are encouraged to consider matching ceilings to cabinetry, adding trim for texture, or using paint to tie into the room's palette, and upgrading builder-grade lights to stylish mounted cylinders. Another key inspiration comes from the shop's choice of tile and stone. The mint tiles used around the candy displays feature a crackle glaze, which provides a balance of glossy and matte textures, contributing to a "candy-like" appearance. For those seeking to add personality, the ice cream counter's striped stone facade offers a bold yet achievable look for home kitchens. Shaw-Faber advises using strong, less brittle stones like granite, quartzite, basalt, or soapstone if cutting them into thin strips for practical application on an island front or floor. Finally, the article highlights the importance of combining durability with daring design. Despite its elevated aesthetic, Glace was built with materials chosen for their resilience against high foot traffic and potential spills, including stone, stainless steel, lacquer-coated wood, and tile. These materials are equally suitable for a home kitchen, a space that demands both beauty and longevity. Shaw-Faber notes that using non-porous materials can ensure a beautiful kitchen endures, concluding that a lasting finish is a key component of successful design. The overall message is to draw inspiration from the shop's blend of playful elegance and practicality to create unique and enduring kitchen spaces. #KitchenDesign #InteriorInspiration #TileDesign #StoneWork #CeilingDesign #MaterialSelection #HomeRenovation #DesignTrends #NYCDesign

Patterned stone floors, renowned for their visual fluidity and tactile stability, have been a significant element in interior design for millennia, evident in historical structures like Turkey's Hagia Sophia and the Papal Basilica of St. Paul in Rome. The enduring appeal of geometric patterns crafted from natural stone tiles lies in the striking contrast between the material's hard, linear forms and the organic veins, blooms, and specks inherent in stone. Modern design continues to embrace this aesthetic, but achieving a masterful patterned stone floor involves careful consideration of several factors. Selecting the right stone is the initial step, with options such as marble, onyx, granite, and slate available. According to Nancy Epstein, CEO of Artistic Tile, most stones are compatible, offering boundless possibilities for combinations. While the material selection is vast, white, gray, and black consistently rank as the most popular color choices. Interior designer Kelly Wearstler emphasizes the importance of incorporating neutrals, even in motifs that feature bolder colors like reds, pinks, tans, and golds, to provide balance within a geometric design. She also notes that a border can effectively ground the overall pattern. Choosing a design involves deciding between geometric and more organic shapes, a decision often guided by the designer's personal taste. Wearstler frequently draws inspiration from historical parquet wood floors when developing her intricate geometric stone floor patterns. However, the inherent properties of stone impose certain limitations on pattern complexity. When utilizing waterjet machines for cutting, extremely thin shapes or patterns with sharp, tight points are prone to breakage during shipping. Consequently, working with larger, more basic tile shapes proves to be more practical and resilient. The way stone is cut significantly influences its visual impact. Vein-cutting, which aligns with the stone's grain, produces long, slender bands of color. Conversely, cross-cutting, against the grain, reveals the stone's layered, blossoming veins. Another crucial aspect is ensuring consistent tile thickness, as Epstein highlights that a centimeter from one country may not be the same as a centimeter from another, necessitating careful verification before installation. After cutting, stone tiles can undergo various finishing processes. Polishing results in a glossy surface, while honing creates a matte appearance. Wearstler prefers to hone the stone, as it removes the shine and imparts a more soulful quality to the floor. Once the stones are selected, the pattern designed, and the tiles cut and finished, the floor must be sealed. Due to varying porosity levels, even within tiles from the same batch, applying multiple layers of sealant is essential to ensure comprehensive coverage. Epstein advises sealing the stone until it can absorb no more, guaranteeing maximum resilience. For ongoing maintenance, basic rules apply to all stone types. Promptly cleaning spills of acidic substances like lemon juice or vinegar is crucial. For routine cleaning, frequent vacuuming is recommended, alongside infrequent mopping with a moist, rather than soaking wet, mop. When incorporating rugs, especially on a visually striking patterned floor, Wearstler suggests using solid-colored rugs, with organically shaped options like natural hides offering the most successful pairing. #patternedStoneFloors #stoneTileDesign #interiorDesign #homeDecoration #naturalStone #geometricPatterns #materialSelection #stoneFinishing #floorMaintenance

