Surface Finishes

Antiqued
The surface of the stone is abraded using various techniques to produce a worn and aged appearance.

Brushed/Leather
A brushed or leather finish is obtained by brushing the slab with steel brushes. This produces a smooth undulating surface.

Bush Hammered
This finish is achieved by repeatedly hitting the surface of the stone with a bush hammer. This creates uniformly distributed holes of different sizes across the surface of the stone. Bush hammering improves a surface’s non-slip properties, ideal for high traffic external flooring.

Chiselled
A very rough finish achieved by breaking the surface of a stone up with a hammer and chisel. This finish is typically done by hand and requires a high level of skill to ensure that the finish is equally rough across the surface.

Flamed
This very rough finish is achieved by exposing the stone surface to an extremely high temperature flame, followed by rapid cooling. This treatment causes the crystals to crack and chip leaving a rough, unrefined texture. This finish is typically applied to granite to improve its slip resistance for use in flooring.

Honed
This flat, matt finish is achieved by buffing the stone surface in similar fashion to polishing but stops short of the final, high-polish stage. The virtue of this softer, less formal finish is that it shows fewer scratches, and requires very little maintenance.

Natural
A natural finish is an untreated one and is typically rough but varies depending on the type of stone and its properties.

Polished
Polished stone is shiny, with almost zero porosity and is the most common finish. Polishing highlights the colour and fabric of stone as can be seen to dramatic effect in granites. Polished finishes are not recommended for outdoor flooring on account of their reduced slip resistance.

Tumbled
To achieve a tumbled finish stone tiles are placed in a vibrating drum-like machine with smaller, harder stones. The harder grit erodes the surface of the stone tiles producing a distressed, worn appearance with softened edges.