Thank you everyone for your thoughtful responses, and I'm sorry it's taken me so long to get back to you! First of all I want to say that I'm not sure, but it seems a few of you may have the idea that my kitchen/house is from the 1930's but it's 1913. I may have misunderstood your comments but someone may have confused 1913 for 1931 - not sure! ;) Thank you for the link! Prill - yes I'm considering soapstone as I *think* my first choice as far as something dark grey/black goes. Thanks! rjr220, artemis78 and the others, YUP I totally hear you about starting w/ needing just a dishwasher. Ha! First it was dishwasher, then it was oops we need a new electrical service/box, then it was well since they're tearing up the drawers and half a cupboard to install the sink, we might as well FINALLY give ourselves the excuse to replace the god-awful countertop...and we can't put in something nice and then just leave in the god-awful backsplash (which needs new outlets put in anyway)...and so it goes! rjr220: I've always loved hexagonal tile. My parents' bathroom had it and our current upstairs bathroom has it too (with the occasional blue one thrown in). Are you sure that would be appropriate for a kitchen countertop of 1913? I thought those were seen more in the '20's? It's tempting, and I've seen how tight they are - at least the original ones - but still, I think I want to avoid so much white on the countertop. That said, you've got me intrigued so darn you - I might have to do some googling for nice examples. Feel free to share pics! Cute little kids are a bonus! :) Oh and btw, I live in the NW - not the NE. bmorepanic - thanks for the info on metal. From some googling I see that there was some metal used at that time but not usually stainless steel itself quite yet, as it was invented the same year. Still, in the metal family...not too bad a stretch it would seem. Caesarstone is indeed one of the materials I've considered because - while it looks less natural to me - their dark grey color is perfect. Not too close to black, and not as light as unoiled soapstone. What I'm wondering now is what the price is - or how much less it is than things like honed granite, soapstone and stainless steel. The reason I ask is that it would be great if it were significantly less, cause I've fallen in love with some VERY EXPENSIVE subway tile and could only pull off getting it if I downgraded in the countertop material. I would never have considered slate, but now from googling I see there are some very nice, not necessarily modern looking options there! Thank you. As for your comment that my kitchen is nice?! Really?? Are you sure? I think it's pretty horrid! I mean there is definitely some charm there, from the original things still being in place...but the wood floor is pretty badly damaged and probably can't take another sand, and the lower cabinets aren't original and are just plain...the drawers are awful (one won't even close) and the countertop/backsplash is painful. Oddly, very oddly, I'm feeling a sense of loss over getting rid of the warm tone of the backsplash. I'm fighting the white thing because of all the other whites around. The backsplash I can't really afford but love is actually a similar color but more muted and beige than pinkish. But there is a hint of peach or pink, and they are 2x6 tiles which is the way the kitchen's subway tile would have been. I just don't think it would have been anything but white, unfortunately. I don't mind going off the beaten path but if I ever want to get my home registered on the historic list, I wonder if they'd accept a colored backsplash (?). As for the lower cupboards, I'm assuming that originally the kitchen had wooden counters on lets with curtains or something like that. I think the reason they put only new lower ones in and not upper is cause the upper ones are original (at least I'm guessing they are - I should show you the West wall which is ALL cupboards including an ironing board cupboard and spice cupboard. On that wall they are very big and fat and deep - but they all have the same solid wood faces w/ same molding. I do like how the upper cupboards go all the way up to the ceiling. I love your sink cab idea, thank you! I like the look right now of lower cupboards being a darker color than the upper ones. So I could always just paint the lower ones something interesting...maybe a farmhouse kitchen green type color? Or someday if more money comes in, I'd of course love to replace them with something like real wood with the proper furniture-style legs for the period. Circuspeanut - when you suggested colorful tile for the backsplash, did you think the house was from the '30's? It seems people here were assuming that which is why I ask; I don't think they did that back in 1913. That said, I'd love to see pics if you have any examples. Thanks for the positive feedback about stainless steel, and no I wouldn't do a shiny surface for the countertop! ;) cheril27 - you love my kitchen too? What's going on here??! :) I appreciate your comment about soapstone turning a charcoal color after some neglect. I REALLY don't want black, and I REALLY don't like the lightness of the unoiled soapstone. And hey - I'm really, really good at neglect - haha. lazygardens - I just don't think I have it in me to do too much white/light, but that may also be cause i have a history of being unadventurous and I want to try something different. I'll be doing splashes of color regardless, as I've always loved that look in a kitchen (as long as not over the top silly). That's basically all my kitchen is now (a bunch of white), with the exception of the horrid pink backsplash. And already it feels too white. But I see your point about how kitchens were back then. Except that I've seen a LOT of 1913 homes w/ original wood countertops which are pretty dark. Also, our kitchen is small and dark and I'm in the camp of going with dark when in dark and wowing with light when in brightness (sunlight). To a point, that is. Thank you for your suggestions! honeychurch - your kitchen sounds beautiful! I have to see pics! As for having light colored wall paint, which I currently have, I think I'm going to get a little weird this time and do either bright or dark paint on the walls! That's because there is very little wall space, and also cause with all the light on the cupboards it needs more contrast. There is no molding to separate the walls from the ceiling, and I was pleasantly surprised by how nice it looked to paint right onto the ceiling the same color as the walls. Sometimes that works in a house and sometimes it doesn't, but in ours, it offered a cozy cave feeling while also feeling less cluttered somehow, if that makes sense. Or just...I'm not great at describing things here but it gave a feeling of continuity (?). farmhousebound - I'm having a hard time doing searches on this website but i"ll try again in a bit here. I want to see your pics! I agree that one should just do what one wants. I struggle with wanting to impress others since I've always had awful, outdated kitchens (!) but also, if the home becomes historic (registered), I'm sure there will be a few rules. In the end I'm sure I'll go with my gut and happiness over the historic home thing, if they put too many rules on me! sweeby - charming kitchen! Again, 1913 though - not the '30's. I would love to do wood, but between the upkeep and the fact that when looking from the dining room you see the room-length dining room real-wood buffet which leads straight into the kitchen's countertop... It's almost like one really long countertop that starts in the dining room and ends at the far end of the kitchen! So too much wood is maybe not a bad thing but...I don't know if the color would need to match or would need to be in great contrast in order to be gotten away with! Allison 0704 - That link was great, thanks! I like the cottage look best, much to my surprise. Either that or it just reminds me of my grandmother's house (also 1913). Her house was/is a 9-bedroom farmhouse and was big. The kitchen was huge and yet was totally cottage style, it seemed. I thought I liked the Shaws sink - and I do - but the sink in the cottage pic from your link is very nice. Also, I have two windows just above my sink that look just like those windows. Holligator - thank you for the encouraging words about soapstone! Artemis78 - I very much relate to everything you wrote. I want a period kitchen with a hint of eclecticism and my own style. Thanks again everyone! More questions to come but for now I need to go to SLEEP as it's 2:24 a.m. here! p.s. is there no way to respond to each individual more easily having to go back and forth so much? Not "quote" option to respond to?

