Our company just got back from visiting Italy and the Verona Fiere – the world’s largest stone trade show.   Italy was incredible; of course the food and wine were wonderful, but what we really love was the architecture.  From Rome to Tuscany and from Venice to Verona, we saw incredible public and private buildings; such as the Pantheon, Coliseum, Forum, Vatican City and the Trevi Fountain; then Five Hundred year old Tuscan Farm Houses and finally the works from Andrea Palladio in Vicenza.    It was truly amazing that Italy offers so much to the visitor, especially someone who is in the Natural Stone Industry.  You are able to see architectural elements such as Columns, Balustrade, Fountains and Building Facades that date back more than 2,000 years ago in some places.  We were also surprised to see Cantera Stone was used as bases for sculpture and furniture in the Vatican.

When we arrived at the show, we were surprised to see the enormous sizes of raw stone blocks placed around the outside areas of the fiere.  Exhibitors took their time and money to display their best products in innovative ways.  Vendors from all over the world including Spain, Germany, Dominican Republic, Italy, Israel, and China were exhibiting at the show.   Some of our favorite exhibitors displayed themselves in such a way as if they were a “fashion show or a store boutique” with beautiful products not only just set up in the raw, but infused into elaborate designs many times created by architects hired just for this fiere.   Probably the most famous exhibit of all was the Antolini Luigi Company known for their exotic stone slabs with many of them made from semiprecious stone in which they featured a beautiful reflection pool made out of a pink colored stone with models in bikinis swinging over the pool.

Stop by our showroom in Los Angeles, California to learn and see all types of Natural Stone Tiles, Decorative pieces, and Architectural Elements.  We can help you with your all of your stone ant tile needs. Cantera Especial specializes in custom manufacturing stone products.  Just call to make an appointment and we will be happy to review with you all of your design and stone needs.

Most people make the mistake of thinking that installing stone veneer is something they could never do. Don’t dismiss the possibility, because it can dramatically transform the look of your residence both inside and out.

While it’s true that the installation may take a few special tools, you probably already have the ability to do it yourself. Once you have your surface prepared and ready, installing the veneer can actually be a lot of fun. Some jobs could be completed within a day or a weekend. Read on to find out more.

Installing stone veneer can turn the ordinary into something extraordinary. A plain block wall might look stark and cold, but it transforms it into a naturally beautiful, warm landscape feature. With modern versions of manufactured stone, installation is easy and totally possible for the average home do-it-yourselfer.

And if you’re concerned that the manufactured stuff might not look as good as real stone, think again. manufactures are going to great lengths to make their product look authentic, even up close.

You may require some special tools. Most do-it-yourselfers have a pretty good selection of basic tools on hand. But you’ll needs a few not-so-common tools for your stone veneer installation.

Specifically, you will need a masonry blade for your saw. Most saws are capable of cutting manufactured stone veneer as long as you attach a masonry blade. Depending on where you are installing, you may have to cut the panels into different sizes or shapes.

You will also need a trowel to spread the mortar onto the back of the stone veneer. The third most likely tool purchase is a grout bag, which is used to apply grout between the sections.

About the only part of the project that might seem like work is surface preparation. How well the veneer adheres to your surface and how realistic it looks when you’re done depends in large part on the quality of the surface. You’ll want to remove any existing paint.

The surface should be level, but not necessarily “smooth.” Before you start putting up the veneer, you may need to add a thin “scratch” coat of mortar. Or in some areas, you may need to put up a moisture barrier. Your cantera stone veneer supplier should be able to help you make this decision.

This is very satisfying work that instantly adds beauty and value to your home. It takes a plain looking surface and makes it beautiful. It’s easy to do yourself as long as you pick up the right tools and take the time to get the surface ready. So there’s no need to wait any longer. Start choosing your stone veneer and get ready to have a fun, productive weekend.

We’re very happy to announce that Cantera Especial now offers CEUs MIA (Marble Institute of America). Attendees to our workshops will receive CEU credit toward their certifications.

Credits are accepted by AIA, ASID, IIDA, IDCEC, and IDC. Two seminars are currently offered which are MIA/CEU ” Introduction to Stone I” and “Introduction to Stone II” with a third to come soon on “Sustainability”.

Please contact Andi Salata to schedule a “Lunch & Learn” seminar at your firm or our showroom in Sherman Oaks.

Nothing matches the look of a stone floor for luxury and quality. Stone floors also help keep your home cool and help you to keep your home clean, since they don’t trap bacteria and they make it easy to wipe up spills. Talk to the flooring suppliers at Cantera Especial and let them show you how installing natural stone floors can change your home from a house to a showplace.

The stone suppliers at Cantera Especial work hard to bring you a wide range of stone choices, all of the highest quality. They are popular granite suppliers, but they also supply other popular stones for flooring, such as marble, sandstone, slate, travertine and limestone. The stone fabricators at Cantera can even create mosaic floors for you, for a look of amazing luxury.

Cantera Especial granite suppliers offer a wide range of options within the category of this most popular flooring stone. From rich black granite to smooth brown, from deep blue stones to crisp white, you’re sure to find a stone that suits your taste. The stone suppliers in other categories have wide ranges of options as well, and if you don’t find exactly what you’re looking for in our catalogue, our stone fabricators will work with you to create the stone floor of your dreams.

