A backsplash is typically positioned on the wall behind your kitchen stovetop to protect the wall from the splatter of food and grease while you’re cooking. Or it could be behind your sink to protect from water splashes. But more than this, it can also make a great decorative feature or an attractive complement to the design of the rest of your kitchen. When you’re choosing your kitchen backsplash, there are two main styles to choose from; tile or a solid slab backsplash.

Tile backsplash

A tile backsplash is an extremely versatile option when it comes to design, shape, and color. You can choose tiles that are all the same color, alternating colors, or even create an attractive pattern with decorative tiles. Tile is relatively easy to install yourself if you have some experience with laying tiles, and is also more affordable than solid slab backsplashes.

If you opt for a tile backsplash, the tile itself is nice and easy to clean, but the grout lines between the tiles can cause problem. Dirt and grime can accumulate in these gaps and are more difficult to clean properly when you’re wiping down the surface. Tiles do offer benefits when it comes to maintenance, however, as you can simply replace one tile if it gets damaged rather than replacing the entire backsplash.

Solid slab backsplash

A solid slab backsplash is made up of one continuous piece of material, typically either glass, a natural stone such as granite or marble, or an engineered stone such as quartz. Since it’s one continuous piece, it is much more convenient to clean compared to tile, and the materials used are ones that are easy to clean.

In terms of style, many people prefer the more streamlined, uninterrupted appearance of a solid backsplash, but it can be less versatile in terms of mixing and matching colors, styles, and patterns. They are more minimalist with a single color or stone hue, which can create a bold aesthetic.

Solid slab backsplashes may be more difficult to install and need to be cut to the right size by a professional, which is part of the reason why they are typically more expensive, as well as the face that slightly more material is required due to the lack of grout lines.

If you’re going for a natural stone backsplash in your kitchen, whether tile or slab, then contact Amanzi Granite for our high-quality stone plus design and installation services around Winston Salem, NC. We’re also here for your stone countertop and floor needs, plus any other natural stone features and accents you’re looking for.

To help us be efficient and allow you to enjoy your new natural stone that much quicker, please take a moment to go through this helpful checklist.

Disconnect all plumbing.
Before we arrive to install, all sinks, faucets and disposals must be disconnected so we can lift out the sink successfully.

Disconnect the gas.
Before we arrive, disconnect the gas range or cook top so we can move it or lift it out as needed.

Disconnect all electrical wiring.
Before we arrive, disconnect the range, cook top or vent if hardwired.

Remove the microwave.
Before we arrive, if we had previously planned to install a backsplash, remove the microwave from the countertop.

Clear off all countertops.
Before we arrive, countertops must be completely free of personal items and any removable appliances.

Considerations BEFORE the Template Stage
Your new natural stone surfaces will be cut precisely to the agreed layout of the template. Before that crucial stage, please make sure we are informed of all decisions that might impact the final design of the template. Some of the more common changes are listed below.

Are you planning to purchase new appliances?
To ensure proper fit, we MUST know the exact dimensions of any new or updated appliances and any changes to the overall layout prior to the template stage.

Are you planning to purchase new faucets?
So we can ensure exact drill hole placement and size, inform us of your plans before the template stage. You MUST have the new faucets available at the time of install. Note: For any drill work post-install, there will be a trip charge applied.

Are you planning to purchase a new sink outside of our inventory?
We carry a basic selection of sinks; however, we are more than happy to work with other products to achieve the look you desire. If you are planning to provide your own sink, we MUST know before the template stage. Your new sink MUST be on site at the template stage. Our expert template designer will then take your sink into the shop to ensure the proper cut-out for a precise fit.

Are you planning to remove tile, flush shelving or make any other changes that might impact the fit of the stone?
If you are planning to make any changes that may impact the width or length of your countertops, make sure it is removed BEFORE the template stage to ensure the proper cut-out.

– All decisions MUST be final at the template stage. –
Once the template is complete there cannot be any changes.

Note: We are not responsible for plumbing, gas, or electrical work. We can provide you with a trusted list of providers if you are in need of any of these services.

Just as a reminder, faucets and strainers are not included with any of the sinks we sell. You are responsible for the separate purchase of these accessories.

If you have any questions or concerns throughout the process, don’t hesitate to call us. We value your opinions and input in helping you achieve the results of your dreams!

There are a lot of decisions to make when it comes to renovation and remodeling. This usually involves a lot of wandering around stores and showrooms to browse all the different options you have, which can be tiresome and time-consuming. Wouldn’t it be better if you could just drive up to a store knowing exactly what you want and buy it there and then?

Well, now you can!

With the amount of information readily available online, you can now do a lot of your redesign research without leaving the comfort of your own home. You can read pros and cons and customer reviews to help you decide on designs, materials, and colors. For deciding on the design for your countertops, you can also use a countertop design tool to help you imagine what different countertops will look like in your home.

