Not a big fan of shiny granite either. We're going to go with either honed granite or soapstone.

Look at honed granite and carrera marble. While polished stone is popular, honed stone countertops can be very beautiful too (I like them better) and you might find something you like. As others said, do not discount marble for price until you get pricing on some different marbles. Some (including carrera) are in the range of low cost granites.

Here are some other ideas of possible countertop materials.

• Metal - Stainless, Copper, Zinc, etc

• Concrete

• Glass

• Recycled Paper Composite - Paperstone, Richlite, etc

• Recycled Glass Composite - Vetrazzo, IceStone, etc

• Wood/Butcherblock

• Recycled Aluminum Composite - Alkemi, etc

• Tile

I'm not sure about the price, but what about soapstone?

jbrodie's lovely transitional kitchen has soapstone (link below), and it's tough stuff too. As someone always mentions, that's why it was used in school labs!

Thinking of something inexpensive until you find something you do love, and your style (transitional), you could stain butcher block a darker color.

Becky

Here is a link that might be useful: jbrodie's warm white kitchen

"Bottom line, I really want a warm, cozy kitchen that's practical in addition to beautiful. This is a working kitchen."

Look at all the quartz samples that you can. Some even can come honed. It is wonderful for a working kitchen. I really love how easy care mine is, I bake a lot and it's great for everything.
The color you choose will have the most impact on the warmth of your kitchen, along with the accessories that are sitting out. The correct lighting also has a welcoming effect as does your choice in flooring.
I guess what I'm trying to say is, choose the surface that will be the best for your cooking and the family to use. If you don't really like granite (I'm with you on that) then look for something that can be a long lasting quality counter for everyday use.

Nancy

You will appreciate the coolness of granite when your kitchen is about 85 degrees from cooking during the summer or maybe at anytime of the year unless you can cool your kitchen to artic temps. Just fire up those 8 burner high heat ranges, double ovens, et. al. and see how nice it is to rest your forearms or even forehead on that nice cooling granite. People on this forum tend to over dramatize things about how cool granite is. I find it comforting and I am not a hot blooded individual. Now the BW is a different story. She is bare footed in the winter on a tile floor. Don;t like tombstones then stay away from pinkish slabs or anything fine flecked in gray.

I happen to like the shine. We have a counter that was destined to start patination early. It's already on the way to developing a surface that I can only compare to a well cared for marble or even limestone. Looks like its been there for years.

Copper....makes a nice bar. I've had plenty of beers sitting at a copper or zinc bar.
Stainless..... same as above and even nicer in the school cafeteria kitchen.

When in doubt as mentioned above, go cheap so you can replace it later. Lots of nice laminates out there.

Hard rock maple butcher block is a nice choice too.

slate?

Thanks for all the feedback, everyone. I believe quartz would be a GREAT option for us, if it's priced right. I think honed granite would work, too, but I'm guessing it costs considerably more.

We're building a new house. Our allowance would cover the entry-level granites and maybe some lower-midrange ones.

Someone else posted this last week, but it seems VERY hard to compare apples to apples when pricing granites. Drives me batty. I don't want to fall for something only to find out it's way outside the budget!

Quartz is usually on a high end of cost. More than most granites and soapstone. I guess find out what you are looking to pay before you get real committed to a piece of quartz.

You didn't say what color your cabinets are. Are they painted? Butcher block looks (and feels) wonderful with painted cabinets. A combination of butcher block with some marble would probably cost less than many granites.

We had the same epiphany and ended up doing Ikea butcher block countertops on the perimeter and a marble topped free-standing island. Going this route saved us $3,500. The wood is cheap enough that we figure we'll use it for several years and then see if there's anything different that catches our fancy. I feel good having saved the money and not going with granite I didn't love. And I have to say I actually really do love the look and the feel of wood! Good luck.

I would start with this tool from HD. You may find that you can get some of these surfaces for a little less, but it is probably pretty accurate for your area.