It may be that the person installing the counters is worried about a good tight fit against all the walls where counters will run. If your walls are not flat and straight, the installers can cover a pretty good sized gap with that thick strip of countertop material laid a few inches up the wall ( the older style installations). But with good modern templating, you should expect a good fit even if your walls are a little bit off, then the tile can come right down to the counter and still meet with a small caulk joint at the change of plane. Perhaps you can ask them if they're worried about uneven walls, or you can take a yardstick to them yourself to see how they look. If it were my kitchen I'd certainly want the newer style installation.

@Beth H. - thank you for your comments. I don't think we want to have dark counter tops. The kitchen is open to our family room. The minimal wall space in the kitchen will be painted a light blue color, as will the walls in the family room. We were thinking about: a) white cabinets and island b) the Calacatta gold marble 3" x 6" tiles for the back splash c) light(ish) counter tops on the perimeter and island (perhaps with some grey coming through d) medium brown hardwood floors We thought about using walnut for the island surface, but decided against it due to maintenance issues. If we didn't want to have dark counter tops, are there any other options? Thanks!

Thank you everyone who responded so far. I really appreciate it. I would really appreciate If anyone can also share some good subway tile examples that may go well in my kitchen. Also, I was thinking about getting a single quartz stone just to avoid the too many grout lines (May be white with some brown/grey vein). Do you think it will look good?