Arch decoration with decorative stone. Preparation of the stone for laying. A stone arch is inexpensive, but it looks great

03.05.2019

Decorating the arch with decorative stone allows you to make the interior really stylish and bright. Such unusual openings always attract attention. They are associated with triumphal arches or mysterious cave entrances. If you decide to create an arched opening in the apartment and arrange it correctly, you can make the space visually wider.

For decoration, stucco, carving, forging or wood can be used. But the ideal solution is a decorative stone. There are different types of this material, so finding the right one is very easy. An arch trimmed with stone will perfectly fit into the interior and bring some zest to it. She looks really great. Moreover, the material itself is durable and reliable.

The decorative stone has practically no flaws. It is made of a material that is not afraid of any corrosion. Also, it is not susceptible to rotting and fungal infection, which makes it truly reliable.

The decorative material includes:

expanded clay;
cement;
pumice.

All fillers are environmentally friendly. Pumice is a glass of volcanic origin that forms when lava solidifies rapidly. It has a porous structure and excellent heat retention. Expanded clay is a fired clay balls. Perlite is also of volcanic origin.

Another advantage of artificial stone is ease of maintenance. It can be cleaned with a mild detergent.

The widest range of artificial materials allows you to find an imitation of any natural stone. The similarity is noted in texture and color.

Arches made of decorative stone in the interior

Today, arches decorated with decorative stone are very often used in interiors. With its help, you can easily embody any, even the most unusual design ideas. So, for example, if an arch is framed with stones of light and blue-green tones, it can resemble a fabulous entrance to an underwater grotto, and if you create an imitation of granite, then it can be in the form of a fancy entrance to a cave or an old castle.

It should be remembered that additional decoration is required to create the most harmonious design. A great solution is the plant and the masterful use of light. If the arch is stylized as a magical entrance to the underwater world, then plants are a must.

Backlighting will add a special solemnity and some mystery. By illuminating the green arch with soft light, you can create the illusion of an aquarium.

The choice of material and finishing of the arch

Before you learn how to decorate an arch with decorative stone, you need to decide on a finishing material. It is worth noting that all types of artificial stone are quite easy to work with, therefore, often the most important argument for choosing one or another option is its cost.

It is best to work with narrow tiles. In this case, finishing the bends of the arch is much easier. If plasterboard arches are decorated, the weight of the material must be taken into account. Too heavy will deform or damage the surface.

How to decorate an arch with a stone with your own hands?

The stone laying process is very simple. For this work, you do not need the help of a professional builder, you can do everything yourself. Let's consider it in more detail:

Before starting work, you need to clean the surface of the arch and prime it. Work should be done carefully so that no dirt or debris remains. This is very important, because in the future you will need to glue decorative stone elements, and they simply will not stick on an uncleaned surface. If the surface is very smooth, it is worth making notches.
After that, a cement-based mortar is prepared, the composition and proportions of which depend on the type of stone. At this stage, it is extremely important to fulfill the requirements that the manufacturer of the selected material makes.
Only then can you go directly to the masonry. First, the stone is laid on the places where the arch touches the wall. Work is carried out in the direction from the bottom up. To keep everything smooth, use a building level. You can also use plastic crosses. After the first row is laid, the second row is laid according to the checkerboard principle. An overlap is made along the corner.

Stone laying work should start from the bottom and then go up.

To finish the arc-shaped section, you must first mark the stone itself. To do this, it is applied to the wall and cut off. At this stage, it is very important to maintain the radius of the arch. It must be remembered that it is necessary to grind the cut points.

In order to cut the product as accurately as possible, you must first draw the markings, and then walk along it several times with a special construction knife. Excess can be easily removed with simple pliers. A tile cutter or grinder is also suitable. For processing the trimmed surface, sandpaper is used. The rest of the elements, if necessary, are adjusted according to the same principle.

To remove excess decorative material, special tile nippers are suitable.

To lay out the inner surface with decorative material, follow the same steps. In this case, the elements are also adjusted in length. For trimming, use a hand saw (suitable for plaster-based material) or a circular saw. This is how the entire surface is covered.

When the installation work is completed, it takes a certain time for the cement mortar to cure well. Usually it takes a day or two. Then it is imperative to process the seams using a special putty.

