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There are many variations on how to make your home unique. Some use redevelopment to achieve this goal, while others search interesting ideas. At the same time, both of them are ready to make all sorts of rearrangements and changes in order to achieve what they want. But everything simple and ingenious is nearby. Take a look at the decorative stone, it is the one that can give the interior of a room uniqueness.
Let's weigh all the pros and cons
Many people think that decorative stone is only suitable for exterior finishing. There is some truth in this, but it all depends on what specific stone we are talking about. After all, there is simply a colossal difference between a rough and heavy material and an exquisite, framed, light one, created using the latest decorative technologies.
To create interiors in an apartment, of course, they use the second option. It has a number distinctive features, which allows decorative stone to act as the most popular material for wall decoration in both private houses and small apartments. Its main task is to decorate the interior, make it stylish, beautiful, modern. Using this material you can create an incredible and amazing atmosphere of the Middle Ages. It is important to note that such a space will never look gray and inconspicuous; it will be transformed, even if the covered area is small.
How are decorative stones used in the interior of an apartment?
The answer here is simple - always different. There are no prohibitions or restrictions here. This is where versatility lies. of this material. It always looks modern, adds its own style, complements and decorates the room. Today, decorative stone is increasingly used in the interior of the kitchen, hallway, living room, and bedroom (see photo).
The designers claim that it has magical power, because it always and everywhere looks beautiful and appropriate. It is especially good if it is combined with other finishing options. The only thing that can make the interior a little gloomy and gloomy is if you cover the walls artificial stone fully. Therefore, it is advisable to use it as an addition and not as a basis. We present to your attention photos that very harmoniously present ideas on how decorative stone can be used in the interior.
Remember that beautiful interior, in which decorative stone is used can be incomparable only if it is used correctly. And visual beauty is based on three criteria.
Color and shape
The color and shape of the stone are of primary importance, since they are the ones who create the desired visual effect. If the whole style of the room matches light colors, then you should select a decorative stone in the interior that is one shade darker. This will allow you to narrow the space and harmoniously highlight the necessary zones or areas of the interior. Regarding the shape, here, rectangular or square elements are most often used. There are any available on the market geometric shapes, which makes it possible to experiment.
Correctly placed accents
It is unacceptable for decorative stone to become the central element of the interior of a room. This is only possible if you purposefully highlight a fireplace or TV, or perhaps a separate wall. According to the rules, you need to use artificial stone in fragments, as in the photo, to make the interior cozy and rich.
Material quality
Remember about safety, because very often unscrupulous manufacturers can violate production technologies. Therefore, find out in advance whether the decorative stone is of high quality and safe. Sometimes you can even require certificates, because in the case of low-quality products, they not only pose a danger, but also have an ugly appearance, can quickly lose brightness and change color tone.
Designers continue to rely on the naturalness of texture and raw materials. In view of this, decorative stone is their favorite, non-secret “weapon”. It is, for the most part, completely natural and has an expressive, self-sufficient aesthetic.
How, in this case, does decorative stone differ from wild, natural stone?
The fact that a person produces it, using special mixtures and forms. At the same time, the design of the product repeats in detail the section of natural analogues. That is, artificial stone is a worthy replacement for travertine, slate, granite and many other rocks and minerals.
Types of decorative stone and production technology
We learned how to make artificial stone a long time ago. The masters of the Middle Ages added to concrete mortar crumbs from tuff, dolomite, marble, obtaining a durable, noble building material.
Today artificial stone is quite light tiles, which is pressed from a wide variety of compositions. Depending on the main components, decorative stone can be:
- plaster,
- ceramic,
- concrete,
- acrylic,
- polyester.
In addition, the market offers “liquid” stone in the form of spraying, which is used to cover countertops and bar counters. And also flexible stone veneer: they decorate not only walls, but also furniture facades, countertops.
Specific additives impart additional properties to the facing stone. For example, volcanic perlite increases anti-corrosion, and expanded clay or pumice lightens the product. When soot and iron oxide are added to the mass, a fashionable aged stone is obtained.
Despite the abundance of textures, decorative stone tiles They are produced almost the same way: the selected solution is poured into matrices, tinted, sometimes fired, covered with impregnations or glaze. The process is simple and can be done at home by purchasing a special silicone mold.
For exterior work, concrete-based slabs are most often used. And inside, they mainly use artificial stone made from gypsum, an environmentally neutral mineral substance.
