Samsung Radianz Quartz Used as a Coffee Machine Base

CityHome Collective wrote about a local company, Alpha Dominche, a few months ago.  Check out the article here.

Alpha Dominche makes a coffee machine called the Steampunk 4.0.   It’s the first-ever automated, temperature controlled, full-immersion brewer.

These coffee machines sit on a base.  The base of these machines is Diamond White Samsung Radianz quartz.  
Who made these bases?   
We did!
Check it out, they're pretty cool.

Photo: CityHome Collective

Photo: CityHome Collective

• You know, being in the stone industry I just realized I need a really cool headstone when I die.  It can't just be any old stone right?  John Hoopes of Iowa is more on top of it than I.  He had his monument specially made out of granite in the shape of a watermelon.  It's really pretty cool, read more about it here.  

Photo: Muscatine Journal

•   Have you seen Brizo's faucet, The RSVP with its Swarovski crystal top?  It is art nouveau inspired and so gorgeous.

Photo: Brizo

• Did you know slate is a great natural material for sinks?  Houzz featured a bunch recently, check it out here.

Traditional Kitchen by Libertyville General Contractors Century Bay Builders

Marble 'Miracle Chips'

Wallpaper* Handmade is an annual documentation of the show-stopping exhibition that they present in Milan during the Salone del Mobile.

For Wallpaper* Handmade 2013 they paired designer Michael Anastassiades with marble specialist Henraux, of Monte Altissimo, near Pietrasanta in Tuscany and had them make these stunning marble pieces.
From their website..."Anastassiades' inspiration for this marble installation for was the red cellophane fortune-telling fish you used to get in Christmas crackers that would curl and wiggle in the palm of your hand. The challenge he posed to Henraux's marble technicians was to push the limits of what is technologically possible while preserving the inherent qualities of the marble. Pictured are the curved pieces that make up the resulting 'Miracle Chips'."

Photo: Wallpaper Magazine

Photo: Wallpaper Magazine

Photo: Wallpaper Magazine

Be sure to check out Wallpaper Magazine's website for more pictures & a pretty cool little video showing them carving the curve of the piece by hand.

On the Rocks

Andrew Hellman is a fan of single malt scotch, he is also a co-founder of Teroforma.  Andrew was looking for a way to cool his drink without diluting it with ice.
After much research he came up with Whisky Stones, made from Vermont Soapstone. Due to soapstones natural softness (it won’t scratch the glass) and its unique ability to retain temperature for extended periods of time, it was the perfect answer.

Store them in the freezer and when you need ice for any drink (spirit or soda) they will be ready to go.

I own a set & love them!  They are $20.00 for a set of nine. You can find them here.

Slab Sunday: Rain Forest Green Marble

Rain Forest Green is quarried from a bedrock quarry in India.



Sidenote:  Rain Forest Green is not technically a marble, it's a Serpentinite. Serpentinite is a rock composed predominantly of one or more serpentine minerals. If you'd like to read a little more about Serpentinite's read here and/or here.
Commercially though, Rain Forest Green is sold as a marble. Therefore I will refer to it as a marble from here on out. I just didn't want to get a bunch of emails letting me know how wrong I am for calling it a marble. :)

Contemporary Family Room by Goshen General Contractor Martin Bros. Contracting, Inc.

Traditional Bathroom by Clackamas Tile Stone And Countertop Artistic Stone Design

Other names for Rain Forest Green include: Bidasar Green and Vidasar Green.

Traditional Powder Room by Black Mountain General Contractor Brookstone Builders

Due to Rain Forest Green actually being a Serpentinite, it does behave differently than a marble. It is harder and it's recommended that it's cut with a granite blade instead of a marble blade. It won't etch or stain as easily as a marble will, but I still probably wouldn't recommend it in a kitchen for most people. (See my post here about marble kitchens.)

The photo below is from our portfolio.

Photo: MGS by Design

This marble can change pretty dramatically from bundle to bundle, so make sure to pick out your exact slab. There is also a color called Rain Forest Brown. It's the same pattern and comes from the same quarry, the background is just brown rather than green.  You can read more about it here.

Above photo from MGS by Design. (That's us!)