After everything dries well and the initial processing is completed, you can proceed to decorating the arch for a certain style or paint the stone. An airbrush is ideal for these jobs. It is enough to choose the necessary dye mixture and also take into account your own taste.

As you can see, decorating the arch with decorative stone is as simple as possible. It can be done without the help of specialists. You can bring a stylish element to the room. Even the hobbyist will do it with incredible ease. You just need to do it very carefully and follow the entire sequence of work.

Decorative stone is an excellent material for finishing both building facades and interior interiors. This material is easily processed, cut and drilled.
It's easy to work with. However, in order to obtain an aesthetically good result, it is necessary to strictly follow the facing technology.

Instruments

First, let's prepare the tool.
You will need:

Construction mixer
Building level
Cut-off machine or cut-off machine
Putty knife
Bucket
Metal brush
Paint brushes
Rubber mallet
Trowel
Construction tape
Grout syringe
Household spray bottle
Wooden or plastic wedges of the same thickness

Consumable materials - we make the right choice

You will also need consumables:

Adhesive for decorative stone

Our advice - when purchasing glue, carefully read what is written on its packaging. The instruction must clearly indicate its properties.
For gluing decorative stones of different weights, there are different types of glue. Therefore, first choose a decorative stone that suits you, then purchase glue, and not for reverse.
Price in this case plays a secondary role, the main quality.

A decorative stone suggests that in addition to laying the stone on a vertical surface, you will also need to cover the vault. In this case, a pull-off force will constantly act on the glued stone.
Therefore, following all the recommendations for choosing the right adhesive is especially important.

It is important - when carrying out work on the installation of decorative stone at an ambient temperature below +5 degrees, it is necessary to use a certain brand of glue. Consider all this when choosing.

You will also need:

Grout in a suitable color
Primer

Our reference is a water repellent agent, a water-repellent composition for concrete.

Small addition. Many people may have a question - what is the difference between hydrophobization and waterproofing?

The fact is that with waterproofing, the walls are protected from moisture, but in turn they do not breathe. Hydrophobization allows not only to protect the walls from moisture, but also allows them to breathe.

Decorating with decorative stone

Step one - surface preparation

The first and very important stage is competent and correct surface preparation.

Before laying decorative stone on the wall, it is necessary to carry out preliminary preparation:

Remove remnants of old whitewash, paint or wallpaper
Walls must be leveled with putty
Primer walls and arches. The primer holds the small particles of the wall together and on such a surface any finish adheres more firmly.

Our reference - primers are currently on sale for all surfaces. Choose what you need based on the material of your walls.

Concrete walls, especially monolithic ones, must be treated with a special adhesive primer "Betonokontakt". At elevated temperatures or high humidity, it is recommended to moisten the back of the decorative stone with water.

Drywall arch - stone finishing rules

Someone will be interested in how to decorate a drywall arch with decorative stone:

When laying decorative stone on drywall, it is recommended to use light grades of stone.
In addition, decorative stone can be laid on gypsum boards only indoors.
If yours is under a canopy and in the open air, you cannot cover it with decorative stone.

The surface of the moisture-resistant gypsum board must be treated with a primer, after which it is necessary to let the sheet dry. Only then can you start styling.
It is convenient to apply the primer with a roller. In this case, do not forget to prime, at the arch, both external and internal surfaces.

Proper preparation of stone tiles for laying

Do not rush to immediately lay decorative tiles:

Stir the stone from different packs.
Next, spread the stone on the floor.
Adjust the position of the individual stones so that the texture looks as good as possible.

For example, distribute it according to the shades of color difference, or place short and long elements in the masonry so that the masonry looks more natural.

Checking the stone - what is important to know

Before laying, make sure that there is no thin foamy layer on the back of the tile, the so-called cement laitance.
If you find it, you need to clean the back with a wire brush. Do this.

Our reference - the presence of cement laitance significantly impairs adhesion. Your tile will just fall off.

In a bucket, carefully following the instructions on the package, dilute the glue. Mix it thoroughly with a mixer.
The mixture should be homogeneous:

With a spatula, apply a layer of adhesive to the wall where the tiles are to be installed.
On the back of the stone, also apply a layer of glue with a spatula.
Each layer, whether on a wall or on a tile, should be 5 - 10 mm.