Here is a link that might be useful: Countertop Estimator

Sayde, we will have wood cabinets stained a deep espresso/walnut color. The plan is to use light countertops and a light- or medium-colored backsplash. Leaning toward hickory or maple for flooring.

Senator, thanks for the link to the Home Depot tool. Sadly, I think quartz will be out of reach. :(

bluekitten: Have you looked through the finished kitchens and magazines to see if pictures of anyones else's counters make you swoon? I'd spend a couple of hours looking through as many magazines, the FKB, Houzz.com, and see if you notice a trend in the counters you do like. As someone else stated, here Carrera is in line with lower granites and would look lovey honed and sealed. I have marble, I don't find it to be a problem. And worst case scenario, as others stated, you go for something inexpensive and change it later after you've lived with it for a while. There are a ton of options with laminate and formica these days... Good Luck! Oh and if you find inspiration pictures post them here and I bet mambers will be able to give you a good idea of the possible cost per square foot.

I have not looked at other posts:
options out there:
concrete, both site poured and custom ordered through local or factories that are far away. They are warm looking.
Paperstone, richlite etc.
ecostones of various brands; they often have imbedded stone or glass fragments in them.
tile
tempered glass
Quartz material of many brands; caesarstone is only one of many.
Soapstone, marble, quartzite, slate and other stone slabs other than granite.
Corian or Duralit (different brands of acrylic surface)
Pyrolite (very expensive)Often used in Europe
Stainless, copper, zinc; custom made to your spec.
Laminate/formica
Butcher block

http://www.ecohaus.com/C-711/countertops

This is 2 minutes of what is going through my brain. There is so much out other there all you have to do is to look.

Here is a link that might be useful: not common countertops

I am with you bluekitten, not liking polished granite for cost, color, and coldness though I like the lowish maintenance of it. We are remodeling an old kitchen, will be using Shaker style wood cabinets as well, and I am loving Paperstone as a countertop choice. It is very warm, beautiful colors with subtle variations, and gets a patina over time. May have more maintenance issues than granite though. We ordered a cutting board to test it out, though the thinness of the board doesn't reflect the warmth and color as well as the samples of Paperstone countertops I've seen. Also consider Soapstone or a new recycled product called Squak Mountain Stone (looks like concrete)- this and Paperstone may depend on local availability as they are Northwest products. Hope that helps!

Here is a link that might be useful: paperstone

Just as American's often refer to laminate as Formica in Canada it is often called Arborite. Vintage patterns are becoming rarer but many of the new ones harken back to the older ones anyway (as you will see in the brochure). Not as convenient as a hard surface but still durable and I think can evoke a nice warm vintage look if used well. I like you tend to think that the connotation of granite isn't one I want for my kitchen. I want to set a more casual tone than I think stone generally suggests. I also don't want forever - I want some options for down the line and laminate's cost allows for this. Who knows, in 5 years I might want granite.

Here is a link that might be useful: Link to vintage 50's Arborite brochure

My countertops (caesarstone) serve more as a backdrop visually, whereas other things like the cabinets, appliance, and the things on the counter are more "in the limelight". Maybe when you know what the more visually dominant elements of the kitchen are, the countertops will be easier to figure out?

there's plenty of room down here on the bottom rung with me and the other Laminate users

FWIW I think the recycling materials coutertops are incredibly cool. They're not cheap though, so out of our price range. But it's possible even the *idea* of one of these could tip you in their favor? Maybe not though if function is the entire purpose. But to me, I think all that composite repurposed glass, for example, is warm, friendly; positively glowing.

I loved the formica countertops I grew up with. My parents installed a shiny, shiny very black material that just says "you don't live here anymore" to me! I can completely understand not liking any of the marbles (even though I like them all, but not as countertops, just to gaze at).

I second the plan to install the cabinets and then just muse for a little while. If you narrow down your choices prior to that point you can save time that way and once the cabinets are in, then you'll be able to feel just what will make for the warm kitchen you have in mind.

About wooden countertops: beware water. It is really hard to keep the countertops dry enough that they don't get that black mold. That's my experience at least.