On our website, you will find the following tools to help you select the perfect countertops for your home:

• Kitchen Visualizer Tool
• Bathroom Visualizer Tool
• Countertop Edge Visualizer

Using these tools, you can select different combinations of materials, patterns, colors, and edge profiles to get a vision of how they will look together for your countertops. Seeing the countertops makes it much easier to make a decision than having to imagine what they’ll look like in your head. It’s the next best thing after seeing it in real life, letting you do a lot of the decision-making before you actually go out to any stores.

Our kitchen and bathroom visualizer tools also help you to imagine what your countertops will look like in the room as a whole, allowing you to see how a certain material or edge profile will complement the design of the rest of the room. This is also useful if you are remodelling the entire room and have other decisions to make, such as what material you want for your floor.

Using these tools, you can select your flooring material, the colors of your cabinets, and the style of your backsplash in the kitchen. Doing so can help you envision the whole kitchen and bathroom to help you make the right design decisions. Our site also features a Project Estimate Tool so you can make sure all your choices still fit within your budget.

So, get online today in the comfort of your own home or come into our showroom, and work with one of our account managers who can assist you on our in-house kiosks. Amanzi Granite serves customers in Winston Salem, Greensboro, High Point, and Kernersville, North Carolina. Get in touch if you have any questions.

Quartz Countertops

Rivaling natural stone countertops are man-made options such as quartz. Quartz countertops are becoming increasingly popular in bathroom and kitchen renovations for lots of different reasons. Let’s take a look at some of the pros of quartz countertops to see whether they are right for you. 

Pros

Appearance – Although quartz is a man-made product, it still has the striking look of natural stone, making it a stand-out feature of any room. Because it’s man-made, you also have a wider range of color choices than many natural stones, including bold colors such as blues and reds as well as the more traditional blacks, whites, and grays. Quartz countertops can fit in well in both modern and traditional style rooms, and can be designed specifically to mimic the appearance of natural stones. 

Easy to maintain – Quartz is a non-porous material, which means that it doesn’t soak up liquids that come from spills on the surface of your countertops. This means they are much less likely to stain and don’t require as much cleaning as porous stone countertops. This also means that quartz countertops don’t need to be sealed. 

Durable – Like most natural stone countertops, quartz countertops are strong and durable. They’re also not too prone to scratches and chips compared to natural stones such as marble, so they’re easy to keep in good condition.

Granite Countertops 

There are lots of reasons for choosing granite countertops for your kitchen or bathroom. People choose them for their appearance, durability, and potential resale value, among other things. But how do you know if they’re the right choice for you? There are many other great choices when it comes to natural stone countertops.

Pros

Extremely durable – Granite kitchen countertops can last decades as the stone is one of the toughest there is. This means that you won’t need to replace your countertops anytime soon. You’re more likely to move out of or sell your house before you need new countertops. It also means they’re incredibly scratch-resistant, so they’re not prone to damage.

Resistant to heat – As well as being scratch-resistant, granite is also incredibly heat-resistant. This means you don’t have to worry if you accidentally put a hot pan down on your kitchen countertop, there should not be any damage as a result of this. Prolonged exposure to high temperatures isn’t recommended, but everyday activity shouldn’t damage your countertops.

Low maintenance – Part of this is mentioned above, since granite doesn’t damage easily it won’t need a lot of attention and repairs. Also, granite surfaces are nice and easy to clean, especially if you have your countertops sealed. Simply wiping down your surfaces regularly will keep your granite countertops shining.

Wide range of styles – One of the main reasons for choosing granite is the way it looks in your home. But its popularity certainly doesn’t mean your countertops will be unoriginal. Granite comes in a range of colors and patterns, so you can choose a slab that suits your tastes and the style of your home.

If you’re still unsure about whether quartz is the right choice for your countertops, you can use our countertop visualizer tool to see how it might look in your kitchen or bathroom. Once you’ve made your decision, get in touch with Amanzi Granite for supplying and installing your new countertops. We proudly serve the Triad area, including Winston Salem, Greensboro, High Point, and Kernersville. 

The material, color, shape, and pattern of your bathroom tiles are all important elements when choosing your tiles, but one aspect that shouldn’t be overlooked is texture. The texture of your tiles doesn’t just determine how they feel underfoot, but can also add to the aesthetics and functionality of your bathroom. Let’s look at some of the different textures available as well as the advantages of textured tiles and some considerations to make.

The safety of textured floor tiles

The bathroom can be a slippery place when you’ve just showered or taken a bath. This can especially be a danger for seniors or anyone with low mobility or a physical disability that can affect their balance and core strength. One benefit of textured floor tiles is that they provide more grip underfoot and don’t become as slippery as glossy, polished tiles. You can buy specific non-slip tiles for this purpose.

