I have polished Absolute Black and love it. However, my (former) 11 year olds are now 32 and 30, so fingerprints aren't really an issue for me. I think the honed AB would be beautiful. It's really whatever and whichever you like best.

It's all a matter of personal preference, but personally I prefer the look of natural stone. Of course, I don't find the look of Caesarstone as fake as Corian but then there are those that love Corian.

I'm not a fan of Caesarstone and definitely understand your son's reaction. Quite a few people in our (new) neighborhood have put it in... to me, it looks like it's trying to be something it's not and it reminds me a bit of Corian. However, if *you* like it, go for it! Friends of ours who were talked out of marble and installed a light Caesarstone found out that it does stain (they thought it didn't) after someone spilled red wine at a party.

Thanks for mentioning the potential staining issue ella.

I discovered this with corian in our masterbath. Yes, eventually with a lot of work, the stains will come out (or at least fade a lot) but they market this stuff as never staining.

I'm still considering caesarstone -- but I'll be getting a sample and testing it with red wine first. Red wine drips that sit unnoticed are a hazard around here.

I'm actually contemplating Misty Carrara, but I have to say that I too think real stone looks a million times better. For the dark stones I don't see any reason not to go real. Where I think quartz really shines is in the obviously non-real stuff: bright whites and vivid reds and blues in modern kitchen designs.

(I'm contemplating MC because I plan to be here till I'm too old to care about keeping up with the cleaning and in that situation I think that visitors will find it less awful than my way-past-patina marble would be. My mom towards the end of her life would have liked the whole world covered in formica and I'm getting to the age when I begin to see her point. :))

Have to say would much prefer AB granite to Caesarstone.

I seriously considered Caesarstone and sent for samples of several of the darker honed colors. I proceeded to test them and was disappointed to see how they scratched.

Nothing's perfect. But I think granite is more durable than Caesarstone.

I have AB...polished. As to dust, for me, it's not an issue as all our counters are wiped down daily when we do the dishes so there's very little dust build-up. We also find that we don't see much on the counter..even water spots aren't that noticeable; although others here say they see everything. Maybe it's b/c our AB has a light scattering of silver inclusions so it may help hide a little. I like the silver inclusions, btw. (I originally had picked a "Diamond Black" granite that had even more silver inclusions; but when we were ready to buy the quarry had run out of it! AB was our second choice...and it was a long search to find a true black AB at the time since most AB quarries were producing gray stones. This was spring 2008.)

Comparing the dust from a stoneyard to what you see in a home is not fair. First, stoneyards are dusty...if nothing else, the stone dust from from all those slabs as well as from the outside (bringing slabs in, customers & employees going in & out). If they fabricate at the same site then it will be even worse. Regardless, when was the last time you saw someone go through & dust & vacuum the yard as well as wipe down the slabs?

As to honed, in the past there have been a lot of complaints about it, but I think that has changed with new ways of treating it. Kevin of AZ Stone Consulting has a recent post about this....I'll try to find it and post it here.

One thing, the honed I saw when I was stone shopping was a dark gray rather than black...one of the reasons I eliminated honed early on. However, I think that has also changed by using an enhancer (?). I really need to find that post from Kevin!

Here it is!!!

Here is a link that might be useful: Thread: Questions for folks with black granite countertops

Looks like fake what, though? Like fake granite? Is it supposed to look like granite or is it supposed to just be Caesarstone?

My late Corian didn't look fake. There was no way you could think someone had been imitating anything natural...it very definitely was what it was and made no pretenses of being anything but pink Corian. Think of Caesarstone like that. But, yeah, some of the quartzes do look like stone wannabes. I don't really approve of those if one wants stone.

Anyway, AB is a good-looking granite. It's used a lot and has a good track record. It's popular because it always looks good. If you like it better, go for it! But if you like the Raven, tell your kid he can pick the counter in HIS kitchen some day. :)

I am a granite fan. I love the feel of it and I especially love the irregular patterns. I don't care for any of the synthetic stones. The patterns are just too uniform for my taste. Although the manufactures try hard, they just cannot duplicate the look of natural stone. Have to agree with your son....most synthetic stones do look fake in my opinion. But still a HUGE step up from Corian.

