Choosing Stone Material for Your Home

The trend toward stone furniture, fixtures, and accent walls is growing as more and more homeowners opt for it—making the already overwhelming choice of stone all the more important!

Whether you want a stone-clad closet or a book-matched feature wall, here’s a designer’s guide to stone selection.

Natural Stones

Natural stones are an incredibly popular building material, prized for their beauty, durability, and versatility. There are a wide variety of natural stones to choose from, each with its own unique color, pattern, and texture. Common types of natural stone include granite and marble. Natural stone is a versatile material that can add elegance and style to any home or business.

The main downside to natural stones is they are porous, so they tend to absorb liquid and stains. So if there is any spillage on the stones, immediately wipe the stone using a clean cloth. Natural stones are glossy. To maintain the stone’s glossiness, a regular polishing service is required.

The following are the most popular natural stone choices.

Granite

Granite represents luxury and refined taste. It is frequently used in upscale interior furnishings like countertops, flooring, and backsplashes. Each granite slab has its own distinct pattern of lines or grains. Thus, increasing the value of the stone, which is a popular choice for interior design.

Granite is a hard and resilient material that, with proper maintenance, can last for decades. This stone type is typically more expensive than other stone building materials, but its beauty and resilience make it a worthwhile investment. Granite is also resistant to heat and scratches, making it an ideal material for use in busy kitchens.

Marble

Marble has been utilized for centuries to create beautiful floors, countertops, and backsplashes. As it adds a touch of luxury and elegance to any space, marble is a popular stone choice in interior design. Additionally, marble is a highly durable material, perfect for  high-traffic use  like flooring, kitchen countertops, and bathrooms.

Marble is formed from metamorphosed limestone, which has been subjected to intense heat and pressure over time. This process imparts veins and swirls to the stone, which can range from subtle to dramatic.

When selecting marble for your home, it is essential to remember that each piece is distinct and will add its own beauty to the space. With proper maintenance, marble will add both function and style to your home for many years.

Sintered Stones

Sintered stone is a type of engineered stone that is made by compacting natural stone minerals under extreme pressure and heat. It is a relatively new material that has been used for interior furnishing for only about a decade, but it has quickly become one of the most popular choices for countertops, backsplashes, and other applications.

One of the main reasons for its popularity is its durability; sintered stone is significantly harder than natural stone, making it more resistant to scratches, stains, and heat. It is also non-porous, meaning it will not absorb spills or allow bacteria to grow.

In addition to its practical advantages, sintered stones come in many designs and patterns – with some brands manufacturing sintered stones to look like natural stones.

For all these reasons, sintered stone is an ideal choice for anyone looking for a beautiful and durable surface material.

Solid Surface

An acrylic or polyester resin mixed with mineral dust is the main component of solid surfaces. Surfaces made from solid materials are non-porous and stain-resistant, making them a popular choice for kitchen countertops, bathroom vanities, and other areas that require sanitation.

As a solid surface is malleable, they are often used to clad walls, creating a smooth, uninterrupted surface. Thanks to its durability and low maintenance requirements, solid surface has become a popular choice for busy homes and commercial spaces.

However, many homeowners find solid surface material looks artificial and feels like plastic. So, those who have a higher renovation budget would prefer to use natural stones or sintered stones instead.

Stone and its characteristics

Natural		Sintered		Solid Surface
Pros	Cons	Pros	Cons	Pros	Cons
Durable – scratch and heat resistant	Very hard – more difficult to repair	Non porous	Chips and nicks are difficult to repair	Almost non-porous	Less heat resistance
Natural – environmentally Friendly	Porous – susceptible to staining & scratching	Durable	Machine made – less environmentally friendly	Affordable	Vulnerable to scratches
Beautiful – and unique	Vulnerable to chip & crack	Easy to care for	Printed designs and textures do not extend through	Durable & versatile	Aesthetically less appealing than natural
Low maintenance	More Expensive	Stain resistance	Difficult to cut & install	Seamless joints	Gives a plastic look

 

Almost all of us appreciate the look of a luxurious stone surface, and as designers, we’re always trying to incorporate interesting materials for our clients.

To effectively add stone material to a home interior, AR-kee Design Studio designers would take into consideration how our clients intend to use the stone material, their preferred characteristics, and most importantly, the clients’ renovation budget.

So, if you need professional guidance to help choose stone material for your home interior design, contact AR-kee Design Studio for no-obligation consultation. We look forward to offering innovative interior design solutions that would achieve the dream space you’ve been looking for.