Our advice - do not apply too thick a layer of glue, this can lead to the decorative stone slipping off the wall.

Important - the adhesive must completely cover the back of the tile without voids. This recommendation also applies to the wall to which the adhesive is also applied. Everything should be covered with an even layer.

Internal voids can lead to condensation inside the masonry.

We lay the stone ourselves - competently and efficiently

So:

Place the tile to the desired location and press down lightly.
Next, use a spirit level and a rubber mallet to level the stone.
Move it from side to side to get a good fit against the wall.

Our advice - decorating arches with decorative stone presupposes high-quality masonry. Therefore, during installation, tap on the surface of the stone with a screwdriver handle.
This way you can determine if there is a void inside. If they are found, the stone must be dismantled, the glue must be cleaned off and re-laid.

Additionally tap on the surface of the stone with a mallet. If glue comes out at the edges, remove it with a spatula.

At the same time, if glue remains on the ends of the stone, you should not remove it, so you will achieve better adhesion of the stone not only to the wall, but also to each other. Decorating arches with decorative stone in an apartment (see), just presupposes high-quality adhesion of tiles to each other.

Bricklaying with jointing

There are two types of laying artificial stone:

With jointing
No seams

Decorating the arch with decorative stone with jointing is one of the interesting design options. If you need just such a laying, you need to use wooden or plastic wedges during the laying process.
Select the wedge thickness you require. After the glue has dried, the wedges can be removed and the jointing can be started.
Sewing decorative stone is an equally important stage of work when finishing with decorative stone of an arch or just a wall. The entire final result of such painstaking work depends on its competent and accurate implementation.

Grouting

Fill the gaps between the decorative stones with a special grout using a syringe.

So:

Fill the syringe with grout
Squeezing it out slowly, gently fill in all the seams
It is recommended to fill the joints with grout so that it goes 3 - 4 mm inside the outer edge of the stone. Thus, you will achieve a pronounced relief of the masonry.
If you need to get a smoothed texture of the masonry, you can fill the joint at the same level with the face of the stone with grout.

After the mortar begins to set, this is after about 30 minutes, it must be smoothed with a spatula or a special curly spatula for joining.

Our reference is that the time range specified by us is 30 minutes conditional.
It all depends on the specific grout you purchased. Read the instructions carefully and carry out all work in accordance with the instructions of the manufacturer.

On sale there is a large selection of grout imitating the color and texture of a real solution. You can choose a grout of different colors and shades, according to your taste and at the request of the conceived design.

Covering the arch - "correct" chips

In an apartment, decorative stone assumes that the stone will need to be cut to the required size. Many people may have a question: how to decorate an arch with decorative stone and at the same time the walls are not finished with stone?
It is necessary to understand that the trimmed flat edge of the stone at the junction of the masonry and the flat unlined wall will not look entirely natural and beautiful.

A more acceptable result will be when the stone placed around the edges will have different chips. This will give the impression of naturalness and the effect will be more natural.

Decorative chips are fairly easy to make with sawing and cutting tools.
To perform the correct cleavage, proceed as follows:

With a knife, outline the main outlines of the future chip
All excess is bite off with pliers

Our advice is not to try to bite off immediately at the mark. You need to start from the edge, biting off a small piece.
Thus, all unnecessary is removed according to the mark made. Otherwise, the stone may break in a completely inappropriate place.

Chipped areas are repaired with a knife or file
Subsequently, to give the chips smoother shapes, they are processed using sandpaper
If desired or required by the design, the chips do not need to be smoothed out. It's all up to you

Decor - home stretch

At the end of the masonry, small defects, chips in unnecessary places, scuffs, end cuts and not quite correct color matching may remain.
These are all easy to fix with an airbrush. In this case, you will need less than an hour for your masonry to take on a finished shape.

Airbrush mix is:

Tinting paste
Water
Acrylic lacquer

To give the stone the greatest relief and expressiveness, a final spraying is applied to its surface with an airbrush. In this case, it is necessary to apply the spraying in such a way that the airbrush is at an oblique angle relative to the surface to be trimmed.