The process of using Cantera Especial as your flooring supplier is all about you from beginning to end. They want to ensure customer satisfaction. You’ll begin by working with designers to choose or design exactly the floor you have in mind. Then Cantera’s stone fabricators will create your stone tiles as you’ve specified.

When you work with Cantera Especial flooring supplier, you know you’ll end up with the rich, luxurious floor you’ve dreamed of. Stop dreaming and discover how easy it is to create the beautiful floors you want with Cantera Especial–stone suppliers to the very best.

From an array of customer designs and specifications, we are custom stone fabricators that can fashion your creative ideas and draw from our own ideas. All of our basic sizes available in the CAD catalog can be altered as requested by the customer. Once all of the correct designs of the product have been discussed, i.e., the best colors have been picked, etc., we can provide an accurate quote based on a number of those details. The carved elements, based on examples from photos of blue prints, catalogs, and designs, are then approved by the purchaser in order for manufacturing to commence.

Many of our products contain all natural stone, namely granite, slate, and marble. Any reputable granite supplier should stand by their work completely. By offering solid guarantees to customers, we continue to expand each and everyday. Some services included in our design package include work on bathroom tiles, kitchen backsplashes, shower stalls, patios, siding, flooring, walls, fireplaces, and so much more.

By allowing customers the ability to hand select materials to be used for each project, this means customers experience overall satisfaction when it comes to the finished product. Our friendly and well-informed staff of granite suppliers is always ready to provide appointments to go over various details of the project at-hand. By making sure that the customer is thrilled with the project before the process is undertaken ensures success each and every time. Our intense desire to provide elegance and the highest standards of craftsmanship shows up in our work. We invite you to come visit the showroom today in order to get ideas for your upcoming project. If you need advice, or if you already have the plan in mind, we can help to facilitate the process easily.

When you want a stone or granite fabrication to command attention and awe your visitors, Cantera Especial can provide you with just the right enhancement. As a leading stone supplier, we strive to transform your space from ordinary to spectacular. We can provide standard designs, or we can fabricate to work off of your custom designs.

As a high quality flooring supplier, the beauty of our granite, marble, terrazzo, slate and other stone flooring provide an elegant beauty that will last for decades. From practical to exotic, our design catalogue can help you determine which flooring product can fit your needs. Much of our flooring is imported from around the world, and installed to the highest standards, with a particular attention to detail. When choosing a flooring supplier, choose Cantera Especial to provide Old World charm to your building project.

As a top quality granite supplier, we provide a wide variety of top quality domestic and imported granite. The granite we import and use includes Creme Caramel, Vizag Gs, Juparana Classico, Rosa Porrino, Azul Bahia, Marina Pearl, Baltic Brown, and a number of other types from which to choose. We will be able to provide the granite that is just right for your project.

Attention to detail and the ability to provide a dramatic effect combine to make our stone fabrication second to none, and will be the highlight of your building project. Elaborate fountains, wall fountains, fireplaces and fireplace surrounds, hearths, columns, pedestals, basins, basin surrounds are just some of the stone fabrication we provide. Whether through your design plans or through our product design catalogue, we will be able to provide the right stone fabrication product for you.

Visit our website at http://www.cantera-especial.com and review a number of our stone fabrication, granite and flooring products. We may be contacted at any of our California offices, including San Diego, 1(619) 647-7625, San Francisco, 1(415) 341-3020, Los Angeles, 1(818) 907-7170 and Orange County, 949-900-6698. Any of our professional salespersons will be able to discuss your specifications, your project timetable, budget and work with you to make your building project one of eye catching beauty.

Cantera Especial, (meaning “Exceptional Quarry” in Spanish), is a manufacturer and distributor of fine architectural stone products, which have an antique look that can be used for classical, rustic, or contemporary landscaping projects. You can choose from standard designs or order a customized design specifically for your purposes. Upgrade your environment with classical landscaping stone.

This granite supplier has a variety of stone products for hardscapes that can be used to pave, line or bound paths, fountains, pools, or decks. A well-constructed hardscape is a long-lasting structure that you and your family can enjoy for years. Stone suppliers, like Cantera Especial, can deliver the best landscaping stone products for your next landscaping job.

Water landscaping designs create a festive wonderland where guest can enjoy the abundant sights and sounds around them. Flooring suppliers can suppy wonderful pavers, tiles, slabs and stones for any number of water landscapes (waterfalls, fountains and pools) that are especially attractive and create a cool, relaxing, living environment.

Outdoor decorative fireplaces are a new trend in patio, deck and backyard landscaping. Fireproof landscaping stone creates a solid platform cooking, eating, and entertaining. Stone flooring suppliers can help you create beautiful, inviting landscapes for a relaxing environment using colorful, durable, natural stone.

Search the Design Catalog

Carefully, select your favorite carving design for your columns, fireplaces, and fountains from the design catalog. Cantera’s stone selection includes cantera, granite, limestone, marble, mosaic tile, onyx, sandstone, slate, and travertine. There are many great landscaping stone colors to choose from including the following: blue, brown, green, grey, red, white, and yellow.

