Don't they have an editing option after writing a post?

Here are a couple of before pics of my terrible countertop (terrible kitchen too, but only took countertop pics this time)...

http://photos.gardenweb.com/home/galleries/2010/01/before_kitchen_countertopbacks.html?cat=kitchens

http://photos.gardenweb.com/home/galleries/2010/01/another_before_kitchen_counter.html

Dining room which leads to kitchen (kitchen door to left of table):
http://photos.gardenweb.com/home/galleries/2010/01/dining_room_leads_to_kitchen_t.html

Showing some of the character of the older home (wish I had the time/money/energy to redo the outdated yellow walls with something a little more calm!):
http://photos.gardenweb.com/home/galleries/2010/01/living_room_showing_some_of_th.html

This is a dark picture w/ a LOT of Xmas mess all around (my apologies!) but it shows some of the great original light fixtures:
http://photos.gardenweb.com/home/galleries/2010/01/living_room_sorry_its_messy_as.html

Sorry. No editing, though there's unlimited rounds in "preview" before you hit submit. If you edit in preview you have to preview again to have the changes stick. Messages are in HTML, and you have to code them yourself to embed a picture or link. But the people who hang out here make up for the outdated software.

If you want an alternative to stainless, there are gorgeous, old world, French pewter countertops with amazing edge detailing. They also develop a patina and end up a dark dull gray.

And then there's tile. I know it has a bad rap currently, but it's traditional because it's so practical. The trick is to get it installed correctly. Most of the complaints I've seen trace back to poor installation. If you get them put in the really right way there's nothing better.

If you want to be historical and in the forefront with your cabinets, go for color. Milkpaint is gaining in popularity, but any kind of color (though for practicality I wouldn't go too dark) would look fresh and appropriate. I think this emerging trend is partly from style boredom and partly a north American response to the over shininess of euro lacquer.

Wow - thank you so much! I'll look into all those suggestions except for tile which - even w/ a good installer - I simply will never, ever, ever, ever, ever (ever? Yes, ever) do again! ;) I've never heard of this pewter for countertops...can't wait to look that up.

The pewter is very pretty indeed. Can't help wondering how it holds up compared to stainless - especially with regard to denting - do you know? And if I should happen to end up w/ stainless, I'm somewhat comforted in knowing that it's similar to pewter and that pewter has been used for centuries. I love how soft (in the warm sense) it is compared to stainless...

Have you considered using soapstone? There are a lot of varieties, some very beautiful and totally fit in an older home. It would look great with the sink and faucet you want.

Theresse: our first kitchen redo was a 1935 bungalow -- the kitchen looked remarkably like yours. We were such newbies -- the reno started when we wanted a dishwasher and were surprised to find our that the original base cabs were only 18" deep - - - new cabinets, new everything and thousands of dollars later, we, too, had a dishwasher!

ANYWAY -- at that point we wanted to recreate what we had, which was a tile countertop. But, it was a 1 inch hexagon tile. I would do it again without a problem. The tile guy was fabulous, knew what he was doing. he also recreated the very slight decline in the countertop towards the sink (I learned to position raw eggs very carefully). Once a week I would clear off the counter, fill the sink with a weak bleach solution, and wipe it down. I loved that new counter. 4x4's like you have? No. Small, flat hexagons installed well? No problem. Just my 2 cents. If you want a picture I might be able to dig one up. Probably will have a baby being bathed in the picture!

If you end up going with a dark counter, or even the stainless, look up Robinst's post about her new kitchen and her gorgeous Carerra random strip subway tile. Since you're in the NE you may have better luck tracking this down than I -- but I think would go w/ stainless as well as a darker granite.

Metals are good - even authentic in some kitchens - there is also zinc and copper. Your time period originally consisted of mainly wood counters, sometimes with metal tacked on here and there for drain boards and other wet areas.

You might look at caesarstone - like rosemary for a hint of gray-green or Jerusalem sand for a light warm brown. They have some dark, smokey colors also. Other than that, look at the rocks available in your local area.

