NATURAL STONE FUNDAMENTALS: Benefits of Natural Stone

When beginning a new project, whether the project entails new construction of a residential or commercial development or the renovation of a pre-existing project, perhaps a patio or fireplace, the use of natural stone grants the user the benefit of several characteristics and qualities that will distinguish the project and provide you with the satisfaction of a high-quality finished product. The benefits of using natural stone in your next project include all of the following:

Unique

Limestone with Fossils - Approx. 20 million years old

Natural stone is manufactured by the earth itself, and the aesthetics of the stone are often affected by the weather and other environmental conditions, making most stone unique to the region in which it is quarried. Every slab of natural stone has characteristics distinctive to that particular stone. The benefit of such a characteristic ensures an appearance within a landscaping or construction project that is truly one of a kind.

Enduring

The Alamo - San Antonio, Texas

The earth produces natural stone over a period of millions of years, and stone is featured in some of the largest architectural feats in history. Many of these historic landmarks utilizing the benefits of natural limestone or sandstone include the Alamo, the pyramids of Egypt (limestone), the City of Pompeii and many other projects from the beginning of civilization to modern times. When using natural stone, you can be assured your project will endure several lifetimes!

Timeless

Empire State Building - New York, New York

Utilizing natural limestone and sandstone promotes a distinct sustained resource that provides depth and contrast to the design aspects of a project. The durability and strength of natural stone and the variations of colors and textures contribute to a wealth of design ideas that will outlast any construction fad and withstand the test of time.

Beautiful

Prince Edward Islands - Sandstone Arch

When thinking about natural stone’s qualities, no one characteristic is more vital than the stone’s beauty. This trait is the sum total of natural stone’s unique, enduring and timeless qualities. The variation in texture and color from one stone to the next, the stone’s innate ability to endure and the intrinsic value of a design that promotes aesthetics from era to era all prove natural stone to be an asset to any project.

For more information regarding Kirby Stone Company, LLC or our quarry-direct
natural stone products, please feel to visit our website at:

www.KIRBYSTONE.com

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KIRBY STONE PROJECT SPOTLIGHT: Cascada at Canyon Lake

Cascada at Canyon Lake – Exterior Signage

The Team

Design Firm: A-Design by Gustavo Arredondo, San Antonio, Texas
Landscape Design: TBG Partners, San Antonio, Texas
Developer: Stadler & Leatham Development, Bulverde, Texas
Masonry Contractor: JM Castillo Masonry, San Antonio, Texas

The Project

With the entrance completed in 2009, Cascada at Canyon Lake is one the Spring Branch, Texas’ newest master planned communities. Situated north of San Antonio, the project is located near Canyon Lake and the Guadalupe River in the Texas Hill Country. Amidst these natural attractions, Cascada at Canyon Lake is a luxurious hill country playground with large lots for new custom homes. Home builders within the community currently include Stadler Custom Homes and VERITAS Custom Home Builders.

For more information regarding Cascada at Canyon Lake, including local amenities, available lots and more, please visit them online HERE.

Cascada at Canyon Lake – Guard House & Gated Entrance

The Stone

The stone selection for the Cascada at Canyon Lake project is Kirby Premium Cave natural limestone, originating from Kirby Stone Company’s limestone quarry located in Salado, Texas. Our first Kirby Premium Cave project, we were oringinally skeptical of the stone’s ability to stand on its own, due to the dark colors and hard textures associated with this natural limestone product. However, as Kirby Stone Company, LLC has always done, we accommodated Bron Leatham’s vision for the development, and Kirby Stone Company, LCC was excited to be part of such a unique, beautiful project.

As one reviews these photos of the project in the blog, you will notice the predominance of an extremely rough texture and rustic color throughout the project’s community walls and entrance design. The color and texture of the natural limestone is complimented well by the rust-colored wrought iron, and the total package blends well with the natural landscape of the Texas Hill Country.

