It has held up great! I have a couple scratches from kids cutting without cutting board and dent from someone dropping cast iron skillet. There is also a dull spot near sink. I see it but rest of my family doesn’t, I think because I know I said don’t let water sit overnight. Overall I would do it again. I still get compliments and people are shocked I did it myself.

Heatheron40, very nice. I asked a question about doing a tile countertop in our guest cabin recently as I feel like the look would complement the cabin aesthetic. Also I’m dying to learn to tile and thought it would be a fun place to start as it’s not an everyday space and I could take my time. Most of the responses were against. Basically stating the grout would make me crazy. The guy at the said what you’re saying I think, he said that modern grouts are more resistant to staining and such, and also to go with a tinted grout of some sort. I love your use of pattern to give it interest and intention!

Ok.. i kno thay im ab two y too l, but i have a relative personal expexperience to share! i am a single mom of 2 teens & after hurricane Florence hit our town, i got an SBA loan to make repairs & update a few things on my wish list. But after getting duped a couple of very shady ”contractors” i was left w/ out of $ & a house in shambles. Over the past 2 years, I have taught myself how to install lights, ceiling fans, ceramic & glass tile, plus drywall, mudding, caulking & painting in every room.. all 2,800 sq ft of it. Anyway, my house was all shades of poo when i bought it.. a reddish-brown pergo floor, dark brown, tan eggshell walls, dark brown cabinets & the UGLIEST brown & black faux granite-looking laminate. I’d planned on getting granite or quartz, but that was prior to being swindled out of almost $68,000! My budget on E, i did my research on an alternate solution & went w/ the Giani paint kit. However, i too read the reviews & knew the glitter topcoat wouldnt last in my house, so i bought a few boxes of epoxy resin & taught myself how to use that too cause i hadnt a clue! i had my issues along the way, ie: sticky batches, uneven application, kids touching it before dry, etc.. but i am happy w/ them. Now idk how realistic they actually look, but I had few people ask if id gotten new counters, & others reach out to touch them, not believing they werent “real”, but Epoxied over painted laminate. Gianis claim of it being “a wkend“ project is BULLSHH & I much perferr the outcome of my own application technique, over what their instructions offer.. but to each their own, right!? Sanded, then SCRUBBED COUNTERS CLEAN Giani White Diamond kit Glitter Topcoat Epoxy Resin, sand where necessary, clean, repeat.. i personally dont like a super high gloss, so i went over them w, an 800 grit sandpaperjust to tome ghat down a bit & i can still see the topcoat sparkling underneath. i also bought several nice trivets to guard against hot items , Blue & red will leave stain if let to sit ill try to post a few before/ after photos Original color palette Did the hallway built in too

I installed a birch wood countertop on my last home. I LOVE wood counters. I had also used Waterlox after reading so much about it but was not impressed. Around my undermount sink I put 12 coats of polyurethane. That seem to hold up well, but if I had to do it over again I would’ve installed a sink that went to my backsplash, and had a hole for my faucet. I have since moved and no longer have wood countertops, but I have a solid oak top for my island, I just oil it and I love it. Good luck with your project.