Q: Why is this stone so unique? A: The intense colorations of Picasso Onyx make it not for the faint of heart; it’s prized for its extreme movement of brown, black, cream and gold swirls. Known as the “sexy” stone, Onyx is quite rare and considered to be a semi-precious stone.
Q: Where can this stone be used? A: Create your own masterpiece by lining the walls of your living room with this breathtaking stone using four book matched slabs. Or make a grand statement by mounting a framed slab over a minimalist fireplace. IRG’s Picasso Onyx truly reflects the art of opulence.
Q: How do I care for this stone? A: Calcereous stones such as Onyx require more maintenance due to their more porous composition. We recommend sealing and cleaning regularly. Onyx Is sensitive to scratching and any liquids should be wiped dry immediately. Keep these points in mind when deciding where to place your slab.
Q: Where can I find Picasso Onyx? A: Picasso Onyx is only one example of the vast in-stock inventory of Onyx slabs at IRG. Visit an IRG showroom near you (conveniently located in Brisbane, Dublin, and Sacramento) and IRG’s staff of surface experts can guide you through your selection. Schedule an appointment today.
Bold, Quiet, Excited, Relaxed, Energized, or Calm: Design Choices make a difference.
The studies are in, and they support the commonsense notion that interior design does indeed affect how you feel—emotionally and physically—inside your home. Whether subconscious or intentional, a person often makes design choices based on texture, color, and space. In other words: the immediate and emotional impact that an item evokes when you first see it can make you fall instantly in love…or not.
Let your feelings show.
Leaving all design decisions up to a professional is, of course, an easy way to operate. But that influencer must know you—what you like and how you react to color, surfaces, texture, and space. The newest looks, today’s design trends, and daily Twitter feeds don’t necessarily represent your preferences or the emotional impact you feel when reviewing these beautifully photographed surroundings.
At IRG, the designers we work with tell us customers are asking for new and statement-making uses for natural stone. While island waterfalls have become today’s norm, book-matched slabs used in home offices or as standalone art pieces are truly unique, one-of-a-kind applications that you might consider. At IRG, for example, our in-stock selections of Onyx or Calacatta Marble make stunning bookmatched natural stone statements.
Color is a biggie.
Almost everyone has a favorite color. Think about yours.
When you think about colors, ponder the following:
Why do you gravitate to that specific color?
How do you feel when you stare at it, does it bring back memories?
Is there a color family or varying tones that speak to you most often?
Besides clothing choices, where do you most often enjoy this color (or colors)?
Color therapy has been used in medical situations, public places, and vehicles. Adding color to a space can help achieve a different state of mind for the occupants.
Green and blue tones historically make surroundings feel more safe, calm, and relaxed.
Reds and oranges can add excitement, passion, and stimulation to an area.
Some color combinations can help us concentrate or feel creative.
Others bring back memories of pleasant times.
Identify colors that tire or depress you and your family and avoid them. It’s important to make your color choices personally and wisely.
Does bold stone speak to you?
Sometimes all you have to do is let the stone speak for itself. Large striking slabs used on walls or in large format design should be left to shine on their own. Rarely is there a need to enhance the dramatic impression natural stone can make by adding strong accessories or equally bold fabrics. When it comes to a brilliant—and often backlit—slab of onyx, no competition is necessary.
Nature is a natural.
Another option to consider is the effect of bringing nature into your spaces.
Natural elements can lower your heart rate and help you feel at peace with your life. Sometimes just the “awe” of a slab of natural stone puts a perspective on a situation. Knowing that a slab of marble has been in existence for centuries and that this element is right in front of you can literally bring you back to earth.
AT IRG, one satisfied customer mentioned “losing themselves” while staring at an elaborate piece of onyx mounted as a fireplace surround. Others tell us it feels like swimming or floating while in a bathroom lined with sensuous blue/green granite.
Design choices can bring out the texture and dimension of the stone and can also set the tone for the room: exciting, calming, thoughtful, energetic…and more. It can become a fascinating focal point or an ethereal transcendent mirage – the options for mood set through stone choice are fascinating.
Leave space for space.