The color of the spraying should be somewhat darker than the color of the stone itself. If you want an unusual effect, you can add special metallized pigments, gold or bronze, to the mixture.
But you need to understand that this coating must be used in limited quantities, best of all from the ends of the stone.
Under normal conditions, this shine will hardly be visible. But when direct rays of the sun or directional light fall on it, your decorative stone will "come to life", it will begin to shine with different colors, as it happens in nature.

Our advice - after finishing the decorative finish and applying the finishing spray, we recommend that you cover the masonry with acrylic varnish.
This recommendation is relevant in places of active zones. Arches are just one of these zones. By doing this, you will protect the coating from abrasions.

Use a clear, matt or semi-matt water-based varnish. You can apply it with an airbrush or spray gun.

The decoration of the arch with decorative stone will allow you to add a unique and truly memorable look to your interior.
On our resource there are enough different videos and photos of material on design and how to implement it. Here you can learn a lot of new things and get acquainted with the advice of specialists that will be useful to you when performing certain types of finishing work.
Good luck to you!

Many rooms have arches that separate the different areas. Arches have become a fashionable alternative to doors and partitions, they make an apartment more spacious and can become an ideal decor object. Various natural and artificial materials are chosen to decorate the arches. One of the most popular options is to decorate the arch with decorative stone. To decorate the arch correctly, you need to know about all the nuances of construction and material.

Advantages

For the decoration of the arch, one of two types of stones is chosen - artificial or natural. Each type has its own advantages.

Natural materials are characterized by the following features:

They have a very interesting texture. Such stones look outside the box - both on the pages of magazines and photographs, and upon closer examination. These include shell rock, sandstone.
Lovers of delicate colors in the interior should choose arches lined with marble. This stone is sustained in various shades of pink, the pastel color looks very neat and unobtrusive.
To emphasize their status, buyers often choose arches trimmed with granite. This material is very expensive, but it gives the interior solidity and is a sign of financial well-being.

Artificial decorative stones also have their own advantages:

They are made with such high quality that they are almost indistinguishable from natural materials.
The price for such material is democratic. You can trim the vault with more stones without worrying about financial costs.
Artificial stone is usually finished in such a way that it is not inferior in strength to natural materials.
The weight of the decorative coating is significantly less than that of the natural one. The combination of strength and lightness gives artificial material a significant advantage.
The artificial stone is not influenced by external factors. It is not susceptible to decay and mold formation, and harmful bacteria do not appear on it.
Using a variety of dyes, they create a wide palette of colors for stones, so you can choose a shade that is right for your apartment.
The decorative material is easy to clean, no need to buy special care products and adhere to special technologies.

Based on these characteristics, you can determine which type of material is more suitable for decorating arches in your apartment. You will be able to choose the best option.

Instruments

To paste over the opening with stones, you need to stock up on certain tools and materials:

hammer;
sandpaper;
chisel;
hacksaw for stone carving;
construction knife;
building level;
putty knife;
roulette;
construction mixer;
Grout syringe.

The following components are used as consumables:

Choose a special glue for decorative stone - depending on the chosen coating. Some materials require special glue, so be careful when buying.
To make the seams between stones invisible, select a grout that is close in color to the material.
Purchase a primer to prepare your walls. Choose a primer carefully considering the composition of the walls, because different types of primer can differ from each other. Not all of them will be suitable for your apartment.
A water repellent is needed for the final processing of the stone.

If you have all the necessary materials and tools, you can easily independently cope with the decoration of the walls with decorative or natural stone.

Preparation

In order for the material to anchor as firmly as possible, it is imperative to prepare the surface of the wall and the part to which the stone itself will join.

Remnants of wallpaper and paint should be removed from the walls. If there is whitewash near the doorways, then its traces must also be removed.
Use a putty to level the surface.
The arch and walls in the apartment must be primed. If the arch is made of drywall, do not lay heavy stone on it. Drywall will not support a lot of weight.
Some people use stones of several colors in the interior. If you are going to start finishing the vault, lay out the composition of stones in such a way as to draw up a drawing in advance - and only then transfer it to the wall.
Calculate the size of the material so that each piece fits exactly into a specific location in the doorway.

