Anonymous
Post 02/13/2013 17:35     Subject: black or white counters with white cabinets?
I have white Corian and I love it. Previously, I had beige Silestone and I thought it was unnatural looking.

I would love marble but I don't have much counter space and there is a lot of traffic in my kitchen. If I put in an island I would use marble, though.
Anonymous
Post 02/13/2013 13:18     Subject: black or white counters with white cabinets?
Anonymous wrote:
Anonymous wrote:Granite is dated.


totally agree. I'd never get granite; how about wood? I love wood counters; seal them well, and you can put them next to the sink; or use wood in some areas and quartz in others; i'd go for honed black or gray, OP. Shiny black was big around 2000, but people still keep putting it in as they try to sell their houses. It's shiny so they think it adds bling.

I love soapstone, but it is very soft. i didn't get it because you can cut it with a spoon, and I'm sure my kids would be carving their initials in it as soon as they figured that out. What about slate? You can get Vermont slate that's gorgeous. I don't know about maintenance, though, it may need to be sealed.

Granite is pretty indestructible; honed has to be sealed or you can put mineral oil on it every few months, which is what I do. it's a pain, but it's nontoxic, so I feel my counters are pretty safe. They easily get rings from glasses, so i am constantly scrubbing them, which you don't have to do as much with shiny granite.

I saw a kitchen recently with white marble counters. It looked gorgeous!! No kids in that house, though. White cabs, white appliances, white marble. Yes! That's going to be the look in my empty nest! Any other material in white looks meh.


People will do all sorts of crazy things just to stay away from granite because it is not trendy. Or the horror, think about potentially using material that can fit all your needs and look great, but because it's called "granite" you will never sell your house, or your trendy friends will consider you low class when visiting.
Anonymous
Post 02/13/2013 13:05     Subject: black or white counters with white cabinets?
Anonymous wrote:Granite is dated.


totally agree. I'd never get granite; how about wood? I love wood counters; seal them well, and you can put them next to the sink; or use wood in some areas and quartz in others; i'd go for honed black or gray, OP. Shiny black was big around 2000, but people still keep putting it in as they try to sell their houses. It's shiny so they think it adds bling.

I love soapstone, but it is very soft. i didn't get it because you can cut it with a spoon, and I'm sure my kids would be carving their initials in it as soon as they figured that out. What about slate? You can get Vermont slate that's gorgeous. I don't know about maintenance, though, it may need to be sealed.

Granite is pretty indestructible; honed has to be sealed or you can put mineral oil on it every few months, which is what I do. it's a pain, but it's nontoxic, so I feel my counters are pretty safe. They easily get rings from glasses, so i am constantly scrubbing them, which you don't have to do as much with shiny granite.

I saw a kitchen recently with white marble counters. It looked gorgeous!! No kids in that house, though. White cabs, white appliances, white marble. Yes! That's going to be the look in my empty nest! Any other material in white looks meh.
Anonymous
Post 02/13/2013 11:32     Subject: black or white counters with white cabinets?
We got Cambria Preston quartz, has a bit of grey, a bit of black, a bit of beige, and a bit of white. Our cabinets are white and floors warm wood.

We think it looks good. Zero maintenance and super easy to clean.
Anonymous
Post 02/13/2013 11:13     Subject: Re:black or white counters with white cabinets?
Go with gray, this way you will get contrast, but not stark contrast. You can choose from variety of silestone and granite patterns, and surely will find something you like.

I saw Lyra silestone BTW, installed in a showcase kitchen and didn't like it. I liked the sample, but didn't like the way it looked installed, the pattern is weird, not natural looking and too busy for an engineered surface. I would go with more solid color gray silestone, maybe with few specks. Or I would go for gray granite. We have Cashmir White granite with our off-white kitchen cabinets and subway tile backsplash, and it looks great, the granite is light gray with specs of burgundy.