Hi fleur222 - I have Raven Caesarstone (polished) and might have the kitchen you are talking about. I just took a very critical look at my perimeter counters and still have to say I love them. As you've probably read elsewhere, my Danby Marble island counters, while beautiful when installed and beautiful in all pictures I take of them, are seriously etched and look "dirty" like they need wiping. Everything etches them. I'm used to it and it doesn't upset me and I still probably would get the same marble today, I'd just have it honed so the inevitable etching doesn't show as much (we're actually going to hone it later this year).

I could have purchased granite instead of the Raven and strongly considerred absolute black. A friend has "leathered" AB and it looks nice, but it is pretty bumpy. I absolutely prefer my Raven to her counters, but mainly bc I prefer dark gray to black with my white kitchen. I think it is softer.

I originally wanted Pietra de Cardosa, a schist stone, and became convinced that it was more of a PIA to maintain than marble. It is soft, chips & etches easily and even with sealing, gets "stained" by oils.

I checked out soapstone for the longest time, but I didn't want green and I thought the grayer ones looked too boring and like my science lab from high school. (personal preference, don't mean to offend any stoners out there!)

I chose and love Ceasarstone in my laundry room, my son's bathroom and as a bartop in our rec. room and we love those too. My daughter's bath has pale blue Silestone in it and my basement bath has a unique blue Zodiac in it. There is no question that I am a fan of these quartz products.

I don't pretend that my quart products look like granite, but I bet most people can't tell. I've had people fall in love with my kitchen counters and ask what kind of stone it was and I tell them it's Caesarstone with pride.

I don't think my counters look a bit like Corian. To me, Corian is closer to a molded plastic and I really dislike it. There may be quartz products that look like Corian, but not even my daughter's obviously-not-natural-stone pale blue counters look like Corian.

Here's a shot of another section of my counter if that is helpful to anyone.

I never considered a black granite (although DH liked it) because, I'll admit, I'm not that good a housekeeper. Well, I'm good at picking up after myself, but I live with a DH that doesn't pick up after himself and I have two white cats who definitely don't pick up after themselves.

You have to choose what is right for YOU. I have Caesarstone in a bathroom and everyone thinks it's limestone. I don't care if they do or not, I like how it looks. Pick what you like and what works for your lifestyle. I love the Raven, btw.

Hi -
If you are considering AB Honed, make sure you read a lot about it. I know Buehl included the link about some of the issues. If you do a search, then you can get more information.

I understand how hard it is to make a counter decision. I'm 2 months and counting going all over the place with my decision.

I do think the Raven looks beautiful in Smarge's kitchen. The granite yards also stock a lot of brushed and leathered finishes in black. I'm in the process of considering those as well.

Good luck!

I don't think I'd be quite so concerned about what an 11 year old thinks. Fake? What exactly does "real" Caesarstone look like?

I love caesarstone and just had my countertops templated (yay!) for an installation of quartz reflections, which have bits of recycled quartz in it, including little mirror bits. It's white (with a bit of a green tinge from the little bits).

None of the caesarstones look fake, IMO, because none of them try to be stone. The marble one doesn't really even try to imitate marble, and most of them are either super-smooth or are in some sort of pattern of quartz and recycled quartz that looks nothing like real stone (it isn't trying to look like it).

I don't think it's fair to compare honed caesarstone's durability to stone because the honed cs is known to be much less durable than the regular stuff. I tried to stain my white sample and nothing (absolutely nothing) could hurt it. Very different from marble!

I know most folks here have traditional kitchens. But for a modern kitchen I think quartz looks better than granite or marble (YMMV!). Even in a more traditional space like the one above I think quartz looks great, very smooth and soothing and modern.

Man, kids just say what they think, don't they? My daughter told me what she thought of my new bathing suit the other day. Oh. Maybe I'll take her shopping with me next time so I don't make the same mistake.

But about countertop, I think Raven looks nice in pictures, though I've never seen it in person. I like the looks of the black granites, too. Real? Fake? I don't know, sometimes shiny polished granite, the speckly kind, looks sort of fake to me.