And about tile countertops, beware grout. It is a magnet for crumbs and won't let them go either. It gets discolored and grody in kitchens -- can you tell I hate it in that context? I love tile, just not where food spills. Chinks and cracks and crumbs just don't play nicely one little bit. IMHO. You can't get a sponge to grab up the specific food particles or even spills when there are all those different surfaces to navigate: grout, shiny tile, crumbs, liquid.

I tell you if there were a tile I really, really loved and needed for my kitchen counter, I'd immerse it under a film of clear resin. Anyone ever done that? You'd get a clear swipable surface that way.

I didn't want to spend 1/2 the kitchen remodel budget on countertops to get the look I wanted.

Then I saw this great GW thread and it was hard to look at another countertop the same. She had these countertops professionally installed for only $575!!!

I included her detailed thread too with the details...

Here is a link that might be useful: Inexpensive Alternative to Quartz

I didn't want to start another thread, but I was hoping that others had additional ideas. After I posted, I haven't seen any other posts :(

I reread my post and thought it may even have looked like spam. The kithcen was from mom2Cohen. Like I said I was enamored my her counters (and especially the price) but I'd love to see some other inexpensive but awesome looking counters. I love quartz but not the price tag.

Aloha2009

You may want to look at the new Formica 180fx or Wilsonart HD laminate. It is truly amazing what it looks like these days.

I own and operate a countertop company in California but also have a website for consumers called www.CountertopReview.com . I have compiled a list of many of the different countertop materials along with review and price ranges. There is also a comparison chart.

Andy

Caryscott- Great link...thanks for sharing :)

Aloha- It's a pretty kitchen...thanks for posting!

Granite is really not my thing either. I went with vetrazzo. concrete with recycled glass. I love it, but it is shiny and sparkly so likely not for you.

I'd go with soapstone or a honed surface of some sort if I were you I think...

Have you seen Quartzite? It is more expensive, but there are some beautiful stones that give the sense of marble and not granite. (I had the same reaction to granite).

LauraLincoln's Madre Perola

Sochi's Quartzite Bianco (Luca di Luna)

My White Princess

Bluekitten, we were kind of in the same situation as you, but with a remodel. We ended up buying a lower category granite to save $ and spent the extra money on a wood island. Our logic was that we wanted stone near the stove, but really were looking for the 'WOW' effect with our wood island. My main advice is to have your perimeter surface be a cheaper type of stone for durability and to dress and mix things up on the island with wood. I read somewhere here earlier that our wood island producer (CraftArt) now has a DIY line, which they didn't have when we were doing our remodel... :( But I'm STILL in love with my wood countertops and get at least 2-3 compliments a week!! I just need to have another party to boost my ego! :)))

Here is a link that might be useful: Craft Art Wood Island--Melsey

I am dealing with the exact same thing, esp. with the price of granite quite affordable now. I was thinking of maybe tile or laminate (solid or faux wood grain) for the perimeter and wood or other stone for island. Wish I could do marble but it's beyond our budget, and 'fraid I'm too messy. A designer also had told me to choose the other elements like cabinets first and choose countertops later, because they are less permanent. I was thinking I might install lighter materials - assuming they are easier to pull out later if I choose, with less damage to the cabinets?? With the style you are going for, maybe a solid surface like corian or something might look nice. I've seen it used in kitchens very successfully, and they are low maintenance.

I also agree with the poster who suggested using the backsplash as the decorative part vs. countertops, because it's cheaper, less maintenance, and more visible. That's what I'm going to do too (altough I haven't decided on those yet either).

"honed, leathered, brushed, or anitqued granite"

+1

Soapstone

+1

And, how about wooden strip countertops? That's what the colonials had!

How about tile, there are ten of thousands of choices in this arena?

aloha 2009, I remember that post and being blown away at how beautifully that white tile counter came out. It takes good rectified tile and epoxy grout to get away with that. I'd love to hear how it's held up under use.

