Fireplace Facelift - Thin Stone Veneer (1)
 

As soon as I can feel the slightest chill in the air, I can't help but want to cuddle up in front of my fireplace with a blanket and a good book (or shelter mag!).   Enjoying the warmth and ambience of a fireplace is one of the reasons I look forward to the winter months ahead.  I've always felt that a house just isn't a home without a fireplace, aside from the fact its an obvious focal point in any room, I love the character, warmth and mood a fireplace brings to space.  But this character.....has to jive with the rest of the house.   So its no wonder that fireplace facelifts are one of the most common design challenges I work on.


 I prefer the 3D slate or ledgestone series and have specified them for a variety of different installations over the past several years.  These are natural stone panels made up of multiple thin linear pieces of stone ranging from 3/4”th to 1-1/2”th which are adhered together to form 6” x 24” panels.   These panels of stone (made up of slate, quartzite, limestone, basalt) are made from 100% recycled post industrial waste and are thinner and lighter than using solid stone and much more eco friendly and natural looking than man made synthetic faux stone.

The panels can be installed over any substrate and are installed fairly simply in the same manner as stone tiles, they even offer pre-made 90 degree corner pieces to wrap around corners seamlessly.   Its a versatile product that can be used inside or out and is suitable for cladding the exterior of buildings or interior installations especially great in spaces where you want to bring the outdoors in.  It retails typically for $12s.f. and up so a 6‘wide by 8’ high fireplace would cost you less than $1,000 in material.

The sketch above, and concept board below is a sample of an e-design fireplace facelift I designed for a client back in July where i recommended using these thin stone panels. The homeowners painted their existing 80’s brick fireplace out when they moved into the house earlier this year and wanted me to help them with some ideas on how they can update it.  This fireplace and its seating area are off to the side of the main living spaces in between the living room and dining room.  Utilizing a pair of existing leather chairs, I suggested adding a hide carpet, an ottoman some small tree stump tables and funky metal reading lights to compliment the updated fireplace.

Below are before and after photos of a fireplace facelift I designed about 3 years ago.   The existing fireplace and adjacent wall (which continues beyond what's visible in the photo) and colum were faced in brick, but we chose to add thin stone veneer only to the face of the fireplace and then paint-out the rest of the brick, including the hearth which was done in a tone that blended in with the new stone panels.edited by china stone veneer

Outside wall market differentiation (1)

 
 

       In recent years, as China's explosive growth in the real estate industry, the application range of the outer wall and the amount increased rapidly, and its appearance in good decorative effect, timeless texture, low cost integrated, post-maintenance, environmental health, fashion, etc. many advantages to become one of building material of choice for wall decoration. According to the end of 2012, "National tile production capacity report" National existing exterior wall tiles ceramic production lines 608 and outer wall ceramic tile products products accounted for the proportion of total 16.13% for 2011 8,701,000,000 square meters of annual production of ceramic tiles, our Outside the wall annual production of 1.4 billion square meters, equivalent to the world's second largest producer of ceramic tiles in Brazil, India and the third largest producer of various countries in 2011 total production of total ceramic tiles and stone veneers.
Cultured stone veneer advantages: each function indicators were higher than normal outside wall

Almost every business will have a production of ceramic products outside the wall, but a professional to do outside the wall, and has a brand-building does not have much sense. Tiles, mosaics, whole body tiles, split tiles, cultured stone veneer, ceramic plate as the main outer wall of modern products. Among them, the whole body is not glazed surface of the outer wall, the front and back of the same material and color, and this is named. Whole body tiles generally rough, antique decorative effect, elegant chic, simple, natural, suitable for use in high-rise buildings. Love and ceramic tile business minister Yu Jianhua introduced henselae outer wall water absorption of 0.5% to 3%, and in the heat fast firing, the inner product with excellent performance, frost resistance, color saturation, suitable for luxury villas , garden skirts and other low-rise building use. Similarly rabbit production body tile tile international sales Huang Lijun, said outer wall whole body's natural texture and color of the eternal original ecological soil greatly aroused the interest of owners and architects. Although the outside wall product after another, but the original is still the hottest eco color of choice!

