Page 101 - Southern Oregon Magazine Winter 2019

What are the current creative trends? What stand-out options
are available?

While natural stone surfaces remain a popular choice, says Trevor
Hayes, founder and owner of Tile & Stone Design Center in Ashland,
he has also seen a shift over the past few years to engineered stone
products. “Our quartz countertop use has done nothing but grow,”
says Hayes. “You can get a real white marble-looking slab kitchen or
bathroom without the maintenance concerns of 100% natural stone.”
Pricing is comparable, he notes, but the maintenance is simpler, mak-
ing it a more functional choice for many homeowners.

With over 30 years’ experience in tile and stone, Hayes has seen a
number of styles come and go. He enjoys the process of helping cus-
tomers design their home spaces with the latest in design techniques
and products, from showroom to fabrication.

“The main trends for the last couple of years that we’ve seen are the
very clean, modern look of whites & greys mixed throughout the
house,” says Hayes. But a limited palette does not mean limited choices.
Textures, scale and shapes offer a wide range of options for those who
don’t want to get too dramatic with color but still want their home to
be a personal statement.

“Customers sometimes come in and wonder where to start and that can
be a bit overwhelming. We like to start small and build from there,” says
Hayes. “Before you know it, we’ve picked countertops, backsplashes,
wood flooring, tile flooring and even some drawer pulls, quickly build-
ing a pallet of colors for the whole house. We carry multiple lines of
tile for every occasion,” adds Hayes, “and then we like to carry prod-
ucts that hopefully nobody else has.” The options for handmade colors,
patterns, and shapes through companies like Portland-based Pratt &
Larson combine for an infinite range of options for every taste and
style.

“I’m a tile guy,” Hayes admits. “I’ll always appreciate a beautiful tile
application.” And while highly patterned tile applications are currently
considered retro for countertops or relegated to floors or backsplashes,
Hayes has also seen tile take its place back on countertops. “People
often select a large scale tile for countertops. It provides a good work
surface with fewer grout lines and lower maintenance.” Even the grouts
have seen their changes, as newer technologies mean they are more
durable and easier to maintain over time.

From the countertops, the functional focus of any countertop is the
sink, of course, and there are a surprising number of opportunities to
be creative there as well.

Marzi Sinks of Grants Pass offers 65 unique shapes and sizes of hand-
crafted sinks from contemporary to traditional. While their sinks dis-
tribute all over the United States, they also offers the unique service
of custom-painted sinks as well, a customer-driven service that dates 541.955.5311
back to the roots of the company. 301 SE 6th St., Grants Pass
Monday - Saturday: 9:30 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.
The company was started in Carmel Valley, CA, in 1959 by Rudy and Sunday: 11:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
Nancy Marzi and featured slip cast or hand-thrown dishes with unique

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