Meanwhile, I'd be thrilled to have someone in my house actually care about the countertop!!

Yes, my boys are opinionated. I tried on jeans once with 2 boys in a stroller. One was 3yo and the other newborn. My 3 yo asked me if I could breathe! Needless to say, I left the dressing room and decided I wasn't quite ready for jeans. Oh, it is great to focus on the children instead of this kitchen!
I think what happened yesterday, is that my spunky 11 year old had hoped for granite. When I showed him the ceasarstone, it did not look like granite to him, thus the "fake" comment. He later expressed very considerately that he thought I should choose what I liked. His comment got me thinking though for several reasons. One, ceasarstone is not less expensive than granite. Two, I had not seen a large section of the stone in person. And three, though I will choose what I want, I do like to know what my family likes also.
Smarge, it was your kitchen that I loved with the Raven. It is so elegant and like you said the grey is softer than the black. I also looked at "black" soapstone and was shown pietra cordosa and advised against it. Thanks again for posting pictures. Even your use of mosiacs caught my attention,(they are stunning) because my original inspiration was to possibly do a backsplash or mosaic over my stove with the colors of seaglass that I collect. I can see the pattern of the ceasarstone and find it pleasing in your pictures. I guess I am truely panicking over this choice.
I hope the title of the post about the fake has not offended anyone. If I had felt solid about my choice, then my son's comment would not have fazed me. I simply would have told him that I love it and that it doesn't have to be granite to be beautiful.
It has helped me to get your responses though because I think I am close to this decision and a little extra information just might help me to tip the scale one way or another. Thanks!

Thanks Buehl for the link. I read it. Good to weigh the pros and cons. Hope I can decide and feel assured of my decision today!

Hi Fleur222,

I have to say I am impressed with your son's observations.
No, not the texture or look but that he even noticed.
He sounds like a young Christopher Peacock kitchen guru.
My son walked into my kitchen one day three months after I
painted and said. "Did you paint the cabinets?"
Mind you, I took all the uppers down and had them in the
garage 1 month while I painted. What was he thinking? Duh?
My son is just like my DH, I pity the girl who will wind
up my DIL one day. : )

My best friend put in Ceasarstone in her kitchen. And it
looks wonderful. Her dh, and son voted for granite
but she really wanted Ceasarstone. She has parties and on
those late nights leaves stuff out until morning. She
wanted a counter she could leave anything on and not think
about it. Like her old formica. I love her cesarstone. It
does not look like granite but it does not look fake either
it looks beautiful with it's speckled stone and it makes
her happy.

Oh, and I love how if you spill crumbs on her counter
you don't notice. It makes dirt look clean.

Happy choosing.
~boxerpups

"...ceasarstone is not less expensive than granite..."

It is considerably less expensive than many granite. I paid $80 sf several years ago, but at the time that was a mid-ranged granite price. In fact, with the recession, prices may have come down again.

>"...ceasarstone is not less expensive than granite..."

Where I am, it is currently more than any but the most expensive exotic granites. I think the pricing must vary widely from place to place. Granite prices around here are very, very low, but Caesarstone/silestone have hardly budged.

We went through all the questions of marble or granite in the kitchen. We visited maybe 20+ slab yards. Yes, marble is way beautiful and we were willing to care for it, but when it came to visiting family/guests, we didn't want to be the countertop police avoiding scratches and chips. We looked for some nice lighter granites, and I took home some samples. I also took home a small sample of Caesarstone. When it got dusk outside, the "white" granites looked dull, while the Caesarstone mad almost a transluscent glow. I tested it with razor blades - the Caesarstone didn't scratch. It didn't stain either from red wine or saffron liquid.

Now, the Caesarstone does not having the fabulous veining of marble or the earthy grain of granite, but they do have properties that can be featured visually. The stone we got had quartz crystals embedded, so we featured it with glass and steel appliances. The whiteness matched our painted cabinets. It made for a bright, beach/ocean-themed kitchen.

I'll attach a few images

Sorry - here is link 1

Here is a link that might be useful: Kitchen countertop 1

There's a new Ceasarstone called Basalt Black that looks pretty good.
I am not generally a solid surface fan, but this stuff looks more like real rock than anything I've seen before.

