Artistic Stone Inc. donated $3,000 to victims of Hurricane Harvey (via Red Cross(R) Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma (via Red Cross(R) Hurricane Irma)
Hurricane Harvey Donation (Receipt)
Hurricane Irma Donation (Receipt)
Our Blog
Quartzite Kitchens
BBQ All Year Round
Thanks to the nice weather we have here in California, you can enjoy BBQ outside almost all year round.
Let us share our recent BBQ counter installation.
You can see the installation process. Once base is ready, Artistic Stone makes a template.
Fabrication usually takes 7-10 business days after template, then we will come back to install.
In general, outdoor BBQ calls for more custom works, such as nonstandard width, raised bars, thick edge, irregular shape cut outs and so on.
Speaking of irregular shape cut out, here is a circle cut out done.
This particular BBQ required many cut outs.
Here is a different outdoor BBQ job that the client did a cantilever bar top.
Beautiful stone and beautifully done!
Outdoor BBQ generally requires more construction works than indoor kitchen does.
Artistic Stone will work with your contractor for your BBQ redo needs.
Make a Difference with Small Details
Have you consider how to treat around your window?
Many of you probably never thought about it!
It is easy to miss, but properly treating the area gives you more of a “finished look.”
Here are pictures of Full 1.5″ edge treatment on the window sill with stone.
Here is a photo of 3/4″ edge treatment on the windows and full 1.5″ edge on the bar top.
What if your window is not high up from the counter?
You can have a step up like this.
Depending on how it was built, your garden window might not be the same height as your counter tops.
It is pretty common that you notice the height difference after you take down existing counter tops.
In that case, you can have 3/4″ thick step up piece to cover your window sill.
You saw some options with stone, and now let’s look at tile.
Depending on the thickness, you can have tiles simply against the window trim.
You can finish open ends with quarter rounds.
There are many options for treatment just around the window.
We hope you find the right fit for your kitchen.
Custom Calacatta Kitchen
Artistic Stone perfoms custom slab jobs as well as prefab counter jobs!
Here is an example of custom slab project.
Material: Calacatta marble slabs
Edge: Miter edge
We also made the integrated drain board for this project. (please check the last picture!)
We love to receive “After” pictures and lovely comments, so let us share with you here.
We can also do semi-custom projects with prefab counters. Please feel free to contact us to discuss your design ideas.
Kitchen Countertop Before & After
Who wouldn’t like to see Before & After pictures?
Here are one of our recent kitchen counter installations.
Before: Travertine Tile Counter.
After: Cartier Green Countertop
Some more After pictures. You never go wrong with green counter and dark & warm finished cabinets. Enjoy the great change!
Waterfall Counter
Here is our recent Carrara White waterfall counter being installed!
You probably see many waterfall counters in magazines or design websites these days. Waterfall is a custom design element that can make your kitchen more dramatic look with patterned material (i.e. Carrara here) or more modern clean look with consistent patterned material (i.e. engineered quartz). Below is our Bronze quartz counter with waterfall.
There are a couple of ways to handle waterfall. Please contact our sales team for options.
Granite Counter and Tile Installation in Foul Weather May Cause Delays
“Rain Rain Go Away.Come Back When It Is Not My Install Day.”
The weather such as heavy rain combined with wind can delay or prolong a tile, granite, or quartz installation. Our installers face two issues, the material getting wet and the San Francisco Bay Area traffic. I will only discuss with you the former since you all know how well we drive in bad weather.
When the guys are expecting heavy rain, our granite and tile installation teams pack their tents so they and the material are not rained on. When the granite, quartz and plywood get wet, since it affects the drying time, cutting and worker safety. Tile installation is affected less since the bonding material, thin set is water based unlike granite and quartz which relys on a polyurethane or silicone based adhesives.
- This is a makeshift tent when my guys were cutting tile in light rain. During heavy rain, Artistic Stone’s Install teams will use the same tents as one may use for a Tail Gate Party before a football game. Go 49ers!!!
When installing in at freezing or below freezing temperature, the glue will not adhere to the granite surface because is too cold. This a common challenge for jobs in Truckee, Tahoe or the Sierra Foothills. When installing in these conditions it takes longer than normal California weather for the glue to bond.
In our experience 90% of the rainy day jobs get installed. We leave it to our installers descretion to decide whether they proceed or postpone. Our installers decisions is based providing you the best install and their safety since wet surfaces are slippery to walk on and counter tops are heavy(15 pounds per square foot).
If you have any specific questions or concerns, please call project manager, Dave in San Leandro about the challenges of rainy day installs.
Carrara Marble Kitchen
White Carrera marble from Carrera Italy is classic and modern. What else can one ask for?
Check out our seam also!
Vyara Countertops with Brown Glass Subway tiles
Vyara Granite also know as Juparana Vyara from Brazil is an exquisite piece of stones with gray and light tan swirls which weave the countertops together. This kitchen has an expansive window which allows the movement of the stones to really come through. The homeowner chose 3″ x 6″ Skylights Cashew glass subway tiles to bring out the beige tones in the Vyara.