外墙砖市场差异化（2）
劈开砖与人造文化石产品本身优越性能受到了中高端消费者的青睐。劈开砖通俗一点来说就是陶瓷坯体砖，坯料素烧不施釉制得，然后以人工或机器沿筋条连结处劈开为两片产品；而文化石则分为天然文化石与人造文化石，其中人造文化石产品是以浮石、陶粒等无机材料经过专业加工制作而成，具有环保节能、质地轻、强度高、抗融冻性好等优势。
劈开砖的设计理念比较贴近自然，时尚极具现代感的同时也不失文化气息。玛拉兹设计总监陈强表示，玛拉兹的劈开砖产品以优质粘土为原料，经过真空挤压成型和隧道窑高温烧制，各类产品的颜色自然且不易褪色；背面特有的翘首以待槽与墙体的粘合程度好，抗剥落性强，而且耐磨耐酸碱、防滑防潮防腐蚀、抗冻保温、隔音吸音等功能。劈开砖在外观与工艺上是其它墙砖无法比拟的。
同样追求自然的人造文化石产品，通过不同铺贴设计，营造不同风格效果，或复古或摩登，被应用于众多高档别墅、高档商住小区、旅游景区、院校等场所。上渥陶瓷营销副总经理曾梅静表示，人造文化石除了一般陶瓷材料固有的耐腐蚀、不褪色，抗冻、防潮等优良性能外，更具有极其美妙的色泽渐变及表面特征，可以让设计师的想法表现得淋漓尽致，体现出建筑的文化品位，整体提高建筑的装修档次。
干挂陶板作为一种新型幕墙材料，与传统的石材、铝材和玻璃对比具有诸多优势，进入幕墙行业后将抢占其他材料的市场份额。TOB 陶板中国陶瓷城展厅负责人张素明介绍，陶板最早起源于德国，2006年开始在国内生产，陶板是以天然陶土为主要原料，添加少量石英、浮石、长石及色料等其它成分，经过高压挤出成型、低温干燥及1200℃的高温烧制而成，具有绿色环保、无辐射、色泽温和、不会带来光污染等特点，成为建筑外墙装饰首选材料之一。
外墙砖多为别墅或大型建筑物外立墙面使用，因此它所使用的数量是大批量的，这就要求生产厂家必须具备强大的生产能力和良好的供货速度。目前，市场上的外墙砖生产厂家一律定制生产，即接到客户订单后，开始投入生产。
像劈开砖、文化石这些定位中高端的外墙砖产品主要的销量渠道是工程，零售的只占其中很少比例，“目前上渥有三个工厂，就文化石方面年产量可达到6、7千万平方米，主要以工程为主，仅仅就佛山而言，主要的工程就凯德置地、保利地产、拉菲公馆、时代广场依云小镇等等”。
美诺家建材出口部经理刘啸辉表示，美诺家文化石年产量达300万平方米，一次订单量在5千平方米至5万平方米之间不等，接到订单后，制定交货期，经过客户看板、调试生产至正式投产需要一周时间。目前，美诺家成功合作工程项目有：碧桂园（华南区）、深圳东部华侨城及昆明高尔夫庄园、长春富奥花园等50多个。
对于需要采购大批量外墙砖产品的工程采购商来说，选择供应商时需要注意哪些问题呢？对此，余建华认为以下两点非常重要：一、产品质量，包括产品的稳定性、吸水率、规整度都需要严格考虑；二、厂家实力及诚信度，厂家的生产能力要能满足采购要求，能否控制好产品的色差，补货速度能否跟的上施工进度等等。
CHINA STONE VENEER编辑

Any design firm should have affordable stone veneer in display

 
 

An industrial looking office with some stone veneer accents would make your existence that much easier and get a lot more attention from your clients, particularly if you are in the business of selling these specific types of building materials. Whether or not you use some commercial cheap stone veneer grade or an expensive stone alternative all you need to do is make sure that it’s always looking professional and rich. Most commercial cheap stone veneer doesn’t possess these qualities, rather they DO look cheap. In these cases it’s not just the price!
The job of selecting a quality cheap stone veneer is not a simple job simply because it is used to satisfy a wide group of individuals in a variety of requirements; space, dimensions of the office premises, type of natural light and so on. The person in charge has to consider the quantity that are required to fix up any space within the workplace or home.
Can you tell the difference between real or faux stone veneers?
 
While buying affordable but quality stone veneer this person is also expected to keep into consideration what it takes to put these stacked stones, ledgestone etc, on the walls. The stone veneer panels should also offer a real warranty so that in situation of any defect the material can be substituted. In case the stone walls is offered only to some repeat and faithful group of clients then the requirement of choosing a suitable stone wall material will become much more essential.
Your clients will surely appreciate it when in your estimates and quotes you include the savings deriving from the lower cost per square foot AND what they save in labor.
What makes your firm stand out is usually the amount of customer service offered overall. This includes any aspect of the project. Form providing quotes with drawing and photos of what the space will look like to supplying a list of reliable stone veneer manufacturers.
It is not just the initial impression but the impression they get at every step.
A high quality design or remodeling firm has always a list of ways to use cheap stone veneer and if the customer isn’t sure about that specific idea, the designer should be able to provide one or more alternatives, right away.
To get assistance in this process is always a good idea to have a piece of each stone style and color and match it with any photo idea. This helps the client picture the stone veneer in their room or office.
No matter where affordable faux stone veneer is used, for interior or exterior decoration, the quality and cheap panels will definitely assist your firm during the closing of a sale.