When you’re building a new house or renovating your current home, there are so many options for decorating, improving and personalizing your living space. Each room has its own function and can have its own personality, contributing to the overall feel and beauty of your home. This is why granite slabs are such a popular feature when it comes to home decorating: it may sound like an odd word to apply to a sheet of solid stone, but granite is an extremely flexible option for building and decorating! It can be used for a number of effects and is appropriate in many different rooms.
A Rainbow of Colours
One of the most attractive features of granite is the vast number of available colours. We see so many images of the traditional flecked grey or reddish coloured stone that it’s easy to forget that granite slabs can also be purchased in a wide variety of colours and patterns. They can be found in warm, soothing brown tones as well as bright, cool blues. Gentle beige is a popular choice for many homes with lush greens and bold reds providing accents and interest. Going shopping for granite can be an inspirational experience for the home decorator; you may find the colour or the texture you never knew was perfect for you!
A Use in Every Room
Granite’s variety of colours and patterns mean that you can find a use for it in nearly every room in your home without fear of your decorative choices becoming dull or repetitive. Take your kitchen, for example. Clean, traditional light grey granite slabs make excellent floors and countertops with the bonus of being difficult to damage and easy to clean. Moving to the bathroom, a sea-green stone slab makes an excellent backdrop for a luxurious shower. Warm browns streaked with dark red make for a welcoming entryway or living room. The possibilities are endless.
Different Sizes, Different Ideas
Stone slabs come in many shapes and sizes and granite slabs are no exception. Sometimes the size of a piece of stone can provide inspiration for its use. A very large piece may catch your eye while you’re shopping and seem to tell you that it’s just longing to be your living room floor. Some pieces may look like they’re destined to become countertops or wall panels. Smaller slabs may work together to provide a lovely harmony of colours, or a bold contrast if that’s what you’re going for. And of course, very small pieces or leftovers from your larger slabs can be wonderfully effective as accents to improve the overall look of your room.
Beyond the Home
Granite is also a popular choice for decorating offices, shops and other business locations. A dentist’s or doctor’s office may choose soothing rose-coloured granite for their countertops to help put patients at ease. A hair salon or high-end fashion boutique may choose black granite slabs streaked with white for their walls to add a splash of drama. Granite is durable enough to withstand constant use from workers and customers alike, so your office or shop will not start to look develop an unfortunate scruffy look with time; instead it will retain the smooth, professional look that drew you to choose it in the first place!
Easy Care, Gorgeous Results
This amazing durability draws many decorators to make granite slabs their first choice regardless of the building they are working on. Homes and businesses see different types of wear and tear, but over the years, time takes its toll on most building materials. Granite, however, is one of the hardest stones nature has to offer. It takes more than a constant flow of customers (or a few rounds of children roughhousing!) to dent or scratch the surface of granite slabs. Even the great outdoors can only weather them a little!
A Solid Choice All Around
There are so many things you can do with granite, and all of them achieve a stunning and lovely affect in any room. This flexible, durable and always beautiful stone is the answer to many decorating quandaries, whether you’re using large slabs or just accenting with smaller ones. Whether you’re decorating your dream home or kitting out your business to draw in the customers, granite slabs are a choice well worth looking into.
This article was written by Katherine Delaney, an interior decorator who loves working with granite slabs and all that can be done with them.