Lately some really linear options have surfaced in the countertop world. Even more unexpectedly, in natural stone. There have always been vein-cut travertines that give the appearance of cross-sections of the earth. Definitely linear, but some of the marbles, quartzites and granites we are seeing now look like they have been drawn with a ruler.
With our mitering capability, this could be really sharp installed on an island with a mitered waterfall end panel. I have seen similar stones in black with very faint linear veining and a brown version, whose main drawback is small slab size. We installed the brown version as an island for a customer with 2″ mitered edges. The face has a real linear quality to it, especially when you add a well-matched mitered edge.
Last weekend was the Texas Contemporary Art Fair at the George R Brown in downtown Houston. It was an exciting fair this year with tons of interesting art, capped off by a magnificent display in the VIP lounge. We installed a pretty spiffy 20′ Caesarstone bar made out of Haze with Red Shimmer strips waterjetted into the facade. We also installed a 30′ long coffee table floating off the ground made out of White Crocodile Caesarstone (The face of the stone is actually textured with a crocodile skin pattern; also comes in black). If you look through the pictures, we waterjetted holes in the surface for place settings, where the artist used projectors to display film where the plate and glass would normally be. Lastly, we made some miter boxes out of Red Shimmer Caesarstone with holes so that the projectors hidden inside could shoot movies onto giant balloons on the ceiling and walls. Pictures don’t do it justice, but the whole effect was wild. There was a lot of thought that went into the project on the design and production side, and it all came together extremely quickly, but I’m sure pictures of the event will surface that show how well it turned out. Let us know if you were there and what you thought.
1st day on the job for our new employee. Already loafing about.
It is rare these days to encounter a natural stone that is completely unique, but we’ve got some coming. These slabs are so perfectly book-matched that I don’t want to break them up. If you are considering a wall of stone in your house, a stately fireplace, a floor, or any other large format stone installation, this marble would be perfect. Being white marble, this would be a stunning addition to a contemporary home. No need for art with marble like this. Normally I would tell you that something like this would be around next year, but in this case, I am not so sure. I would love for someone to use this in a hotel lobby or a restaurant wall and take all of them. The effect of having 10 slabs of this lined up in a large room would be incredible.
Lately we have done quite a few installations with backlit stone. Typically, onyx and glass were the most likely surfaces to be lit from underneath (or behind), but there are amazing options emerging that are truly incredible. For natural beauty, there is nothing quite like onyx. But onyx is tricky. Slabs are small, inconsistent and delicate, often containing cracks and fissures that have been repaired, and not always well repaired. But when done right, bookmatched onyx panels cannot be beaten.
There are also lots of cool glass products that can be used as counters or wall coverings. The issue with glass is that a lot of it is so translucent that you need to find a way to diffuse the light, sometimes frosting the glass or putting something between the glass and the light source so it doesn’t just shine through. One of these products is Ribbon Glass, which comes in slabs and gives off a water effect when backlit.
When choosing any of these, it is important to find someone who knows what they are doing, both for the lighting and surface aspects. Many of these installations are relatively permanent, so your light source better be permanent as well. When fabricating glass, onyx, and other specialized materials, there are methods that turn a good job into a fantastic job. Or even a nightmare into a dream. I’m not sure many of us could handle watching as a carefully selected onyx panel broke on the saw, or on the way into the house. If you want to see samples or feel some of these, don’t be afraid to call.
There are some products out there that are just difficult to find. Certain granites notoriously disappear for months or years based on foreign governments, large projects around the world, or a quarry running out. Soapstone often comes from smaller operations that don’t always stay consistent. Vetrazzo’s Millefiori is limited based upon the supply of colored glass. I believe the red glass is particularly tough to find. Vetrazzo is made up of recycled glass from a stained glass company. I had never seen this particular color with a patina (dark background) before, but it turns out it is beautiful.
Millefiori is a difficult color to make work in a room with other disparate elements, but it certainly makes a statement. It is limited by its very make-up, probably to a degree that you will not meet anyone else that has it, which is rarer and rarer these days. It would make for a great island or bar for the right project.
New Caesarstone colors are out! We have all the samples in our showroom and slabs are currently available. This is the most marble-like line of quartz out there right now. 5 colors that cover the full range of colors from white marble to black marble. There is a Crema Marfil-like color, a Carrara, a Calacatta, and a couple of darker options. This is THE alternative to marble with none of the hassle.
This is the Crema Marfil version.
There are some amazing marbles out there. I had never seen this one before, but the movement is wild and the colors are vivid. As a bonus, the slabs are bookmatched, a perfect mirror image of one another.
The bookmatching really comes into play in large pieces. Anything suspended vertically: shower walls, fireplaces, backsplashes, end panels on islands. This would be amazing in the right situation.
Remember, its not that long til Christmas, but if you start now, you could have all new countertops by the holidays.