It is kind of a cool tool and fun to play with. It gives you an idea of what colors look good with your cabinets. I was surprised by what it picked out. I tried all the colors and got the most hits with orange and none with white. Strange!

I just went through a kitchen remodel, which was a total DIY, last year and picking out countertops was the toughest decision. I kept changing my mind. First I was going to get a brown Silestone then changed to granite, but couldn't decide which one. I ended up with Verde Butterfly with Toffee color birch cabinets and SS appliances and travertine tile floor.
Clare

New Kitchen

Yes, I think they are leaving out some options. I am in the process of selecting new countertops, and I also have white app's and honey oak cabs. On my short list are the HD colors Mountain Passage, Bella Capri and Sedona Trail (plus a couple of others), and none of them come up in that tool w/ my combo. I'm no designer, but I think they all look good, and that's part of the reason I'm having trouble deciding! Now if you choose SS app's then you get a whole bunch of choices!

If I were you, I'd pick some that you like and order the big samples (8"X10. Or check out Home Depot. Mine had some of the bigger 3X5 samples for some of the colors, and those are free. It might help you narrow it down.

They had sent me a brochure that was pretty much the same thing. It had the options of cabinets and which counters went with them. I had also ordered samples. Went to HD all ready with my choice, notice that corian was just a few dollars more. Went home all excited about getting that, went back to order and realized I could Silestone for less money. When I finally ordered the silestone, I realized I could get granite for a couple of dollars more but still chose the silestone.
I checked your link and they didn't give me any options for my dark cabs with white appliances.

Fun to play with!

Interestingly, all my kitchen selections will revolve around the counter material I fell in love with. It has bits of crushed recycled glass (green and clear chunks) and oyster shells (amber and pearly chunks) in it. I am picking everything based on how it goes with this:

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:1664689}}

Whoever designed this isn't too excited about the design possibilities of white appliances! I'd think they would go with anything, but the tool comes up with very few choices.

If you choose black appliances and chocolate countertops, it comes up with a long list of colors, including some really dark ones, but to me, that combination seems pretty hard to work with.

Ah well, guess it's not going to be that easy. :)

That is really pretty, amysrq. What color cabinets have you chosen to go with that? And can you tell us (if you don't mind) approximately how much it costs psf?

While it might be fun to play with, I certainly would not make a choice based on this tool. The combinations it offers are pedestrian, at best.

Harriet, I am getting a medium dark stained cherry. The stuff is about 85/sq ft, I think. I am just paying an upcharge from the builder over the cost of granite, so it doesn't hurt so bad! ;-)

As for black and chocolate, there are never any short cuts, are there? Like the virtual room painting on line. It promises, but rarely delivers...

What materials are you considering for your counters? Do you want color? I don't know much about granite, so I can't help you there, but I have looked at just about everything else...

Here is a link that might be useful: Here's another favorite of mine...Tumbled Glass

Digging this up again ... I was considering a laminate. We had laminate counters installed 8 years ago, but they did a horrible job with them, and I suspect used the thinner grade. In our previous house, we had the same type installed and it still looked perfect after the same amount of time, and 6 of those years the house was rented out to multiple people! Our counters, by contrast, are really worn looking, and the beveled edge is coming loose in places.

Granite can be attractive, but I really don't want to spend that much. And I bet DH would be cracking dishes on it all the time.

In terms of color, I'd like something that will make the oak cabinets look rich and bring out the gold tones in them.

Then there's the question of the floor -- we have white sheet vinyl with a sort of embossed "tile" pattern that was installed by the PO, probably just before they put the house on the market. It's not bad stuff, but if we move away from white/neutral counters, we might need to reconsider the flooring as well. With two messy cats spilling water all the time, I would not want wood or laminate.

I just want some design wizard to swoop down and say, "Choose this, this, and this!" and wave her magic wand and have it done. :)

Well, I don't have a wand, but I will say that I think laminate is great stuff. I've never been sold on granite (ducking projectile tomatoes) and laminate gives you so many choices...so many colors!

Here are some questions to think about.

1. Do you want light or dark?

A light countertop is easier (on the eye) to work on and will brighten your kitchen more than any other element. More functional light is reflected off horizontal surfaces than vertical surfaces, countertops particularly since they are closer to windows and artificial light sources.

Dark counters are very fashionable right now. Dark wood, dark granite, dark soapstone. It's mostly done with white cabs, but you see dark counters almost everywhere at the moment. Very elegant. Would this look suit the style of your kitchen and your home?

2. Do you want something that mimics a natural material (like granite or wood) or something that says "Hey, I'm plastic and that's okay!" Think boomerangs! As for the wood look, that's being shown in a lot of high end kitchens where I suspect nobody cooks! ;-) But a deep dark warm wood-look laminate could be fabulous and very up to the minute (without the upkeep of real walnut!)

3. Do you like to see or not see toast crumbs? IOW, do you want your counters to hide the bits and pieces of everyday life or do you want something very clean looking so not a crumb escapes?

4. To bring out the natural richness of your oak cabs, think about the opposite side of the color wheel...blues because they are directly opposite orange, and greens because they always look good with wood.

5. What is your style? MCM? You need boomerangs! Soft Contemporary? Maybe a finely speckled stone look alike. Country? Traditional? Tuscan? If you have a particular style, look at other kitchens in the same or similar style and try to mimic what they are using. If you haven't been to the Finished Kitchens Blog, you should look there for ideas and inspiration. Don't get freaked out by the big-ticket things you see over there (!) just see what appeals to you and make a note.

Remember, you can get a neutral countertop material and do the color thing with paint. It's less risky and better for resale if that looms on your horizon. Or you can do a bit more color on the floor, which will also hide some dirt, and then pull that color into a lighter countertop material with a melange of color, including hints of whatever color you choose for the floor.

After you have thought about these questions, you should be able to eliminate a lot of choices and start to zero in on what you want and need. Then, go to a store that has lots of samples. Maybe not a big box store...I don't know if they have a full representation or not. (You can ask.) See what draws you eye and see if it meets the criteria you set by answering the questions above. Order or borrow samples to live with for a while. When you're down to a couple of choices, get a bunch of chips and line them up so you can try to replicate a larger area.

Good luck and keep us posted!

Amy, thanks! Very helpful ideas.

I was not a granite fan--always loved the bright, shiny look of tiles..different color grout...until I bought a house with a granite infused kitchen..huge island..and I LOVE that I can put pots/pans straight out of the oven onto the countertop--love that it is almost impossible to scratch..mine is very busy so it doesn't "show" crumbs, etc..so count me in as a granite fan..not so much in the bath but 5 star in the kitchen.
Susan

Do you already have white appliances and oak cabinets (and you're just changing the counter)? If so, you could get large pieces of cardboard or a roll of butcher paper and paint it, to give you an idea of how a large expanse of color would look.

Have you looked through the Finished Kitchens Blog that amysrq mentioned? I've linked to it below. I went through it and searched for all the kitchens that have oak cabinets and white appliances, and I came up with this list:

oshnwavz
jerzeegirl
bunglogrl
tinylady
zshopper
catb
hsorrentino

You can view the kitchens of these GW members by clicking the alphabetical links at the right side of the page or entering the name in the search box at the top. Perhaps you'll get some ideas by looking at their photos.

Here is a link that might be useful: Finished Kitchens Blog

Thanks, uxorial. Interesting.