Finishing

Direct finishing of the opening is the main stage of the whole process, which must take place in a certain sequence:

Stir the glue until smooth (using a mixer). This should be done strictly according to the instructions.
The glue is applied to the surface where the stone will be placed and to the back of the tile itself. Layers should be from 0.5 to 1 cm thick, but no more.
Apply a tile made of stone or decorative brick to the wall surface and press down. Each piece is fixed in a predetermined place and leveled using a building level. It is much easier to apply square parts, but tiles of a different shape will make the cladding more original.

Try to attach the stone to the wall as tightly as possible with your own hands.
Tap the surface of the material and remove any excess adhesive, if any. When the glue holds the tiles together from the end, it should be left.
After that, you need to carefully grout the joints. Using a syringe, it is necessary to fill the joints between the tiles so that the recess is at a distance of 0.3-0.5 cm from the outer edge of the coating.

After half an hour (after the solution has dried), level the surface with a spatula.
To create an imitation of natural material, you should decorate the tiles with chips. To do this, you need to outline the cleavage line in advance. Slowly and carefully remove the excess edges with pliers, working from the edge to the marked line. Use a file to smooth the edges of the chips. Use sandpaper for final polishing.
You can spray the tiles using a special spray. If the room is humid, treat the material with a water repellent.

It should be remembered not only the main stages of the process, but also the special advice given by professionals in the design of arches in the premises:

Arches made of artificial stone in the hallway are recommended to be left with seams between the tiles. This nuance adds extra coziness. However, it is important to remember that too sharp a contrast between the shade of the coating and the color of the seams is unacceptable.
If you have to cut artificial material with a saw, it is important not to press on it during this process, otherwise there is a risk that the stone will split.
A stone arch is inseparable from good lighting. Make sure in advance that the room or corridor is equipped with powerful electrical appliances. This will allow you to enjoy all the beauty and texture of the material. Luminaires can be placed directly in the very structure of the vault, which will give the design additional originality.
Arches lined with decorative stone or brick look especially beautiful in combination with plants. The vegetation near the structure will make it play in a new light and make your interior truly sophisticated.
Even openings made of stone can be decorated with decorative curtains made of a suitable material. Curtains should not attract attention, they are only intended to create additional comfort in the room.

Design options

The room in which the arch is located can be decorated in various styles. For each of them, it is necessary to select a material of a special texture and a certain color.

Interior arches in the loft style are made under the old brick. They can be decorated in red, gray or brown. It is in such designs that a large number of chips are provided, emphasizing the influence of time on the material.

The delicate concept of the Provencal interior involves the use of light stone or brick, without any pronounced signs of time. Such laying should be very neat.

The pompous Baroque style involves the use of natural stone to decorate interior arches. Such material is a sign of wealth and solidity. The stones near the doorway are very large and massive. In most cases, they are in light shades.

In the Mediterranean style, arches can be embodied in the most complete variety. Material of any texture can be selected. Preference is given to light or neutral brown shades, depending on the main range of the interior. Mediterranean arches can even be combined with curtains in a similar style.

The Empire style is very specific for creating interior arches. Its characteristic feature is the provision of the structure with columns on the sides. This design makes the vault a catchy interior detail. The main colors are white, beige. The columns at the top are often decorated with stone carving technology, which can also be present on the arch itself.

The minimalism style practically excludes the allocation of space around the arch with the help of masonry. Usually, the entire wall is covered with small stone slabs, where the arched opening is located, and the inner surface of the opening is finished with the help of special materials - without the use of stone.

The country style is dominated by beige brick. The arches are created with a targeted focus on the joints. The material finds echoes in other interior items as well - for example, in the fireplace, which goes well with the arch.

Many people think about in which parts of the house the presence of an arched structure is permissible.

There are several options for its location in the premises:

Popular are the arches that separate the kitchen area and the dining area. A similar layout can often be seen in country and Provence styles.
The dining and living areas are also often divided in a similar way. Sometimes a stone arch is suitable for rooms decorated in different colors. It looks equally presentable with any shades of furniture and walls.
Arches are popular not only as doorways, but also for styling windows. Often, the wall is designed in such a way that an arch-shaped protrusion is located above the window. This design is relevant for the loft style.
In the bedroom, arches separate the work area from the rest area. This concept is especially often embodied in modern interior trends.
If the loggia is insulated, then often the upper part of the wall is removed. What remains is an elegant lower partition, turning into an arch.
In large rooms, openings are sometimes used as boundaries between all zones. This door replacement helps to visually expand the space in the room.