My homemade copper countertops cost us around $900 all told for about 58sf. That's pretty cheap, and we think they're awesome, so maybe they count:

circuspeanut:

I just posted a new question to those of you with copper countertops, to see if you think they're a good option as a tabletop for my busy dil, mother of 2yo twin boys who works full time. Would you recommend it as an eating surface?

Circuspeanut. Those are beautiful countertops! Can you give the details of how you constructed them? How difficult were they to install?

Aloha2009 -- here is one thread that circuspeanut did some 'splaining.

Here is a link that might be useful: Copper countertop thread

Bluekitten,

I'm so excited about your kitchen. Our house leans transitional to modern, and we're putting in maple espresso shaker cabs.

I could most meals from scratch every day, so I definitely wanted a working kitchen, too. We are going with quartz, most likely Hanstone Specchio white. We wanted a white counter to brighten up the kitchen, and we loved the recycled glass. So so pretty!

I know you looked at the HD cost estimator, and one thing I would recommend you do is check around on pricing. We were told by our builder, cabinet guy and someone else not related to our counters that I can't remember at the moment, that all the quartz companies have the same production process. They're the same. But they have different marketing budgets, so they have different prices. Also, different vendors have different agreements with different companies, so they'll push what's most profitable to them.

Find a color you like and look what the different brands offer and for what price. You might be surprised.For example, Hanstone's Specchio white is very close to Silestone's Stellar Stone, Eco's White Diamond, Cambria's Whitney, Ceasarstone's Quartz Reflections, Eternia's White Everest, LG's Denali and Zodiac's Cloud White.

Around here, quartz and granite are about the same price, but Hanstone is fairly reasonable.

I can't wait to see what you decide!

Here is a link that might be useful: Hanstone

Bluekitten, here's a 100-year-old copper sink and counter:

{{!gwi}}

This thread is helpful to me too, not just because of counter type ideas but because of changing thinking to the direction of I am not so focused on a dramatic countertop and I tend to like quiet colors and little pattern there. So I like the suggestions of backing up to the other things in the design and taking the approach that the counters can be a quiet backdrop. I may still want or find my own drama and " love it " option in wood or some other material but it is a form of epiphany to think it might be easier to identify a different focus than the counters if I don't find countertop-love or am just indecisive there.

I was so anti-granite, I did a lot of homework, I mean a lot...interviewed so many people and read tons...ultimately I wanted something that couldn't be damaged by unknowing guests, or children, of DH's...something clean and easy on the eye. I thought of soapstone, butcher block, stainless, zinc, caesar stone, bamboo, corian,concrete, and even formica!
Ultimately ended up with granite...it doesn't seem too shiny at all to me, perhaps because the stone has a lot of depth...good luck on your counter top journey!

Bluekitten - not sure if you've decided or not yet - but we only paid an additional $20 for our honed granite! A couple of other places I called around to ran from no additional cost to about $180 more. Just wanted to let you know that if you were considering it, it's not always that much more.

I'm leaning towards Arborite...thanks to Caryscott and I love this blue for the perimeter cabinets:)

{{gwi:2107009}}

The island countertop will be butcher block, with a marble inset. Creamy white cabinets on the perimeter, but still thinking about a color for the island...maybe the french blue or a soft green. Best of luck with your countertop choice!

Bluekitten, I was determined NOT to get granite, too cold, too shiny and most of all too "generic." My husband (works for a large sub-contractor) and I went to a kitchen design center for contractors to pick out a counter top. We were looking at the Silestone and the quartz, Corian, etc. etc. strolling around and we both saw, at the same time, a mock kitchen and the counter top was Colonial Gold granite and we fell in love - it's perfect for our rustic kitchen natural cherry cabinets, copper sink, natural stone walls. I'm the kind of person who likes to mix lace with jeans.

Well, what I'm trying to tell you is look, look, look and look some more. Fall in love with a "look." Or build a kitchen around something you're in love with to complement it.

This forum is fabulous!!!! I have gotten so many ideas from here - i.e. I was all set to get beadboard for my backsplash and then I saw on this forum that you can get a ceramic beadboard - PERFECT! Take your time, your kitchen will evolve and you'll be estatic! By the way, I saw the colonial gold back in November and we finally just found a slab that matches. I'm so excited about my GRANITE counter top (unbelievable!)

