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Home Decorating

Contrasting stone, tile, brick dilema for outdoor kitchen

16 years ago

We are currently building a new home. Our back porch (lanai) is approximately 24' wide and 16' deep. It will have an outdoor kitchen and a firepit. Our plans are to tile the floor. But we have 4 columns out back, two of which will touch the outdoor kitchen framing. Our dilima is if we do the columns in stone, what should we do the kitchen in, same stone, differnet stone, different media all together, and then how to tie that in to a floor. the firepit will mimic our decison on the kitchen. The rear of the house is stucco. the ceiling is 24 ft high and will have tongue and groove boards. there are also three exposed trussed beams at about 20 ft and two ceiling fans.

Thanks in advance, Tim in Houston

Comments (7)

squirrelheaven
16 years ago
Without knowing the full details, I would be consistent and use stone in the kitchen also. No need to make everything a different material. It would likely look chaotic. Where would it be going in the kitchen area?

I'd pick a tile that blends in character and, obviously, complements it in color also.
lindybarts
16 years ago
Tim, we don't have a full kitchen but we do have a fireplace, columns, BBQ that face each other. We opted for stone on the fireplace and columns. Stone on the backsplash and face of the BBQ with Granite tile on the countertop. All in brown tones. Also tongue and groove on the ceiling. We only have aggregate cement on the floor though but if I had to choose a flooring, I'd do a ceramic tile that looked like the granite tiles. This isn't the best photo of the BBQ but it's all I have.
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Yes, a sink lid is custom, unless the sink you choose has a matching cutting board which you can use, but it's easy to make. Just cut it out of plywood or plastic. There are a few types. If the sides of your sink are angled, you can do a flush lid out of 3/4" or 1" thick plywood with the edges angled to fit to keep the lid in place. That takes more skill, but is nice. Even fancier, you can have it made with applied edges and tiled in the middle so that it matches the counter. If you want to do it unskilled DIY, cut it out a bit larger than the sink. Sand it well on all sides. Use a piece of half circle or quarter round trim molding to cut "feet" from. Make them about 3" long. Glue then nail the feet around the bottom of the cover, about a quarter inch from where the sides of the sink should be. Add a knob or handle with screws. Use weatherproof finish to complete. Not hard. :) I even know of one guy who made a similar plywood cover for the whole counter. I'm not sure if that's overkill or if he thinks that gets him out of cleaning. :) Lucy, if the porch has an actual roof that's part of the house (not an awning), you should be able to use a regular hood. Might be a good idea too. Check your local codes. You'd surely have to have it on a GFI circuit, but other than that, and a question about how you'd handle the exhaust end (isn't it going to show?), I can't think of why not.
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@Pink_Peony First, thank you for saying the work is stunning. Good field staff make all the difference. Hmmmm.....There could be a construction driven reason why North Carolina clay is problematic for bluestone but Chicago clay is not. For the life of my I cannot think of what it would be. I would be very reluctant to accept that explanation without some engineering to back it up. Those contractors could be right, but I am suspicious of their simplistic response. There used to be very few landscape material distributors but now they are a common site. I mention this because those distributors typically sell manufactured concrete pavers as well as an assortment of natural stone. If you call a distributor that sells both manufactured and natural stone products, ask whether there are issues with bluestone or natural stone in your area. If they sell both types of paving products then they do not have a vested interest in selling modular brick versus natural stone. I suspect that the negative contractor responses at the show on bluestone are driven by the skill of their work forces, not an issue with clay soils, but perhaps not. Of the manufacturers you listed I am somewhat familiar with Belgard and Pavestone. I took a look at the Cambridge stones you mentioned. Yes, Cambridge does have some very good looking product and they also have a trademarked face mix technique called Armor Tec. That casting technique is a real plus in my mind. Of all the modular products on the market I am most familiar with Unilock but I'm not sure if they are in the Carolina's. If you do have distributors in your area ask them who the three best contractors are locally for you. What you will get is probably 1) Their biggest buyer, 2) The best installer, 3) The next best installer. :)
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That tile on the top is too thin with the brick and I am not sure if even meant to be outside. The counter should overhang the base just like your kitchen counter and if you choose a counter with a finished edge you will not need a trim piece. So it should look like this
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chiefneil
16 years ago
Here's a look at how I did it for my bbq and firepit. We used stone for all vertical surfaces, and repeated the travertine pavers for the horizontal surfaces. However I do wish that I had used granite for the countertops instead. My house is stucco as well. I think stucco rather than stone on everything but the columns would be fine too (and cheaper), but stone on the columns really adds a nice touch. My columns were originally stucco but I had it replaced with stone. I don't have a handy photo of the columns and patio, but I can snap one if you'd like to see them.

Here's the bbq.

Don't forget about lighting!
gk5040
16 years ago
Last year, we remodeled our pool area adding an outdoor kitchen and waterfall. We have several different textures and rock formations, they all coordinate and I think look great together. The patio is tumbled marble, real stone on the waterfall, granite ontop of the bar, 2 columns and the front and sides of the bar are cultured stone, back of bar is stucco, pool is Tahoe Blue pebble tec, and a black/brown tile at the waterline. Did you post or search on the pool forum? You might find more pictures to look at.
lindybarts
16 years ago
Such beautiful outdoor spaces. Like living in a resort! ;c)
timwalker69
Original Author
16 years ago
Thanks all., some great pics. Its just hard to viualize until you can actually see where someone has done it.
squirrelheaven
16 years ago
The house on this link (thanks Perky!) has an example of brick with what looks like cultured stone and flagstone as well. You can see a mix, although how busy, mismatched, or well done will always depends on how things are laid out, the size of the area, and how they connect on color and character. This firm uses a beautiful mix in a restrained way.

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