Marble and stone bathrooms

The pieces

• Marble basins, carved from a block or on a column.
• Vanity tops for one or two basins, sometimes on two levels.
• Shower trays cut to the exact size of the shower.
• Wall cladding in large slabs instead of tiles.

One stone vanity top in a tiled bathroom already changes the room.

Hard water

In a bathroom water sits on the stone every day, and in the Aube it's hard. The limescale removers sold in supermarkets are acidic and dull polished marble. So the first advice is about cleaning, not colour. pH-neutral products, and a squeegee in the shower.

Which stone

• Beige marble and Galala show limescale and soap least. Our two-level vanity in the projects is in this family.
• White Carrara looks fresh but shows make-up and hair dye.
• Dark polished marble like Nero Marquina shows every dried drop.
• Onyx can be lit from behind. It's softer, so walls or a basin.
• Granite is the toughest, good for a shower the children use.

Finish

Polished stone is slippery wet. On the floor and in the shower we use honed, brushed or bush-hammered. On vanity tops and walls, polished is fine and easier to wipe.

How it goes

The plumber and we agree on waste outlets, tap holes and the shower fall early. We measure once the walls are flat and the first fix plumbing is in, cut and drill at the workshop, fit, then seal. We don't do the plumbing.

Old houses

Guest rooms in old houses in Champagne and the Côte des Bar rarely have level floors. A stone tray cut to our measurements takes up a slope that a standard tray can't. Send a floor plan with sizes and a few photos of the walls on WhatsApp to +33 7 45 20 76 39. See also the kitchen page.