Cultured marble is sort of like faux pearls or diamondique.... the name is a bit misleading! It is a blend of resin and marble dust which can be tinted and so varies widely in quality and style. We used it in our house when it was originally built and are now remodeling. The white on our half bath vanity and hall bath still looks okay as far as style. Just a plain white with some minor gray swirling and we'll be keeping it as we work our way through the house remodeling. But our master bath counertop and tub surround is now in the dumpster as it was sort of a taupe color with lots of swirling and was just obviously "fake".

I seem to have a sixth sense about marble questions on this forum .... We've honed Calacatta as our perimeter countertops and backsplash -- that's how confident I was with them. We've had them nearly a year and they've been used literally every single day since then: the one holiday was just me taking our children -- my husband stayed homed and deep-fried his favorite (and one I find disgusting) dish. For whatever reason he absolutely refuses to clean up after himself, rather, he refuses to wipe down the counters / backsplash, which meant the grease splatters sat for days until I came home to wipe them up. Grr, but no stains! Seriously, not a single stain. As I learned from the marble gurus here who came before me (mnhockeymom and momto4kids) I sealed with Miracle 511 and so far, knock marble, so good! The only issue I've had was when a rusty strand of steel wool was caught in a sponge and I used it to wipe -- the countertop sucked that rust right up and looked as if I'd used really bad self-tanner. I used Iron Out and literally as I applied it the stain was removed. I resealed immediately after: the whole process, from stain to running out to purchase the Iron Out, coming home to use it, reseal, was maybe forty-five minutes. A splotch of tomato sauce sat overnight on the countertop next to the cooktop; after I scraped it up the next day there was a v. faint stain. I wasn't in the mood to use the poultice right then and knew I'd get to it later, like nap time. (as if) But when I did come back to it the spot was gone, all on its own. I'm sure we must have etch marks but for the life of me, bending this way and that in various lights I cannot see them, and I'm really looking. I think our marble, in particular the (slab) backsplash, is really the visual highlight of our kitchen (and our kitchen is a lovely thing). (oh, and I think a slab backsplash is heaven! such a breeze to clean one solid surface -- no grout lines) However, I still have reservations about it but only because it was so hideously expensive: it was more than twice what the fabricator and I had budgeted for marble countertop. Gulp. Others above are right: if you can live with it (and I couldn't), the Carrara is extremely affordable! I wish I weren't so particular that I had to have the no-gold / big grey swirls (as opposed to the road map Carrara), but for me, rather than settle I'd have had plywood if I couldn't have what I wanted. It would have really ticked me of to spend $X and get something (the Carrara) which reminded me on a daily basis I didn't see my vision through. But that's me and that was my priority. So instead I have a beautiful countertop / backsplash which reminds me on a daily basis that I spent way too much! Can't win. The marble was the last thing I found for our kitchen, and I found it as the cabinets were being installed. (My patient then-one year-old visited every stone yard with me for months, searching and searching for that marble needle in the slab hay stack.) If I knew then what I know now (I know, a stupid and dangerous thought to entertain), I would've done a much less expensive cabinet but still splurged on the marble. (I think our cabs were expensive, but maybe that's just my budget.) Someone else (whose id I've forgotten) wrote in a different post not too long ago that for many kitchens it is not the cabinets which are the star: it's the countertop / backsplash, sometimes hardware and sometimes showy appliances, but rarely the cabinets themselves. I think they're right, or at least when I think of my kitchen I think they're right. My cabinet door / drawer style is lovely -- the cabinetmaker and I spent a lot of time designing it together. But to be redundant, if I had to do it again I would've done a less expensive cabinet (like IKEA with custom doors) but still splurged on the marble. So that's my sole regret about the Calacatta, and it's a bit half-assed. I've a nearly three year-old and a four year-old: I am basically a short-order cook. I spend what feels like all day every day in the kitchen, using it. My husband loves to cook and cooks elaborately, and he does that frequently. (and frequently doesn't clean up ...) Our kitchen is used and the marble is the only material in our kitchen which is not the worse for wear. The only one. (The butcherblock, which we use as a butcherblock, not a decorative countertop, shows its wear; the painted cabinets show both dirt and some wear; the stainless sink is scratched [but I kinda like it!] and our lower wall oven is covered with my youngest's hand / face prints. I still wouldn't change a thing, however!) It's also been my experience the marble requires the least maintenance; the butcherblock I "butter" every month and the cabinets I (should) wipe every week, but the marble only requires sealing every six months or so and the occasional spot-check (like my rust). I just wanted to be completely honest about my experience, loves and regrets with our marble. Good luck!

rubyvine, before I sealed my honed marble, it was indeed like a sponge ... water soaked right in! I sealed it myself with 511 Impregnator available from Home Depot ... easy process: spray on, rub in and wipe excess off. Now water and other liquids stay on the surface. I've spilled all kinds of stuff on it: coffee, tomato sauce, soy sauce ... some of the drips sat overnight ... and no stains. I can't urge you strongly enough to get a good sized sample of the honed marble, seal it and then abuse it. Drip some lemon juice on it so that you'll know what etching looks like and whether or not you can tolerate it. Good luck! Erika

Hope we didn’t make a mistake. Stone Source did not have any soaostone we liked. so we went with a honed black granite. I have seen somewhere that citrus might etch them which I was hoping to avoid with soapstone. They are honed on one side and leathered on the other. So, I might have to go with the leathered. I still chose Danby marble for my perimeter cabinets. I think I would like the honed granite better aesthetically to go with honed marble. Any thoughts while I have time?