As a leading authority on the selection and quality of natural stone, experience shows you simply cannot afford to compromise on quality. Only the most beautiful stone ever makes it back to our showroom. Careful selection and our continual quest for perfection allows us to source an extensive range of products, quite unlike anything else that is available. Quality is our ethos and philosophy. Whatever your specific requirements, however unusual, our team of experienced designers and natural stone experts can conceptualise and deliver an inspired solution bespoke to you with real flair and to fit your project.
There are many different classification schemes for stone, which have prompted the industry to simplify descriptions. This has led to many problems when, for instance, a stone laid as a granite is actually found to be a different stone type altogether and does not perform as expected. The British Standard BSEN12440 (Denomination of natural stone) addresses the classification problem and insists upon the correct identification of stone type and origin. It must be stressed that all stones should be considered individually for their merits in whatever use they are being considered for.
As natural stone tiles and slabs are cut from blocks of stone; each block can have varying qualities of material within the block. A typical block consists of approximately 20% highest quality material, 30% standard quality material and 50% commercial grade material. The price of stone you purchase is almost directly related to the quality of stone, commercial grades being the cheapest.
A fissure is a natural junction or line of separation within a single piece of stone. A fissure is not a defect, it was formed when two separate flows of liquid hot magma merge into a single mass. The fissure was there when it was quarried, when the factory cut the block into a slab, and when it was produced into slabs and tiles, and it will always be there.
It is highly unlikely that a fissure will open up unless there is an excessive amount of movement. If the fissure opens up while we are fabricating your job we will join the two pieces back together with epoxy and reinforce the underside of the stone with embedded steel rods to make the piece even stronger than when it was formed.
Some materials will often have what is called pencil lines these lines are an indication of strength in the material and is not to be confused with cracks, if you are sensitive to cracks or the look of cracks in the material then a more consistent material or engineered stone may be more suitable.
Pitting is often found on the surface of the stone and is very obvious on some of the sensitive white polished marbles. It is found frequently on the likes of Carrara Bianco and Statuario marble; it looks very similar to a very small chip in the surface of the stone but it is intact a natural pore in the material that cannot be removed.
The natural variation in stone is totally unpredictable. Even the most consistent materials will have some variation in tone or character. It is vitally important when laying natural stone tiles and slabs that pallets are opened and allowed to dry out before fixing and where possible tiles are dry laid to ensure consistency.
