It's an absolutely beautiful sink and I would love to have it.

But it sounds like you would be unhappy. Any sink has to be sprayed or otherwise cleaned to be clean, but it sounds like you dislike how much the white shows crumbs and such? And you say you do not like the single bowl.

Seems like you would be happier with something else--gray double bowl siligranite (does that exist?)?

I'd take the high back in a heartbeat. I love it. But you'd have to love it if you think it might not function as well as something else.

Thank you crl_ the cast iron I have is a double bowl-one side very deep and the other maybe 10 or 12 inches deep. I am set on a double bowl so that is covered with the cast iron. The bottom of the cast iron is also more curved than my current Whitehaus so I think it will probably drain away the crumbs etc better.

I guess my issue is making a decision based on what I like to look at versus if it will function well which is why i'd love to hear from those that have a kitchen with an old sink.

I do love the high back sink. But I also love the way my farm sink looks (below) but in the end not how it functions or cleans up. I also love the way the soapstone looks but not how it functions or cleans up! (The bamboo sink is another thing altogether!) My husband is very "hard on equipment" so the next and final kitchen needs to be very durable. Going to go with quartz counters and a bit of butcher block on one run of cabinets (love my butcher block here-that is where I do all of my prep).

Also a wee bit concerned about resale as I sell RE or IF I wind up hating the big double bowl cast iron because the money I spent on the quartz will go out the window as I rip out a huge sink to install something else.....

Be still my heart. The kitchen in your original post has been my favorite for a while. Stunning. I hope you get some useful feedback from someone who uses a sink like that. Of course, in my imagination it's perfect.

I too LOve the kitchen in the OP. But it has crossed my mind that it probably wouldn't actually be that handy, much as I hate to admit it! The huge lip around the edge would be the dealbreaker for me:(

I love that sink and would use it in a heart beat!

It's a big decision, isn't it? I wonder if you could set up a mock-up to give you an idea if you'll like it. It might be some work but I think it would be worth it to give you the information you need. Could you set up a temporary counter somewhere, out of plywood or some discarded scraps of something, and run a hoses to it for water, and then actually use it? Yeah, it would be a hassle but I think it would be worth it in order to avoid making an expensive mistake.

I would kill for that sink especially in the house you described with the windows over a lake. For me, if it wasn't going to be my primary or only sink, I would be willing to sacrifice a little function for the form.

Slight hijack: My3Dogs you are reaffirming my deep love for FB. I'm supposed to drive to Denver to look at some leathered slabs. What has your experience been now that they're in use?

tigger, I just WISH I could get pics to turn out looking like it does to my eyes.

I LOVE it. I worked hard to stain, etch or damage the sample and couldn't. It's quite subtle, but has such DEPTH. It has tiny (again, subtle) random spots of glimmer in it. To me, it looks more like marble, and I'm certain that is due to the leathered finish. I know I wouldn't like it as much if it was a shiny finish.

Honed would also be nice, but I like this the best and leathered was recommended by the fabricator for this stone.

Having never seen a leathered finish before, it was a bit of a shock when the slab came in, but still it's not a finish you see often. I hope you report back after seeing them. I got brave and ordered mine from a photo on the supplier's website, to be shipped to my local stone yard/fabricator.

Thank you My3dogs (this is my first post here so I am not sure if you will know I am replying to you.....the last time I looked at GardenWeb it was not part of Houzz...)

I ADORE the Danby marble in my original post picture with the vintage sink. And I am not a 100% sold on Quartz/Quartzite but my concern is we have soapstone now and I am not pleased with it. A guest comes over and sets a casserole dish down and then pulls it out and it scratches. My "hard on equipment" husband unloads the dishwasher and drags a dish by the edge and it dings. I did like a white granite and thought it may be more durable than the soapstone but then researched the quartz or caesar stone and it seems bulletproof. The 'carrera" caesar stones look very marblesque. But I do love the look and feel of marble and so many on this forum have said it is NOT that hard to care for.

Another dilemma! I believe I will have my husband make me a ply wood counter as funkycamper suggests....to try out the sink. I also need to research the faucets and get the sink resurfaced if I do decide on it (and I think I will always be sad if I don't..)

I would not use a cast iron kitchen sink that needs to be resurfaced. The reviews on that for bathtubs are not great and I would not want to rely on it holding up well in the much harder use environment of a kitchen. I would only use a vintage cast iron sink if it was in good enough condition to use as is.

Really?-I have heard excellent reviews of those that are professionally refinished-not the do it yourself kit.

Try googling for threads in the bathroom forum here. This is one thread. The responses are very mixed, even for professional jobs, which is what I have always seen. I considered reglazing an original tub in our first house so I read every review I could find at the time. I would not want to put a unique sink with a high possibility of failure into new cabinets and countertop.

If I remember correctly, there's a lot of information about these kind of vintage sinks and refinishing over on the Retro Renovation Blog. Going from memory, I believe the consensus is that it's better to buy new than refinish old unless you have access to one of the very rare and talented refinishers.

Thank you benjesbride - the re glazer has done many tubs for a friend of mine who has renovated many historic homes. I am going to talk to him and see if I can get references for sinks. I think I will be disappointed if I don't use this sink. But the more I read -there are clips and rings and all kinds of things that I have not considered and it just may be too big of an issue. Unfortunately no one makes a reproduction sink like this

If you'd be willing to settle for a single bowl, Home Depot does have a couple of high back farm sinks available. Here is one of them: American Standard. If you have the space, maybe you could do 2 farm sinks side by side??? : ) An example of two farm sinks close to each other can be seen at the Enchanted Home Blog: Here, 3rd picture down on the page. (Easier for me to link than to paste.)