In this edition of Different By Design, we thought that we would give you a behind the scenes view of Olympia Tile’s Slab Division Warehouse in Toronto.

Often when selecting stone slabs for counter tops or fireplaces etc. a developer, designer or contractor will opt to personally select the slabs themselves. This is particularly useful if you are selecting a more specialized or rare stone that naturally has a lot of variation and veining in it as you will see in the following examples.

Olympia is the largest supplier of these slabs in Canada and they come from quarries from all over the world. In addition to the more common marble and granites that we see in our kitchens and bathrooms, there are many rare stones that are also available.

Typically, these stone slabs are cut at 3/4″ or 1 1/4″ thicknesses and come in a variety of finishes such as polished, honed and leathered. There is a huge array of colours, pattern, texture and veining in every piece of stone. This is a result of 1) where in the world the stone comes from, and 2) what mix of minerals and organic materials were naturally combined in the earth over thousands of years.

As you can see in the above examples, there is an endless variety of colours and patterns in these beautiful stones, and this is only scratching at the surface!