Rocky Mountain Stone in Albuquerque won first prize in the Artisan Group photo contest for the Levenson Kitchen. The project is Artisan Stone Collection Gold Coast granite, crescent edge, apron front travertine sink, slide in range, with a full height backsplash on the buffet.
The contest was open to all 35 Artisan Group member companies. Second place went to Top Master in Kansas City.
The kitchen in the winning photos was designed by homeowners Greg & Shana Levenson, and fabricated and installed by Artisan Group member Rocky Mountain Stone. The contractor was Brian Matteucci Construction and the photographer was Jerry Goffe.
The Levensons credit their project manager Steve Bickel, and templator Pete Janus in helping them choose slabs and seam locations for making the giant island seamless, creating the centerpiece for the masterpiece kitchen.
The entire Levenson home (kitchen, master bath, game room, office, pantry, master closet, main downstairs bath, main upstairs bath, kids bath one, kids bath two, basement bar, and garage) is outfitted in granite and marble tops, all fabricated by Rocky Mountain Stone.
"The Levenson kitchen was our most challenging renovation ever," says Brian Matteucci, contractor. "The only part of it that remains the same, is the eight-foot ceiling height."
The kitchen went from a small square with a few doors to surrounding rooms and no natural light to a much larger rectangular area, with a new breakfast nook, mudroom, pantry, as well as a new laundry room and garage bath.
Everything is much more open with plenty of natural light. The new giant island has a massive 3cm Artisan Stone Collection Gold Coast granite top, fashioned from one solid, seamless slab.
The main sink is a two bay country design, hand carved from spanish travertine. All of the perimeter cabinets are fitted with the same stone tops as the island, and offer a huge amount of storage, especially considering the kitchen's humble beginnings. The La Cornue range is surrounded by a massive, hand-cut spanish travertine stone and tile floor-to-ceiling application. It gives the kitchen a big, solid feeling. All of the stone and stained alder cabinetry, give the kitchen a very warm and inviting feeling.
With 35 members and growing, Artisan Group covers most major markets in the U.S. and Canada, and it can handle a variety of fabrication needs from a local to national scale. Its members average more than 20 years of fabrication experience in the countertop industry, and all Artisan Group members have achieved, or have begun the process to achieve, full accreditation with the Marble Institute of America. The group is among the first granite fabricators in the world to be working towards this distinction. Collectively, Artisan Group surpassed $350 million in sales in 2009.
Brands of the Artisan Stone Collection include Exotic & Classic Granite, Modesto Granite (starting at $35/square foot) and Saratoga Soapstone. It also offers a marble collection as well as Heritage Wood surfacing products. Apart from countertops, the Artisan Group supplies the Firstline collection of granite care products as well as Kohler sinks and faucets through an exclusive specialty dealer program with the Kohler Company. For more information, visit www.artisan-counters.com .
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