How the space of an area is perceived isn’t totally dependent upon its square footage. Almost any physical dimension can become more inviting through the use of furnishing choices, color and lighting. Feeling cozy and snug versus claustrophobic is an example.
Transforming a small area into a feeling of vastness can come from the inclusion of a wall of natural stone, adding depth to a shallow space. Conversely adding a high impact stone choice to a very large great room can balance the openness. This rule sounds contradictory but don’t be limited by your boundaries.
Ask for Help.
When you’ve thought it through and you’re ready, let IRG help you choose the right surface for the design and mood that you want. IRG’s experienced staff can give you the personal attention you need to make that choice from an unsurpassed in-stock selection of natural stone. Call or visit us at an IRG showroom convenient to you in Brisbane, Dublin, or Sacramento.
You’ve decided that this is the year to get rid of the avocado green bathtub and cracked tile and bring your bathroom to the 21st century. More importantly you want to renovate your bathroom not just to a point where it doesn’t make you groan, but to the point where you feel content in your surroundings.
OK, but where do you start? IRG has put together a list to help you get inspired to move your bathroom renovation to the next level.
Where to start?
1. Take Note.
One suggestion is to sit down with a notepad or iPad and think about how you want to feel when you’re in your newly remodeled bathroom. Think about logistics like:
Is this the one place in your home where you want total privacy, peace, and calm? Or is it OK for your children to have access while you dress and prep for the day?
Do you want a fast, easy dressing area to quickly get ready for work?
Would you like a lounge chair and/or a private dressing table area in an extended master suite to prepare for date-night soirees?
What other features will make this renovated room the bathroom of your dreams?
Now that you know how you want to feel (literally), about your bath space, determine which tactile qualities can make this happen for you.
Do you like soft surfaces?
rounded corners
fabric treatments
hardware that you just want to touch?
Or
clean, straight edgings,
utilitarian cabinetry
minimalist touches.
These are important qualities so take the time to jot down what comes into your mind and take notice—you’ll be living with these details for a long time.
2. Search Your Style.
Whether on the internet or by leafing through books and magazines, search for those images that match the specifics you’ve outlined. A few of our favorite interior design websites are:
Find an interior designer that you feel drawn to and become a follower. You’ll see posts of their latest projects that will inspire your bathroom remodel project and keep your motivational momentum going (See how IRG worked with interior designer Sarah Hoover here). We’ve listed other San Francisco/Bay Area designers who visit IRG in search of the latest surfaces including: marble, granite, onyx, pental quartz, quartzite, and soapstone. And trust IRG’s expertise to help complete their remodel projects:
Did you know movie set design can set the tone for interior design for decades? Think Diane Keaton’s kitchen in Something’s Got to Give or whole house interiors in The Holiday. Depending upon the style you’ve chosen for your bathroom remodel, try looking at historical dramas and period pieces. In-person strolls through art museums never fail to inspire, as does even a shopping trip to the mall where fashion can be your muse. The point is not necessarily to be literally looking for bathrooms that you like but rather to see what gets your attention and speaks to you in any way pleasurable.
5. Come to the Source.
When all is said and done, you’ll most likely want to start with your bathroom surface selections. This is where IRG’s vast in-stock inventory really shines. Nothing helps you visualize your bathroom better than seeing and touching the surface in person. Whether you want marble, porcelain tiles, engineered stone, (or even Onyx!), IRG’s staff of surface experts can tell you which surfaces will work best in bathrooms, help match a slab to your bathroom remodel budget, and guide you through your decisions. Schedule an appointment with IRG today.
Drama and elegance merge in this unsurpassed marble surface that creates a truly bold statement!
Captured from one of the oldest marble quarries in Italy, IRG’s Calacatta Viola Marble goes where no marble surface has gone before. The perfect kitchen centerpiece for your home, Calacatta Viola Marble features rich cabernet hues and creamy white coloring. This statement-making natural stone is even more bold when used as a waterfall island or a bookmatched backdrop for what could become your favorite room in the house.
Chris Miniello of Birch & Tailor selected IRG’s Calacatta Viola Marble to create a daring modern kitchenscape for a remodel in the San Francisco Bay Area.