Add interest to your bathroom

Textured tiles on your bathroom walls may not have the same practical advantages as textured, non-slip floor tiles, but they can still provide interesting aesthetics in your bathroom. With lots of different style options available, they can be used to produce a more traditional or rustic appeal, or create a more modern aesthetic. Whether you use only textured tiles or combine both textured and smooth, they can help to create a more distinctive look compared to a completely smooth and pristine wall of tiles.

Consider cleaning

One potential downside of textured tiles is that they can be more difficult to clean compared to smooth tiles. Dirt and grime can build up around the ridges and raised areas of your textured tiles, and it’s easier to pick up all of the dust and dirt when wiping, mopping, or vacuuming smooth tiles since you don’t have to get around all of the nooks and crannies.

Different textures for your natural stone tiles

Textured tiles can range from a slightly worn appearance and feel, such as tumbled natural stone tiles, to rougher textures and even stylistic ones, such as tiles that feature raised lines or waves. Natural stone tiles can also be brushed to create a subtle texture that lends some grip to the surface. There is a wide range of options available, so start your research to find the best textured tiles for your bathroom.

If you’re looking for natural stone tiles for your bathroom floor or walls, then contact Amanzi Granite to find out more about our design and installation services, or visit our Kernersville showroom to see our stone and tiles.

The process of planning interior design and remodeling your home is quite different and more accessible than it was several decades ago thanks to all of the inspiration and tips that are easily accessible on the internet. One useful and often entertaining website you can use is the social media platform, Pinterest. You can go down lots of different rabbit holes that could help you plan your dream kitchen remodel.

How to use Pinterest

Just create a free account with Pinterest to start “pinning” posts and content, which essentially means saving these posts so that you can easily find them again later, or let other users see them on your account. In your profile, you can create different “boards” for different topics or purposes. When you pin a post, you can decide which board to pin it to, helping you organize your saved content. Think of it like a digital version of using notice boards and thumbtacks in real life.

To find content that you want to pin, you can search for specific keywords or browse the more general categories on the site, or check out the profiles of other users to see what content they’ve pinned to their boards. Pinned content can be just an image or it can link to an article on another website, providing even more value and information.

Why is Pinterest great for interior design?

Pinterest can serve two big purposes when you use it for your remodels and interior design – firstly, helping you find lots of great ideas and inspiration for your remodel, and secondly, allowing you to easily organize and store your ideas, making the planning process easier. You could create a board for each room in your house, for example, and find ideas that you like for each room.

Pinterest for your kitchen remodel

If you’re using Pinterest for your kitchen remodel, you could create a board for each design element you need to decide on such as kitchen cabinets, kitchen countertops, and more. Or, if you’re earlier on in the process and are still deciding what kind of style and aesthetic you’re going for, you could create boards for different ideas, like a “rustic kitchen” board and another for more modern design ideas.

Search for the topic you want to research, or just for “kitchen remodeling” more generally, and browse the images to find aesthetics or design ideas that appeal to you. You can click on the pin to visit the associated website or article, where you might find more tips and ideas. Once you find an idea that you might want to incorporate in your kitchen remodel, make sure you pin it so that you can come back to it later and won’t forget what the idea was.

If you want more design inspiration and support for your kitchen remodel, as well as professional installation and high-quality natural stone, contact Amanzi Granite for our services around Winston Salem, Greensboro, High Point, and Kernersville.

You want your kitchen to appear light and spacious, which can sometimes be difficult if you have a small kitchen or if not much natural light is allowed into it. In these cases especially, the lighting you choose for your kitchen can be extremely important. So, let’s look at some tips and ideas for your kitchen lighting fixtures.

Ambient lighting

When it comes to the main lighting on your kitchen ceiling, the lights that determine the overall ambiance of the room, there are lots of different styles of fixtures for you to choose between. You may opt for recessed lights, which are built into the ceiling, for a sleek and modern look that’s also ideal for small kitchens since they don’t protrude into the available space. Recessed lights can also be directional, allowing you to control which areas are most illuminated.

Hanging light fixtures are also common and come in a wide variety of styles, such as hanging pendant lights or track lighting, which can add a decorative element to the room as well as providing functional lighting. Different styles of shade on your hanging lights create even more customization options to meet your style.

Task lighting

As well as the main lighting fixture or fixtures in your kitchen, it can be useful to have specific task lighting. This refers to lighting installed over certain areas in your kitchen, such as over the stove or over sections of countertop where you’re likely to prepare food. Task lighting is useful for illuminating areas that your main kitchen lights don’t reach very well, giving you extra visibility for performing certain tasks. They are often installed underneath your upper kitchen cabinets, and strip lights or spotlights are both popular options.