Atlas Concorde introduces the Boost Mineral surface and wall tile collection, designed to create a seamless connection between indoor and outdoor environments. This innovative collection draws inspiration from the natural sedimentary stone found in the Ardennes plateau, located between France and Belgium. By replicating the aesthetic qualities of this stone, Boost Mineral aims to bring a sense of natural ambience, sophisticated color, and distinctive style to various interior and exterior spaces. The Italian brand, Atlas Concorde, is recognized for its continuous innovation, distinctive Italian style, and global market presence in the contemporary porcelain floor and ceramic wall tile sector. The Boost Mineral collection exemplifies their commitment to promoting wellness through design. It is crafted to offer a sensory experience, making it suitable for both sheltered and exposed areas, thereby facilitating a harmonious transition between indoor and outdoor living spaces. This approach ensures continuity and uniformity in design across different areas of a property. Key to the Boost Mineral collection's appeal is its meticulously reproduced texture, which faithfully mimics the original stone. The application of a bush-hammering technique enhances the authenticity of the material, revealing three-dimensional details that imbue the tiles with personality and depth. The collection features a palette of five distinct gray tones, allowing for versatile design applications. These tones are specifically chosen to complement the broader Boost World project, an overarching tile group from Atlas Concorde that enables creative mixing and matching of styles and shades to achieve diverse design outcomes. The collection offers a comprehensive range of formats to accommodate various indoor and outdoor project requirements. These include tiles in 60 and 75 mm modules, alongside an extensive selection of outdoor-specific formats. A notable addition to the range is the large-scale slabs, measuring 120x278 cm. These slabs provide a new stone effect, creating monolithic, jointless spaces that enhance the aesthetic continuity of large surfaces. Furthermore, Boost Mineral is available in the Atlas Plan slab format, making it suitable for kitchen countertops and other furnishings. The collection also extends to Atlas Concorde Habitat washbasins, which are designed to appear as if carved from a single block of stone, emphasizing a natural and minimalist aesthetic. Overall, the Boost Mineral collection from Atlas Concorde offers a sophisticated and versatile solution for designers and homeowners seeking to integrate natural aesthetics into their living spaces. Its inspiration from sedimentary stone, coupled with advanced manufacturing techniques and a wide array of formats and applications, allows for the creation of cohesive and visually appealing environments that blur the lines between indoor and outdoor living, enhancing both functionality and sensory appeal. #TileDesign #SedimentaryStone #IndoorOutdoorLiving #CeramicTiles #PorcelainTiles #HomeDesign #SurfaceDesign #ArchitecturalMaterials #AtlasConcorde

The article details the newly opened CDK Stone Selection Centre in Hindmarsh, Adelaide, which aims to enhance the natural stone selection experience for homeowners and designers. This showroom, the latest addition from CDK Stone, addresses the growing demand for natural stone, celebrated for its unique veining, color variations, and durability. Natural stone, including marble, limestone, granite, and quartzite, offers a distinctive aesthetic, allowing for personalized design projects that convey prestige and individuality. The Adelaide showroom's launch featured a special preview event attended by local design professionals and Belle editor-in-chief Tanya Buchanan. Guests had the opportunity to explore the expansive collection of monolithic stone slabs, sourced globally. The setup enables visitors to examine the intricate details and textures of each slab firsthand, providing a comprehensive understanding of the material's potential in various applications. The facility is designed to showcase the beauty and versatility of natural stone in a compelling manner. A notable feature of the showroom is its sample library, which presents hand-sized stone tiles arranged systematically, offering a detailed preview of CDK Stone's extensive range. In collaboration with Melbourne designer Josephine Ivanoff of By Jive, the display zones within the showroom highlight stone's diverse applications. These zones include a raised reception desk crafted from creamy stone, a dining table with a speckled finish, and a coffee table in a