The decorative finishing stone certainly has its fans. After all, this is a practical, beautiful material, the styling of which is within the power of even a non-professional.

A variety of textures and a wide range of colors of stone will help you decorate the interior in various styles, create coziness and comfort in your apartment or private house. The most widely used cladding material is used to decorate walls, columns, kitchen aprons, niches and doorways, including arches.

For interior work, an artificial stone based on gypsum is most often used. It is a lightweight (much lighter than concrete counterparts), breathable, environmentally friendly material with high performance.

Today we will dwell in more detail on the decoration of arches and doorways with decorative stone.

Types of decorative stone

decorative brick

Natural brick is a popular material in loft-style interiors. Brick-like tiles imitate brickwork. The brick arch looks good in combination with dark-colored ceiling beams in a country-style interior.

White brick will make the room more romantic and light. Suitable for Scandinavian, Mediterranean and vintage style interiors and of course Provence style.

shell rock, sandstone

Coquina cladding tiles will fill the interior with light and warmth. Warm colors and porous surfaces go well with columns in antique-style interiors.

limestone

Limestone tiles or their imitation differ in texture and a variety of shades: from white to brown.

river stone

This cladding looks very brutal, reminiscent of a medieval castle or a cave entrance. Large stone is suitable for chalet and Gothic interiors.

When looking for suitable options, it is useful to study the catalogs of finishing materials. Finished products made of natural stone have dozens of different items, skillfully combining which, you will get a harmonious interior designed in your own style.

Decorating an opening with a stone has a number of advantages. First, it protects the side surfaces and outer corners from abrasion and dirt. Secondly, this finish is more durable.

Thirdly, an opening or an arch takes on an interesting look, it can become an accent in the interior or emphasize its general style.

Decorating the doorway with artificial stone will help to visually unite the hallway with the living space, it looks great in combination with decorative plaster or smoothly painted walls.

Decorating openings, arches and walls with natural or artificial stone provides ample opportunities for the flight of design ideas in interior design. Light pastel tones of stone are in harmony with various frescoes.

A long corridor can be visually "divided" into sectors using arches lined with stone, and "expanded" by decorating the walls with mirrors.

Carrying out works on finishing with decorative stone

Artificial analogs of decorative stone attract the buyer with their democratic price, and in appearance they hardly differ from natural material. You can also save money if you do the cladding work without the involvement of specialists.

For it is necessary to select lightweight material, and narrow tiles are easier to lay on the arched (vaulted) surface of the opening.

The composition of the adhesive solution directly depends on the material chosen for finishing. It is necessary to mix the glue, following the instructions on the package. Use a special mixer for mixing so that the structure of the mortar is homogeneous and plastic.

The surface of the walls must be clean and primed. For better adhesion to the glue, some experts recommend making notches on the wall.

The adhesive is evenly applied with a spatula both on the wall at the gluing point and on the back of the tile. The layer thickness should not exceed 5-10 mm.

After placing the tiles on the wall, press them down and seal them with a rubber mallet, tapping on the surface. Carefully remove excess glue around the edges with a spatula. Drying time of the glue is about a day or two.

Decorative facing stone can be laid in two ways: with and without joining. For jointed tiles, use plastic crosses or wooden wedges of the correct thickness.

Grouting is usually done with a grout using a special syringe. After some time (20-30 minutes), after the mortar has set, the seams are smoothed with a spatula for joining.

At the end of the masonry, after the grout has dried, it is recommended to clean the artificial stone from dust and cover it with a transparent water-based acrylic varnish, for less abrasion of the surface during operation.

Subject to the sequence of work, finishing arches and openings, however, like decorating walls, is within the power of any person who has a desire and at least some skills in repair. Without hiring builders, you can transform your home in a short time by decorating it with stone.