Slate can be a wonderful counter. In my local area, its normally black but in other areas of the country it can have color or be silvery gray.

Serpentine marble (green, white and black) doesn't have etching issues, is pretty and would make a strong color statement.

Your kitchen is very attractive. It's interesting that someone rebuilt the base cabinets but retained the original uppers. You might consider doing the new sink cab in a contrasting wood - like mahogany or cherry or walnut. You'd know better than I would about woods used in the northwest.

Here is a link that might be useful: Clickable link for pics

From your needs, aesthetics and space, I'd strongly encourage stainless steel. They were doing stainless counters in the 1930's, and they can be absolutely gorgeous.

I went for copper in my 1920's house, which I find unique and lovely, but probably not as low-maintenance as an active family with kids would prefer. Ditto pewter, which is quite a bit more expensive than stainless. (Unless you want to DIY, and there are some wonderful resources for that.)

Slate is also a far less common option, with similar caveats to soapstone but in a broader color range - it does scratch, so you'd have to be OK with that. But the colors are rich and amazing and it has a great matte surface.

I'd stay away from shiny stone counters and consider a colored or patterned tile for your backsplash rather than the currently ubiquitous marble/white/stone/neutrals.

Good luck and have fun!

Here is a link that might be useful: slate countertops

Slate counters are indeed beautiful. A neighbor of mine had them and loved them so much she put them in the kitchen of her new house when she moved last year. She has three children and doesn't baby the counters at all and they still look great.

Soapstone develops a charcoal grey appearance after it's been oiled a half a dozen or so times then neglected. Looking in magazines and on this foum you would think it's very common, but really it's not. Zinc counters are gorgeous but very expensive and you have to love patina. The tile idea sounds pretty good too. Love your kitchen.

I saw a period kitchen in Berkeley ... after peeling off several layers of crappy modifications to get to the 1915 materials. It originally had white tile backsplashes and light grey true linoleum countertop.

It was restored with white tile backsplash and a pale grey laminate (maybe granite, I don't remember, wasn't my kitchen), simple white "shaker" style cabinets to resemble the originals.

White or pale countertops and a white tile backsplash is 100% period. Put the color into the accessories and wall paint.

People were really into white then, because it was "hygienic".

I also have an old house and am doing a more period-look kitchen. We are doing soapstone counters, a portstone brick floor, milk-painted cabinets in off-white and dark sage green, and an aged copper backsplash (only over the cooktop). Our kitchen is relatively big and we have two windows which I hope will balance some of the darker elements; the other thing that should help is a light wall color and the fact that we will only have 2 upper cabinets plus the hood.

Some people also do a painted beadboard backsplash.

This website has a lot of pretty milk-painted cabinets, lots of colors even in one room:

Here is a link that might be useful: period look kitchens

honeychurch--thank you for the link as I now know what style my kitchen is--eclectic vintage!

If you do a search under my name you can see my 95% pictures. This kitchen is in my DH's grandparents farmhouse and we were trying to stay fairly true to the time period. I did the large shaw's apron sink, perrin & rowe gooseneck faucet, schoolhouse light fixtures, and soapstone countertops. The soapstone is Brazilian Eyes and even though I've oiled a few times, it basically stays a dark charcoal color--love it! My backsplash is basically a piece of molding over beadboard. Cabinets were going to be painted green, then white, then turned out to be both! The rest of the kitchen is definitely eclectic with lots of antiques thrown in.

Go with what you like the best. My two-toned cabinets are not for everyone (my whole kitchen is not for everyone LOL!), but DH and I love the way everything came together and this is our forever home. You and your family are the ones who will be living in it everyday and you should make it so it is a joy to be in for you.

I had a wonderful little house built in the 1930's once... And you know what the original kitchen backsplash tile was? Mexican Talavera tiles! So totally authentic and NOT overdone or predictable. Here's a picture (not my old kitchen) to illustrate:

For countertops, a less shiny honed or antiqued granite in a dark color (black granite hones to grey) would be very appropriate. Yes, it's a bit popular, but not like polished. You could also do a hardwood countertop, though it would require a bit more upkeep.

