Love & Care | Stone

Good to know:

Marble
Marble is hard, crystalline limestone or dolomite, formed under extreme pressure or heat within the earth.

Marble has a long and splendid history. The ancient Greeks created their cities and sculptures primarily from Pentelic and Parian marbles quarried in Greece. Romans also used marble in their architecture and art, obtained originally in Greece and later from their Roman quarries.

With a highly polished smooth face and its wide color variations, marble is one of nature’s most impressive stones. The colors are due to impurities, such as iron or carbon, caught in the stone’s structure during its formation. Colors often appear as stripes, which make the marble, especially when cut, very elegant indeed.
From the crafting of graceful home furnishings to the creation of magnificent sculptures, marble is one of the finest, most historical, stones that can be used. Part of the pleasure of owning a marble table is the uniqueness of each piece.

Travertine
Travertine is also limestone, which though not heated to a high temperature (vitrified) within the earth, has been highly compressed. Originally the bed of an ancient sea, the limestone rose from deep beneath the earth’s surface as mountains were formed.

The usual beauty of travertine is the inclusion of other minerals, perhaps laid on the sea floor as the limestone was being formed, perhaps percolating into the limestone’s natural fissures during its journey into the earth’s crust.
The minerals can be found in pockets or can form dramatic veins of white brown or black. These are not defects; they are simply part of the particular piece of the mountain from which the travertine was cut. As a very porous stone, travertine also has many pores or holes. Again, this is not a defect, but simply a part of the product. When necessary, veins and pores are filled, and every effort is made to blend it with the coloration of the tabletop. Nut-colored Travertine (Noce Travertino in Italian) is one of the rarer colors available and is difficult to find.

Because Italy’s travertine quarries are situated in an area of outstanding natural beauty, for both environmental and aesthetic reasons quarrying activity is strictly controlled by the Italian Government. Travertine is graded by a long-established procedure, and you can be certain your piece is of the finest grade.

About stone products
The stones and marbles used in most products are all natural – presenting all the variations and unique colorings found in nature. Because they are natural products, no two pieces will look alike. None of the natural veins, pores, and variations are to be considered defects, but instead characteristics that make your table one-of-a-kind and enhance its beauty. Because most tables are all naturally polished, the polish will vary across your tabletop. This is simply a result of a natural polish on a natural stone and one more way to emphasize the inherent unique beauty of each table.

While marble is denser than travertine, granite is the densest of them all. They are all porous and should be cared for like a fine wood table. Because of the natural veining in stone, natural stress points are always present. Fault lines are natural to stone as the rings on a tree trunk. These fault lines are created during the formation of the marble by the presence of a foreign substance with a different density than the surrounding portions of the marble. Fault lines, as the holes in travertine, are not a defect but natural to the product and visible fault lines do not indicate weakness.

Travertine and Marble, unlike wood, are dead materials that do not alter their structure over time. Once assembled, if used with the proper care, they will last forever. Like glass, you should not sit or stand on a marble table. When properly assembled the dining table should always have the top attached to the base. In the event you need to move the table after assembling, ALWAYS detach the top from the base first. A top should always be carried perpendicular to the floor – just like a glass top. It should not be dropped or laid flat.

Travertine and walnut travertine are naturally very porous stones. When polished, the travertine and walnut travertine tops are filled to make a smooth surface for the table. Every effort is made for the fill to blend with the coloration of the table top but the fill will never be invisible. Occasionally small openings are missed and remain open. This is not considered a defect.

Natural veins can occur in the stone and this must not be mistaken for a crack or defect. Generally a vein will be visible only on the surface while a crack will appear on the surface and underneath the table top as well as traveling from side to side.

Most tables are polished with a natural paste wax. The wax is absorbed by the travertine/marble. This process provides the shine on the tabletop and certain amount of moisture repellence. Because the polish is natural, the shine can be uneven. This irregularity can be caused by either a varied absorption of the wax into the stone or by a varied effect due to the refraction of the light against minerals that have been deposited in different directions in the stone. This uneven polish is absolutely natural and normal and not to be considered a defect.