Good luck and have FUN!

Like everyone else on this thread, I did not want "busy shiny granite" We have an old house (1913) and I wanted quiet, matte, low maintenance countertops. I have samples of nearly every single countertop material in existence, LOL, including...

~7 different types of soapstone (the hardest was Original Green P.A., the softest was barocca);
granites that look like soapstone (Virginia mist, which is sold locally as nebula, and samples of honed, leathered, & antiqued absolute black granite)
schist (Pietra de Cordosa)
2 different slates
coal (anthracite)
3 different quartz composites (Caeserstone, Silestone, and Cambria, all performed similarly and fabricator advised to steer clear of honed due to risk of staining)
2 different samples of silver quartzite (honed and polished) to my surprise they both scratched, perhaps they were not really quartzite, which I thought was supposed to be harder than granite?
cast concrete (nucrete, earthcrete, cement elegance) All have same drawbacks as poured concrete counters, they crack, they are porous/can stain (except possibly for the nucrete which had a bit of a plasticky finish) and require waxing
3 wood species (hard rock maple, heart pine, and reclaimed fir-hard to soft in that order)
3 marbles (they all etched, I naively hoped I could find one that would etch less, LOL)
several laminates (husband biased against and vetoed)
A bunch of the new eco/LEED friendly recycled choices like richelite, paperstone, etc. Easily scratches and needed to be maintained with either oil or wax, so I eliminated these because if I have to oil or wax, I'd rather get soapstone.
At various times I also researched lavastone ($$$$), limestone (etches), corian (scratches)
Decided that stainless steel, zinc, pewter, and copper did not have the...warmth? I was after.

Are you exhausted yet? ;)

There is no perfect countertop. Just find the best balance you can of cost/look/maintenance/durability and be sure you know what to expect of the drawbacks of your choice so you won't be terribly disappointed.

What did I finally select?

After first purchasing soapstone, I changed at the last minute to leathered absolute black granite with a hard rock maple island. Already have concerns about scratches and oil spots. Sigh...

I really don't like granite. It's too speckeldy, too pretentious, too cold, too ostentatious, too expensive. And maybe it's just me, but doesn't most of it just look like rust stains?

I also researched all the other countertop choices. Throughout our homebuilding we've tried to remain focused on our twin goals, Durable and Low Maintenance. And so we've come back to granite.

What I found out is that granite showrooms only have a tiny selection of slabs onsite for you to look at. And most of those are ugly speckled rust stains. BUT, when you've found a company you want to work with, they'll hook you up with the huge granite yards where you go to pick out a slab and they send it to the installer.

In our case it's a two hour drive to a huge city where there are a half dozen granite yards and acres of slabs of granite to choose from.

You walk around for a couple of hours dragging your husband (who really doesn't want to be there and doesn't like anything unless it's cobalt blue) and your kids (who are fighting over a piece of gravel they picked up in the parking lot) and suddenly you turn a corner and find The Perfect Slab. And you hear a heavenly chorus that swells to drown out the sound of the kids squabbling and the perky salesperson who doesn't have a clue what you're really looking for (you couldn't tell her because you weren't really sure either.) And tears of relief and joy spring to your eyes, your husband drops to his knees in shock when he hears the price, and then you're done.

Then you get to choose a backsplash!

You walk around for a couple of hours dragging your husband (who really doesn't want to be there and doesn't like anything unless it's cobalt blue) and your kids (who are fighting over a piece of gravel they picked up in the parking lot) and suddenly you turn a corner and find The Perfect Slab. And you hear a heavenly chorus that swells to drown out the sound of the kids squabbling and the perky salesperson who doesn't have a clue what you're really looking for (you couldn't tell her because you weren't really sure either.) And tears of relief and joy spring to your eyes, your husband drops to his knees in shock when he hears the price, and then you're done.

