Fire Up a Stone Fireplace

Stone fireplaces are an excellent addition to any home, inside or outside. Add to that the wide range of possible styles, installation methods, and builders out there to choose from, and it's hard to beat one of these fireplaces for any home.

Indoor Stone Fireplaces

 
You really can't improve on a good indoor fireplace. They provide warmth, light, and maybe more importantly, create a homey, comfortable ambience to any living area. Whether you prefer the rugged natural look of uncut stone masonry or the refined, elegant air of carved stone, there's a stone fireplace out there to meet your needs. For those who want a more contemporary and refined look, carved stone fireplaces and mantels made of everything from sandstone to limestone to marble, can turn an average living space into a graceful and impressive place to entertain guests or just read a good book.

If you like something more natural, there are fireplace builders who specialize in more rustic constructions, many of whom prefer to use natural stone gathered from the surrounding area in order to create a harmony between your new stone fireplace and the natural world your fireplace protects you from. When it comes right down to it, however, why keep a stone fireplace indoors in the first place, when stone construction is the perfect material for conducting a great outdoor fireplace as well?

The Great Outdoors

 
When you really sit down and think about it, there aren't many better places to enjoy a good fire than in your own backyard. Again, your personal preference will determine what type of outdoor stone fireplace will best suit your landscape and match your house and your personality. As with indoor models, refined and carved stone is an option as are more rustic and primitive constructions. Regardless of which direction you choose, a stone fireplace is the perfect answer for outdoor fireplaces. Stone is fire and weather resistant, making it an investment that will last a lifetime and give you countless hours of quiet, contemplative evenings or rowdy nighttime reveling.

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Selecting the Right Natural Stone for Your Project

Natural stone has been used as a material for home interior design for a very long time.  It is used for counter tops, fire places,flooring and for interior design components. However, to provide a long term of solution of all these items it is important to know how to select the right stone and materials for the job. This suggests that you need to think about solutions to potential problems of the materials being used for both exterior and also interior decoration.

Simply put, you ought to feel in one's bones integral attributes of the kind of stone you like and the problems which you could encounter with its use. These problems have got easier over the years to overcome. Many centuries ago natural stone was exposed only to manual work. Today we have many methods for its protection, including a longer life and easier maintenance.

Nonetheless, home repair or even improvement demand that you select the right natural stone for the decor and also know enough tips to stay clear of even mistakes in the future.

Hallways

Since it is the hall that we immediately see when we go into a house, we will start here. In this little, yet important room natural stone is typically used for walls and also flooring. As a rule, wall surfaces are not exposed to aggressive influence of dampness, mud, chemicals or chafing, therefore, any kind of natural stone ending up will be suitable right here. On the vertical surface areas both attractive aspects with harsh chips such as limestone, and smooth tiles will certainly make a desirable perception. Refined marble and also granite look specifically reliable.

There are fewer choices for flooring production: it is unreasonable to use stone with a permeable framework - it won't offer long life and will require excessive time for care. Granite is the undisputed leader among materials for floor tile. It is strong and wear-resistant enough; has a rich range of colors which allow it to combine it with any designer's choices.

Stone Appearance

Unique consideration ought to be provided to stone structure, since regular treatment as well as its intricacy depend much on the surface: whether it is smooth as well as refined or tough. Smooth surface areas are much easier to clean, but with the lapse of time they will begin to show wear locations of the highest use. It is a little harder to clean a harder surface area, since dust as well as mud get into the smallest crevices.

Natural stone care and cleaning products permit you to simplify cleaning: These safe cleansers are routinely applied on the tile and will significantly decrease the time for cleaning while providing the best result. By the way, the same fluids might be put on the wall surface tiles too.

If you like smooth floor tile (well-polished dark granite shows wall surfaces and also ceiling of the lighted hall like a mirror, giving the home extra splendor), use the anti-slip tapes. They are simple to apply, absolutely undetectable and supply an excellent outcome. Simply keep in mind to restore safety film from time to time.

Bathroom Design

Bathroom design as a whole is worthy of special interest concerning the selection of the right natural stone. Bathroom tiles, being frequently exposed to the influence of water and vapor. Eventually lime scale on its surface area and really high moisture may cause mold to appear. Definitely, there is a way out: in the first case use filters for water purification and also air conditioning, and in the second one - create greater air flow.