rich burgundy hue, demonstrating how natural stone can be integrated into different interior elements. Adelaide-based interior designer Georgie Shepherd, a long-standing advocate for natural stone, attended the opening and emphasized the material's role in her studio's projects. She highlights that natural stone enriches a project by adding depth and character, ensuring that each selection is unique to the client. Shepherd particularly appreciates the adaptability of natural stone, noting that it can be used to create dramatic focal points or more subdued, calming areas within a design. For instance, a striking, loud stone can be balanced with a tranquil limestone in other parts of a space. The showroom offers a personalized service where visitors can book appointments to explore the collection. Shepherd looks forward to bringing her Adelaide clients to the center, underscoring that direct interaction with large-format slabs is crucial for clients to fully appreciate and connect with the material, an experience that small samples cannot replicate. This hands-on approach allows clients to visualize the stone in its full scale, facilitating a deeper appreciation and enabling informed design decisions. #CDKStone #NaturalStone #ShowroomDesign #InteriorDesign #AdelaideDesign #MaterialSelection #LuxuryMaterials #HomeDecor

Tile can significantly enhance the aesthetic of any space, whether used as a subtle accent or a comprehensive design element. This article showcases seven versatile tile styles suitable for diverse interiors, ranging from compact areas to expansive floor-to-ceiling installations. Each featured design offers unique characteristics and aesthetic appeal, making them adaptable for various design projects. First, the Keys Pink Lady Mosaic Tile from Artistic Tile is presented. This hand-cut glass tile features a glossy pink finish and can be installed both vertically and horizontally, allowing for creative, clean-lined patterns. Its versatility makes it suitable for adding a touch of color and sophistication to any room. Next, the Godai Glazed Concave Hex Tile by Heritage Tile is highlighted. These tiles are recognized as individual art pieces, characterized by their evocative oceanic hues of blue and green. The design draws inspiration from traditional Japanese tile work, providing a unique blend of craftsmanship and natural color palettes that can bring a serene yet vibrant quality to a space. New Ravenna's Starlight Mosaic Tile, designed by Paul Schatz, is also featured. This mosaic combines hand-cut and water-jet cut elements, creating an intricate pattern with polished Blue Macauba and Spring Green. Despite its detailed nature, the design maintains a serene quality while offering enough visual interest to serve as a focal point on any wall. For a terrazzo-inspired aesthetic, The Tile Shop’s Terrazzo Bianco Macro Porcelain Wall and Floor Tile is introduced. This matte tile incorporates thousands of small, pastel-toned porcelain fragments. It offers flexibility with options for black or white backgrounds and varying sizes of stone shards, enabling designers to achieve different visual effects based on project requirements. Artistic Tile reappears with its Norwegian Rose Marble Mosaic Honed Stone Broken Joint Tile. This design introduces a striking pink element to any surface. Available in various marble and onyx options, its asymmetrical details evoke traditional hand-placed mosaics, imbuing spaces with an old-world elegance. Heritage Tile's Subway Mosaics Tile collection encourages artistic expression. These unglazed porcelain tiles are offered in a wide range of colors, including Lemon and Light Yellow, providing ample opportunities for designers to create diverse and innovative configurations. Their adaptability allows for personalized and unique design solutions. Finally, the Sitges Mosaic Tile by Paul Schatz for New Ravenna is presented. This white-on-white design, crafted from Venetian-honed Thassos, initially appears simple. However, the precise and detailed cuts of the stones reveal a sophisticated texture and visual depth, ensuring the tile is anything but ordinary. It offers a subtle yet refined option for spaces seeking understated elegance. These seven tile designs, sourced from Business of Home’s Collections vertical, represent contemporary product debuts from leading brands in the industry. They offer designers a range of choices to create distinct and timeless interiors, emphasizing both aesthetic appeal and practical application in various home design contexts. #TimelessTileDesigns #HomeDecor #InteriorDesign #TileInspiration #ArtisticTile #HeritageTile #NewRavenna #TheTileShop #PaulSchatz

