January 24, 2023 / Nathan Oakley

Introducing il Pietra - Sustainable Melbourne Made Stone Homewares

Truly one of earth's most beautiful materials, stone exudes colour, pattern and an effortless sense of style.

This inspired Melbourne based il Pietra to create a stylish range of stone homewares with a sustainability focus, now available at RJ Living.

il Pietra cleverly revives slabs and offcuts of stone from interior projects, giving these pieces a second life as refined and fun designs.

Using these offcuts, their product range reduces landfil footprint while offering a stylish range of unique pieces, handcrafted in Melbourne.

In Conversation

We chatted to Brianna, the owner of il Pietra about her design journey and what's next for the Melbourne brand.

<p>Wavy Handcut Tray</p> — Wavy Handcut Tray

RJ: What inspired you to start il Pietra?

Brianna: Due to the Covid pandemic, I had endless days to spend around family member’s stone business. At the time, manufacturing was still running and I noticed how many natural stone offcuts were discarded daily.

Beautiful, imperfect pieces of stone were simply being added to landfill, with full slabs needing to be discarded due to cracking, or 2 metre long offcuts being left over from bathroom vanities.

I saw the beauty in the broken pieces and I wanted people to see the same, and the business began purely just as jagged offcuts. Our lovely customers were using them as photography props, shop displays or even just to put some jewellery on, and as the hype continued I decided it was time to expand and introduce new designs. It was only up from there!

RJ: How important was ensuring sustainable practices for creating your pieces?

Brianna: It is important to me that our homewares are fashioned with sustainability in mind. I wanted to prioritise a zero waste notion given the huge waste that happens in the building industries.

At Il Pietra we recycle and revive slabs and offcuts from larger interior projects. Giving each piece a second life whilst simultaneously minimising the environmental impact and landfill footprint.

Our Instagram story highlights have a section that says “BTS” and it gives our customers a raw behind the scenes at what zero waste means in the world of il Pietra.

I pride the business on not mass producing. Each piece is thoughtfully handcrafted consciously by local stonemasons, aiming to enhance your space with wares that are timeless in design and made to last a lifetime.

<p>Curvy Tray, Scallop Tray, Trinket Tray</p> — Curvy Tray, Scallop Tray, Trinket Tray

RJ: How do you use il Pietra pieces in your home?

Brianna: The house is very much all things il Pietra! I use the limited edition Scallop Tray in Pink Quartz to display my skincare, smooth cut White Onyx for my partner's colognes, and a Green Onyx trinket tray next to my bedside table for when I take off jewellery. There’s also a White Onyx scallop tray on my kitchen sink that fits soap and sanitiser, and lastly the Curvy in Calacatta Viola as a statement piece on top of my coffee table books.

RJ: Which design and stone is your favourite?

Brianna: The scallop tray! The piece is super chic yet so functional. You can use it as a bookend, display your favourite everyday rituals or even just as a statement centrepiece.

My favourite natural stone would have to be White Onyx & Calcatta Viola.

RJ: Can you give us a hint of any new pieces that are upcoming?

Brianna: A marble jewellery box! You heard it here first!

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