Hours: Mon, Wed & Fri: 8-5 / Tues 8-2 / Thurs: 8-7 / Sat: 9-1. Closed: 3/6 - 3/8/2023.
Design Trends and Ideas
October 15th, 2020
Let the games begin!
Posted in Bathrooms, Commercial Spaces, Family Rooms, General, Kitchens, LVT, Mosaics, Stone, Tile
These days, if you’re like so many of us spending most of our covid-time at home, you are seeing your slice of the world through a different lense. Whether an addition for more space, a bathroom or kitchen renovation, or an upgrade to outdoor real estate for more socially distanced get-togethers – these are all potential projects that could help to make being at home so much more enjoyable! With that said, I am about to embark on two major projects at my house to make my space more functional and enjoyable. I will be chronicling the projects here in the coming weeks . . . So “let the games begin!”
Project #1 – Outdoor patio using porcelain tile pavers . . . After all, tile is my thing . . . Stay tuned . . .
May 22nd, 2020
Cleaning and Disinfecting Your Porcelain Tile Floor
Posted in Bathrooms, Commercial Spaces, General, Kitchens, Mosaics, Stone, Tile
Concerned about disinfecting for Covid-19? Porcelain tile that is grouted with TruColor grout can be cleaned and sanitized with a simple mixture of water and bleach. Just follow the CDC’s mixing guidelines of five tablespoons of bleach in each gallon of water. Alternatively, the EPA has a list (<epa.gov/pesticide-registration/list-n-disinfectants-use-against-cars-cov-2>) of registered household disinfectants that will do the job.
Caveat: natural stone is a completely different material and requires a completely different type of cleaning product and regime – please, please, please do not use bleach on natural stone! We will talk about cleaning and disinfecting natural stone in a future posting.
April 7th, 2020
Fast, efficient, and SAFE . . .
Posted in Back Splash, Bathrooms, Bedrooms, Carpet, Commercial Spaces, Family Rooms, Floor Warming, General, Installation, Kitchens, LVT, Mosaics, Rugs, Stone, Tile
We have instituted a variety of measures in an attempt to ensure that we do all we can to keep our clients and employees safe from Covid-19. Currently, we are keeping our showroom and warehouse are open by appointment — one person/couple at a time. Our doing so will allow us to clean and disinfect after one client leaves and before the next client arrives. Please call or text us at 518-227-0156, or email us at [email protected] to schedule your appointment. Ideally, before you come in, we can discuss your project and I will have some options waiting for you at your arrival.
October 9th, 2019
The Colors of 2020
Posted in Back Splash, Bathrooms, Bedrooms, Carpet, Commercial Spaces, Family Rooms, General, Kitchens, Mosaics, Rugs, Stone, Tile
It’s that time of year again when the color forecasts are revealed for the coming year. The paint manufacturers usually lead the way. Sherwin Williams recently annouced that ‘Naval’ (navy blue) is its color of the year for 2020. 
You see ‘Naval’ paired with carrara marble (white with gray veining) and brass fixtures and accessories in interior design print publications and on on-line platforms. Color, but not really . . . grounded and calming . . . Benjamin Moore, Pittsburgh, and Behr will all weigh in soon, but the Pantone Color Institute’s color of the year is the benchmark. The tile world has nodded to blues and navy blues in the last two years so Sherwin Williams choice is not really a surprise. So let’s wait and see what the coming weeks and months will bring for the new colors in our lives for 2020.
December 15th, 2018
A Well-Received Renovation Proposal
Posted in Bathrooms, Carpet, General, Mosaics, Tile
Below is a presentation board I prepared for a to-be-renovated men’s locker room. The proposal was well received by the members. I was especially happy with the way the warm gray carpeting complimented the veining of the marbleized wall tile, the hexagon floor tile, the quartz counter tops and the richly colored furnishings.