Accent lighting

Accent lighting can be used to highlight certain areas for aesthetic purposes, drawing the eye to the focal pieces of the room, while also impacting the atmosphere of the room. This could be backlighting behind your backsplash, for example, to draw attention to this piece and enhance its look. Both accent and task lighting are typically switched on separately to the room’s main light fixtures, allowing you to control the different levels and types of light that are on at any time.

Your kitchen lighting should bring out the best in your natural stone countertops. Contact Amanzi Granite or visit our Kernersville showroom for our high-quality stone or to find out more about our installation, design, repair, and maintenance services.

If you live in a family home with an en suite, meaning a separate bathroom attached to the master bedroom, then chances are that the other upstairs bathroom is used mostly by the kids. So, if you’re remodeling this main bathroom, then it makes sense to plan the design specifically with your kids in mind rather than the whole family. If you’re in this position, then read on for some tips for a kids’ bathroom design.

Focus on storage

Kids tend to come with a lot of accessories, and that requires a lot of storage. Shampoos, soaps, and other toiletries, plus medicines, towels, and other must-haves. Cabinets or open shelving in a bathroom vanity underneath the sink is a great way to keep all of these things organized and easily accessible at bath time or when getting ready for bed.

Go for the tub

If your kids will be using the bathroom, then choosing between a bathtub and a shower isn’t really an option. Installing a bathtub is practically a necessity, but having a shower over the tub is convenient for bathing your kids and for if the adults ever need to use this bathroom.

Safety first

Young kids are extremely curious, and this can lead to them getting hurt. Child locks on the toilet lid and the medicine cabinet will help to keep them out of danger, plus anti-scald faucets are recommended to prevent your child from burning themselves on hot water.

Fun patterns and designs

Make the kids’ bathroom feel like exactly that. Fun patterns or colorful designs in the tiles will make the room visually appealing to the kids. Or you can install accessories such as towel rails and soap trays with fun designs or characters on them. Or for something less permanent, the bathmat and shower curtain can reflect the kids’ interests and personalities.

Plan with the future in mind

Your kids won’t stay that age forever, so think about how they’ll be using the bathroom when they reach their teen years. Installing low sinks and toilets can be convenient for kids, for example, but might not be the best option if they’re due a growth spurt in the next couple of years. You can get around this by having a handy step or stool to help them up to the sink, which can be tucked away in the bathroom vanity.

If you’re around the Piedmont Triad area in North Carolina, then let Amanzi Granite help you with your bathroom design and installation. We’re specialists in natural stone bathroom countertops and natural stone tiles for the floor and walls. Get in touch to find out more about our stone and our services.

You may have the perfect dream kitchen in your mind leading up to a remodel, but there are certain things that could get in the way of that, like not having enough budget or enough space to implement it. Almost all remodels will involve compromise in one way or another, and another factor you might have to consider and compromise around is kids. If you have young kids or if a friend’s or relative’s children spend a lot of time at your house, then this could affect certain elements of your kitchen design.

Here are a few things to consider if you’re designing a new kitchen for a house with kids.

Wall design

It’s no secret that kids can be messy. So, you might want to think about sticky hands or colored crayons on your walls when deciding their color and design. Slightly darker colors can be more forgiving than white or cream, for example, meaning you won’t have to spend as much time scrubbing them. Think as well about which materials and finishes are easy to clean. Wallpaper, for example, may not be a good option.

Ground-level storage

From a young age, your child will be able to reach and grab at anything close to the ground, including your kitchen cabinets. Be wary of your ground-level storage and what you keep in them. Cabinets are a better option than open storage, preventing kids from pulling things out from open shelves. Consider what you store in your low cabinets, ensuring that nothing dangerous is within their grasp.

You can also use this to give the kids some control over certain elements, such as storing their plastic plates and cutlery in a low cabinet, allowing them to pick them out for themselves at mealtimes. A low drawer or cabinet for their snacks can also give them some responsibility of getting their own food when they ask for a snack. If you do keep anything unsafe at a lower level, like cleaning products under the sink, then make sure there are child locks in place.

Kitchen countertop edge profiles

When your kids start walking and running around the house, they’ll reach an age where your countertops are perfectly head height to them. To minimize any injuries, think about your countertop edge profile and how sharp the edges and corners may be. A more rounded edge profile such as a full bullnose or a round edge is much safer for those inevitable bumps and scrapes.

Get the perfect kitchen countertops for your upcoming kitchen remodel with Amanzi Granite. Our design services help you get each element right, with a variety of factors in mind. Get in touch to find out more about our design and installation services around Winston Salem, Greensboro, High Point, and Kernersville.