The article highlights the growing trend of using dramatically veined, exotic marble in home design, particularly in kitchens and bathrooms, and showcases Ann Sacks as a leading supplier in this niche. Ann Sacks, a Portland, Oregon-based company, is expanding its retail presence with new slab galleries and showrooms, including recent openings in Nashville and Dallas, and an upcoming location in Long Island City, Queens, New York, in September 2023. These showrooms are designed to allow designers and clients to hand-select large segments of natural stone, emphasizing a personalized and immersive shopping experience. DeeDee Gundberg, Ann Sacks' chief designer, explains that the company curates its marble from various global sources like Italy, Greece, Portugal, and India, focusing on premium varieties such as Carrara and Calacatta that appeal to luxury clients and align with current interior design trends. Unlike competitors who might offer manufactured quartz, Ann Sacks prioritizes natural marble, treating each slab as a piece of art due to its unique patterns and balance. This approach aims to create a 'wow factor' in residential spaces, moving beyond traditional all-white aesthetics to embrace richer colorways and striking veining. The article features two designers who have successfully incorporated Ann Sacks marble into their projects. Nikki Chu, for her Dallas home, selected Calacatta Viola—an Italian marble with deep eggplant purple, maroon brown, and warm gold veining—for her kitchen backsplash and island. Chu transformed her 1969 bungalow into an open-plan space with high ceilings, making the marble island the focal point, complemented by a 9-foot-wide Lindsey Adelman chandelier that enhances the veining's movement. Her design challenges the traditional Dallas aesthetic, creating a dynamic and sophisticated kitchen that has garnered many compliments. Jean Stoffer, another designer, used a cooler-toned Turkish marble with a subtle lilac hue for a colonial home in Cedar Rapids, Michigan. She ingeniously used unlacquered brass strips to delineate seams between slabs on the kitchen backsplash, creating an illusion of continuous veining and adding a touch of glamour. Stoffer also opted for a honed finish, preferring its ability to display the marble's nuances without glare, a choice facilitated by Ann Sacks offering both honed and polished options. She acknowledges that while marble is beautiful, it can show wear over time, but embraces this as part of a home's unique history, advocating for regular sealing to protect the stone. The new retail model adopted by Ann Sacks combines showroom and warehouse functions, offering an enhanced experience. The forthcoming Queens location, for instance, will feature a slab gallery alongside a merchandised presentation of samples, lighting, bathroom vanities and mirrors from Robern, and faucets from Kallista. This holistic approach aims to provide designers with a comprehensive resource for their projects, allowing them to collaborate, select materials, and even enjoy amenities like coffee in a scullery kitchen. The immersive environment, as described by Chu, transforms the shopping experience into a global tour of geological beauty, reinforcing the idea that each marble slab is a 'slice of heaven,' unique to its region and reflective of the earth's dynamics. #AnnSacks #MarbleDesign #InteriorDesign #LuxuryInteriors #KitchenDesign #BathroomDesign #NaturalStone #RetailExperience #DesignTrends

SolidNature, a Dutch stone supplier known for collaborating with architects and designers on custom projects, frequently accumulates offcuts from its high-profile commissions. Recognizing the potential in these leftover materials, the company engaged Budde, a design studio based in Cologne, Germany, to explore innovative ways to repurpose them. This collaboration resulted in the creation of 'Five x Seven,' a limited-edition furniture collection comprising five distinct tables: a console, and various coffee and side tables. The Budde studio, led by founders Johannes Budde and Meike Papenfuss, developed a concept that showcases the inherent beauty and variety of natural stone. The collection utilizes seven different types of stone, including marble, onyx, granite, and travertine, sourced from SolidNature's inventory of offcuts. Each table is meticulously crafted by combining slabs of these diverse stones, which are then layered together to create a visual effect reminiscent of sedimentary rock formations. A distinctive design element of the collection is a slim, carved arch integrated into all four sides of each piece. The layered construction of the tables results in muted stripes of cream, pink, green, and gray, offering a dynamic aesthetic that changes depending on the viewing angle. This design approach not only highlights the unique characteristics and rich color palette of each stone type but also addresses the issue of material waste by transforming what would otherwise be discarded into valuable and aesthetically pleasing furniture. The 'Five x Seven' collection is presented as a limited edition, emphasizing its exclusivity and artisanal nature. However, SolidNature