Monday, November 23, 2009
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
CaesarStone Introduces MOTIVO™, World’s First Quartz Surface with Embossed Look and Feel
CaesarStone, the original quartz countertops and surfaces manufacturer, proudly presents Motivo, a new pattern-designed technique for its quartz surfaces. Launching in November of 2009, Motivo is another groundbreaking innovation from the company that pioneered the use of quartz in surfacing material over two decades ago.
To create Motivo, CaesarStone uses a unique patented polishing method to create contrasting gloss and matte finish on its quartz surfaces. The stunning, intricate motifs add character and style to any décor.
Motivo is the perfect material for a multitude of applications including kitchen backsplashes, shower walls, countertops, vanity tops, wall paneling, bar tops, custom-made furniture and more. Since there are no minimum order requirements for Motivo, it is a perfect option for projects of all sizes.
Motivo will be available in two patterns:
Lace 2116 – This delicate floral pattern adds elegance and grace to a room. The subtle design in brilliant white is traditional yet trendsetting and unique.
Crocodile 3117 – This dramatic and daring pattern adds a sense of adventure to any space. An exotic black surface, Crocodile adds depth, intrigue and excitement to interior designs.
The technique used to achieve Motivo’s signature looks has been carefully developed in order to maintain the integrity of CaesarStone’s high-quality standards and physical properties. As with all CaesarStone surfaces, Motivo in nonporous and low-maintenance; additionally, one of the biggest advantages of Motivo is that it remains in full compliance with CaesarStone’s global quality standards.
About CaesarStone
CaesarStone is the original quartz surface manufacturer. The company is headquartered in Southern California with offices in
Offering a residential lifetime warranty, their products are nonporous, stain, scratch and heat resistant. CaesarStone has earned the respected Good Housekeeping Seal from Good Housekeeping Research Institute and is in compliance according to stringent international environmental standards including ISO 14001 (environmental management system), ISO 9002 (quality management standard), and NSF (public health and safety). A sustainable material, CaesarStone is GREENGUARD certified, a is a member of USGBC (The U.S. Green Building Council) certification.
For more information about CaesarStone and its products, please visit the company’s website at www.CaesarStoneUS.com, or call toll-free 877-9QUARTZ (877-978-2789).
Friday, November 6, 2009
Beautiful Modern San Francisco Home Built on a Steep Hill
Featured in this year’s American Institute of Architects Home Tour the other weekend, hundreds of people walked through Strachan Forgan's San Francisco, but few of them probably realized that the double-height living room, the dramatic open staircase and the luxurious Italian kitchen with quartz countertops could all be theirs - should they be in the market for a rather stunning modern home priced at around $1,479,000 price.
The two-bedroom residence at 1223 Bosworth St. was designed and built by Forgan, an architect at Sasaki, for him and his wife Melissa in 2007. Forgan said after buying the snug, nonconforming lot overlooking Glen Canyon Park in 2004, the site was "a gaping tooth on the neighborhood block" - but it represented just the sort of challenge he relished: how to create a sunlit, stylish home on a steep infill lot only 25 feet wide.
And for his efforts, the home won Forgan a Custom Home Design Award this year that described it as “a compact jewel of a house that packs a ton of sophisticated living on its speck of urban real estate.” This modern interpretation of a San Francisco row house with a multitude of green features also earned Forgan the respect of his neighbors. In order to ensure one neighbor retained his view, for example, he carved a corner out of the home's facade with its dramatic double-height bay window.
The house has been designed on four stories. The lowest level comprises a generous garage, a built-in wine cellar and storage space. The first floor combines the living and dining areas as well as the kitchen with its Arclinea cabinets, CaesarStone countertops and Italian Graniti Fiandre tile underfoot. Folding Nana-Wall doors open onto a small, beautifully designed rear garden with Ipe hardwood decking, tiled planters, natural gas barbecue and water fountain.
Much consideration has been given to making the home as energy efficient as possible with its high-performance envelope, radiant heating under edge-grain amber bamboo floors, nonporous quartz countertops and Energy Star appliances.