Below is my favorite photo of the day. Everything about this fireplace from Boston Design Blog is amazing.

Rain Forest Green comes from the quarry with a polished finish. This marble is beautiful when with a honed finish or when a brushed finish has been applied. Be sure to ask your fabricator about these options when considering Rain Forest Green.

Mediterranean Kitchen by Williston Park Kitchen And Bath Kitchen Designs by Ken Kelly, Inc. (CKD, CBD, CR)

A lot of people use this marble for fountains. This gorgeous fountain is from Kinetic Fountains.

Rain Forest Green is available in 2 cm and 3 cm granite slabs as well as tile. This is a pretty popular marble, so you will also see it in a lot of medallions and listelles.

Silver Travertine Vanity in a Master Bath from MGS by Design

We did a beautiful home this year that was in the Northern Wasatch Parade of Homes this summer.  There was a lot of stone in this house so I'll feature the rooms separately over several days.
Today is the amazing Master Bathroom.
I LOVE the sliding barn door that separates the bath from the Master Bedroom.  (Notice the brick on the right...I'll show you that in a minute.)

Clayton Thompson* was the Interior Designer of this home.  He is a fantastic designer and one of my very favorite people to work with.  He's ridiculously good at finding antique pieces and having them refinished & repurposed into beautiful vanities, end tables, etc.  I could never walk into a second hand store and be able to find the pieces he does.  He has such a great eye.  Every piece I've seen him do has been great, but the furniture piece that he had refinished and used as the vanity & linen closets in this Master Bathroom just blew it all out of the water.
This isn't even particularly my style and I'm in love with it.  The beautiful stained glass doors are what put it over the top for me.

We fabricated the countertop to match the design and bump outs of the furniture piece.  When you see the close up in the photo below it looks kind of weird, but when you look at the piece as a whole you can see why that detail is so important.
The countertop is a cream colored slab of vein cut Silver Travertine that we purchased from our local supplier Adamas Stone. 
The edge detail is a 3/4" Ogee.

I don't generally post pictures of areas that we weren't a part of, but I just had to share this Master Bedroom with you!  The brick wall about kills me. 
The chairs are facing a window with spectacular views of Eden, UT.

Okay, back to the bath.  :)

And because no detail was spared in this home, the Master Closet was also beautiful!  We put in a small top out of Oak Bamboo quartzite from our local supplier Italia Granite.  This stone will show up in another post in a very unique application.  Stay tuned!
The edge detail on this piece is a 3/4" Ogee.

*Interior Designer, Clayton Thompson, doesn't have a website.  If you are in Utah and looking to hire an amazing designer, email me & I'll get you his info.

Saturday Link Up!

I was in New Mexico last week and went to my dream store located in Santa Fe called Touchstone Gallery.  They had a huge selection of fossils, minerals, petrified wood and gemstone jewelry.  I was pretty much in heaven.  I really wanted to purchase the 3' Amethyst Cathedral, but I couldn't justify spending $5,000 on it....yet.  I will own one someday!  :)
When I got home I read Utah Style & Design's article Rocks, Minerals and Crystals Serve as Earthy-Yet-Elegant Art on their website featuring some beautiful pieces available at O.C. Tanner.
Oh, and the second picture in the article is a small piece of amethyst.  This is similar to what I did end up buying in NM.  It was only $17.00.....right in my budget!

Photo: Utah Style & Design

 My favorite color (pink) is making a comeback in baths.  Pink Bathroom? Kohler's Got You Covered on The Bath & Kitchen Showplace's blog has 4 really great pink baths.  What do you think of using pink in a bath?

Photo: Kohler

Shower drains are kind of boring and not the first thing you think about when building a new shower.  They are pretty important though.  How to Choose the Best Drain for Your Shower on Houzz has some fun styles to check out.

Modern Bathroom design.  Photo: Houzz.

FAQ: Can I cut on my granite?

 Answer:
Only if you want to ruin your good knives.  Granite is harder than your knife blades and will dull them very quickly if you use the countertop as a cutting surface. Always cut and chop on a wooden or plastic cutting board.

