Finishing is the last and concluding stage of construction. Often in many projects, the overall quality of a building or structure after being put into service relies on the quality of the finishing executions. The main types of finishing works include facing, plastering, flooring, painting, wallpapering, and glazing. Rocks can be used in all of these stages, but there is another finishing meaning which is, the way that the material, as in this case rock, is presented.
When the design group and team of the project including, architects, civil engineers, structural engineers, landscape architects, interior designers, and others gather around; after planning each part of the design related to their specific area of expertise; one of the common issues that they all consider together is the aesthetic sides of the project which is an important matter.
Rock is a material with different uses in each aspect of any project, so here we name and introduce various types of natural stone finishing.
Different Types of Stone Finishes | Natural Cleft
This type of finish cannot be created, and as the layers are quarried, they occur naturally. It has a slightly uneven surface that is still usable for flooring. On the backside, it can be gauged to facilitate ease of thin-set installations. Good examples for this type of finishing are Some stones like marbles, granites, and limestones; they are good and suitable for wall installations or paving purposes.
Polished
Different Types of Stone Finishes | high gloss and mirror-like surfaces come to exist with grinding, sanding, and buffing Polishing. There is a note that it can just be done on crystallized stones. Polish finishes have no effect on the porosity of the stone. A polished finish is one of the most popular types of finishes. It can enhance the color and give an elegant look to the material. It has a smooth and reflective surface. One of the best places to use this type of finishing is in reception areas, where some harder limestones like marble and granite are laid.
Another popular use for polished stone is in interior and exterior design projects for wall cladding, paving, Fireplace facing, Lavatory tops, Residential & Commercial countertops, Table Tops and etc. A high gloss and reflective surface finishing can bring out the colors in the stone. Not all natural stones can be polished; the degree of polish is determined based on the mineral, elements, and texture of each stone. Due to the low slip resistance of polished stones, they are not usually recommended for flooring.
Honed
It is a smooth yet not a glossy finish; it happens with grinding and sanding produced. This finishing is best for low maintenance with high-traffic applications. Unlike polished finishes, Honed ones are not reflective, but it is a satin-smooth surface with a little light reflection. This type of finishing is often used for paving on walking surfaces and other areas where heavy traffic would wear off a polished finish, and it’s not slippery. Honed finishes are used in interior designs for wall coverings, tabletops, and facades. It can be used for exterior design purposes in warm environments and very light-duty residential flooring. Depending on the type of stone used; A smooth matt to light shine surface finish is Created using different grades of abrasives under factory conditions. Honed stone is the most common and recommended to use for internal floor finishing.
Flamed
Different Types of Stone Finishes | A flamed finishing is another popular type of finish for external use, especially where slip resistance is of concern. It is produced by applying a high-temperature flame to the surface of the stones. The process creates thermal shocks that can cause the inherent crystals to fracture it resulting in a unique textured surface which is ideal for external surfaces. This finishing is commonly used on rocks such as granites. This type of finishing can cover the imperfections and tone variations of a surface. In stones with yellow shading on their texture, such as Honey Jasper, in the process, the iron components oxidize and change the yellow shades to pale orange or pink color, which creates a rich and dramatic change in the original color of the rock.
Sandblasted
Finishing is the last and concluding stage of construction. Often in many projects, the overall quality of a building or structure after being put into service relies on the quality of the finishing executions. The main types of finishing works include facing, plastering, flooring, painting, wallpapering, and glazing. Rocks can be used in all of these stages, but there is another finishing meaning which is, the way that the material, as in this case rock, is presented.
When the design group and team of the project including, architects, civil engineers, structural engineers, landscape architects, interior designers, and others gather around; after planning each part of the design related to their specific area of expertise; one of the common issues that they all consider together is the aesthetic sides of the project which is an important matter.
Rock is a material with different uses in each aspect of any project, so here we name and introduce various types of natural stone finishing.
