Marble Countertops! Selection time..

Posted on November 30th, 2011, in Home, House, Interior Design, Kitchen, Pinterest, Stone

On my Pinterest page, I have been pinning white kitchens for as long as I have had an account. When it came time to select countertops for our kitchen and bathrooms, it was easy to determine the direction to go in!

Kitchen pic

(Via: pinterest)

Bounato granite sign

(Photo: Lovejoy Designs)

Buonato Granite was where our contractor sent us. Mike was really knowledgeable about the various types of granite and marble options.

Man going through slabs

(Photo: Lovejoy Designs)

This is where all the fabrication happens too. Before the marble is cut, a template is made at your home to the exact fit of your space. Then the marble is brought back to the facility and cut.

warehouse pic

(Photo: Lovejoy Designs)

For our kitchen, as much as I love the white look of marbles, I was concerned about the staining that does happen. Mike found an alternative that still gives us that white look but is sturdier than a Carrara or Calcutta marble. It is called White Rhino and once sealed can withstand lemon juice, pasta sauce better than others. Having these kind of countertops in your home will require more upkeep than dark granite for example. So, when you are shopping for stone countertops, it is good to consider how you want to live.

Here is our powder room marble. It is called Supreme White; funny name seeing that it mostly grey. We are having all out countertops honed and leathered which gives them a matte, slightly distressed finish.

POwder Room countertop

(Photo: Lovejoy Designs)

Here is the Master Bathroom countertop.. gorgeous huh!

Masterbath countertops

(Photo: Lovejoy Designs)

Stay tuned for some furniture shopping next! This weekend I am heading to Stamford Antiques Center in Stamford Connecticut in hopes of putting me out of my misery in finding the perfect chandelier for our dining room…

phoebe sign

Designer Days. A trip to the granite stone yard

Posted on June 16th, 2011, in Stone, Wall Decor, Wallcoverings

This week I took a visit to the granite and marble yard in search of a large slab of granite to replace a piece of existing green Onyx. This piece is equally gorgeous but is not complementary to the color palette for the job. Visiting slab yards is rewarding. I am always humbled by the fact that these stones exist in nature. There is so many beautiful and varied colors, patterns and textures in stone. From a piece of Carrara marble to the Onyx below, I am fascinated by stone is it’s many appearances.

This is the existing piece…

PH1A Existing Onyx

This is the new piece that will be cut down and then inserted into it’s new home. It will be backlit to emphasize the gorgeousness of the stone. I am pretty sure it is going to glow something pretty.

Pineapple Onyx

I am also on the hunt for some Danby Marble which is quarried right in the Northeast up in Vermont. It is a beautiful white stone with veining that ranges from dark grey’s to browns to even blues.

Danby

Stay tuned for pics once these are installed!

phoebe sign