For the ASPIRE DESIGN AND HOME winter issue, we spoke with four brands on the future of stone in design.
ABC Stone | Lapitec® Ebano, Vesuvio finish. Photo courtesy of Lapitec®.
Lyndsey Belle Tyler | Creative Director of ABC Stone
AXIOM: Kitchens these days are “a feast for the eyes” and have become the ‘design center’ of the house. One reason is the Instagram Phenomenon. Everyone’s asking themselves how to top the kitchens they see on the site; they’re searching for the “wow” factor.
ADVENTURE WITH A CAPITAL “A”: We love the adventure of seeing the natural beauty the earth yields. There’s a certain wonder about it all, no two lots are ever the same. We feel like the mountain is telling us a story that we have the incredible honor of discovering.
INCREDIBLE COMPOSITIONS: We work directly with quarries on six continents for natural materials and have a procurement team on staff that travels the world to make sure we only source top materials.
WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS: Color and pattern are going to continue to take over. Clients want their space to make an impact, and stone does that effortlessly. Whether it’s a semi-precious vanity top or a perfectly book-matched marble countertop, stone is simply not meant to blend into the background, and clients are excited to move in new and bold directions.
HOT ROCKS: ABC Stone’s Lapitec® is a manmade, bio-compatible product from production to processing to end product. Releases no CO2, and actually cleans the air.
Silestone Kitchen | Eternal Noir. Photo courtesy of Cosentino,
Massimo Ballucchi | Executive Director of Marketing Cosentino
AXIOM: With so many cooking shows on television now, people are cooking again! Plus, as we found in our 2016 Kitchen Study, more men are cooking at home. Increased time in the kitchen means everyone wants it to be an inspiring space that reflects their own style and personality.
ADVENTURE WITH A CAPITAL “A”: One of the joys of working with our products is that it is different almost every day, beautiful, exotic and innovative. Participating in the development of Silestone and Dekton products and launching them in the marketplace is also always exciting.
WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS: Watch for authentic replications of natural stone, and blues and greens. It’s happening in fashion and home furnishings, two industries our in-house R+D team and alliance of designers throughout the country and Canada follow. And products that make a statement, high- tech and glamour.
HOT ROCKS: Cosentino’s Prexury® series of materials made from such semi-precious stones as amethyst, quartz and agate; also Dekton, its new ultra-compact surface material made of porcelain, glass and quartz with zero-porosity.
Ciot | Cartier countertop. Photo courtesy of Ciot.
Jeff Glasener | VP, Sales and Marketing at Montreal-based Ciot
AXIOM: Assembling a group of natural stones from around the world in a variety of finishes for a large high-profile project makes it all worthwhile for the team at Ciot, especially when working with a client for the first time.
INCREDIBLE COMPOSITIONS: Working with suppliers in such countries as Italy, Brazil, Spain and Turkey, Ciot’s Glasener says they offer hundreds of different granite, quartzite, marble and onyx slabs plus 10 different engineered lines.
WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS: Look for more colors in engineered stones that mimic natural stone veining; also, more rustic or weathered finishes.
HOT ROCKS: Ciot’s porcelain slabs and the company’s exclusive Geoluxe® is manufactured to replicate natural marble and be highly resistant to staining and etching.
SapienStone Arabescato | Design by HW Interiors. Photo courtesy of Jessica Glynn.
James Amendola | Director of National Sales, SapienStone
AXIOM: Versatility. To take a material that looks exactly like some of the most expensive natural stones and use it in an application where you don’t need to worry about it staining, etching or fading is quite amazing. Furthermore, a fraction of the cost of most luxury stones.
INCREDIBLE COMPOSITIONS: SapienStone manufactures all of its materials. We have our own R&D team, factories and people that handle the sourcing and purchasing of these materials. Our slabs are manufactured from approximately 13 natural minerals and there are quite a few formulations.
WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS: SapienStone’s most interesting product development on the horizon is an induction cooktop. It is also introducing two new colors – a marble and a solid black with a light textured finish.
HOT ROCKS: SapienStone’s Rovere Series is a porcelain that replicates wood and new marble looks with veins that run through the depth of the slab, better mirroring natural stone.
For more expert design advice, be sure to check out these 5 design trends to look for in 2020.
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