Content:

Decorating the arch with decorative stone: a solid look and decoration of the interior opening

Decorating arches with decorative stone - Photo 1

An arched opening between rooms is an interesting option for decorating a home or office interior. Unusual in shape, the entrance to the room, rounded from above, is associated for us either with a triumphal procession, or with a portal at the junction of two worlds. Additional decoration of the arch with decorative stone gives this architectural element even more solidity and emphasizes the originality of the style. From this article you can learn how to properly and beautifully decorate the arch with stone.

Methods for decorating interior arches

Designers offer us different ways to decorate the arch. Among them, options for decorating with wooden panels, plaster moldings, or even forged metal parts look especially interesting. In the context of the general style of interior decoration, any of the finishing methods will look quite attractive. But nothing can replace the durability and beauty of natural stone. This natural material can claim the first place when decorating arched openings.

Arches made of decorative stone - Photo 2 Arches made of decorative stone - Photo 3 Decorating arches with stone - Photo 4 Decorating arches with stone - Photo 5

In some cases, for finishing the arch, it is permissible to use artificial finishing materials that imitate natural decorative stone.

What to choose natural or artificial decorative stone?

Lovers of everything natural, without fake, prefer materials made from real natural stone, whatever the cost. A very interesting texture, unique surface is demonstrated by such rocks as sandstone, tuff, shell rock and some others. The delicate color and intricate patterns of marble have been prized for their special beauty for more than one millennium.

Arch trimmed with decorative stone - Photo 6

The architectural details, finished with granite, impress with their grandeur.
At the same time, artificial decorative stone has no less right to exist. Compared to natural, it even has some advantages, since it is less expensive and is able to imitate any rock.

Artificial decorative stone is made from environmentally friendly components such as cement, pumice and expanded clay. To give it the desired color, mineral pigments are added during manufacturing. After drying and firing, the decorative stone acquires a hardness that is in no way inferior to natural material.

Stone decoration of the arch in the apartment - Photo 7

The weight of artificial stone is much less than real granite, marble or slate. This important quality provides him with an additional priority among finishing materials of this kind.

Getting ready for laying decorative stone

In order to decorate an arch with decorative stone, you do not need special professional knowledge. It will be enough to stock up on the appropriate tools, including:

A cutting tool of the "Bulgarian" type or a hand saw;
Construction knife;
Chisel or small pickaxe;
Hammer, pliers, spatula;
Plumb line and level;
Sandpaper.

The facing stone should be cut into thin tiles in advance so as not to create difficulties during the work.

Stages of work

Prepare the surface for laying decorative stone tiles. Make a notch on the wall and apply a primer to help the glue or grout hold. The surface must be carefully leveled and free of dust.
Prepare the mortar on which you will glue the stone. Traditionally, it can consist of Portland cement with the addition of sifted sand, lime and some PVA glue. It is permissible to use special types of glue or "liquid nails" instead of cement mortar.
Start laying out the stone tiles from the bottom, from the junction of the arched opening with the floor. Apply a sufficient layer of mortar or glue to the wall with a trowel and press the stone against it. Try not to press hard on the stone tiles to avoid cracking.
Level each next row of stone and set using plastic crosses. Take your time to complete all the work in one go. Better to take a break, reaching half the height, so that the lower rows have time to "grab".
When you get to the curvature of the arch, you will have to cut the stone to give the tiles the desired shape. If you do it manually, then you will need to take a good walk with a construction knife along the marking line, and then remove the excess edges with pliers. Irregularities will have to be sanded.
When laying tiles of stone on the inner surface of the arch, you should adhere to the same work technology. It is only necessary to more carefully monitor the observance of the dimensions of the facing material.

Video instructions for laying artificial stone

The final stage

When you finish finishing the arch with decorative stone, you will need to stop working for about two days. Such a period is necessary for the reliable fastening of all elements of the stone cladding.

Only after the appropriate time has passed, it will be possible to fill the tile joints with cement mortar or grout. At the same time, try not to allow drops of solution to fall on the outer surface of the stone. It is better to avoid unnecessary contamination right away than to apply efforts to eliminate it later. Remove excess solution with a wet sponge or cloth.

Interior arch trimmed with stone - Photo 8 Interior arch trimmed with stone - Photo 9 Decorating the arch with decorative stone - Photo 10 Decorating the arch with decorative stone - Photo 11