Different Types of Stone Finishes | Natural Cleft
This type of finish cannot be created, and as the layers are quarried, they occur naturally. It has a slightly uneven surface that is still usable for flooring. On the backside, it can be gauged to facilitate ease of thin-set installations. Good examples for this type of finishing are Some stones like marbles, granites, and limestones; they are good and suitable for wall installations or paving purposes.
Polished
Different Types of Stone Finishes | high gloss and mirror-like surfaces come to exist with grinding, sanding, and buffing Polishing. There is a note that it can just be done on crystallized stones. Polish finishes have no effect on the porosity of the stone. A polished finish is one of the most popular types of finishes. It can enhance the color and give an elegant look to the material. It has a smooth and reflective surface. One of the best places to use this type of finishing is in reception areas, where some harder limestones like marble and granite are laid.
Another popular use for polished stone is in interior and exterior design projects for wall cladding, paving, Fireplace facing, Lavatory tops, Residential & Commercial countertops, Table Tops and etc. A high gloss and reflective surface finishing can bring out the colors in the stone. Not all natural stones can be polished; the degree of polish is determined based on the mineral, elements, and texture of each stone. Due to the low slip resistance of polished stones, they are not usually recommended for flooring.
Honed
It is a smooth yet not a glossy finish; it happens with grinding and sanding produced. This finishing is best for low maintenance with high-traffic applications. Unlike polished finishes, Honed ones are not reflective, but it is a satin-smooth surface with a little light reflection. This type of finishing is often used for paving on walking surfaces and other areas where heavy traffic would wear off a polished finish, and it’s not slippery. Honed finishes are used in interior designs for wall coverings, tabletops, and facades. It can be used for exterior design purposes in warm environments and very light-duty residential flooring. Depending on the type of stone used; A smooth matt to light shine surface finish is Created using different grades of abrasives under factory conditions. Honed stone is the most common and recommended to use for internal floor finishing.
Flamed
Sandblast is a rough yet tidy look; it is created by applying a very high-pressure blast of sand to the surface of stones. A sandblasted finishing creates a finely textured surface which is ideal to use in traffic-ways where erosion is a concern. This treatment in which a high-pressure water jet mixed with sand is applied; softens the color and the characteristics of the stone.
Split Face
This finishing is commonly used for cladding. It occurs with splitting the stone by hand or some other machines. This process exhibits a natural texture surface. The split finishing of a rock has a flat and smooth back with an uneven front surface; it can create the uneven look of protruding bricks. You should note that not all stones can be obtained in split face finishing.
Antiqued
Different Types of Stone Finishes |To create a weathered, aged appearance in stones; it is tumbled with sand, pebbles and etc. An antique finishing gives stones an aged looked by replicating use and wear. Tumbling and even sometimes acid washing is applied to the surface of the stone. It etches the surface of the stone. This process often dulls the original color of the stone. In the end surface of the stone is brushed by hand or with a mechanical wire to clean it, make it smooth, and slightly restore its color.
Leather
Different Types of Stone Finishes |The leather finishing is smooth and slip-resistant, but it is only available in some varieties of marble and granite. This finishing can give the texture of the stone a suede appearance and feel.
Brushed
When your stonework is finished, you can choose to smooth and sand the final stone with a brush. This will make the person, or you feel soft and smooth when you touch the stone, and the hardness of the stone will no longer bother you when you touch it.
Natural Cleft
Another type of stone is the stone with its natural break and cut. Most of the time, these types of rocks are found among natural rocks such as bluestone and boulders, etc. These types of rocks are formed due to the separation of rocks from the ground and suffer from natural breakage on the rock, which does not need to be flattened but is natural.
What is the Veneer Stone?
The Veneer is actually any stone that is used to decorate a face of a wall or cladding; the wall with a veneer cannot be load-bearing. The Veneer can be made out of different finishing types like split face, cleft, honed, polished, flamed, or tumbled that have been mentioned before.
Different Types of Stone Finishes from Unikastone are available. Choose from among over a dozen finishes for your stone project. Unikastone can have hand and machine finishes applied economically to the type of stone at the factory and then shipped to your job site ready to install. Learn about our Unikastone.com
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