Here is a link that might be useful: http://www.caesarstoneus.com/catalog/product.cfm?ProductID=134

And the 3rd link - this one is a slideshow of about 8 images - you get to see what a Caesastone kitchen (white "Nougat") can look like. Kitchen was recently update, replacing mid-80's tile with quartz Caesarstone. We could not get this look with a granite.

Here is a link that might be useful: Slideshow of Caesarstone kitchen

Well, Ceasarstone is fake, but it's well done fake stone. It makes beautiful countertops. But so does granite. The absolute black will look beautiful.

I found, during my kitchen remodel, that after looking at many choices for all my kitchen decisions, I always came back to "one choice" that I liked the best. I've lived long enough to trust that, and I know that if I find something that makes me "uncomfortable" it will probably grow and grow over time and eventually make me regret a decision.

When my DH and I were planning our renovation.
We were going for CeasarStone. We assumed it
was cheaper and it also seemed more practical.
When we were ready to decide we were shocked at
how much more expensive it was. $100 per sq ft
( I think this included an undermount sink)
and we paid less than 70 per sq ft. Our granite
is not an expensive stone. Jet Mist.

I am pleased we got granite but CeasarStone is
a lovely choice too.

I dunno about the granite vs. quartz thing. I love how granite looks - and I understand that some granites (generally the darker ones) are fairly care-free. OTOH, I've heard of people having dark granites that were *supposed* to be care-free, and yet having problems with etching or stains when they put down a glass of wine. I am *not* one to go running after every spill right away, so I really wanted something bullet-proof.

Which brought me to quartz. Now, it was a pain and a half finding a quartz that I liked. I was hampered by the fact that I wanted something that looked "natural", like granite. Most quartzes do not look like "natural" stone (though I do think they look and feel like stone - the comparisons here to Corian totally confuse me). There are the really crazy colors that clearly aren't natural (I really like Caesarstone's apple green color!). There are the very light-colored ones that look like a stone version of some old-fashioned formica. There were a lot of them where the pattern seemed "painted-on" - no depth or translucency - basically, no "life".

I looked at a lot of different brands (Silestone, Caesarstone, Cambria, and Zodiaq). Some of the Zodiaq colors seemed the most natural to me, and I fell in love with Zodiaq Smokey Topaz. It's a dark brown with large specs of white, eggplant, and other colors. The quartz particles are translucent and give me the "granite feel" I wanted. Crumbs are invisible, and I have to wipe it down on a regular basis just because I can't see when it's dirty! I've definitely had spills sit overnight (or longer), and then wipe up like a charm. And it looks beautiful. My own little gemstone of a countertop. :-)

Which isn't to say that quartz is better than granite, or vice versa - just that I think it was a good choice for me. If you're going for one of those granites with a lot of movement and irregularity, you won't find it in quartz. But if you like something more regular, take a look. And look at different brands - not all quartz looks the same.

Today I went through an older file of kitchen inspirations. There was one picture of wood cabinets with granite countertop and the rest were white or cream cabinets with MARBLE. Granite is like the wood v/s white cabinets for me. Yes, I see many that I think are beautiful, but marble is more me. One characteristic of marble that I like is that it is light. I think my next step is to see how the Danby marble compares in price and at the same time look at the light quartz. I think for me, I prefer light over dark, and a quiet look over a busy pattern, even if it means a partly manufactured surface over a real stone.
It set me back a moment to hear my son have such a strong preference for a real stone. Kind of funny to me really. All of my boys preferred the black as a contrast to the white cabinets. So, maybe I can wow them with a colorful backsplash!

I, too, prefer light over dark and quiet over busy. That's why I chose quartz, as there are no light, quiet granites. I have it narrowed down to a Caesarstone and a Silestone.

Did you just totally change your mind and decide to go light because of your inspiration images?

Guess I hadn't really figured out exactly what suited me until I started looking. I thought I would go to a granite yard or two and I would find a stone that I just loved. What I found was the granite has many warm earthy tones, much movement, and many are dark. What I tend to like are white, cream, grey, and blue colors.
There are many white kitchens with darker countertops and though I think they are beautiful, I thought grey would be nice. Then it went from grey to black and back again to marble. I like the marble, but wonder if it is right for this kitchen. Still pondering my choices.

