When you walk into a bathroom designed with marble or granite in St. Louis, you know you are walking into a space of luxury. This is why granite and marble have always been, and continue to be, popular choices in bathroom remodels. Choosing your stone for the bathroom, however, needs to be done with both functionality and style in mind. This is because of the different characteristics of each type of stone and the amount of maintenance and care they need, whether you are using marble or granite countertops in your bathroom.
When to Use Marble in a Bathroom Remodel
There’s no question about it—marble exudes class. It is a fabulous choice for occasionally used guest bathrooms. Marble is a metamorphic rock with a lot of calcium carbonate in it. If you have ever poured a can of soda over some limestone and watched it eat away at the rock, you will have some understanding of how calcium carbonate responds to harsh cleaners, spilled toiletries and cosmetics, as well as otherwise heavy daily use.
No, the marble won’t bubble and dissolve before your very eyes—it’s much stronger than its cousin limestone, because marble is metamorphic instead of sedimentary (like limestone). This means that the calcium carbonate in the marble has undergone significant geological forces of heat and pressure to harden and change its composition into something that can be cut, carved and used in sculpture or in your bathroom.
But it is still a “soft” stone, which is why it is often chosen for carvings. So if you have seen and fallen in love with other marble bathrooms in St. Louis, we recommend applying this gorgeous stone in a low-traffic, high-luxury bathroom. The marble needs resealing annually to help protect it from stains, nicks and spills, but following the recommended maintenance schedule should give you the durable, long-lasting marble bathroom of your dreams.
Marble Bathroom Trends
One of the most popular types of marble to use in bathrooms is our Carrara marble from Italy. Its white background is accented with veins of bluish-gray that go well with several other accent colors and give a sense of clean elegance, space and calm that is just perfect for a guest bathroom, powder room or spa-style bathroom. Marble can be used for the countertops, and also as tiles for the walls and floor as well.
Aside from this classic color, marble comes in shades of black, pink, green and brown. Each of these can be used to fit your tastes and design desires. And while our Carrara marble brings a brighter vibe into the room, darker, earthier tones of marble accessorized with black or mahogany cabinets and other elements give a feeling of warmth and luxury. Another great stone trend in St. Louis is Emperador Dark marble, which is a great choice for bathrooms.
When to Use Granite in Your Bathroom
There are many luxury granite bathrooms in St. Louis, and that’s because granite is tough, durable and comes in so many different natural colors that your remodeling options are wide open. Granite is an intrusive igneous rock—which is a fancy way of saying that it used to be magma underground. This magma never erupted to the surface as lava, but instead cooled slowly in underground chambers, developing a wide variety of beautifully colored crystals made mostly from silica-rich minerals like mica, quartz and feldspar.
Because of its composition, it is a harder, more durable stone than marble. It is able to withstand heavier use, even in sinks and showers, making it a popular stone trend in St. Louis. Unlike marble, which is porous, granite does not soak in water, but it still requires regular sealing to prevent staining from spills of bath and cosmetic products.
Granite Bathroom Trends
Granite comes in a wide array of potential color combinations, including black and white, gold, brown, pink, blue and green—so designing can be fun.
You can choose granite with a glossy finish, a honed (matte) finish or even something called a “leather” finish that shows off some of the granite’s natural textures. With all of granite’s flexibility, you can get creative when designing and choosing accents for your bathroom renovation. It all depends on the mood you are trying to convey for the bathroom.
Fine-grained granite options such as the sparkly Blue Pearl or the darker Silver Pearl are dramatic without being overstated, and can be incorporated into cool, crisp designs that produce a feeling of calm. To add drama, choose a granite design like Supreme White or Silver Cream that has exciting stripes and veins running through it. Granite elements like this are almost their own centerpieces. This means that you can minimize other design elements in the bathroom to reduce décor clutter and stick to the very basics.
So tell us: What kind of bathroom style are you dreaming of? How would you like your spa to look and feel? Marble or granite might be able to turn that dream into a reality.