Marble is more porous and susceptible to staining. I can understand the desire to go lighter in the bathroom. We too have dark granite in our kitchen and wanted something more fun upstairs. Granite, even the lighter stones is going to be the best option. Quartz is another good option but it can burn (think curling irons) where granite does not. IMHO, Sealing should really not factor into the equation, it takes 20 minutes to wipe the stuff onto the stone and buff it back off, and it's only needed once a year, if that, so what's the big deal?

That's simply a matter of choice. Marble is a traditional surface for pastry and candy making. The smooth, cool and heat resistant surface helps pasty doughs stay cool while handling, which keeps them from getting too soft, tearing, getting sticky, etc. The lower height is supposed to be more comfortable for most people to work with doughs. Most people think of marble as too fussy for a general kitchen surface and most stone yards and fabricators will tell you they won't put marble in a kitchen or they won't advise it. They will tell you it can stain, chip and will etch. Sounds bad, right? I have honed white marble counters and I raised them. The staining issues are far less than the light granites I tested -- no stains with a simple application of sealer. I did not try them unsealed. No chips, although my fabricator did suggest going with a pencil or eased edge -- sharper corners are easier to create a chip in. The marble does etch, but that simply means that acids will react with it to take the polished luster off it, so you start with it honed. The difference between honed and etched will not keep most folks up at night, but if you want everything "just so" you may want to stick to granite. I love my honed marble, but I will admit that I would not be happy with polished marble in a kitchen. But that's not the look I wanted -- I told everyone I wanted something that looked like an old ice cream shop or soda fountain counter. Search the threads for marble and counters and you should find any number of threads with posts telling you the same things. So go for the look you want for your counters. Granite will generally also be cool, so you have lots of options. Change that section surface and height if it fits the plan, is comfortable and you want to call attention to it. Honestly, you can work with anything other than tile - then you need a large wooden board or other slab. I did that for many years too.

While I really want marble for our kitchen, we have 2 small sons and I am worried they will mess it up. We have wavered back and forth whether to go for it, but dh saw a Corian counter, Rain Cloud, in IKEA the other day and fell in love. I would normally never pay more for a manmade product, but IKEA has a 40% off counters special this month if you buy your kitchen there, so that makes it also more affordable. Since I have made virtually every other choice (I ask for his input, but his usual response is "I don't care", which translates to "whatever makes you happy" but also "if there is a screw-up, it is not mine", not to mention "you choose because I don't want to do the legwork"), I think I will "give" him this one, lol. It has a softer/warmer feel than stone and makes less noise if you clink against it. I am not 100% convinced, but am getting close. I may have to contact the PA yard about the quartzite and get a price, because that is seriously pretty too..... We can do our full kitchen with the Corian, including upcharges and customizations, installed, for less than $2k. That is going to be hard to beat. Our kitchen is not small, btw... I also forgot that if I apply for an IKEA credit card when buying, I'll get an additional 10% off and have 0% financing for 24 months. Corian Rain Cloud:

Here are a few pictures of a bathroom i remodeled for a client with ming green. Let me know if you have any questions Evan Daniels www.DanielsRemodeling.Build