design
As homeowners continue investing in relaxing outdoor spaces, many are adding plunge pools and other features to their backyards. “The request we get most frequently is to install natural stone on the outside of their plunge pools,” says Karen Larson, co-founder of New Hampshire-based Soake Pools. Her company works almost exclusively with salvaged stones for the exterior and coping of its plunge pools. “Many clients opt for natural stone along the outside and coping of their plunge pools to enhance their landscapes with the stone’s durability, texture, and natural beauty,” Larson adds.
Colors have a powerful impact on our overall health and well-being. There are easy ways to incorporate this year’s most popular colors and pair them with natural stone to create fresh spaces. We asked an interior designer, creative director, and color experts to share how homeowners could pair this year’s color trends with different types of natural stones inside their homes.
Billie Tsien and Tod Williams credit their love of stone with their frequent visits to Rome. As Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects | Partners, the pair has designed and built more than 40 buildings, a large percentage of which are made using natural stone. “We’re interested in solidity, place and character,” Williams says, with the ultimate goal of creating projects “that have a long lifespan, are meaningful to the community, and will be loved for centuries.”Their choice to use natural stone is both practical and philosophical.
Being near water has a calming effect and research studies have shown that water features can positively contribute to our overall mental health and well-being. Incorporating natural stone water features at home can bring both beauty and tranquility into your space. Anne Roberts, president of Chicago based Anne Roberts Gardens Company, finds that people love the sound of water because it’s relaxing. Since not every home has a water feature, adding one is a way to make your home stand out.
Andreas and Naomi Kunert, co-founders of Ancient Art of Stone, know they don’t easily fit into one category. Together they create one-of-a-kind art installations using natural stone, crystals, and bronze. Andreas and Naomi are artists, first and foremost. It’s not unusual for their art pieces to be 25’ tall. An upcoming project will include a 900-foot mosaic wall, with 20 feet surrounding it and large doorways with 350 ton standing stones that one can walk through.
A stair project is typically all in a day’s work for an engineer, but what PICCO Group put together for a Toronto homeowner counters logic and the perceived limitations of natural stone.
Natural stone is often chosen for residential and commercial work because of its beauty and versatility. It’s also really nuanced, according to Roger P. Jackson. He is drawn to the beauty of natural stone and believes that its beauty goes beyond aesthetics. “Natural stone feels more durable,” Jackson says. “It has a character of strength, stability, durability, and mobility.”
Occupying almost an entire city block in the Park Slope neighborhood of Brooklyn is the NewYork-Presbyterian Brooklyn Methodist Hospital Center for Community Health. The new 400,000-square-foot building, which took the last decade to construct, was designed using a variety of sustainable materials, most notably the Calacatta Caldia marble that adorns the walls, reception desk, kiosks, café counter, and credenza in the main lobby.
There is no mistaking natural stone for its range, beauty, and sustainability. These are among the many reasons Craig Copeland, an architect, sculptor, industrial designer, and partner at Pelli Clarke & Partners finds himself recommending natural stone to many of his clients.
The last few years have put a laser focus on the importance of our health and well-being. Biophilic design can help you tap into an innate connection with nature to achieve these goals successfully.
Many people are drawn to natural stone because of its artistic qualities and characteristics. ALMA Studio takes it to the next level. The studio uses pure light projections to uncover, accentuate, and highlight art scenes that are hidden within the natural veining of stone slabs.
Fairplay is an artist and his medium is natural stone. He works with stones such as marble, limestone, and sandstone. While his studio is currently based just outside Cleveland, Ohio, his training began in Europe, where he specialized in hand-carved stone, marble sculpture, and ornaments.
Color has profound psychological effects on our mind and body. After the uncertainty of the past two years, it is not surprising that color experts are predicting a turn to calming neutral earth tones in 2022. Natural stone trends are also moving to timeless, sustainable materials like white marble.
Kat Coleman, owner and principal of Long Beach, California-based Topkat Design Group, reminds clients that stone is a natural material so there needs be some tolerance. What some clients may view as imperfections in natural stone, Coleman calls “character.” “Nature is perfectly imperfect,” she reminds clients.
There are many reasons homeowners choose natural stone in their kitchens. With new technology and resources that allow for more stress-free living, they have more options than ever to create a space they love.
Jan Neiges is a certified master kitchen and bath designer with the National Kitchen & Bath Association and principal of Colorado-based Jan Neiges CKD LLC. For Neiges, the act of discovery and finding out what is drawing the client to a particular piece of natural stone is part of the fun when working on a kitchen.
Rose Kallas and Christine Morgan, partners and principals of Chicago-based Two Girls and a Hammer LLC, have seen residential design trends come and go. While many classics, like marble, remain popular, the duo is noticing clients asking for more color. Natural stone is delivering.
Soapstone has been a staple material in chemistry labs across the country for decades because of its heat and acid resistance. Glass beakers, Bunsen burners, and hydrochloric acid are no match for soapstone in the chemistry lab, so naturally there is nothing in the kitchen it can’t handle.
Pantone recently chose two colors for its 2021 Color of the Year: a gray and yellow, which the company says come together to create an aspirational color pairing, conjoining deeper feelings of thoughtfulness with the optimistic promise of a sunshine filled day.
Experts say the thoughtful use of color and strategic placement of natural stone throughout our homes can help create that sense of connection and comfort many of us are seeking more than ever right now.