February 9th, 2017
Future Interior Designers Come to Visit
Posted in Back Splash, Bathrooms, Carpet, Commercial Spaces, General, Kitchens, LVT, Mosaics, Rugs, Stone, Tile
Earlier this week, our own in-house designer, Sarah Carpenter, ASID gave Sage College Interior Design students hands-on experience with some of the tile, stone and wool carpet that they one day will specify. If you know of a group that would be interested in a similar presentation, give us a call.
February 1st, 2017
A ‘Green’ Success Story
Posted in Bathrooms, Carpet, Commercial Spaces, General, Kitchens, Mosaics, Rugs, Stone, Tile
We could sense it coming . . . Clients asking for ‘green’ . . . With very few ‘green’ selections available in the tile, carpet, or rug world right now, it has been a challenging color request to fulfill. But here’s a ‘green’ success story! It’s not Pantone ‘Greenery’ (2017 Color of the Year), but ‘green’ nonetheless . . . This is a semi-polished porcelain with a metallic-look glaze and lots of color variation and drama . . .
November 21st, 2016
And the color of the year is?
Posted in Back Splash, Bathrooms, Bedrooms, Carpet, Commercial Spaces, Family Rooms, General, Kitchens, LVT, Mosaics, Rugs, Tile
The answer is, it depends on who you ask . . . The paint manufacturers have stepped-up first . . . Sherwin Williams announced ‘Poised Taupe’ (SW6039) as its 2017 color of the year a few weeks ago. PPG recently announced ‘Violet Verbena’ (1169-5) as its color of the year, and Benjamin Moore followed up with ‘Shadow’ (2117-30) as its color of the year for 2017 – all are much more colorful deviations from last year’s ‘Alabaster’ (SW7008) and ‘Simply White’ (2143-70).
Pantone is the ultimate color authority – its color of the year announcement is not due for another few weeks so we’ll wait . . . I’m betting on a shade of blue . . .
September 7th, 2016
The End of the Neutral Bathroom? Not so fast . . .
Posted in Bathrooms, General, Mosaics, Stone, Tile
Last week, I read an article in the Wall Street Journal espousing the ‘end of the neutral bathroom.’ I’ve been in the tile business for over twenty years and I’ve seen trends come and go, but I think the neutral bathroom is here to stay. So many homeowners are afraid of color, especially those that grew up in the color-rich 1970s, 80s, and 90s. For me, my interior color memories began with harvest gold, avocado green with blue, green, yellow, and pink bathrooms – toilets, tubs, and sinks included. Ouch! Then came the teals and mauves followed by hunter green, burgundy, and navy blue . . . The height of trendy design in their day, but no more . . . These days, clients are realizing that a bathroom should stand the test of color-time. By using plumbing fixtures (sinks, toilets, and tubs) in neutral white or biscuit and classic neutral finishes, whether traditional, transitional, or modern, a bathroom should look good for at least ten years. I recommend to clients that they use wall covering and accessories to add color and personality to their space, not with the more permanent finishes, like tile. This may sound like a design cop-out, but not everyone has the resources and energy to re-model a bathroom every five years when that turquiose you love today is no longer making you sing . . . Whether for a new home, re-model, or with resale in mind, the neutral bathroom is here to stay.
August 23rd, 2016
Out on a Color Limb
Posted in Back Splash, Bathrooms, Bedrooms, Carpet, Commercial Spaces, General, Kitchens, LVT, Mosaics, Rugs, Stone, Tile
Looking forward to the announcement of the new color(s) of the year for 2017 . . . Will we see the same neutral shades and the lack of color commitment from the color gurus or will they venture out on a color limb and choose a real color? I think that we will see some shade of blue in the color mix . . . Blue is really a neutral, too . . . Think of your ‘blue’ jeans – you can wear any color with them – dress them up or dress them down . . . Has gray run its course? We will know in a few short weeks . . . What do you think? I would be interested to hear your color thoughts . . .