Each of them has their premier lines that are heavier quality and some thinner ones. In our new house we have some Wilsonart, some Formica, and some Pionite. All very nice products and we're equally happy with each.

i think both Wilson Art and Formica are good brands. i've only had Formica that I know of... I think they each have some different looks / options. I do prefer the matte look myself, tho the one I'm looking at for the future isn't totally matte. I'm 'branching' out into more color etc to do something different than the past 30 yrs or so.

there are gw's with both and even another brand - hopefully they'll pop in and give their opinions. I think you can't go wrong with either - just get a good person to fabricate and install it.

Thanks!

When I started my remodel process I thought I wanted to do a high end laminate to save money, so I researched them extensively. IMO, there is no difference between Formica & WilsonArt in terms of quality. Go with the color you love. I agree with desertsteph, the fabricator makes all the difference! I looked multiple places for an edge I thought I could live with (I later realized that I really wanted granite). Anyway, the difference was amazing. Ask for samples of work. Surprisingly the best edge I found was at Menards. You really could not tell that it was not granite until you were right on top of it and still the edge did not give it away.

You might try testing them out. A few years ago I collected samples of different laminates...formica, wilson art, pioneer, nevamar (sp?).

I put hot pans on them, sanded them with sand paper, tried to scratch them with the point of a steak knife. In my unofficial tests, Nevamar and formica held up the best. Wilson art HD laminate was scratched easily with the knife. It was the shiny part of the HD that showed marks.

I was surprized the pot of boiling water didn't do anything.

My installer, who has worked on these products for many years, says that all the products are good. "Go find the look you want and I will order it." My biggest problem has been to find the most up to date samples. The big box stores don't carry samples for all the looks that are available. The websites have many more samples. I found a couple independent stores locally who carry all the samples and it's boggling.

____

I fell in love with the embossed high-end laminates at the start of my search. Now I'm avoiding them and will order a matt finish. Why?

It's like having someone who can or cannot see the hidden picture within one of those trick pictures that kids love--the salesperson says people are either thrilled or dismayed by these faux finishes depending on whether they see the faux within. I was at a countertop at Kinko's where they had one of these in use. The overhead flourescent lights reflected in it obnoxiously and I could see right down through the plastic coating. Obviously I'm one of the people who will focus on the surface and not the totality of the look.

Also, I have been counseled that because of the many windows in our new kitchen, I would best avoid shiny finishes which will add a lot of reflected light, therefore glare, beamed at the people in the room who are facing the west in the afternoon. I'm not trying to make the countertop look like a polished rock, so it's fine with me.
____

A plus which is seldom mentioned in lists of pro and con for laminates is that laminates do not require any special treatment. No special purchase of a treatment product, no need to train the family as to how to treat it. Little problem with dragging items across the countertop. Etc. it's the busy cook product. And it doesn't feel cold to the touch when you lean your forearms on it.

Any of the standard laminates, whatever the brand, are durable enough for a "for now" countertop. The Wilsonart HD does have a thicker wear layer and more matte/gloss patterning to hide any wear better. It's also significantly more expensive. There are many newer edges out there for laminate, so you don't have to have the "traditional" waterfall edge. There is even a couple of "ogee" edges available now.

However, if this is only a temporary countertop, I would not upgrade at all. Get the cheapest off the shelf blanks at a local store and DIY it. You can probably do your counters yourself for under $300 if you do that. If you order the upgraded laminate and the upgraded edge, you potentially could be 10x that number with an install attached. Yes, some laminate counters are about the price of a low cost granite! It's easy to do the "upgrade" thing too when you're "settling" for laminate without realizing exactly how expensive that "settling" becomes and how you could have put that towards the counter that you really want.

Thanks florantha! I WAS really interested in the sparkly ones. I like some, hate others. I'll have to test them out under direct lights and in sunlight before making the choice!

I too have found that the stores don't have a very updated availability of samples. We've asked our builder to get some, hopefully we can get those before we need to "choose".

Thank you, I'll certainly take a closer look at the new finishes.

Sparkly, are you talking about the Formica sparkle finish, or the Wilsonart high def finish, or the gloss finish?

lamguy- I'm talking about both! Just not a matte finish. Any recommendations? What about a honed finish. What is honed in comparison to matte?

My sister's Palo Alto house has 50 y/o formica. Looks as good as the day it was installed. Too bad she HATES it. ;^)

Honed has an obvious texture to it, but isn't shiny. Harder to scratch (from my tests) and scuffs and scratches don't seem to show as much. I also love our Formica with the Riverwash finish that we have in our laundry room...but if you want to write on it or roll dough, not sure either one will be what you'd want. I prefer matte for the kitchen. Not shiny, but with the tiniest bit of texture, just not enough to feel bumpy or catch anything. In our last house we had their Etchings finish, which is glossy with a tiny bit of texture, and it was nice, too. People mistook it for granite.

Our Realcrete Formica with Riverwash finish:

the one i want is etchings I think...

you can go online or call Formica or WA and they will send you larger samples - like 8x10. they cost a few dollars but that cost is worth it prior to choosing which you want to see every day in your kitchen.

I agree, it's SO hard to tell in a 2x3 "swatch". :(

I have my own collection of Formica and Wilson Art samples! I was showing a couple to the people in kitchens at Menard's. I buy the big swatches. The most expensive is/was $3. I also have a LOT of the little ones. It's worth the money to not only know what you want, but to weed out the ones you don't want. I keep them all. I change stuff often enough that it's helpful to have all those swatches.Plus, you can carry them around with you while you shop for stuff.

We selected Wilsonart.
{{!gwi}}
It was installed about six weeks ago and thus far we are satisfied. I don't find any problems with the glare factor.It was a tough choice between Formica and Wilsonart. I think both have refined their product to be more modern looking.Hope this helps.
{{!gwi}}
~Nonnyx2
Wilsonart Crystalline Ice
{{!gwi}}

bump

Would love more images of laminates, especially fake rock laminates

Didn't see this thread originally. I have Formica with the sparkle finish and it is horrible. It has a bumpy textured surface that's impossible to clean. Imagine trying to wipe cake crumbs off something with the texture of sandpaper. Spilling something sticky like honey or maple syrup is a nightmare. And after you've cleaned it, it takes forever to dry because all those little pits between the little bumps hold water. Regardless of the appearance, it is NOT functional at all. Would strongly discourage anyone from buying it.

bump

I really appreciate your comment, warmfridge and everyone else

Will be ordering soon. Have cut my choices down to one: Pionite "Bernard." It's a fantasy pseudo-rock in matte finish with yellowish gray and white. I suspect that it will camouflage a lot--coffee stains, small objects, ants.

Here is a link that might be useful: Pionite

" It has a bumpy textured surface that's impossible to clea"

I saw a WA one like that i really liked... but cleaning it was my first thought - after thinking how beautiful it was. so, it's off my list! I like smooth and matte.

that Pionite has a great looking purple - I'll check that out for my mstr b*ath countertop!

Hi,
I am having trouble choosing which Wilsonart HD,either bella capri or crystalline braun. If anyone has it in their kitchen, I would love to see pictures and hear how you like it.

I ordered a ton of 8x10 WilsonArt samples and they were FREE! They were delivered by FedEx about 3 days after I ordered them. I immediately ruled out all but one! It awesome to get the bigger samples. I'm still waiting for another bunch to arrive in the mail.