Casarmonia and Sandtex Italiana

Trieste-based Sandtex Italiana manufactures indoor outdoor wall paints, color finishing plasters and lime or acrylic based, spatula-applied plasters for a wide range surface textures (glared, twotone, marble, powdered, rustic, velvet, smooth, waxed). The firm's color lab can produce any shade of color with a special "depth effect" which chromatically enhances the surface finish rather than producing an impression of flatness. A book written by Clara Mantica for Sandtex entitled Casarmonia, parametri per una casa in armonia (illustrations by Antonio Villas) explores the colours and harmonies of the ideal home - "the one we already hold dear in our hearts and minds". The narrative-cum-treatise illustrates the principles of harmony, location, building orientation, materials and color-deriving on the whole from ancient Eastern and Western traditions or basic folk wisdom - which should determine design and lifestyle choices in the home.