Stone Vessel Sinks - How to pick the right color

I'm commonly contacted by customers and asked to help them pick the right stone color for a vessel sink for their bathroom project.  Selecting the right color can be a challenge for someone doing it for the first time.  Most people's knee-jerk tendency is to try to have the sink color match either the countertop or existing tile in the bathroom.  Matching stone color is very challenging.  All nature stone is unique.  One vendor's light travertine will probably not match another vendor's light travertine.

Here is some advice I provide customers with when trying to pick a color for their vessel sink:

1. Don't always try to make the vessel sink match another stone color in the bathroom.  All natural stone is unique and achieving a perfect match is difficult.  Having the vessel sink perfectly match the countertop is also not advised.  The countertop tends to camouflage or swallow the vessel sink if they are exactly the same color.
2. If you are trying to match your vessel sink to the floor tile or backsplash, pick a minor color tone.  Natural stone is typically made up of various minerals with different color hues.  Pick a single hue from the stone instead of the overall base color.
3. Besides just color, pay attention to the finish of the stone.  Stone vessel sinks typically either have a polished or honed (matte) finish.  Most marble sinks are polished while most travertine sinks are honed.
4. Understand other characteristics about the stone such as veining and variation of colors.  Some stone vessel sinks are a consistent color while others have heavy mineral veining and a wide variety of different hues.
5. Browse the internet for inspiration.  Visit sites like Houzz.com and search for bathrooms that have your same colors. 
6. Make sure the store you buy from has a return policy in case you don't like how your vessel sink matches your bathroom.  
7. If you are buying online, ask the store to send you additional pictures of the sink.  Colors for natural stone can vary based on a user's computer monitor and the lighting used when taking pictures.

Selecting a color for your stone vessel sink can be challenging.  TashMart has a large variety of natural stone color options to choose from.  Contact us for more details and assistance in picking your vessel sink.