Advantages of decorative stone
All types of artificial stone share these qualities:
- availability, relatively inexpensive finishing material;
- ease of installation;
- ease of care;
- resistance to mold, fire;
- durability (manufacturers provide a guarantee of at least 10 years);
- an impressive range of shades and textures.
If the stone is made of gypsum, clay, sand, then add to this list also environmental friendliness and hypoallergenicity.
Features of the use of artificial stone
Thanks to the variety of patterns and colors, decorative stone is a real “must have” for a modern interior.
If you use stone, it becomes less bland, more varied, and more convincing, and much more comfortable.
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Many are difficult to imagine without facing stone. For example, in a Mediterranean house this is a stylization of pebbles or boulders polished by the sea. In Alpine - under mountain debris. The interior is Provence-like, like sun-bleached sandstone. In English - under a strict cherry-colored brick.
Artificial, glossy stone has made its way even into this “fiefdom” of metal and glass.
Stone is, of course, a unique tool for creating an extraordinary environment, but you shouldn’t go to all lengths. If you decorate the walls with stone tiles from top to bottom, you will get a crypt, a wine cellar, a dungeon... But not a living space.
Facing decorative stone solves several problems. Firstly, it is picturesque, elegant and prestigious. Secondly, with the help of stone you can make it more voluminous and expressive.
In the hallway, tiles stylized as limestone, sandstone, or brickwork are usually used.
Decorative stone looks more impressive if you combine it with other types of finishing - plaster, wood panels, embossed wallpaper.
In the hallway, stone tiles are used mainly for fragmentary cladding. Decorative clinker, sandstone, and quartzite are used to highlight corners, doorways, sections of the wall around the dial, mirrors, paintings, and hangers.
By the way, if a wall covered with crushed stone is added with a large retro clock, a “street” bench and a lamp a la lantern, you will get a soulful city “alley” leading into the depths of the apartment.
The stone is associated with reliability and safety. If it is present in the living room, the household members feel more confident, “like behind a stone wall.”
The stone is also associated with fire, with the warmth of the hearth. Man has carried the memory of the tandem of fire and stone from cave times; it’s not for nothing that fireplaces are still covered with rubble and cuts today.
However, not only fireplace portals are decorated with granite, brick or shell rock tiles.
Decorative stone is used to line niches with lighting, shelves, glass display cases, a fragment of a wall with a TV panel or behind a sofa.
Decorative stone, due to its structure, absorbs a lot of light. Therefore, designers advise alternating it with light plaster or wallpaper. Remember also that finishing with artificial stone will require additional lamps and a well-thought-out lighting scenario.
Decorative stone is especially good in a studio apartment. Perhaps this is the simplest, budget, current method divide the home into locations.
Decorative stone in the bedroom
Here the stone will become a talisman: it will calm, lull, bring back memories of something dear, truly natural.
A massive, high-quality bed fits perfectly with walls covered decorative bricks, as well as with wooden beams, caissons, sconces in the form of candelabra.
In the bedroom it is better not to use stone tiles with a glossy surface to avoid a “cold”, alarming flicker. And don’t forget to highlight the fragment lined with stone with lamps, which will make the texture softer and warmer.
Usually the stone is used to decorate the wall behind the head of the bed or the corner with the dressing table and mirror. Unlike the hallway, where transitions from stone to plaster are made using torn edges and flows, other, less noticeable techniques are used in the bedroom. For example, they mark masonry with moldings.
Decorative stone in a children's room
The environmental friendliness and safety of artificial stone tiles ensured its entry here.
It is also important that with the help of a stone you can embody the plot of your favorite fairy tale. Let’s say, create a “princess castle”, “Ali Baba’s cave”, “dungeon of the gnomes”, “underwater grotto”.
It is easy to lay out a mosaic, a panel with artificial pebbles, paint the pebbles to look like snails and ladybugs, decorate a landscape on the wall with a frame of stones, or a niche with toys.
If we are talking about a teenager’s room, then artificial brickwork near the desk will discipline him and call him to order. And resonate with more adult toys - car models, a globe, things in the steampunk style.
Decorative stone in the kitchen/dining room
There are a lot of methods to successfully integrate stone into the kitchen space. For example, imitation rustic masonry above hob turns this working segment into a colorful Russian stove or an ancient fireplace.
And kitchen niches covered with decorative stone will make the kitchen look like an old cafe, especially if they are combined with brutal countertops and cast-iron utensils.
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For the kitchen, choose stone tiles impregnated protective compounds. Porous, loose products absorb water and are more difficult to clean.
