Two other options you might want to consider. One is plyboo-- bamboo plywood. Most people who use it leave the edge exposed because it is really pretty. It isn't cheap stuff, but relatively straightforward to work with. Also you could consider a zinc countertop. Rotometals use to be limited in their lengths, but they can now cut at any length. You could get two pieces, solder the joint together, and buff the whole thing out. We did a small zinc counter in our laundry room and it was quite easy. Rotometals has tutorials on youtube for DYIers. My only recommendation is to take the sheets to a sheet metal or roofing shop and they can use a sheet metal break to put a really nice uniform hemmed edge on the counter. Here is a link that might be useful: Rotometals

Thanks for the drawing--it has calmed my fears after reading other posts by you about your dream kitchen. I can imagine working in here. Has anyone mentioned the need for wood storage indoors? Although the woodpile is the main wood storage, there needs to be a direct route from woodpile to a plunk spot for the wood indoors. We have a wood stove in living room, in part to burn up wood from our yard. We use an old large copper cauldron for our wood holder--it's huge and I retire it to the garage in summer so that I can recover some space in the room. Also, the area below a stove needs to fit code. Talk to your building inspectors before making a plan. Otherwise you may end up with a deep lip of brick or tile that intrudes in places you didn't anticipate and you may need a railing on one side if it's adjacent to a walk space. Also, the area in vicinity of a wood stove needs to be sweepable, even if it's outside the code-mandated nonburnable floor. Wood debris is unavoidable. You may want to look at images of second homes, lake places, etc. for your practical inspirations. These places have to deal with such issues and they often have a 'country' feel (ignore the kitschy ones). As for the island/table, I urge a movable large cart. You can remove it and put in a table at times if you need to and you can pull it to your work area for a secondary surface or put it out for buffet serving. For most days, you already have a table very near on porch that will be more useful for enjoying that cup of coffee and a book or newspaper and you can decorate that space as gleefully as you like. I've thought a lot about the table in your inspiration picture and all it says to me is 'I'm not ready to go to work.' That's not a message I want in my kitchen. I need an inviting blank work surface that I can mess up with my cooking activity, then clean off and leave ready for next time. I hate it when I have debris in my work space from the last project or stuff plunked there that is off-topic for my current mania. I'm putting a nook/resource center into the corner of my kitchen but I won't share photos yet, except this early one. We'll have a full floor to near-ceiling 6 foot wide bookcase, perhaps small antique drop leaf table and chairs, and some funky lighting. No wood stove, but hope it will have ambiance and kooky inviting feel. But it will NOT intrude in my work, it will NOT prevent dinner being served in dining room, and it will allow some softening pieces to cut the modern feel of the rest of the room. It also gives me a non-stool work space if needed (handicap access concept). This antiques and books and art nook is out of the line of fire of the kitchen activities as yours is, but I don't foresee spending much time in it. Better places elsewhere in house for lounging and recreation. Here is a link that might be useful: roughed in table nook ambiance corner

I used to make homemade mayonnaise! First time I made it was in a home ec demonstration class in college. Brownies The only brownie recipe I ever use. It's not thick, not dry, don't test with a toothpick. Kinda fudgie 1 stick butter (I use land of lakes) 1 cup sugar 1 cup all purpose flour 1/4 tsp salt 1/2 tsp baking powder 2 eggs beaten 2 HEAPING tbl cocoa 1 tsp vanilla Melt butter in a square pyrex dish sift all the dry ingredients mix in eggs with the dry ingredients then the butter and pour back into pyrex dish bake 350 for 18 minutes EIGHTEEN MINUTES cool completely before cutting occasionally do this: make a glaze 1/2 cup powdered sugar 1 tbl softened butter 1/2 tsp vanilla 1-2 tsp milk Mix, drizzle over warm brownies

INGREDIENTS tablespoon LAND O LAKES Butter, softened 1 can (16.3 oz) Pillsbury Grands! Homestyle refrigerated buttermilk biscuits (8 biscuits) 1 can (10.2 oz) Pillsbury Grands! Homestyle refrigerated buttermilk biscuits (5 biscuits) 13 large marshmallows 1/2 cup LAND O LAKES Unsalted or Salted Butter 1/2 cup hot fudge ice cream topping 1 teaspoon McCormick Pure Vanilla Extract 1 cup sugar 1 tablespoon Hersheys Special Dark baking cocoa DIRECTIONS 1 Heat oven to 350F. Grease 12-cup fluted tube cake pan with 1 tablespoon butter. Cut all 13 biscuits into quarters; set aside. 2 In large microwavable bowl, place marshmallows, 1/2 cup butter, hot fudge topping and vanilla. Microwave uncovered on High 1 to 2 minutes, stirring once, until melted. Using wire whisk, stir until smooth. 3 In medium bowl, stir sugar and cocoa until blended. 4 Carefully place 1/4 of the biscuit pieces into hot chocolate mixture, gently folding in to coat. Add another 1/4 of the biscuits, gently folding in to coat. Using tongs, remove biscuits from chocolate, letting excess chocolate drip off. Drop 1 biscuit piece at a time into sugar mixture; spoon sugar over biscuit to coat. Layer biscuits in cake pan. Repeat with remaining biscuits. Sprinkle any remaining sugar mixture over biscuits. 5 Bake 30 to 40 minutes or until biscuits are deep golden and no longer doughy in center. Cool in pan 5 minutes. Place heatproof serving plate upside down over pan; carefully turn plate and pan over. Remove pan; immediately scrape any remaining topping in pan onto bread. Pull apart warm bread to serve. Using fresh marshmallows is key to the success of this recipe.