If you like honeychurch's link, but sure to check out:

Here is a link that might be useful: David T Smith

As cheri127 mentioned, most soapstone really does tend to be more charcoal than black. When it has just been oiled, it's a bit closer to black, but most of the time, it's charcoal or lighter.

We're in a similar situation---trying to avoid a kitchen that looks like everyone else's (got soooo sick of seeing basically the same kitchen everywhere when we were house hunting!), but working with a house where the current "in" style is also the historically appropriate style....ack! Our current plan is to keep the traditional style of a bungalow but mix it up with colors a little bit to keep it from being an all-white kitchen (which DH does not under any circumstances want---one of the few strong opinions he has in this). Some of it depends on how historically accurate you're trying to be. In our case, we're working with a kitchen that's already been remuddled once, and we're changing the layout so it's clearly not original---I want it to fit the house, but not necessarily look as though it's always been there, since the house has changed over time. That makes it a little easier to venture outside the box.

@rjr220, your story is *exactly* how we ended up in the throes of remodeling our kitchen! The dishwasher is what I'm most looking forward to, silly as that is....

And for what it's worth, we have friends who've had their Paperstone almost a year in a house with small children, and so far like it---though they seem to be the only ones in the world who do, from everything I've read!

Thank you everyone for your thoughtful responses, and I'm sorry it's taken me so long to get back to you!

First of all I want to say that I'm not sure, but it seems a few of you may have the idea that my kitchen/house is from the 1930's but it's 1913. I may have misunderstood your comments but someone may have confused 1913 for 1931 - not sure! ;) Thank you for the link!

Prill - yes I'm considering soapstone as I *think* my first choice as far as something dark grey/black goes. Thanks!

rjr220, artemis78 and the others, YUP I totally hear you about starting w/ needing just a dishwasher. Ha! First it was dishwasher, then it was oops we need a new electrical service/box, then it was well since they're tearing up the drawers and half a cupboard to install the sink, we might as well FINALLY give ourselves the excuse to replace the god-awful countertop...and we can't put in something nice and then just leave in the god-awful backsplash (which needs new outlets put in anyway)...and so it goes! rjr220: I've always loved hexagonal tile. My parents' bathroom had it and our current upstairs bathroom has it too (with the occasional blue one thrown in). Are you sure that would be appropriate for a kitchen countertop of 1913? I thought those were seen more in the '20's? It's tempting, and I've seen how tight they are - at least the original ones - but still, I think I want to avoid so much white on the countertop. That said, you've got me intrigued so darn you - I might have to do some googling for nice examples. Feel free to share pics! Cute little kids are a bonus! :) Oh and btw, I live in the NW - not the NE.

