Ledgestone is one of the most aesthetically pleasing ways to finish a wall, fireplace or border.
The look is achieved by stacking and blending colored stones in a ‘dry-stack,’ which creates a heavily textured and striking visual look to your home decor.
But when you finish something with Ledgestone, you will face the challenge of dealing with the edges.
And it can be tough to decide how these should blend and be finished to sit with the adjacent wall or surface.
So today, we’re looking at some of the best methods you can use to finish off your ledgestone lines and have them intergrade into your decor as seamlessly as possible.
How to Finish Edge of Ledgestone?
Ledgestone itself always provides a beautifully textured and distinct look, but you’ll often find that where the edges meet on corners or butt up to the wall can quickly detract from the overall look very fast.
Unless you consider how they are finished beforehand, you’ll soon find yourself stuck and limited on possible solutions.
Natural stone as a material is not cheap, nor is it simple to install because of its heavy weight, which requires you to take some extra steps to ensure it adheres to the wall securely.
So putting a bit of extra thought beforehand into how you would like the edges to look will save you a lot of problems down the road.
Otherwise, you’ll be left with an unsatisfactory finish that is far harder to fix after the main installation is finished than if you knew what you wanted beforehand – this had been the source of many headaches for those who rushed ahead with their installation and then had to backtrack later on after realizing how unsightly the edges were.
Making natural stone blend into another material has always been notoriously difficult.
Personal preference plays a huge factor here, so let’s go through all the best methods that people commonly use to finish their ledgestone so you can decide which finish will work best for you.
1. Uninfished/staggered edges
This is undoubtedly one of the best options if you want to save time and money.
Many people opt to leave the edges unfinished, you don’t need to buy any extra trimming, nor do you need to saw any tiles down.
It’s as easy as it gets.
Does this mean there will be unevenness around the edge?
Yes!
And does this mean there will be gaps between the edge of the ledgestone tile and the wall?
Yes!
One of the big appeals of this stacked stone type is its rugged, beautiful and rough/uneven surface.
So simply leaving the edges ‘as is’ fits the aesthetic look of the stacked stone.
People can be understandably apprehensive about doing this as they don’t want guests to feel like they were lazy and the job hasn’t been finished, but the reality is most people will not pay it too much thought as it looks so natural.
2. Clean cut edge finish
Another straightforward solution is to just miter saw the edges so they are completely flush.
This is better suited to where the ledge stone butt is up against a flat surface, such as a wall, as the straight-cut edge will sit perfectly flat against it.
But for corners, it can be a little more unsightly as those straight edges will be exposed.
But there are plenty of people out there who have used this approach to significant effect!
3. Over-extend the frame
This method only applies to scenarios where the ledge stone tiles are placed against something with a fitted frame, such as a fireplace or ledge.
You finish the ledgestone wall tile with the clean-cut edge, but then you have the object or frame mounted slightly further out than usual.
This allows the clean-cut stone edge to ‘disappear’ into the frame and gives the perception of it blending seamlessly behind the object.
Often ledgestone tiles are not that thick, so it only requires a slight adjustment to the frame/ledge to achieve this effect.
What’s also nice about this method is it can still be achieved after the installation is completed.
So if you’ve found yourself in a tricky situation and aren’t sure what to do – pulling the frame out a little to cover the straight edge of the tile can dramatically increase how authentic and seamless the tiles look.
4. Over-grout the gaps
Grout is a great way to fill in any gaps left by an unfinished edge if you find them unsightly.
It’ll fill everything in and leave a smooth, seamless finish.
You have two options here.
The first is to find a grout that matches the color of the stones as closely as possible.
The intention here is to blend the stone into the edge seamlessly essentially.
Unless you inspect it closely, you’d never know the ledgestone wall tile didn’t naturally disappear into the edge.
The other option is to take an opposite approach and purposely pick a color lighter than the stone to ‘highlight’ the edges.
You achieve this by over-grouting the edges so there’s an excess of grout present which you can then wipe away the excess to create this natural and authentic-looking highlight around the edges.
5. Caulk
One of the problems with grout is that, over time, it may naturally chip away or turn into powder.
So a more long-term solution is caulk, where the silicone has some give to it and will last longer.
The downside to this, however, is that it tends to stand out more against the ledgestone and doesn’t look quite as natural as grout.
But if you take some time to find a suitable color that roughly matches the rock, you should find it ends up integrating with the ledgestone pretty well.
6. Wood trim finish
This is one of the more popular choices for finishing the edgestone ledge. It essentially involves purchasing some decorative wooden trim and mounting it to the corners and edges of the ledgestone tiles.
This has the double effect of hiding the seams and rough edges and giving it more of a homely and less rustic feel.
It’s more of a stylized look but is also one that has proven to be extremely popular.
Woods like red oak, Bubinga, or walnut are commonly used for this, thanks to their rich woodgrain and color.
More basic-looking woods like maple and pine are generally avoided here, but it’s your choice.
7. Copper flashing
Copper flashing is a roofing material often used in place of something like aluminum or steel.
It’s essentially very thin sheet copper, which is relatively inexpensive and can be bent around the corner to provide a nice copper trim.
Of course, it’s not only used for roofing and is very commonly found in home decor because of its striking look.
Here you essentially use it in precisely the same way as the wood trim – by attaching it to the edges of the ledgestone and corners to hide the natural/unfinished seams and tie everything together.
Copper flashing creates an even more stylized look than the wood trim.
Still, it is worth considering as it’s inexpensive and reversible and you can install it on pre-installed ledge stones, so it can get you out of a bind when you’re short on options.
8. Pre-made cornerstones
This is most people’s ideal solution, but it requires you to pick a brand that offers pre-made corners for the kind of ledgestone you want to use.
These can be considered a kind of trim, but they allow the stone to wrap around corners and edges in a highly natural way that would be almost impossible for you to replicate yourself.
It’s by far the most ‘natural’ look on this list, but it requires you to factor this purchase in at the buying stage and to pick a brand that offers ledgestone corners (as many do not).
David Kessler is a CSLB licensed contractor with over 25 years of experience. He is specialized in home building, construction, and electrical works; he also has a keen eye for interior design and, over the years, has collaborated with various architects.
