I don't have one of the colors you mentioned, but I do have photos: I LOVE our counters. They are LivingStone brand, which is virtually the same as Corian. The integrated sink is Corian brand. We are a young family w/4 year old and one on the way. I don't have time/patience for counter maintenance; DH and I both work outside the home and we do most of our own cooking. I wanted a light color with a matte finish. I didn't want laminate (too many bad experiences w/seams lifting etc). I didn't want to deal with keeping sink caulk clean. I didn't want something that would shatter dishes as I am a klutz--now that we have an unforgiving tile floor, I am especially glad we considered this b/c I have knocked many things against the counter in the course of working in the kitchen (and they are still intact, vs the tile where everything explodes into a million specks). An additional plus--our counters actually let some light thru, so the few base cabs we have (as opposed to drawers) are easier to see into. I can understand the appeal of natural stone and I agree it has depth/beauty that "plastic" doesn't capture; we looked at it, but in the end LivingStone was a better choice for us, financially as well as daily life. I embraced the choice of doing what worked best for me, not what is most popular. Our neighborhood is mostly starter homes, and few of the 1970s kitchens have even been updated. We not only updated but completely changed/improved the layout, which I think will have more impact for resale than natural stone counters. Secondly, we don't know when we might have an opportunity to "upgrade" so doing what works for us was the best choice. We've had our new kitchen/counters/sink about 1 1/2 years and I have had zero problems. The one "stain" I got was from an orange piece of junk mail paper where water was on the counter and the paper was left in the puddle for a few days and allowed to dry. Bleach took it right out.

Years ago when solid surface was relatively new and Corian sort of held the monopoly DH went and got certified as an Avonite fabricator so I could have it in the bath we were remodeling. Today DH is past the point where he wants to mess with it. Plus the industry has come up with fabrication techniques far more advanced than way back when. So when we do do our kitchen we will out source the counter tops to someone with the up to date tooling and knowledge gained over the years. I will not hesitate to use any of the major SS products. Corian, Hi Macs, Avonite, it simply doesn't matter. I will choose what goes best with the cabinets, flooring etc. I will choose the product whose performance will work best in the area. No Avonite "glass series" in the kitchen for example. LOL I will however be vetting the fabricator/installer with a fine toothed comb. Virtually every complaint I read about any solid surface here is either fabricator/installation error or user error. Never have I seen something that is due to inferior product with the exception perhaps of sink failure back in the early days. Corian kept tight reins on who could install their products thus was better able to both back up their warranty and defend their product when necessary. They are what Kleenex is to tissue. Brand name is synonymous with solid surface. But there are perfectly fine products out there without the Corian name.

"All of those people who bought what they thought was stone only to find out the plastic particles became marred and damaged. How sad is that. I'm sure they spent a lot of hard earned money thinking they were buying REAL stone." I have quartz counters. I don't have PLASTIC counters. I have no "marring". No staining either - there is nothing that I have not been able to easily remove. I bought my slabs knowing full well that this was engineered stone. I cannot imagine ANYONE that would come to the conclusion that estone is a natural stone. All you have to do is LOOK at samples in a store and you can see that this is a manufactured material. No stone yards orf fabricators, that I know of, try to pass off quartz as natural stone - it's simply a no-brainer to see that it is a manufactured stab. You WILL find lots of stone yards, however, that will attempt to pass off marbles as quartzites and granites. Perhaps that is what you are referring to. There are LOTS of threads here on HOUZZ about that exact issue, and how to avoid it.

mtpo, we are building a townhome with an elevator! We are under roof, and mechanicals have just begun. I am fortunate to have found a builder who was willing to customize our home for accessability. The elevator option for this home was 60K which I know they are making quite a bit of money on. We've upgraded the size of the cab so it is significantly deeper so it will comfotably accommodate my hubby and another person. Fortunately, there was not an extra charge for this. The wheelchair takes up quite a bit of space . . . we measured. I was able to design the garage level so there are no steps between garage and hall to elevator. This will help a lot. We've made all doors 36" wide and expanded the size of the powder room. The main living floor, kitchen, LR, DR are all open concpet. We are doing a zero clearance shower in the bath where the tiled floor slopes to the drain and wheelchair vanity. Construction has stopped so I have no idea when the home will be complete. Yes, maybe we should start another thread . . . sorry everyone, I feel like I highjacked this one.