bmorepanic - thanks for the info on metal. From some googling I see that there was some metal used at that time but not usually stainless steel itself quite yet, as it was invented the same year. Still, in the metal family...not too bad a stretch it would seem. Caesarstone is indeed one of the materials I've considered because - while it looks less natural to me - their dark grey color is perfect. Not too close to black, and not as light as unoiled soapstone. What I'm wondering now is what the price is - or how much less it is than things like honed granite, soapstone and stainless steel. The reason I ask is that it would be great if it were significantly less, cause I've fallen in love with some VERY EXPENSIVE subway tile and could only pull off getting it if I downgraded in the countertop material. I would never have considered slate, but now from googling I see there are some very nice, not necessarily modern looking options there! Thank you. As for your comment that my kitchen is nice?! Really?? Are you sure? I think it's pretty horrid! I mean there is definitely some charm there, from the original things still being in place...but the wood floor is pretty badly damaged and probably can't take another sand, and the lower cabinets aren't original and are just plain...the drawers are awful (one won't even close) and the countertop/backsplash is painful. Oddly, very oddly, I'm feeling a sense of loss over getting rid of the warm tone of the backsplash. I'm fighting the white thing because of all the other whites around. The backsplash I can't really afford but love is actually a similar color but more muted and beige than pinkish. But there is a hint of peach or pink, and they are 2x6 tiles which is the way the kitchen's subway tile would have been. I just don't think it would have been anything but white, unfortunately. I don't mind going off the beaten path but if I ever want to get my home registered on the historic list, I wonder if they'd accept a colored backsplash (?). As for the lower cupboards, I'm assuming that originally the kitchen had wooden counters on lets with curtains or something like that. I think the reason they put only new lower ones in and not upper is cause the upper ones are original (at least I'm guessing they are - I should show you the West wall which is ALL cupboards including an ironing board cupboard and spice cupboard. On that wall they are very big and fat and deep - but they all have the same solid wood faces w/ same molding. I do like how the upper cupboards go all the way up to the ceiling. I love your sink cab idea, thank you! I like the look right now of lower cupboards being a darker color than the upper ones. So I could always just paint the lower ones something interesting...maybe a farmhouse kitchen green type color? Or someday if more money comes in, I'd of course love to replace them with something like real wood with the proper furniture-style legs for the period.

Circuspeanut - when you suggested colorful tile for the backsplash, did you think the house was from the '30's? It seems people here were assuming that which is why I ask; I don't think they did that back in 1913. That said, I'd love to see pics if you have any examples. Thanks for the positive feedback about stainless steel, and no I wouldn't do a shiny surface for the countertop! ;)

cheril27 - you love my kitchen too? What's going on here??! :) I appreciate your comment about soapstone turning a charcoal color after some neglect. I REALLY don't want black, and I REALLY don't like the lightness of the unoiled soapstone. And hey - I'm really, really good at neglect - haha.

lazygardens - I just don't think I have it in me to do too much white/light, but that may also be cause i have a history of being unadventurous and I want to try something different. I'll be doing splashes of color regardless, as I've always loved that look in a kitchen (as long as not over the top silly). That's basically all my kitchen is now (a bunch of white), with the exception of the horrid pink backsplash. And already it feels too white. But I see your point about how kitchens were back then. Except that I've seen a LOT of 1913 homes w/ original wood countertops which are pretty dark. Also, our kitchen is small and dark and I'm in the camp of going with dark when in dark and wowing with light when in brightness (sunlight). To a point, that is. Thank you for your suggestions!

honeychurch - your kitchen sounds beautiful! I have to see pics! As for having light colored wall paint, which I currently have, I think I'm going to get a little weird this time and do either bright or dark paint on the walls! That's because there is very little wall space, and also cause with all the light on the cupboards it needs more contrast. There is no molding to separate the walls from the ceiling, and I was pleasantly surprised by how nice it looked to paint right onto the ceiling the same color as the walls. Sometimes that works in a house and sometimes it doesn't, but in ours, it offered a cozy cave feeling while also feeling less cluttered somehow, if that makes sense. Or just...I'm not great at describing things here but it gave a feeling of continuity (?).

farmhousebound - I'm having a hard time doing searches on this website but i"ll try again in a bit here. I want to see your pics! I agree that one should just do what one wants. I struggle with wanting to impress others since I've always had awful, outdated kitchens (!) but also, if the home becomes historic (registered), I'm sure there will be a few rules. In the end I'm sure I'll go with my gut and happiness over the historic home thing, if they put too many rules on me!

sweeby - charming kitchen! Again, 1913 though - not the '30's. I would love to do wood, but between the upkeep and the fact that when looking from the dining room you see the room-length dining room real-wood buffet which leads straight into the kitchen's countertop... It's almost like one really long countertop that starts in the dining room and ends at the far end of the kitchen! So too much wood is maybe not a bad thing but...I don't know if the color would need to match or would need to be in great contrast in order to be gotten away with!

