Anonymous wrote:Soapstone is as good as it gets, if you want something that won't date. It does patinate, but nicely, and it's warm to the touch. Everything else besides maple, steel and the classic marbles goes out in the blink of an eye.

I agree. I love it but it does scratch and chip easily.

Granite is not timeless. It's already looking dated and in five to ten years, it's going to look seriously dated. We are also looking for an alternative though I haven't found one I'm ready to commit to yet.

I still like the granite, although I refer the more subtle patterns. We had a green granite in our last kitchen; it was timeless and looked great with white cabinets and wood flooring. Nothing dated about it.

Granite is timeless, everything else is a fad. You can't go wrong with stone.

I have had recycled glass countertops for four years and I would never, ever do them again in a kitchen because they stain (the glass is embedded in cement, which is porous). A month after installation, I was on the phone to the installer complaining. They said, "Oh, we did the "green" sealant. If you really don't want it to stain, then you need the traditional type of sealant. Do you want us to come back out and seal it again with the traditional stuff?"

Sigh.

Even with the traditional, presumably chemical-laden sealant, the most heavily used work surfaces still stain.

The glass is beautiful when the sunlight hits it, but next time I'd do Caesarstone.

I had to google honed granite.

I did not like it.


Honestly, shouldn't granite be fine as long as your kitchen as a whole is well-thought out and tasteful? There is so much variation in granite, most of it is gorgeous, but I've seen a few types that looked like they had awful green splotches or something and they were ooogly.

Anonymous wrote:Polished granite is passé but you might try honed. I agree with PPs that soapstone or silestone would also be great choices.

I understand honed is tough to maintain. The same is true of honed quartz surfaces (Silestone, Caesarstone, etc).

Polished granite is passé but you might try honed. I agree with PPs that soapstone or silestone would also be great choices.

Granite is over. I would go with Silestone, soapstone, or the recycled countertops.

Soapstone is as good as it gets, if you want something that won't date. It does patinate, but nicely, and it's warm to the touch. Everything else besides maple, steel and the classic marbles goes out in the blink of an eye.

I have always loved Silestone -- nice shine and the feel of granite, no upkeep. I have also seen some of the new recycled glass counters that look good, but it depends on how modern you want your kitchen to be. I don't think they'd be the right fit in a French Country kitchen, for example.

Granite or silstone

I think the new recycled glass counters can be quite pretty. And good for the environment!

If you're not interested in marble, I'd look at Ceasarstone or soapstone. Cement shows a lot of stains- I know someone who ripped out the cement after 2 years and replaced it with marble b/c the stains were so bad.

What is trending in kitchen countertops these days? We aren't going to do Carrera marble, but I'm thinking there may be something better than granite. Ceasarstone? Cement? Other acrylic options? All input appreciated.