Anyone complete their London Gray or Frosty Carrina counters yet?
Comments (69)
kristieschultz
11 years ago
Gooster
11 years agoRelated Discussions
New Caesarstone Frosty Carrina & London Gray light marble looks
Comments (120)Dianne, I have quartz (not Caesarstone, they were out of my choice at the time) in my bathroom; looks new 2 years later. Online, you will find many cons or negatives about most any product you are considering buying. I wouldn't let that hinder you, as that's usually the minority. Caesarstone has a warranty. I will be buying either London Grey or Organic White in the next two weeks for my kitchen reno, but I love real marble. This is a happy compromise. Check with the company you are buying and ask if they've had any issues with Caesarstone. I asked the appliance company about Thermador vs. Viking and they gave me their opinion based on what they service the least. Good luck!...See MoreSilestone Lagoon or Caesarstone Frosty Carrina, London Grey
Comments (2)If you do a search you should be able to find the thread where a few of us posted pics of our kitchens......See MoreSilestone Lagoon or Caesarstone London Grey?
Comments (67)Following up with a few more details.. Counter edge is Eased 1.5 inch thick. Quartz thickness was 2cm. Fabricators built up the edge to 1.5 inches with mitred corners. The mitre cut hides the seam totally. In CA this is a standard process. 2cm Ceasarstone will not properly cover the 5/8 inch plywood rough top the cabinet maker installs. I almost went with an ogee edge since the house and kitchen is traditional style. But I thought it might be too busy for shaker. The eased edge works well with shaker style. I chose ogee for the bath vanity where the cabinets and crown are more detailed. It fits perfectly in the bath. Or if you have a center island ogee is a nice choice on the island with eased edge on the perimeter. Alot of people opt for that... The floor color is Natural Timber glazed chestnut. I used a dark brown grout but should have gone 1 darker to espresso or possibly black. The grout lines wound up lighter than the tile even though it looked like a good match before install. I went with 1/16th on the spacing, however the box recommends no closer than 1/8th. 1/8th grout lines are wide and the floor will look less like hardwood but I'm not sure if ignoring the directions will compromise my floor in any way down the road. I had the installer avoid "stair step" install method and tried to achieve random length install to mimic hardwood. Essentially when he got to a wall and had to cut a piece I had him start on the other side with the cut piece to achieve a random look. It worked for the most part but this process is tricky. It is better to be there the entire time they are installing so you can make the decisions. I much prefer real wood. The white oak with dark stain pictured all over houzz are the most beautiful kitchen floors but with a 3 yr old it doesn't seem practical, I think it would have gotten destroyed. The wood plank tile is a nice alternative and the cleanup is very easy. Alot of people have actually mistaken it for solid wood. The finish is a matte. Every crumb shows but I'm assuming this is the case with any dark brown floor. One of the keys is finding the tile that is 48 in long, this is the same size a lot of solid wood planks come in. The tile that is 24 in long leaves too many grout lines all over the floor and compromises the wood look. The long plank tiles create some issues with install though, it is wise to have someone who has installed these before. The 24 inch pieces are easier to install. This post was edited by LondonGray on Mon, Jun 16, 14 at 13:25...See MoreHelp with countertop color Frosty Carrina or London Grey
Comments (3)I think the FC looks better with cabinets. Its more modern looking, than the LG. LG gives with more refined look, but rest of the place will very contemporary/modern. I didn't even give thought to backsplash yet, I am leaning towards additional countertop material vs tiles. I think a large uniform surface will be easier to keep clean without the grouts getting dirty. Stove I think will be kicking out lots of smoke and oil. (15k btu + wok) Thank you...See Moreblondelle
11 years agoSusan Phillips
11 years agokristieschultz
11 years agoGooster
11 years agohe8833
11 years agojmaurry
11 years agokristieschultz
11 years agojmaurry
11 years agokristieschultz
11 years agokristieschultz
11 years agojmaurry
11 years agoNessaB
11 years agoHere's an installed Frosty Carrina in our white kitchen. The white worked perfectly for the colour of our cabinets. We're having a marble backsplash installed shortly. The FC looks white until you put it up against a statuario marble and then you can definitely see that it's an off-white. We managed to find a marble that works well with it.
We didn't pay a very large premium for it here in Canada. This installation and stone cost us $4200 with tax.
Eleven.Gables
11 years agoEleven.Gables
11 years agoelbyphoto
11 years agoOur London Grey countertops are being installed on 5/3! Cabinets are anxiously awaiting.....
Susan Phillips
11 years agoNessaB
11 years agoelbyphoto
11 years agoelbyphoto
11 years agoSusan Phillips
11 years agosuperpoutyduck
11 years agoSparklingWater
11 years agofirstmmo
11 years agoelbyphoto
10 years agoWell, after talking to my contractor, he said quartz seams are not that noticeable, I decided to chug forward. I'm sure you all can understand that when you have been living without a kitchen for a while, you start to rationalize differently.
Well, they came, they installed, and my husband was there snapping some pics. The seam ended up being a major problem afterall because they did not make a clean cut. They chipped AND cracked the front of the countertop. They came out to "fix" it yesterday, and basically said they "did the best they could." Now dealing with trying to get compensated or get a new slab. We'll see what happens.
Sorry these pictures are cell phone pictures. I need to bust out my nice camera so you can get a better read on the colors. It looks a little more tan in the pictures. It also reads a lot like misty carrera to me, with just the added veins, in my opinion.
I'll post a better pics later today or tomorrow.
Here are the countertops under natural light. Don't mind the black thing on the countertop. It was a piece of paper.
elbyphoto
10 years agoAlso, I wanted to re-iterate what I've read on the web plenty of times, but did not abide to: THE CHEAPEST PRICE IS NOT ALWAYS THE BEST OPTION.
Kitchen under artificial light.
elbyphoto
10 years agoA picture my husband took just after the install was completed.
Overall, I have to say, the London Grey is very beautiful. It is hard to describe, but overall it does not give off the "feel" of real marble. I do not mean that in a negative way, though. It feels like it is in a class of its own.
One we figure out the result of the crack, we'll finally get to put a backsplash up. Thinking of doing a penny tile similar to Young House Love (linked).
Here is a link that might be useful: {{!gwi}}
elbyphoto
10 years agoI'll include this picture to go with my previous disclaimer. THE CHEAPEST PRICE IS NOT ALWAYS THE BEST OPTION.
Here is the seam of the Caesarstone London Grey. Looks kinda dirty. Also, see the chip and the crack. This picture is after they tried to repair it. They tried to fill the chip with....wait for it....super glue.
I suppose my advice would be to try and not have any seams, even if that means you have to buy another slab.
SparklingWater
10 years agoelbyphoto
10 years agoThanks SparklingWater. Actually the lighting does not bother me; they are regular indoor flood bulbs in the cans (supplied by the contractor), but I will be switching them to CFL. He didn't realize they now sell dimmable CFL's. I only know this because I worked for a lighting company for 7 years. The undercabinets are dimmable LED, and I love them! I haven't seen LED recessed lighting in person, but I have halogen recessed lights in my living room. When you look up at them, it is like staring straight into the sun! They are also very hot, where LED is not.
I think my contractor could have brought the furthest cans away from the cabinets a bit, since they are a new install, but overall I am just happy to have some light in there. My kitchen and dining room had such a measly amount of lighting. It was always yellowy and hard on the eyes! I'll post a before picture just for fun.
This post was edited by elbyphoto on Thu, May 9, 13 at 13:38
blondelle
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blackchamois
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Lisa
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