Allison 0704 - That link was great, thanks! I like the cottage look best, much to my surprise. Either that or it just reminds me of my grandmother's house (also 1913). Her house was/is a 9-bedroom farmhouse and was big. The kitchen was huge and yet was totally cottage style, it seemed. I thought I liked the Shaws sink - and I do - but the sink in the cottage pic from your link is very nice. Also, I have two windows just above my sink that look just like those windows.

Holligator - thank you for the encouraging words about soapstone!

Artemis78 - I very much relate to everything you wrote. I want a period kitchen with a hint of eclecticism and my own style.

Thanks again everyone! More questions to come but for now I need to go to SLEEP as it's 2:24 a.m. here!

p.s. is there no way to respond to each individual more easily having to go back and forth so much? Not "quote" option to respond to?

I would advise you not to get too hung up on historical details. I am a historic preservationist and do a lot of kitchens for clients, and I always try to end up with a kitchen that blends with the house but also fits into the age in which it was installed. As curators of your older home, you are charged with maintaining its older surfaces, but also are expected to add the story of your family to those of the others that have lived there. Fake old rarely looks like real old, and often comes across kitchy. In addition, most historical designations do not take into account interiors, so your choices may not affect whether or not you are listed. Your area may be different.

I am currently living through my own old house kitchen redo (1895 tudor, just on the local house tour and listed on the local register). The kitchen is currently very modern (light wood, slab doors). We kept it for 5 years because it was functioning, but once the 20-year-old appliances started dying one by one (hooray), out it went. I am using inset cabinets and a combination of taupe painted and mahogany stained cabinets. My counters are Virginia mist granite (gray) and carrara marble. I found hand glazed moroccan tiles for the backsplash and salvaged industrial copper light fixtures. There will be no mistaking it for an old kitchen, but the overall effect will be harmonious with the rest of my eclectic house.

Histokitch is spot on. You live in a house not a museum so can take some liberties with finish details and still have it work with your house (this from a woman who has taught herself how to repair exterior stucco and spent six weeks sourcing historically correct window replacements).

You might consider looking at historical fireplaces for backsplash ideas. I decided to do my kitchen more like a "public space" in the house as opposed to a "private space". In my part of the country, public spaces (like like living and dining rooms) had built ins, QS oak and lovely light fixtures. Private spaces(like kitchens that company didn't see) were more likely to have pine or painted wood, beadboard and bare bulbs. SUbway tile was only for more expensive homes.

There are some beautiful art nouveau tiles out there. It's just one idea but your house is so lovely that you might want to take advantage of some of the great glazes that are available.

I agree with histokitch, and I am a historic preservation specialist as well. For some reason rehabilitation of a historic/period kitchen suggests white inset cabinets. While that style and finish was common, it was not ubiquitous. Examples of original kitchens exist with unpainted wood cabinets. There are several GW member's kitchens designed to be compatible with the historic character of a late 19th century to early 20th century house that have stained cabinets. Some cabinets are inset, some are overlay.

National register criteria for individual houses in historic districts do not consider the interior of the house. However, individually listed buildings have a higher standard of historic integrity that includes the interior as well as the exterior of the building. That is not to say your kitchen must have original materials. 1913 kitchens rarely had as much continuous built-in cabinetry as your has. You don't really want a 1913 kitchen. As your kitchen is not 'original', you have more options in designing a kitchen with current technology and function that will be compatible with the gorgeous historic elements of your house.

If you haven't got it, you definitely need a copy of Jane Powell's Bungalow Kitchens? It's the best resource for folks trying to make those authentic/compromise kitchen design decisions, and the author agonizes right along with you. :-)

And there were plenty of c.1913 kitchens (Greene & Greene come to mind) that jettisoned the Victorian all-white aesthetic in favor of Arts & Crafts wood and color. Deep rich yellow or green walls would be very charming, and accurate.

I think your kitchen is adorable too! I LOVE the cabinets!

I think you're right that you don't want to overdo it. For a lot of reasons.

