What Color Granite to Use With a Light Stone Fireplace?

Color of the Stone

• The color of the stone around the fireplace will determine the color of the granite that you should select. If the stone is a cool color -- gray, gray-blue or gray-brown -- you'll want to pick a cooler color of granite, such as a light gray or white with gray flecks or black flecks. If the stone is a warmer color -- like a warm brown or golden -- you should match that tone with a warmer color of granite, such as a rose or golden color.

Contrasting

• You need to decide whether your stone and granite combination will have contrasting values (granite is dark while the stone is light), comparable values (both are light), or near-ish values (the stone is light, granite is a medium value). Starkly contrasting granite and stone combinations -- one dark and one light -- will create a dramatic effect in the room. Less dramatic combinations -- light with light and light with medium granite -- will draw less attention but will also create the effect of a unified and well planned interior design.

Other Colors Within The Room

• Many varieties of granite have an overall color with smaller flecks of many colors spread throughout. In addition to matching the granite to the color of the stone, you should also match the granite to the color in the rest of the room. You can do so by coordinating the little flecks of color with the other colors found in the room. For example, if you have chosen a cool gray granite to match with your cool gray stone fireplace, but the room has accents of green, you can look for a type of granite that is overall gray, but that has green flecks floating in it.

Textures

• Choose the right texture -- meaning the quantity and concentration of flecks and veins in the stone -- as you choose the right color of granite. Some slabs of granite have what is called "movement", or a large pattern of color that moves in a wave throughout the slab, rather than a static texture that appears throughout the entire slab. As a general rule, the smaller the slab of granite, the less movement you want to see. Larger slabs of granite have more visible area, and granite with a lot of movement can be better appreciated if more of it is visible. Smaller slabs of granite work well if they have less texture, or more static textures.