How to Choose Stone Tiles for Your Pool Area

Summers in Arizona can be brutally hot, and most people deal with the heat by taking a swim in their pool. As the hottest time of the year approaches, homeowners all over the Valley of the Sun are having backyard pools either installed for the first time, or renovated to be just like new.

One of the most important parts of this project is deciding what the area surrounding your pool will be paved with. Stone is great option for many reasons, but the decision making does not stop there.

The first thing you need to do when choosing stone tiles for your pool area is to establish a budget for your project. The last thing you want is to fall in love with a product you cannot afford. Fortunately, thanks to the development of less expensive products made to look high end, you can achieve almost any kind of look you want for your pool area without breaking the bank.

After you decide how much money you want to spend on your pool area stone, narrow down your options by finding a style that you like. Do you want a sleek, sophisticated look? Or does a more family-friendly natural design appeal to you? This area will most likely get a lot of traffic and attention from guests, so make sure you really love what you choose, and do not settle with a style you are not happy with!

Both stone slabs and pavers have gained popularity over the past few years for pool areas. Stone slabs tend to be more fluid throughout the space that they are laid on, and many absorb excessive heat, which is great for the Arizona summer. Pavers, on the other hand, come in a vast variety of shapes, colors and sizes. Since they are smaller than stone slabs, they are able to move better with the ground, which diminishes the chances of cracking over the years.

While less popular these days than stone slabs and pavers, brick still remains an option for many homeowners. If brick is prominent throughout the home, or adds to an already natural or charming look to your backyard, brick might just be the way to go. There are types of brick that are smoother than others, thus better for walking around on.

There are a few other things to keep in mind when choosing your stone pool surroundings. Make sure the product that you choose is one of good quality. Stay within your budget, but choosing a cheap stone will result in replacing it sooner than you might want to, which could cost you more money. Also, make sure what you’re getting is slip resistant. Since these stones will be right by the pool, chances are they’ll be wet most of the time people are walking on them. The last thing you want is a fall during some fun!

Come on in to Arizona Stone today to find the right stone for your pool area, we can’t wait to help!

How to Darken Travertine Naturally

Travertine is one of the most popular types of stone to use for flooring and countertops in people’s homes today. It’s a limestone that has pitted holes in it, and is easily cut into irregular shapes for whatever part of your home you’re looking to add travertine to. 

 

Whether your travertine is older or brand new, you might be looking to spice up the color of your flooring without ripping it up and adding something new. Well, we have good news. There are ways you can darken travertine tile naturally, without ruining the stone itself, and we’re going to tell you about all of them.

Oils

Oils are one of the most natural ways to bring out the deeper colors that travertine stone comes in. They highlight the natural pigments in the stone and allow the best colors in the travertine to be showcased. Gently rub oil on the surface of your stone, allowing it to soak into the travertine. Repeat the process as often as you’d like and on a regular basis. You can use practically any natural oil when it comes to using it on travertine, the most popular being olive and sunflower.

Dye

If you’re looking to add some real color and not just deepen the look of your tile, you might be interested in dye. Many people don’t know this, but you can actually use wood dye (for kitchen cabinets and such) on travertine tile as well as the obvious. You can use dye in a natural way by mixing it into water and creating a dye solution. Add as much of any color dye until you have the desired darkness. Use a cloth to soak the solution into each stone, making sure it absorbs the dye. Be careful when dyeing travertine stone, however. Certain wood dyes can be toxic to use, so make sure you check the label before you buy anything.

Ink

Ink is another way to naturally color your stone tiles. It’s similar to dye in many ways, one being that it’s very concentrated and needs to be watered down before you can use it on travertine. When choosing the right ink for your tile, make sure you pick one that is specifically made for use on stone. You can find inks that are made with natural materials like chalks and tempera paint that will make coloring your tile completely safe. Apply a watered down ink solution the same way you would with a dye, and as smoothly as possible to avoid blotch marks and darker areas on each tile.

Stone Stain

Last, but certainly not least, you can use a stone stain for your travertine tile, who would have guessed? Unlike dyes and inks, stone stains are less effective for tile, as they simply stain the surface of the travertine as opposed to soaking into the whole piece. However, stone stains are known to penetrate the pores in travertine and seal the stone when dry, making the color last longer. Stains are also often resistant to water and other liquid spills, so it can be just as good a choice as the others. 

Keep in mind that in order for the stain or new color to adhere properly to your stone, the travertine must not have protective finish on it, or else the color won’t stick as effectively as possible.

We hope you keep these ideas in mind if you’re looking to change the color of your travertine tile. Instead of ripping it all out, you can do it yourself, save money, and bring the floor you once loved back to life.

Stone-Inspired Easter Eggs

Easter is rapidly approaching, and before you know it, you’ll have children running around the yard for the traditional Easter Egg Hunt. 

There’s nothing more fun on Easter than enjoying the outdoors with friends and family, especially for a friendly (and sometimes competitive) holiday game. However, if your kids are getting older, they may not enjoy an egg hunt quite the way they used to.

Well, we’ve got a way to spice it up this year, and if you do it well enough, you’ll have kids and adults alike hunting for the Easter eggs until the sun goes down.

Bring the level of your hunt from easy to hard, or at least harder than usual. Instead of painting your eggs the traditional bright, pastel, springtime colors, give them a camouflage look by painting them similar colors to ones in your yard.

