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Natural stone is a beautiful material to work with. A dream for architects and designers. Imagicasa partner Van den Weghe from Zulte has developed into one of the leading specialists in the processing of natural stone for luxurious high-end interior applications. The company has been active for almost 40 years from Zulte and, more recently, also from Knokke. Their clients are designers, architects and individuals who are seduced by the daring minimalist or richly classical projects in natural stone. Van Den Weghe has a good eye for beauty, innovation and quality. It’s not without reason that their slogan is 'Setting the tone in stone'.
In order to select the very best materials in the quarries, Van den Weghe’s people travel from to Italy, Turkey, France and Greece. Their innovative projects have already seduced the most demanding customers in world cities such as New York, Tel Aviv, Paris, Madrid, Geneva or Amsterdam.
Setting the tone in stone is what it’s all about.
But what do we mean by natural stone? Natural stone is actually the earth's crust on which we live. It consists of solidified liquid rock or petrified sediment. This natural product is millions of years old and that is exactly what gives natural stone its special appearance. It is durable and functional in use. There are thousands of natural stone species and there is something for every taste and every budget. Famous species are marble, limestone, granite, gabbo, gneiss, claystone, slate and quartzite.
The working methods and dimensions of the natural stone extracted are impressive. Natural stone is extracted into large blocks, from which plates or tiles are later sawn. Only layered stones such as slate and quartzite, which are very layered, are split into so-called plaice of the rock. The shape of these things is irregular, they are also called flagstones or shards. Square or rectangular tiles are then sawn or cut out of the plaice.
Most of the stones can be finished in different ways, glossy, dull or rough.
If you want shiny stone, you're going to sweeten or polish it. Dull stone is mainly sawn or sanded. And raw stone is refined, blasted, bitten or flamed. The more the stone shines, the more intense and darker the colours become. Also, differences in tin, veins, fossils, etc. become more clearly visible. You can say that the stone will live longer than that. And the other way around, the rougher the stone is, the more fluttery the colours and the less visible the differences in tone.
You are always welcome to visit the Van Den Weghe showrooms in Zulte and Knokke. Make an appointment first, of course. The showroom in Zulte is located next to the studio. The one in Knokke was designed by Glenn Sestig's Ghent-based architectural firm.
Photos © Van den Weghe