also offers the possibility of custom pieces, allowing clients to commission tables tailored to their specific preferences and design needs, further expanding the collection's adaptability and appeal. The collection is exclusively available through the Rossana Orlandi Gallery, a renowned platform for contemporary design that champions innovative and sustainable practices. The partnership with Rossana Orlandi underscores the collection's artistic merit and its place within the high-end design market. By transforming remnants into sophisticated furniture, the 'Five x Seven' collection demonstrates a commitment to sustainable design principles while celebrating the enduring appeal and versatility of natural stone. #furnitureDesign #naturalStone #SolidNature #BuddeStudio #tableCollection #sustainableDesign #RossanaOrlandiGallery #interiorDecor #materialInnovation

This article explores seven innovative applications for stone slabs, moving beyond their traditional use as kitchen countertops to create unique and impactful interior design elements. It highlights how designers and DIY enthusiasts are leveraging the aesthetic and durable qualities of various stones, such as marble, quartz, and onyx, to elevate different areas of the home. The piece begins by emphasizing that incorporating a unique stone slab is a timeless choice for making a statement and that designers are now applying them in unexpected ways. Leah Alexander, founder of Beauty Is Abundant, shares her experience creating bespoke shower walls with quartz slabs, illustrating the rewarding outcome of bold design choices. The first idea presented is using stone as a staircase base. J.L. Ramirez employed Artistic Tile’s Montclair Striato marble for a staircase base and steps, where the vein-cut direction of the stone naturally complements the angularity of the wooden staircase, resulting in a sophisticated and modern look. Next, the article details Alexander’s creative approach to shower walls in the Dallas 2022 Kips Bay Decorator Show House. She used three styles of Cambria quartz—Black, Cherrybrook, and Inverness Bronze—and incorporated horseshoe shapes inlaid into the black quartz, playing into a “curve craze” while maintaining durability. The shower floor also featured individually cut and inset stars, echoing a starry wallpaper to create an "intergalactic" vibe. Another innovative application discussed is the use of stone as a furniture insert. Joy Street Design integrated Artistic Tile’s Velluto polished onyx into a custom bedroom bench for the Kips Bay Decorator Show House Palm Beach. The soft, river-like veins of the onyx complemented the room's rich tones, with similar insets used for nightstands and a makeup vanity top. The article then moves to custom vanity backsplashes, a method frequently used by Katie Labourdette-Martinez and Olivia Wahler of Hearth Homes Interiors to give bathrooms a polished feel. They created a marble floating vanity and a customized stone backsplash in a Santa Barbara home to achieve a modern French country aesthetic, demonstrating that even small stone elements can have a significant design impact. For entertainment spaces, the article suggests using stone as a television backdrop. Brittany Farinas of House of One transformed a Miami home’s entertainment wall into an elegant focal point with a marble slab. She selected a natural marble with unique bronze crystallized details in its veining to contrast with dark wood tones, grounding the living room with its texture and tonality. Dining rooms can also benefit from stone slabs, as illustrated by Avery Cox’s design for a client’s table in Austin. After an extensive search, they found the perfect Estremoz Gold slab at Aria Stone Gallery, featuring unique pink tones and dramatic veining, creating a custom table with a distinct aesthetic. Finally, the article highlights the creative use of stone for a wet bar and a floating shelf. Kyla Herbes of House of Hipsters chose a specific Cambria quartz with warm grey veins for her wet bar remodel. To create a sturdy yet thin floating shelf, her team drilled steel brackets into studs, then perfectly mitered five pieces of stone to create the illusion of a single solid piece. The backsplash, a solid piece with cutouts for the brackets, required careful installation to align flush with the soffit. These diverse examples demonstrate the versatility of stone slabs in enhancing interior spaces beyond traditional uses, emphasizing both aesthetic appeal and practical innovation. #StoneSlabIdeas #InteriorDesign #HomeDecor #CreativeApplications #MarbleDesign #QuartzInteriors #BathroomDesign #LivingRoomDesign #CustomFurniture