A Stunning Variation on a Classic Stone
How do you creatively describe beauty? IRG’s Calacatta Viola Marble surface makes you think of creamy ice floats balanced on a deep red wine-colored sea. It is a look like no other, incorporating classic white and deep violet, Calcatta Viola’s rich veining enchants the eyes and touches the heart. Honed or polished, this marble is a testament to chic luxury.
Dressed to Impress
Remarkably elegant, this marble countertop radiates light, making it the perfect choice for lightening living areas and adding depth and drama to bathrooms, powder rooms and – daringly – kitchens.
Luxury can be practical
IRG’s Calacatta Viola Marble is heat-resistant, so there’s less worry about burn marks in kitchen counter uses or bathroom areas. As uplifting as it is practical, Calacatta Viola can be used on walls, flooring, backdrops, and office workstations.
One-of-a-kind wonderful
Through heat and pressure, nature forms these intricate veins in the marble surface over decades, creating the foundation for Viola’s exquisite features. Truly one-of-a-kind, this stone represents the energetic, natural process — a marble surface with poetic and intense juxtaposed colorations.
Just Add Viola. And Voila!
When you’re ready to make your beautiful selection, come to one of IRG’s California showrooms nearest you: Brisbane, Dublin, or Sacramento. You’ll find our knowledgeable staff ready to show you the immense inventory of Calacatta Viola Marble as well as our Quartzites, Granites, Onyx and hundreds of surfaces to match your style – all in stock today. Bring your ideas and your dreams. Add Viola. And Voila!
Q: Why is this stone so unique? A: The deep blues and blacks take you away to the depths of mystery and peacefulness…
Q: Where can this stone be used? A: …which is why IRG’s Midnight Quartzite is so perfect when used as a backdrop for a luxurious bedroom wall or bathroom tub or shower surround.
Q: How do I care for this stone? A: Quartzite is heat- and stain-resistant, making it a very durable and practical material. That’s why you can use it on a spectacular waterfall kitchen counter or backsplash as well. Nevertheless, proper sealing will keep out the moisture and bacteria while retaining its magnificent appearance.
Q: Where can I find Midnight Quartzite? A: No one has a better selection of in-stock Quartzite slabs that IRG. Visit an IRG showroom near you (conveniently located in Brisbane, Dublin, and Sacramento) and IRG’s staff of surface experts can guide you through your selection. Schedule an appointment today.
Browse IRG’s full inventory of neutral and colorful quartzites here.
Who doesn’t dream of their own primary bathroom? Bay Area-based Designer Sarah Hoover gave a Marin County couple exactly that by choosing individualized IRG Quartzites and customized bath fixtures to highlight the beauty of the individual stones – and each client’s personal taste.
A Masculine Manner for Him
For “His” bath suite, IRG’s spectacular Avocatus Quartzite gives off a dark, dramatic vibe. This beautiful Brazilian Quartzite features deep green tones like the color of its namesake fruit. Like a jungle of green mystery, this stone lures in adventurous homeowners that desire statement-making walls and countertops.
And like a true piece of art, this bath is highlighted with a combination of brass and brushed nickel fixtures that highlight the stone’s color and pattern variation.
An Azul Approach for Her
Azul Macauba Quartzite was the defining difference for the “Hers” bathroom. Also quarried in Brazil, this highly-regarded exotic quartzite melds together dreamy shades of blue and purple.
The envy of any homeowner, these various graduations of blue lend a feeling of opulence and exclusivity, and the global fascination with this stone has made it one of the most precious in the world.
The Natural Aproach to Beauty
Quartzite is a natural stone, made by nature and from the earth. This long-lasting and hardworking material is commonly used for kitchen islands, countertops, backsplashes and in a variety of other installations. Like marble and granite, Quartzite is very hard and durable and also happens to be amazingly beautiful.
Browse IRG’s full inventory of neutral and colorful quartzites here.
The IRG Blog is your resource for stone product information, ideas and inspiration. Use our informational articles, project features, and product spotlights to help create your vision, then come into one of our showrooms to bring your ideas to life!