The owners, who are moving on in order to build their next home - they already are scouting another infill site in the city on which to work their magic - say they have loved living in the Glen Park neighborhood with its library, restaurants and markets. Forgan added he will miss the "ping" of balls being hit in the baseball diamond across the street. "There's something very soothing about that sound," he said.
Readmore:http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2009/09/27/RE0G19RLLP.DTL#ixzz0SXJ5XkLP
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Creativity Leads to Success in Economic Recession
The construction industry may arguably be the worst hit industry affected by the economic recession. Now small and mid-sized companies in the construction and remodeling business are looking to use innovative new ideas to survive and also strengthen their position for the upcoming years.
Being a strong competitor among a struggling market, innovation is an upside of any economic, according to Ed Rogers Director of Business Development for CaesarStone in Van Nuys, one of the largest producers of quartz countertops and surfacing the world.
The company, which has been rooted in innovation since its, is responding to the economic downturn by preparing to launch two new lines of products early next year that anticipate changes in the industry as a result of the recession.
“Houses will be smaller, people will be staying in them longer, the days of the “McMansion” are over;” he said. “Products will be used longer, hotels are not going to be remodeling their rooms every few months, they’re going to be looking for durable materials that can withstand the test of time,” he added. “And ‘recycled’ is a huge deal, it’s something consumers can really connect with.”
The company will be introducing new colors of quartz countertops and surfacing material made out of recycled glass, mirrors and scraps of quartz, that still maintains the overall integrity of quartz countertops surfacing.
CaesarStone will also be launching a limited option of colors at a lower price point, to help builders and consumers looking to lower costs in the short term as well as the long term through durable products. Along with a continued focus on greening their products and sustainability, these strategic efforts will hopefully allow the company to continue having a strong foothold in the countertops market as it recovers.
Friday, October 9, 2009
CAESARSTONE NAMES 30 WINNERS IN THEIR DREAM DESIGN CONTEST
$45,000 in Cash Prizes Awarded
One 1st, 2nd and 3rd Prize Winners Named
Six 4th Place and Twenty-One 5th Place Winners Named
Van Nuys, CA (October 8, 2009) – CeasarStone, the original quartz countertops & surfaces manufacturer, named 30 winners in their online Dream Design Contest which began April 1, 2009 and ended September 30, 2009.
CaesarStone president
1st Place: $5,000
Stephanie Boldon, Environetics
Bruce Benning, Benning Design
Jorge A. Martinez, Designer Kitchens
Karen Kassen, Kitchens Unlimited
Sandy Hayes, Hayes Designs LLC
Chris Donaghy, Kitchen Brokers
Mike Hui, M-Studio
Jerrid Greenbaum, Southland Kitchen Design Studio
Micky Yannay, Best of
Rochelle Silberman, McCutcheon Construction
Sol Quintana Wagoner, Jackson Design and Remodeling
Laurie Belinda Haefele, Haefele Design
Michael Borrelli, Borrelli Design + Cabinetry
Michel Embry & Jeff Mahon, Studio Snaidero Naples
Shimon Garibi, Elite Kitchens
Phyllis Paul, Phyllis Paul Interior Design ASID
Michael Stauffer, Excel Interior Concepts & Construction
David Ebers, Domus Ojai
Jason Landau and Susanne Mordoh, Amazing Spaces LLC
Susan Jay, Susan Jay Design
Daren Doss, Chadbourne + Doss Architects
Chet Basher,
Brittney Fischbeck, Abodwell
Cheryl Kees Clendenon, In Detail
Meghan Lewellyn, Kitchen and Bath Galleries of
Lori Freeman, KDI Elements
Jo Ann Hartley, Hershon Hartley Design, Inc.
Lisa Wilson-Wirth, Arclinea
Judy A. McCaffrey, Etc. Kitchens and Baths
Carmina Dumitru, DMD Marble & Granite, Inc.
“We literally had hundreds of incredibly stunning entries in the Dream Design Contest,” said Tendler. “We sincerely thank all who entered the contest and shared their designs. I’m thrilled by the response and proud to see the many different applications of our beautiful product.”
CaesarStone created the Dream Design Contest to showcase the work of innovative designers using the versatile quartz countertops surface. For the competition, designers were asked to go to the CaesarStone website and enter their projects by uploading at least five photos and a brief description of their design in order to win cash prizes. The entries could be residential or commercial projects as long as CaesarStone was the sole material utilized.