It is not prohibited to use decorative finishes in the context of ultra-modern interior styles. A relief stone of a reddish-brown, greenish tint goes perfectly with glass and metal, emphasizing the shine kitchen appliances, makes loft and hi-tech more heartfelt and intimate.
Decorative stone in the bathroom
A natural pool carved into the rocks - this is what a bathroom decorated with stone tiles might look like.
Tsugunov Anton Valerievich
Reading time: 9 minutes
Decorative stone is a facing material for external and interior decoration, rapidly gaining popularity. Stone finishing gives the room an original and presentable look and complements the interior well different styles. Decorative stone is wear-resistant, practical and easy to care for. The only thing that may confuse you is the high cost of the material. But if you consider that it is not necessary to cover all the walls in the room with stone, then the costs will not be so high. In addition, today they are actively used artificial species decorative stone, which are much cheaper than natural rocks.
Decorative stone in the interior
Most often this decorative facing material can be found in living rooms, spacious kitchens, dining rooms and hallways. Stone decoration doorways, niches and entire walls allows you to achieve a monumental effect, and in combination with living plants brings naturalness to the room.
Decorating the hallway with decorative stone is practical and convenient. A large amount of dirt accumulates in the hallway and corridor, which is brought into the apartment from the street. An artificial material that imitates masonry perfectly tolerates wet cleaning with detergents and has dirt-repellent properties. In addition, this design will be very durable and will not lose its attractive appearance from frequent touches.
Full decoration of the hallway with decorative stone can have a “pressing” effect, so the best solution There will be a fragmented finish highlighting certain areas:
- doorways and arches;
- viewed angles;
- areas around furniture and separately located decorative elements (lamps, paintings, mirrors);
- contact areas (hangers, racks, shelves, sections of walls above the baseboard);
- ledges and niches.
Advice: Decorative masonry is able to fully express itself only with good conditions. If there is insufficient lighting, decorating walls with dark-colored decorative stone will look gloomy. If it is impossible to provide suitable lighting in the corridor, you need to give preference to the material light colors and reduce the size of the cladding area, limiting it to, for example, the door opening.
IN decorative finishing The following types of this natural material are used:
- sandstone;
- limestone;
- slate;
- marble;
- granite;
- cobblestone.
Depending on the appearance there are following types decorative stone:
- rubble – imitates natural pebbles or boulders;
- crushed - has the appearance of unprocessed rock;
- sawn – combines an unpolished front surface with clear geometry;
- mosaic - elements form a certain geometric or color composition;
- tiled - has a polished front surface, an imitation of natural polished marble or granite.
Working with decorative stone
When choosing a decorative stone in the form facing material First of all, you will have the following questions:
- Is it possible to carry out finishing without the participation of a specialist?
- What tools will you need during work?
- How to lay decorative stone?
- What composition can be used to glue the facing material to the wall?
- How to decorate an arch with decorative stone?
Let's find out the answers to these questions and consider each in detail.
Do-it-yourself decorative stone finishing
Decorative stone finishing on our own- a very real task. Works with different types This facing material has varying levels of complexity, but in general, any novice master can handle laying stone.
Required Tools
For working with decorative finishing material you will need the following set of tools:
- trowel or spatula for applying glue;
- rubber hammer;
- grinder with disc for concrete;
- container for mixing the solution;
- triangle ruler;
- cords for horizontal beacons;
- plumb lines;
- metal brush;
- roulette;
- level.
Bonding composition
The facing material can be glued to the wall using tile or silicone adhesive, liquid nails, glue for stone. In some cases it is acceptable to use cement-sand mortar with plasticizers or polyvinyl chloride construction adhesive.
The best choice is tile adhesive or a specialized composition for decorative stone.
Important points
When working with stone, you need to take into account several nuances, the observance of which will ensure a high-quality result.
- Decorative cladding material can only be glued onto the wall carefully. It is acceptable to use for alignment or .
- When choosing a natural cladding material that has a lot of weight, you need to fix it on the wall.
- When covering walls with plasterboard, the sheets must have a thickness of at least 12.5 mm and be fixed along the length along at least three transverse lines.
- Maintaining relatively straight rows improves the appearance of the finished surface.
Sketch development and marking
Before you start gluing masonry elements, you must determine the size of the area to be covered, select the type of seams, make a sketch and markings on the walls. The sketch is necessary for the reason that it is desirable to lay a solid stone on the wall, and you should try to place it so that you do not have to cut and chop it, since these actions can lead to damage.