And by yard, we specifically mean stones, of course!

This will require a little research ahead of time. Take a walk in your yard and pick out good places to hide your eggs. Note what color every stone in your yard is, whether it’s a pathway or a fountain, or a multi-colored stone wall. This way you’ll know what paint colors to get from the store. Most likely you’ll end up with a lot of browns, creams, grey, and even some green if you want to hide them in the grass!

Once you've painted your eggs and they've dried, place them discreetly around your yard before your guests arrive. When everyone is ready, let the hunting begin! Just make sure to grab all the eggs by the end of the day, you don't want any stragglers laying around your yard.

Not only will the eggs be harder to find this year, but you’ll get to tie the holiday in with your beautiful landscaping, and you should take any excuse to show off your stone décor!

Faux Wooden Beams

Yesterday, we posted a Facebook album of projects we completed using faux wooden beams. We were so excited about sharing them with our followers, we wanted to delve deeper into why you’ll love them so much!

If you’re decorating (or re-decorating) your home, there can be a lot of expenses, some of them even unexpected. While the cost of re-vamping your style can get expensive quickly, there are definitely areas where you can cut corners and save money.

One of these ways is by cutting the cost of buying wood beams. Wooden beams can add a unique and rustic look to your home, but they can be expensive and incredibly difficult to install. Instead of buying real wood, consider faux wooden beams for your home. They give the exact same look but are less expensive, easy to install, and actually last longer than real wood beams.

The best part: nobody will even know the difference.

Most faux wooden beams are typically made from polyurethane. This is an ideal material for faux wooden beams for many reasons. First of all, by avoiding real wood beams for your home, you’re actually doing some good for the environment. You’re saving trees while using products that have been proven to be safe for nature, who doesn’t like that?

With faux wood, you can also be sure that weather and any unfortunate bug infestations won’t ruin your beams. Termites and soggy home décor in your house? No thanks!

We mentioned before that faux wood beams look just like the real thing, and it’s true. They can be made to look like any type of wood that you could desire for your home, and in any color you want. These beams provide the same texture and look that anyone would search for in their decorating journey.

Another great reason to ‘go faux’ is the fact that polyurethane beams are much easier to install than real wood. It can be done by you and one other person without much effort at all, and you don’t even need to be a secret handyman to get it done right! Not only will you save time by installing your beams yourself, but you’ll save money by not hiring professionals. And if you ever want to take them down or move them to another room, it’s as simple as unscrewing them from their current location.

Last, but not least, we mentioned that you can save money by using faux wood beams in your home, and it’s true. You’ll get the same rustic and homey look that you want in your house without having to break the bank.

You can order faux wooden beams online at your own convenience, but they’re even available at hardware and decoration stores all over the country.

Decorating Stone Walls

There can be many reasons why you have a stone wall in your yard, whether it’s to block off the pool area, to protect a budding garden, or maybe it was already standing when you moved into your home. 

Often times, these walls are beautiful, no matter the style or age. Stone walls can bring an ‘Old World’ feel or cottage-like charm to a backyard, no matter what the style of your house and surrounding area is.

However, sometimes these stone walls are less than pleasing to the eye. Instead of spending a ton of money to tear an undesirable wall down and re-landscape the area, we’ve come up with a few ways you can work with your stone wall.

Use Lighting

While it might seem like lighting the area you want to hide is counterproductive, it isn’t. Installing small lights along your wall, every two feet or so, will not only give your backyard some nice mood lighting, but can change the appearance of the stone. The “up lighting” effect bounces off the stone to give it a warm, glowing look. If you want, go the extra step and make the lights solar-powered. Now your stone wall looks pretty and won’t cost you any extra money. 

Grow, Grow, Gow! 

Possibly one of the easiest ways to cover up an unsightly stone wall is to literally cover it up. Plant creeping vines along the wall, and the greenery will do the rest. Creeping plants are trained to grow upwards on whatever material they’re planted alongside, and can turn an old or cracked stone wall into a beautiful, leafy area in your backyard. There are a variety of different vines and flowers that you can buy at plant nurseries that will attract attention, and in a good way. 

Another popular idea is to plant flower and herb gardens around your stone wall. The wall will not only serve as a protective element against wind, but it will also add a pop of color and greenery to the area. This will make your unfortunate stone wall the centerpiece of a happy place in your yard. The possibilities when it comes to what to planet are endless. From rosemary to thyme and oregano, not only will you forget that you don’t like that wall at all, but you’ll never have to spend money for herbs or decorative flowers again. 

Attract Attention Elsewhere

If you don’t want to go through the trouble of planting and maintaining a garden or installing an electric system for lights in your yard, the best thing you can do is build something close to your stone wall that will attract all the attention. For instance, a natural stone path can provide access throughout your yard without disturbing plant life. It can also be a beautiful way to connect the separate areas of your backyard while providing a nice flow to your space, tying it all together. You can use stones of various colors and shapes that will be sure to detract from anything you don’t want your guests looking at, like the stone wall. 

Not every backyard design is a hit. Sometimes we buy a home with an eyesore or construct our own masterpieces, only to discover we shouldn’t have. Instead of spending lots of time and money to remove these backyard biffs, use these ideas. You’ll fall in love with your yard all over again.