Those of you with CS and other quartz counters... how careful are you with hot pots? I see that the websites say no hot pots and this sort of surprised me.

Everyone is talking about needing carefree stones and they seem to mean spills. I'm used to my tile counters where I can take the 500 degree pizza stone out and plop it on the island. I'm about to tackle a kitchen remodel and will need to do something other than tile just because we'll be putting our house on the market and I'll have to think resale. I could handle getting out a trivet for the really really hot stuff, but if I couldn't put regular old casseroles from the oven on the counter then I think I need to keep looking.

Any advice?

We put regular hot stuff from the oven on the countertop - it's fine. Anything around 400-500F and bulky (like a cast iron skillet or hot copper pot/pan), I try to put trivets or something down. Actually, I'm more worried about the countertop damaging/marking some of my nice copper pans at that temperature.

-DH of gracesantacruz

Only in america would someone about to spend (presumably) thousands of dollars give a hoot what an 11 year old child thinks of the purchase.

It just shows that American kids develop good taste at an early age :-)

The final decision will be mine. And as I wrote in earlier post, I was not really settled with my decision or I would not have let his comment faze me. Trying to rush to decide has been my problem all along. I am sure that I will find something that will suit me, and then I know that my family will be fine with it. I do care about what they like as well, though, as a consideration in my choice. I am happy that my son has preferences and voices them. Now back to the kitchen...

fleur222 - one more thing you might consider. Someone posted a thread recently that I just noticed near the top of the Kitchens section today. She seems to have experienced ETCHING on her AB granite counters!

Given the amount of etching I've experienced on my marble counters, I can confidently say that Caesarstone does not etch - at least the polished version hasn't in my house!

Good luck to you!

(and thanks for the compliments again!)

I think Smarge's pics above look like Corian. That's not a bad thing in my opinion, but in no way does it look like a natural stone to me in those pics. Still looks nice though.

I love Ceaserstone! And fake, well it is a manufactured material. I just hope I can afford it when the time comes.

I promise caesarstone and corian do not look alike. I've working in kitchens with both-- caesarstone has a lot of quartz and it shows. Corian is much more matter, and scratches more easily.

This "quartz is fake" argument is a little too simplistic, IMO. The quartz products have a lot of quartz (93 percent) in them, and quartz is natural. The stone (granite, marble) we get to put in our kitchens has been mega-processed before it gets there. Many stone yards fill in their stones with resins and such and the "sealing" everyone does on both marble and granite is some sort of polymer that binds the stone just like the quartz counters have. The exception is soapstone, which usually is just oiled. That's why it looks a lot more natural, I think, and why it is so much harder to maintain. At Home Depot they have "natural" stone that to my eye looks utterly plastic-- they processed it so much with the "sealers" that it's uber-shiny. I can't remember the brand.

Smarge, AB does not etch. If you check the thread, you'll see that either the OP has unneeded sealer on the counters or the counters are dyed to look like AB. I have AB and nothing has etched it yet and we are not careful!

good to know, buehl; I saw the post before many others had posted and was very surprised that granite would etch, but that is sure what it looked like from the picture! I was really feeling bad for her, but if the trouble is sealer, I guess it could be removed somehow, right?

melrosegirl, regardless of what it looks like in the picture, my counters don't look like Corian in person. I really dislike Corian which to me looks like plastic.

When did absolute imperviousness to everything become a criteria for countertop materials? :)

In past threads I have read things like "I am so upset, my countertop chipped and DH only hit it once with a hammer." ..."It cracked when we stood on the edge of it". It scorched when we set the broiler pan on it"... "It stained when I left tomato sauce on it overnight"
Perhaps I exaggerate but only slightly.

These materials are not kryptonite and none of them are perfect. Many quartz patterns don't Try to look like anything in particular, Corian has never made claims not to look plasticky...formica is resin embedded paper...and IMO the best examples of all of them don't try to look like anything else, they All have their place, and IMO even natural stone has cheap-looking, ugly examples--as do all materials.

