Art in Stone

More blog merging:  November 14, 2008

As I've been reading about ways to gain inspiration for color schemes, I've been searching for items that really speak to the tranquility that I am trying to recreate in my new space. The most striking item I found (which is also insanely out of my price range) is the "Harwood" Hide Rug from Horchow which they list for a cool $3300:

It has all the colors that seem to be pulling me in except for the blues (this rug has more of the purples and taupes). Anyway, falling in love with this color scheme has made me particularly sensitive to other items that are in the same family. While at work today I stumbled on some granite colors that, aside from taking my breath away, seemed to be separated at birth from this lovely rug, and it got me thinking about how I would extend these colors throughout the home.

Granite has become a must-have for any higher-end kitchen renovation. Although there are other materials that boast anti-microbial properties, stain-resistant surfaces, higher price tags, and most importantly, no maintenance, I feel there is still no comparison to the beauty of granite. Take a couple hours and stroll through the rows of slabs at your local granite source, or, if you are bored at work, do a google search for colors. Some of them are so beautiful I want to frame them and hang them on the wall as abstract art.
My favorite for this application is a Brazilian granite called Blue Louise.It is mined at the bottom of the ocean, and can have bits of lavender, turquoise or rust. I think it almost looks like a view of earth from space. It also happens to be the most expensive granite on the face of the earth, so a little 12'x12' might in actuality be all I could afford even if I had fantasies of using it in the kitchen.
Back to the granite I found in the color scheme from the rug, the Azul Imperial (or Imperial Blue on some sites) seems to fit the bill:

The colors look like a water color painting, or like you are staring at the sky with wisps of clouds floating by. It's amazing to me that these stones are totally natural. Wouldn't you like to have a piece of earth's history to eat your breakfast on every morning??

This one reminds me of glaciers.

Back to reality and my space, I will not be putting in granite kitchen tops any time soon. But, these slabs are valuable design tools to pull colors from. I think I will tone down the pastel-y nature of these colors with lots of warm wood tones. They will go nicely with our beige couch and help conjure up the peace-inducing atmosphere I am looking to create.