For years I've heard the phrase "the devil is in the details."  I don't know about the "devil" but I do know that the "details" can make or break a project. For a designer, it might be a molding detail, or a door location, or a window treatment, or a paint color.  For the client, it may be something much different.

I was reminded of this yesterday.  I met with a client who was looking for a new counter top material to be used in her laundry room.  She was determined to select a natural stone. She felt that granite would have the depth and richness she was looking for.  In her previous home she had installed a polished limestone.  As many of you know, limestone is very porous and even with a professional sealer applied, it is so absorbent that it stains almost immediately.  She definitely wanted to avoid that.  Unfortunately, the one stone she was attracted to was another polished limestone.  I suggested she look at one of the new man-made quartz products as an alternative.  To say the least, she was some what skeptical. I made arrangements to meet her at a local tile and stone showroom, Ciot.  This chic designer showroom displays incredible  products including porcelain, ceramic, glass and stone tile. They also have a large warehouse featuring slabs of onyx, marble, granite, and man-made quartz. 

While the client and I were discussing counter top alternatives I mentioned to her that the surface we had just set our coffee cups on was a quartz product. It was approximately the color she was looking for and it had a lot of the "depth" that she thought she could only get with granite.  After looking at all the alternatives, her final decision was for the Caesarstone's "Shitake."

The time spent looking for a counter top that met the visual and functional needs of the client was well worth it.  She came away from the meeting satisfied that one of her "detail" concerns had been addressed.