If you're accustomed to and expecting to see the movement and natural variations in granite, then Silestone/CS might look fake to you. For my kitchen I knew I wanted a quiet stone, and when I was planning to do dark tops on white cabinets I seriously considered Ravenstone. I saw it installed and thought it was beautiful, not plasticky, and not fake because I wasn't looking for a granite substitute.

In the end, I went with white countertops instead of dark. Like writersblock, quartz is more expensive than most granites here, and I ended up saving a lot of money by going with Carrera. However, if I had thought that the etching would bother me and had been able to stretch my budget, I probably would have chosen one of the light-colored Zodiaqs. I think they're gorgeous.

Good luck with your decision, fleur! I totally can sympathize on how hard it is to decide. At one point my indecision on countertops brought my project to a standstill, much to the frustration of DH and the GC.

Erika

OK, I had to laugh when I read this because, my then 12 year old objected to the ceasarstone that I had picked out for her bathroom. She thought it was dull! We looked at the ceasarstone samples together and she picked out the white nougat instead- now I thought it looked fake, but I went with her choice partly because I was so tired of making decisions. It looks great, bright and fresh; I smile everytime I walk in her bathroom. She also picked her tile for the shower from my pre approved choices and did a good job! The ceasarsone looks a bit more modern and "clean" compared to my kitchen which has calacatta marble on the island, and riverwash seafoam granite on the perimeter. I love it all!!!

My crazy deadline of trying to finish this remodel by the end of July was really stressing me out. Yesterday morning, I decided that I would choose some color of Ceasarstone. I simply had not seen a granite that went along with my vision or that I just loved. I learned that some marbles probably were in my price range, but for a couple of other reasons, didn't seem to be the right choice. I was on a mission to choose a Ceasarstone and had my mind made up. Since my DH was home for the day, I engaged him and said that WE were going to choose TODAY. I took some backsplash samples and we found one that we both liked, brought it home and the boys liked it too. I am happy because I think it will be an easy surface to maintain, it is light and that works for my smaller kitchen. (and I don't have undercab. lighting) My sister said it reminded her of our grandmother's old formica tabletop. (Which was red and we have happy memories of it), but I am going to own this decision (and try not to re-think it), but mostly, embrace any of its "fakeness!"
We chose Ceasarstone Nougat. I came back today and see that it is the same as gracesantacruz! We also have a beachy feel to our home and my seaglass collection was my original backsplash inspiration.
I just want to say thanks again for sharing your pictures and for the comments and encouragement (erikanh)
As another comment on this thread, the fabricator said that 3 years ago they did a very small portion of quartz countertops, but these days it is about 50% of their work. Also, I ran across this article about a kitchen of the year to be displayed in New York this summer with Raven Ceasarstone countertop.
http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/Caesarstone-1011570.html
I think the Raven has an elegant look.

fleur, congratulations on finalizing your countertop decision! Isn't that such a weight off your shoulders? Everyone that I know who has quartz in their kitchen is thrilled with it. I can't wait to see it installed in your new kitchen!

Now on to the next 3,532 decisions!

Erika

Hey great decision - Doesn't it feel good to have a concrete decision? I think you will like the nougat especially with the beachglass feel. I think it is funny that you went from black to white. Your kitchen will have a whole different feel. I'm sure you will be happy as it will be so light.

Just a note though, I believe the ceasarstone only comes 2cm. Many fabricators then glue? a front piece on to achieve the look of 3cm, (like many granites). We did the bathrooms in 2cm without any extra edging so that the edge is 2cm with an eased edge. I really like it as it is fresh and not overdone. Talk with your fabricator and cabinet person to pick which approach you want. Otherwise I'm sure they will try to create a 3cm look. We had to push for the 2cm but I really like it as they were so used to creating the deep edge.

Yes, there is definite relief in making decisions.
lucypwd, Yes, I was all over the place with my choices, but we are in the home stretch now. Thanks for the info about the edge. Since I am not trying to make the countertop look like granite, and my house can take a little more modern look, I will ask for the 2cm edge. I was also planning for the eased edge. Good to know!