Laid in an ashlar pattern, the Kirby Premium Cave natural limestone has been prepared into a sawn, chopped form. Ranging from four inches to ten inches in face height, the Kirby Premium Cave limestone is sawn on the top and bottom with rough, split faces on the remaining sides.

Cascada at Canyon Lake – Community Walls

For more information regarding Kirby Stone Company, LLC or our quarry-direct
natural stone products, please feel to visit our website at:

www.KIRBYSTONE.com

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STONE SHOWCASE: Hill Country Blend

Product Description

Kirby Stone Company, LLC’s Hill Country Blend consists of a unique blend of natural limestone colors. Predominantly Kirby Cream, additional limestone colors include Salado Gold and Kirby White. Upon request, the ratio of cream, gold and white natural limestone may be altered to accommodate your project.


Hill Country Blend natural limestone is most often paired with a white mortar, which helps each individual stone unit stand out effectively.

Kirby Stone Company’s Hill Country Blend limestone is quarried in Salado, Texas. For more information or photographs pertaining to Kirby Stone Company’s natural limestone products, please visit our website.

Product Availability

Kirby Stone Company’s Kirby Cream natural limestone products are available in a variety of different styles and product types. A full list of available products is listed below. Should you have any questions regarding terminology, you may access Kirby Stone Company’s Stone 101 Lessons by clicking HERE.

• Sawn Chopped Stone
  

• Thin Veneer Chopped Stone
  

• Sawn Patio Stone
  

• Sawn Hearths and Lintels

For more information regarding Kirby Stone Company, LLC or our quarry-direct
natural stone products, please feel to visit our website at:

www.KIRBYSTONE.com

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HISTORIC PROJECT SPOTLIGHT: The University of the South

All Saints’ Chapel – University of the South

With the mercury rising to consistent highs of 100 degrees last week, we at Kirby Stone Company, LLC are taking meteorology into our own hands by assuming summer in Texas is officially upon us! While the summer typically means students don’t have to think about school anymore until August or September, Kirby Stone Company’s article this week focuses on a natural sandstone stone project that has been recognized by organizations as one of America’s Most Beautiful Campuses. Today we will delve into some of the details surrounding Tennessee’s very own University of the South.

Walsh Ellet Hall – University of the South

The Project

Originally founded in 1857, the University of the South, which is fondly referred to as simply “Sewanee” to many of the school’s current enrollees, the opening of the school was delayed until 1868 due to the Civil War. However, the University of the South was strongly supported by several benefactors in the United States as well as England noting the Southern United States needed an Episcopal presence.

McClurg Dining Hall – University of the South

The first class of the University of the South began with nine students and four faculty members. However, the deeply embedded history of Sewanee in intercollegiate sports, the numerous additions and improvements to campus and the university’s dedication to education and its Episcopal belief system has helped Sewanee grow to the over 1,500 students and become one of the top liberal arts colleges in the United States.

The Stone

All of the natural sandstone used for the University of the South’s gothic architecture is inherently Tennessee. While many of the notable natural sandstone projects around the campus date back to the early 20th century, there are also several newer projects that boast many of the same ideas in design, including the McClurg Dining Hall.

McClurg Dining Hall – University of the South

The natural sandstone product used for the University of the South’s McClurg Dining Hall was all quarried in Tennessee. With over 2,000 tons of stone, much of the sandstone was quarried right on the Domain, the area’s common name for the 13,000 forested acres of campus. Additional sandstone product was quarried from surrounding Tennessee areas.

The meticulous nature with which the natural sandstone has been applied to the University of the South, even with their newer buildings, gives the campus an old world, Cambridge feel without ever having to leave their own backyard. Now that is GREEN! It is no wonder that the campus’ unique appearance through the use of indigenous natural sandstone consistently lands the University of the South near the top of “Most Beautiful Campus” surveys!

For more information regarding Kirby Stone Company, LLC or our quarry-direct
natural stone products, please feel to visit our website at:

www.KIRBYSTONE.com

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