Acme Brick, Tile and Stone's Pelham location in Alabama features the largest brick and tile showroom in the Birmingham area, serving seven counties and surrounding regions. The 4,000-square-foot showroom displays a comprehensive range of products for residential and commercial construction, including various brick samples, natural stone, simulated stone, and limestone fireplace surrounds. The selection also includes specialized items such as Isokern fireplaces, clay and concrete pavers, and diverse patio products. Beyond exterior and structural materials, the showroom offers a high-end flooring section. This area showcases ceramic and porcelain tile, hardwood floors, and natural stone options. The facility also provides installation services for granite, marble, limestone, and quartz countertops, catering to both aesthetic and functional needs within a home or commercial space. For those undertaking DIY projects or professional installations, the store stocks all necessary tools, supplies, cleaners, and sealers. Customers visiting the Pelham location can benefit from the expertise of in-house design professionals. These specialists are available to assist with product selection and design guidance, ensuring that clients find the most suitable materials for their specific project requirements. The store’s extensive product categories include various types of brick (cladding, thin brick, surplus brick), a wide array of flooring options (hardwood, laminate, luxury vinyl, tile, mosaics, pavers), and diverse stone products (Majestic Stone, MStone, Stonebrook). Detailed product listings are available, featuring different brick sizes like Modular, Queen, and King, and various textures such as Smooth, Velour, and Wirecut. Color filters are also provided, allowing customers to easily navigate options like Beige, Red, and Bronze. This comprehensive product offering, combined with expert support, positions the Pelham showroom as a central resource for building and design materials in the region. The store's hours are Monday to Friday, from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM, with weekends closed. #HomeDesign #BuildingMaterials #Brick #Tile #Stone #Flooring #InteriorDesign #ExteriorDesign #Showroom

Italian tile brand Ceramiche Keope has showcased a diverse range of tiles on Dezeen Showroom, drawing inspiration from natural elements and various design aesthetics. Among the featured products is the Onice tile, crafted from light-reflecting onyx. This tile is available in three distinct color options: Pearl, a cool gray shade; Honey, a warm, light-colored tone reminiscent of sunlight; and Multicolour, a blend of sea-like greens and yellows. Onice tiles are suitable for both floors and walls, and their reflective surfaces are designed to add depth to any setting. Another collection, Ubik, emulates the veined surface of natural slate. These tiles are offered in five neutral colors and are versatile enough for interior spaces, including living rooms and bathrooms, as well as outdoor areas like walkways, courtyards, and rooftops, due to their resistance to harsh weather conditions. The 9Cento tile collection, made from a combination of marble and porcelain stoneware, draws inspiration from art deco design. This collection features various styles, such as Alba Oro, a gold tile with caramel flecks, and Ombra Mocha, a coffee-brown tile with terracotta streaks. For those seeking an urban aesthetic, the Ikon tiles are designed to mimic the appearance of concrete. These tiles are suitable for both indoor and outdoor use and are available in multiple sizes, thicknesses, and colors. Completing the showcased range is the Omnia tile, which is designed to resemble ancient stone. This collection is suitable for both home and commercial applications, featuring a non-slip surface capable of withstanding high levels of foot traffic. Omnia tiles can be used on both walls and floors. Ceramiche Keope, an Italian ceramic company established in 1955 as part of the Concorde Group, specializes in producing porcelain stoneware for interior and exterior floor and wall coverings. The brand's design philosophy is deeply rooted in natural stone, which continues to be a primary source of inspiration. In recent collections, Ceramiche Keope has also incorporated influences from other materials, such as concrete, wood, and marble, to create innovative tile designs. #CeramicheKeope #TileDesign #InteriorDesign #ExteriorDesign #NaturalStone #ArtDeco #PorcelainStoneware #OnyxTiles #SlateEffect