Photo: Pottery Barn

Granite & marble make great rolling/ pastry boards & cheese plates though.  If you are a baker or candy maker rolling out the dough or candy on the cool surface is great because the slab remains cool, making the dough easier to handle and roll out.  People like to use stone for cheese plates because it keeps the cheese the right temperature while serving it.

Photo: Sur La Table

Marble & Granite for Your Dog?!

I don't have kids, but I do have two dogs that I treat like children.  They are adorable and they are spoiled. 
Oh look!  Here are my adorable dogs now...  :)
As spoiled as they are, I don't think I will be purchasing a marble dog bowl for them anytime soon!

I spotted this kitchen on Interior Design Hound yesterday....

Photo: Merchandise Mart

Beautiful isn't it?  Well, guess what's in this Dream Kitchen?  A"Dog Bar"!

Photo: Merchandise Mart

The water and food bowls are inset into the same white marble as the kitchen countertops.  Also, notice the faucet above them, you don't even need to move that heavy marble to fill the water!
You have to admit this is pretty cool. 
Maybe my dogs are this spoiled...I'm thinking about my next kitchen.  :)

I found a few other marble & granite dog bowls online.  If you think about it, they are actually kind of practical being that they are heavy.  You don't have to worry about your dog tipping it over! 
These bowls from Snooty Pets (appropriate name) start at $260.00...

Photo: Snooty Pets

Also, I found these...

Photo: The Green Head

And if you are going to go over the top for your dogs in your kitchen, you may as well build this dog bed into your island!

Photo: Accent on Design

Is this all too much?  Or would you happy accommodate your dog with only the best in your kitchen?
I have to say the marble bowls are much more attractive than the ugly plastic ones I have in my laundry room.

Iron Red Shower Niche by MGS by Design

Yesterday's Slab Sunday was about Iron Red granite.  I wanted to show you something we just finished working on with this stone.
We love when our customers get creative and we get to build unique things made out of stone.
Recently we built a shower shelf out of Iron Red granite slab.
Here are a few pictures we took of it before it left the shop...

Photo: MGS by Design

It looks somewhat simple, but believe me....this was a lot of man hours!

Photo: MGS by Design

It will set into the wall of the shower, so the frame of it will come out only 3/4" from the wall.
Isn't the Iron Red such an amazing stone?

Photo: MGS by Design

We Made Pinewood Derby Cars Out of Granite

Well, technically we made them out of Cambria quartz.

The Pinewood Derby is a pretty big deal here in Utah.  In some areas after the real Boy Scout Pinewood Derby the adults will get together and have one of their own.  This derby is no holds barred.  The only rules are no pyrotechnics and no liquid.
This year the owner of our company, Dan, decided to have his car made out of stone.  The thinking was the car would be heavier and therefore would win.

We had just finished cutting a job out of Cambria quartz, so they used the leftover scraps to build a car and a truck for Dan's derby.

Photo: MGS by Design

This video is pretty funny, it shows the truck in action....and crashing into BJ's iPhone.

Photo: MGS by Design

I have to say, this is a pretty fun place to come to work.  :)
Oh, and the cars did great!  Dan got the best time at 2.64 seconds and took 3rd place overall.

Slab Sunday: Paradiso granite

Paradiso granite is quarried from a bedrock quarry in India.

There are different colors of Paradiso granite, some lighter and some darker (like the photo above).  They are sometimes called Paradiso Dark and Paradiso Classico.  I'll be showing the range of Paradiso in this post.

Photo: Dynamic Cabinets

Photo: Granite Direct

Paradiso is black and grey with purple, red and sometimes brown veining.  This granite generally has a lot of movement.

Photo: MISTONES

Paradiso is a hard and dense granite.  So it's a great granite color for outdoor applications, even in areas with freeze/ thaw conditions.  It's actually what is on the exterior of my husband's office building here in Utah.  I quiz him on what it's called every once in awhile and he never remembers.  :)

Photo: MISTONES

Other names for Paradiso include: Paradisio, Paradiso Dark, Paradiso Classico, Paradiso Classic, Paradiso Purple and Pradiso.

Photo: The Stone Specialist

Photo: Bald Eagle Valley Stone Center

Paradiso is actually used a lot for monuments and statues as well. 

Photo: Shafer Memorials

Paradiso is available in 2 cm and 3 cm slabs as well as tile.