It is easy to find the landscaping stone you want: search through designs, approve the pricing and wait for delivery. Manufacturing the stone products takes about 60 to 120 days. Once the products are shipped, there is a post-transport inspection to ensure they nothing was damaged. Choose carefully because not all stone suppliers deliver solid, high-quality products.

When only the highest quality, landscaping stone products are acceptable, trust in Cantera Especial. Visit the Web site to view samples designs for your landscaping stone needs at “www.cantera-especial.com”.

Stone suppliers can show you many options for using stone both inside and outside your home or business. Stone is strong and durable, and there are many different types available, so you are sure to find a perfect stone for each of the different features in your home or business. Stone fabricators can design beautiful and functional columns, railings, steps, water fountains and other unique features to add to the attractiveness of your building’s exterior, and a flooring supplier will advise you about the best types of stone to use for the floors in your home or business.

Stone is one of the strongest building materials available, and when stone suppliers deliver your products from the stone fabricators, you will see that durability can also be beautiful. Limestone and Cantera come in a wide variety of colors, and professional stone fabricators appreciate the qualities that make them easier to carve, so they are a popular choice for natural stone products.

The stone fabricators and stone suppliers at Cantera Especial are experts in working with stone. They have a unique design process and will work with you to create the perfect products to enhance the attractiveness of your home or business. Combine your ideas with their expertise, and your finished project will be amazing. When you want the best for your home or business, purchase your stone products from stone suppliers who sell the highest quality stone, and employ knowledgeable experienced stone fabricators to design your stone to your specifications, so you will have the assurance that they will complete your project exactly the way you envision it. Cantera Especial will exceed your expectations and supply you with superior products and workmanship that will make your home or business a real show place.

This gives Cantera Especial the ability to bring more flavor, texture and variety to the cut and carved stone market, providing old-world, hand-carved craftsmanship with modern design and delivery to any architectural product: columns, molding surrounds, veneer, mosaic, flooring, fireplaces, fountains, balustrade and more.

The success of this partnership is evidenced by a recent contract to supply product for the largest multi-use development in Tulsa, Oklahoma. They chose the Spanish limestone, Azul Moderno. “The architect wanted a stone that would not only accent their design,” says Andrew Firestone, President of Cantera Especial “but create a sense of permanence and classic, old world, architectural flavor.”

Streamlining operations has created one of the most successful carved stone and flooring businesses in the United States. Limestone and Cantera have become the most widely used natural architectural stone products because of their varied colors and carving facility. Come see why it’s so popular.

Cantera Especial offers product knowledge, great color variety, form and texture while boasting an unlimited supply of architectural details from their online catalog with down loadable details in Auto Cad and PDF Files which can be used interchangeably to create any design desired.

Cantera Especial has showrooms in Los Angeles and San Francisco, with offices in San Diego and Dana Point, California and Florence, Italy. Factories located in: Vicenza, Lecce, and Sicily Italy, Alicante, Spain and Yucatan, Mexico.

New customers at the Coverings convention will receive 10% off their first order. Visit Cantera Especial on the web at www.cantera-especial.com or call one of our helpful sales associates at 800.564.8608 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting              800.564.8608      end_of_the_skype_highlighting.

You’re probably asking yourself, “Why are we talking about foreign accents?”

The answer is simple; the same applies to architectural details. What looks better around a pool at a resort, cement or Mexican cantera? What’s more beautiful, a pre-cast concrete column or one carved from Italian limestone? What looks better on the outside of a modern commercial building, stucco or Spanish limestone cladding?

If you’re an architect, designer, or developer, you know there are only so many ways to arrange boxes and cylinders. It’s the details that set your design apart. Many think natural stone details are too expensive. But can you afford to skimp on what people will admire most?

CANTERA ESPECIAL, manufacturer and distributor of fine architectural stone products, recently partnered with three major Italian stone manufacturers, one in Spain and one in Mexico.

This partnership gives Cantera Especial the ability to bring more flavor, texture and variety to the cut and carved stone market, providing old-world, hand-carved craftsmanship with modern design and delivery to any architectural product: columns, molding surrounds, veneer, mosaic, flooring, fireplaces, fountains, balustrade and more.

The success of this partnership is evidenced by a recent contract to supply product for the largest multi-use development in Tulsa, Oklahoma. They chose the Spanish limestone, Azul Moderno. “The architect wanted a stone that would not only accent their design,” says Andrew Firestone, President of Cantera Especial “but create a sense of permanence and classic, old world, architectural flavor.”

Cantera Especial’s streamlined operation has led to them being one of the most successful carved stone and flooring businesses in the United States. Limestone and Cantera have become the most widely used natural architectural stone products because of their varied colors and carving facility. “We control every aspect of the process.” says Firestone, “Our design process is very unique. We provide down loadable Auto Cad and PDF design details that architects and designers are now looking at to get design ideas.”

Those design details can be customized for anything you have in mind. And if we don’t have it, we can create it.

Come see how Cantera Especial can give your projects foreign accents people will remember.