This blog post focuses on the versatile use of decorative stones and gravel for various outdoor projects, ranging from driveway overhauls to garden enhancements. It highlights the suitability of these materials for diverse applications, such as creating driveways, footpaths, and defining borders and beds within a garden. The article emphasizes that a wide selection of aggregates, decorative gravel, and garden pebbles is available to accommodate different budgets and project sizes. The content elaborates on how garden pebbles and cobblestones can be used to transform garden aesthetics, suggesting their application to add decorative contrast around water features, ponds, and plants. These pebbles and stones are offered in a variety of colors to match different style preferences. For specific gardening needs, horticultural grit, a coarse material made from small rocks or crushed stones, is introduced as an ideal choice for improving soil drainage, preventing compaction, and providing a stable base for plants in containers or raised beds. For driveways and walkways, decorative gravel is presented as a cost-effective alternative to block paving. The article recommends using sleepers or lawn edging to contain the gravel and driveway stones effectively. Additionally, stone and slate chippings are proposed as an alternative to traditional gravel, offering flatter textures suitable for finishing potted plants and borders. These chippings are noted for their stylish appearance and practical benefits, including helping to suppress and control weed growth, especially when combined with landscaping fabric. The ease of laying and minimal maintenance required for these outdoor stones are also highlighted, presenting them as a hassle-free option compared to materials that demand more upkeep, such as natural grass or certain paving slabs. The post also addresses frequently asked questions, providing practical advice on how to gravel a garden. This involves preparing the area by removing existing vegetation, leveling the soil, laying landscaping fabric to prevent weeds, and then evenly spreading the gravel. It clarifies the composition and purpose of horticultural grit in gardening. Finally, it discusses factors to consider when choosing the best stone for a garden, emphasizing that while all stocked garden stones are natural and suitable for outdoor use, the ultimate choice depends on personal aesthetic preferences and the intended functional use in the garden. #DecorativeStones #GardenGravel #LandscapeDesign #DrivewayIdeas #GardenPebbles #HorticulturalGrit #WeedControl #OutdoorDecor #HomeImprovement

Statement stone, characterized by its prominent contrast, movement, and veining, is a popular interior design trend, frequently utilized for countertops and backsplashes where solid stone slabs extend from the counter up the wall, replacing traditional tile. This approach, using natural stones like quartzite or marble, is seen as creating a sophisticated and elegant aesthetic. When considering the incorporation of statement stone into kitchen and bathroom renovations, several factors warrant consideration. First, the timelessness of the design is crucial, given that large stone slabs represent a significant investment. Homeowners should determine whether they prefer a dramatic visual impact with highly veined and contrasting slabs or a more serene atmosphere with muted or less contrasting stone. It is also important to select colors within the stone that will complement existing home elements, such as furniture, artwork, hardware finishes, and flooring, for many years. For those hesitant to commit to large-scale installations, using remnant pieces for decorative trays or accent table tops offers a way to introduce the aesthetic without a major investment. Second, the potential resale value of the home should be assessed. If a home is likely to be sold within a few years, and its market value is on the lower end, investing heavily in expensive marble slabs throughout the kitchen and bathroom may not yield a proportional return on investment. In such cases, choosing lighter-colored stones with less veining and contrast can appeal to a broader range of potential buyers. Third, cost is a significant consideration. Natural stone slabs, along with their fabrication and installation, can be among the more expensive components of a remodel. A cost-effective strategy involves searching for remnant pieces, particularly for smaller applications like bathroom vanity countertops or fireplace hearths. Fourth, the practical use of the area and the specific material chosen are important. While marble is aesthetically pleasing, its porous nature makes it susceptible to staining, rendering it potentially unsuitable for high-activity kitchens. Quartzite and granite offer greater durability and heat resistance, making them more appropriate choices for areas near heat sources like oven ranges, stovetops, or fireplaces. Finally, maintaining balance in design is essential to prevent an overdone appearance. If a bold, high-contrast stone is chosen for an open-concept kitchen, it should serve as the singular focal point. Introducing multiple distinct statement stones, such as one for the kitchen island and another for the backsplash, can create visual competition and an overwhelming effect. The goal is to highlight the chosen statement stone without cluttering the visual space with competing elements. #StatementStone #InteriorDesign #KitchenRemodel #BathroomRenovation #HomeImprovement #NaturalStone #DesignTrends #MaterialSelection