I have an almost 200-year-old house in a historic district, and my style is definitely eclectic. I wish I'd had such a lovely start, not the crappy 80s kitchen that I had to completely gut and start over.

I have soapstone and a Shaw's sink, square white tile backsplash. And you'd actually have to do a lot of work to have soapstone as black as any of the brochures or Web sites or showrooms. They've always had a recent glamor oiling to show off the subtleties in the stone. In real life they're grayer, and you can choose how often you oil. Get some samples and play.

But I actually think that might be overkill.

In your kitchen, I actually think the combination of stainless counters and a SQUARE tile backsplash, similar to the one in place but in a color of your choosing, would be simple, sympathetic to the period, but not stuck in this decade (I worry about subways dating, and stayed away from them in my kitchen for that reason).

I have learned on this forum that a great thing to ask for if you go for the stainless counters is a "marine edge". That's a raised lip bent into the edge, so spills don't slop right down onto the floor. Hat tip to, I think Igloochic? and all the other stainless counter people. It's their tip, not mine.

If your historic district is like mine, they are very fussy about the outside of the building, particularly about what can be seen from the street. But they are less concerned about what goes on in the inside. And if they are, it is mostly about things like where walls are, and original features. I would not remove any tile that was original to the house, but it seems unlikely, with the plumbing and cabinets, that this is original. A decision on new tile color should not affect whether a house were listed or not. If you have any questions, or are looking for guidance, contact your local historic preservation society. They are usually very helpful and may even give you cool information about your house. Mine gave me old pictures, history and a list of past owners.

Good luck!

I would recommend against using zinc. We loved the look in the catalogs and in bistros so we had a large island covered in it. It stains just by looking at it and getting it polished to a stainless like shine was arduous and had to be done every week. While it gains a patina, it is uneven and even putting a wet glass on it will cause an instant stain which would need to be steel wooled out, making that part of the counter brigher than the rest.

Well...I totally understand and appreciate your desire to take the road less traveled. I do the same thing. If everyone has it, I tend to run screaming in the other direction.

Have you considered pressed tin ceiling tiles for your backsplash? I just did it for mine and it is STUNNING...and different. We did the whole backsplash, setting off the cooktop with a picture frame moulding. We went with SS sheets in a classic pattern. Lots of companies make this in many different materials. Some can be painted, stained and are more like wallpaper, some are tougher, etc. Our wipes up with a sponge - simple. We are a very active family (3 kids) who cooks continuously...and messily. :)
Here's a picture:

Jane Powell's book is terrific (as are her other bungalow books), but it's worth noting that she's a pretty strict preservationist, so you may need to take some of the mandates (and even the suggested alternative solutions) in there with a grain of salt. My view is that you need to strike a balance between preserving form and preserving function, as histokitch notes. Sometimes you have to sacrifice some of the former to get the latter, and in a living structure like a house, I think that's fine to do. (The builders of our homes would probably laugh to see us trying desperately to preserve or recreate some of the designs they chose given all the options we have today!) One of my favorite building renovations is the city next door's town hall, where they restored the hundred-year-old original town hall and then built an adjoining new wing that is unabashedly modern, with walkways integrating the two together. You can tell exactly what's old and exactly what's new, and they didn't attempt to make the old look new or the new look old. Pretty perfect.

I think a tile counter can look terrific in a 1913 house even if it wasn't necessarily what would have been there originally. Honestly, unless you have a high-endish home, a house of that era would probably have had a very modest linoleum or wood counter. Some people do put those back (Marmoleum as a counter material is increasingly popular where we live) but you trade off some of the benefits of a solid surface/stone countertop. We borrowed the blueprints for the house next door (which matches ours) at the beginning of the remodel process, and the original kitchen was super tiny with a six-foot counter, a cupboard, a sink, and an ironing board. Sure, we could restore it---but no thanks! :)

consider installing kitchen backsplash tile to give your kitchen a unique appearance. check out http://www.glasstilewarehouse.com/ for a large selection and reasonable pricing.