Choosing Stone

We saw the Miller’s choose the perfect grey-blue siding in our previous post so today we are going to explore the process of matching that with the perfect stone!

A few things to know about exterior stone before we get started.  Here at Midwest Design Homes we like to use Darboy Stone and Brick as our stone supplier.

They have a great showroom with many styles to pick from and a great database of homes in the area that you can drive by to see the stone in a real application.  Stone, like siding, really looks different when paired with the elements around it.

The “stone” that you are seeing on most homes in our area today is a cultured stone or concrete cast product.  There are still real stone options or stone veneer (real stone sliced thin), but there are many benefits of the man made stone options including the variety of colors and styles to choose from and the easy application for masons!

We have also seen brick making a comeback, but in a much more rustic style!

The application of brick is different from cultured stone because with brick, the material is heavier and requires a ledge to be poured on the foundation to support it.  Cultured stone can be added to a home without any extra foundation support.

Now that we know what we are shopping for, the question becomes, how will you choose?

I find it is always easiest to first decide on the style of stone that you prefer!

This is considered a more ledgerock or stacked stone style.

This is more of a boulder syle with a split face:

This stone has a larger scale and more square pieces, catagorizing it somewhere between a ledgerock and a castle rock style:

Once you have narrowed down your style, choose your color.  The stones come with a mix of shades and because they are man made, they are able to control the consistency of the colors to really give you any combination!

Matt & Tricia knew that wanted something with this texture (above) but this color (below)…

And voila!

The stone pick for their home turned out perfectly!

And check out this amazing coach light recently installed on the garage:

We’ll be sure to cover all the details on the Miller’s lighting before this Blog Story wraps up!

And as a teaser of cool interior details yet to be shared, stone isn’t just for the outside!  In fact, we were inspired by this bathroom’s ledgerock wall to do something similiar in the Millers powder bath:

Check back for the complete Miller House Tour after they have moved in!  Coming in June!