That was hilarious and so spot on! After a couple of trips like that, I finally just went by myself to the other 5 yards of granite!

littlesmokie... oh no, scratches and oil spots on what? the leathered granite or the hard rock maple island? I'm thinking of using both of these products.

Rosieo, your recount of the granite search was hilarious! I am still laughing about it! When I find my perfect slab of granite, I will hear the same chorus, I am sure! :o) Trust me, I am ready to turn that corner....off to the slab yards tomorrow!

Glad you've had fun at your granite yards. We went to see local granite yard which is literally in neighborhood, the one with a jerk behind the counter.

We pulled a long, thin piece b&w out of the discards mound in the parking lot. DH went in to find out how much it would cost to make into a window sill for our bath tub area because we've put in a new vinyl window there. (We have a ruined old black and white marble countertop on vanity--it will never clean up and this guy quoted us big money to remove it, bring it to him, and let him work it over, which I declined. Should have foreseen his attitude about this little window sill.) A T-shaped cut on each end of this remnant will be needed and some cutting of the bottom to make the thing slant downward to shed water. I expected about $30-60 for an hour of a guy's time, assuming this was a discard that no one else even wanted. It's been there for years, lonesome.

Well, for upwards of $500 he will rebuff it, cut it, hone it, whatever. Half a thousand dollars for a crummy replacement window sill in a guest bathroom? Get real! Go find a buyer, fella.

Instead we're going to create our own MDF window sill and window trim that will not rot and will do just fine for less than $20. I might try using odds and ends of paint to make some really faux marble on the sill. He lost me as a customer TWICE because he couldn't listen long enough to understand what we're doing and how modest our needs were.

Have fun stormin' the castle!

Hi, bluekitten, I also struggle with visualizing. Hit the bookshelves at Home Depot or Barnes and Noble for kitchens with counters that appeal to you. For engineered quartz, the book to get is Candice Olson's new Kitchens and Baths.

If you are looking for a granite with less variation, I saw a leathered Steel Grey at one yard that sounds like what you are seeking. More subdued, not shiny. Was not an expensive slab.

minty19 asked "littlesmokie, oh no spots and scratches on leathered granite or the maple island?"

Hi minty, sorry I didn't get back to this thread til just now. I actually just posted about this on repaintingagain's thread-I'll link it below. In a nutshell our granite has oil stains/smudges and a 2 1/4" scratch that I believe is because of the sealer that was used. I am following up with the fabricator and will post updates to the thread below.

I think the countertop decision was probably the hardest for me. And it's so disappointing to think that if I was going to have to deal with scratches and stains that I could have just gotten beautiful soapstone instead of my "bullet proof" (sadly, not so far) granite.

To be clear, the hard rock maple is not a low maintenance choice, and we are preparing ourselves for the damage of life-especially water rings-esp. but I figure at least if the island looks really bad after a while we can just sand it out and start fresh (LOL.) (Of course, you can also sand down and reoil soapstone, too but not granite unfortunately!)

Here is a link that might be useful: thread on antiqued/leather granite stains

I did a small kitchen update in 2007. Now I am back to do a modest $ cost replacement of the cabinets, floor, countertops.

I have granite countertops and I am over it. Not because of maintenance/upkeep. I am over the "permanence". I feel like my new Venetian gold granite is outdated.

So, I am going to commit a cardinal sin...Formica. Not even the "HD" version, but plain, ol', plain ol' Formica with the 3 inch backsplash with a top mount sink.

You can go with the formicas that look like stone or quartz, their quite affordable, you can undermount your sink easily with them, if you find you like any of the granites look at the granite tiles, they are super cheap and give you a high end look for almost diy pricing, if you arent afraid to do it yourself but the undermount sinks are tricky with tile. I was going to suggest a butcher block, but someone beat me to it. These are all very affordable options, and none of them are so high in cost that you should feel bad about upgrading them later if you change your mind.

Below is a link to a kitchen with dark cabinets. You might like their cabinet and backsplash choice.

http://www.chattingatthesky.com/2009/03/16/dare-you-to-paint-your-cabinets-black/