The 30 winners were chosen for the quality and beauty of their designs by a panel of judges. A broad range of creative uses of CaesarStone were represented in the winning selections, from residential bathrooms, kitchens and bedrooms, to commercial applications and even furniture design.
All the winning designs are featured on the CaesarStone website, www.CaesarStoneUS.com/dreamdesign.
About CaesarStone
CaesarStone is the original quartz countertops manufacturer. The company is headquartered in Southern California with offices in Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Seattle, Miami, New York and Atlanta. CaesarStone produces premium quartz surfaces, complementing any design application, from traditional to contemporary, for both home and commercial applications. CaesarStone products are available through kitchen and bath retailers, fabricators, architects, designers, builders and distributors nationwide.
Featuring a residential lifetime warranty, CaesarStone countertops are nonporous, stain, scratch and heat resistant. CaesarStone has earned the respected Good Housekeeping Seal from The Good Housekeeping Research Institute and is compliant with international environment standards ISO 14001 (environmental management system) and ISO 9002 (quality management standard). CaesarStone also has GREENGUARD and NSF (public health and safety) certification and is a member of The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).
For more information about CaesarStone and its products, please visit www.CaesarStoneUS.com, or call toll-free 877-9QUARTZ (877-978-2789).
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Looking for the Perfect Countertop? Choose Quartz.
With the market flooded with hundreds of options, it is no easy task to pick an ideal material for your kitchen countertop. The material of a countertop determines its life, durability, usability and ease of cleaning because kitchen countertops often have sinks, stoves and chopping boards installed on them.
An ideal material for countertops would have to be non-porous, scratch-resistant, stain-resistant and versatile. It should not be prone to cracking, chipping and breakage. A material that absorbs organic fluids is a breeding ground for microorganisms and prone to stains that are difficult, if not impossible, to clean.
Conventionally, countertops come in various materials like wood, stainless steel, crafted glass, concrete, solid-surface plastic, laminates, tiles and natural stones like granite, limestone, marble, soapstone and gabbros. The latest and most popular material for countertops at the moment is natural or engineered quartz. While pure quartz countertops are made from slabs of natural quartz, engineered quartz has a certain percentage of polymer resin mixed in it. Engineered quartz fares better than natural quartz in terms of scratch resistance and non-porous properties. A quartz countertop enhances the look of the kitchen and is the most practical option in terms of cleaning and maintenance.
Since Quartz countertops are non-porous and scratch resistant, they make a better choice over wood and plastic. While marble and concrete and prone to staining owing to their porosity, keeping a quartz countertop flawlessly clean and scratch-free is a piece of cake. Moreover, quartz countertops come in a wide variety of patterns, textures and colors to suit your décor and personal tastes.
Georgia Hotel Indigo Seeks LEED Gold
I may be going out on a limb, but of all the real property types – whether multifamily, commercial, retail, etc – hotels probably have the most consistent focus on green operations. They’re always trying to find ways to save energy or water, and they know their footprint. When you add LEED certification, which in this case means (anticipated) LEED Gold certification for the new Hotel Indigo in Athens, there’s an interesting combination of the already existing concern for operations and the LEED emphasis on design and construction.
We all know that a green building is hard to define, but there’s more to the equation than energy and water. This hotel was designed by Surber Barber Choate & Hertlein and constructed with locally-sourced materials and recycled content products, like quartz countertops.
The rooms have a custom vanity made with Plyboo architectural plywood and Caesarstone countertops. They also have their own recycling centers and are outfitted with CFLs and energy efficient lighting. Don’t be surprised to find water-efficient Kohler Purist fixtures in the shower either.
The building itself was designed with sustainability in mind. It was oriented to allow maximum daylighting while still controlling interior heat gain. There’s a green roof, large windows with exterior shading, high efficiency HVAC, technology to collect HVAC condensation for irrigation and landscaping, enhanced bioswale, pervious paving, and regenerative elevator. Hotel Indigo was built using low-emitting materials, adhesives, and paints, too. You shouldn't smell a thing.
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