How about paper countertops?

There are a myriad of choices out there for countertops. Granite. Marble. Plastic. Composite. Wood.

Paper countertops are very resistant to scratches and easy to maintain. They have a subtle color that is deep and rich. I would go with a color other than black since there is already so much harsh black and white in the room. Go with something natural with color.

Here is a link that might be useful: Richlite

Why don't you use a black tile with black grout? I know there is a "faux Paux" about tile in a kitchen, but it's the laundry room so the grout should not be an issue. We had black grout with grey tile years ago in an apartment and I loved it! It cleans easy, doesn't stain and the bonus is....it's affordable!

I'd go for a gray-black-white flecked laminate (since you say budget is a major issue)... something like Formica's Concrete Stone, Flint Crystall, Night Mist, Fogdust, Silverado, Smoke Quartzstone, etc. If you're brave, Charcoal Boomerang would be a great retro look with the checkerboard floor and black lockers, especially with a few red accents (perhaps cabinet knobs). To save money, you could use a wood edge painted black or white rather than a self edge treatment, or if you went with the retro look you can still get that cool ribbed metal edging, and if you're handy you can order the material in sheets and glue it down to your plywood substrate yourself. Patterned counters don't show the dings and scratches anywhere NEAR as much as solid-colored ones do.

Paper countertops are not a budget-friendly option. They are also pretty delicate.

If you have a laundry sink, I would not recommend tile. Grout around any area that gets wet frequently is yucky. It's the grout around my kitchen sink that gives me the worst trouble for my tile counters.

Many prefab granite counters are now more affordable than laminate (crazy, I know!). I believe the black granites are often available as prefabs.

Have you looked at the Wilsonart high-def laminates? I had a sample for a soapstone-looking laminate and it was sooo nice. Just a thought.

I think laminates are a great material for your application - it makes sense price wise and in terms of use. Sticking with a mottled color is probably going to show less wear and a wood edge is a really nice look but does add to the cost. We replaced our old wood kitchen table with laminate and used a wood edge.

Salvage/remnant/prefab granite are all avenues to consider. There's something about some prefab Chinese black granites, though -- ask on the kitchens forum -- that they're artificially colored or something? I'm not remembering clearly..but it's an avenue to explore both for possibilities and caveats. Honestly, though, I read that black granite is a pain to keep clean; there are many grey/mottled granites as well that wouldn't have the upkeep issues you'd be setting yourself up for with all black.

I have some salvage silestone in the laundry room, fabricated it myself--and a salvage granite slab top on a credenza, 18x60...I have also found salvage like-new concrete and lyptus butcher block counters, believe it or not. If you have a building salvage or HfH ReStore, I'd strongly suggest going there to see what they have.

Hello,

You need my countertop!! LOL!!! I have Wilsonarte Premium Laminate in Ebony Star. I love it and have not noticed any kind of scratching issues. It has a matte finish and always looks great. I am putting in a black/white floor in my sons bathroom and I want this laminate on his counter. I wish I would have thought of it when we built. Here it is:

and

Elaine

Hmm, when I was pricing out replacement counters for our previous house a wood edge was cheaper than the self edge! How interesting. The one we were looking at was a LOT plainer than dlm2000's, just a rectangular strip with a barely-eased edge. Although if it's a DIY project, the wood edging is cheap.

What material are you using for your checked floor?
I'd go with a laminate like Elaines or maybe use the black tile as your counter. Even non-ceramic tiles would work for a laundry room counter. You could even use 3/4 inch MDF sealed and painted black. We just made shelves for our laundry room in MDF. I did a faux wood look finish on them then polied them. It's super smooth and you could always have it laminated later.
~Becky

The October issue of Country Living has a pre-fab house with PaperStone counters. You can look at them on their website. The article is entitled Green Piece.

Thanks for all the replies!
We do have a HfH about 30 minutes away and they did have some prefab countertops just not in any color I cared for.

mom2sethc - I have the Ebony Star chip and that was my first choice. It's nice to know you haven't had any problems w/ scratches.

johnmari - I really like the Formica Silverado too.

justgotabme - The floor will be a sheet vinyl. I don't care for tile floors at all.

Laminate is definitely the way to go. Would it really get that scratched in a laundry room?

Here is a link that might be useful: Wilsonart Slate Laminate from Erwin House

Rust-Oleum recently came out with a paint made for countertops. Maybe you could do that until you decide what you want to do permanently.

Here is a link that might be useful: Rust-Oleum Countertop Paint

yes, I know a lot of people say they have problems with WHITE grout, but for a laundry counter, you don't need wide grout lines or small tile for that matter, it cleans well and as mentioned before, black does not stain. Also, I'm just going to through this out there, but just like any natural product that needs sealing, if the grout is sealed properly, it should not be an issue. Should is the key word here.

I have the Wilsonart laminate too (not sure it's Premium). A little lighter than Elaine's, Mystique Dusk. It's in a matte finish (60 finishes are matte) and it does not show scratches. I have it in my kitchen including the island and have blue (Mystique Marine) in the kids' bathroom. I had a matte finish laminate in my master bath in the last house for 9 years, we shopped around a lot and I was scratching samples with my ring - the matte hides it. We could have done quartz or granite in our new kitchen but with the kids, crayons, spills and splatters that I sometimes miss and discover the next day, I think the laminate holds up better. Maybe when the kids are grown I'll get quartz. My mom has Stonemark granite, polished. It supposedly doesn't need sealing, but after a year places are scratched where people have slid her stoneware dishes across the counter. HTH

ilovetn, How do I find the article? I went to the online magazine and put 'Green Piece' into their search box and nothing came up. Do you have a direct link to the article? I'd love to read more about paper counters.