- To form seams, you can use wedges, lay pieces of drywall between the rows for wide seams or scraps of cardboard for narrow ones. After the glue has dried, the auxiliary materials must be removed.
Today it is a very common way to create an exclusive, and at the same time comfortable, environment not only in office, but also in your home. Depending on the budget, this finishing can be done in completely different ways.
The advantages of using decorative stone in the interior of a residential or office space:
Decorative stone wall decoration studio apartment or studio has a number of advantages:
- Immune to fungi and bacteria;
- This type of finish is not subject to rotting;
- The material is environmentally safe and does not contain any components harmful to humans;
- Does not require special care. Can be cleaned by anyone detergent, not containing abrasive particles.
A wide selection of tint types, which you can see in the photo on the Internet, allows you to choose suitable options for any interior.
Basic rules for interior design using stone
When planning to decorate a one-room apartment with decorative stone with your own hands, you should adhere to certain rules.
It is important to remember the coexistence of stone and light. In an apartment or studios where such a design is planned, there must be excellent lighting, as can be seen in the photo. Thanks to it, it will be possible to emphasize the structural features of this material.
Note! An insufficient amount of light will cause the space to be visually compressed, and this will only give the room a gloomy and gloomy look..
An excellent solution would be to complement the stone finishing with living plants. After all, decorative stone will look amazing on any natural landscape. That is why rooms with such decoration must be decorated with various plants.
Metal and glass are perfectly combined with stone decoration, this is clearly visible in the photo. Therefore, the design of premises with a similar interior may assume metal surfaces, furniture, decor and interior items made of glass and metal.
It is important to remember that the stone needs space. If you use stone finishing in a small room, it will look even narrower. In general, it is not recommended to use this material in, as well as for finishing ceilings.
Advice! It is better to use it in living rooms, bedrooms or other spacious rooms. It is possible if it decorates certain parts of walls, rooms or ceilings.
- Following these simple rules will allow you to achieve the integrity and beauty of your interior using decorative stone.
What can be decorated with decorative stone?
Most often and most successfully, stone is used to decorate the hallway, line doorways, and are also successfully used for fireplace finishing or as original panels for walls. And they are almost never used to decorate ceilings.
The finishing area can be completely different - either a small piece or the entire wall. For example, if you finish doorways or arches in the room, taking into account the fact that the area to be finished will not be large, you can change the appearance of the interior beyond recognition, this can be seen from numerous photos on the Internet.
Decorative stone cladding is used very often for fireplaces. Moreover, you can achieve the expected result even without brick cladding.
Important! One of the significant advantages of decorative stone is its ability to insulate a room. In addition, with such a solution you can decorate your apartment in any stylistic options - Gothic, , empire style etc..
Where to start?
Inside each of these points there are quite a lot of little things that cannot be discounted if you design the room yourself. It is thanks to small details that a complete picture of the interior is created.
How to choose a stone for finishing?
The first step is choosing a stone. The most budget options suggest using artificial stone. More often they give preference to one of the two most popular types:
- decorative stone based on gypsum;
- colored concrete.
These types of stones differ in physical properties.
- Artificial stones created from colored concrete are characterized by more durable structure . In addition, they have good resistance to moisture , which cannot be said about gypsum stones.
- But plaster options weigh half as much than analogues. This parameter is important because it affects the method of fastening and determines the durability of the apartment’s finishing. Cost of gypsum stones significantly lower .
Note! Gypsum stones can be trimmed or decorated with any available materials, which cannot be said about analogues made of colored concrete, the processing of which can only be done using a grinder.
These types of decorative stones are available in a very wide selection, which is clearly visible in the photo. This opens up the opportunity to match them to any design. To obtain not only a beautiful, but also a durable result, you need to take care of the coating for such a stone.
Advice! So that the hallway room does not lose out in space, but rather, on the contrary, gains somewhat, you can apply various drawings, hieroglyphs, even possible, to the walls.
More expensive options:
- Granite or quartzite finish. When designing with these types of stones, it should be taken into account that both of them have low water absorption and high resistance to stains, and also require a minimum of maintenance.
- Marble often used for cladding apartments or studios. Decorating walls with such stone hallway or living room will highlight the refined taste of the owner. General interior it will look expensive, elegant and noble.
- Travertine beats marble and granite in terms of thermal conductivity. In addition, this material has all the characteristics beneficial for wall decoration.
