I looked at those and thought they were very bulky looking?? I was looking for decent priced, real leather (not bonded or otherwise) counter stools for weeks. Found these on overstock.com, I got them in black, tons of good reviews so I went for it. First set came in with a broken leg, but I reordered and the second set was fine. Leather is very nice, legs aren't the best, but for the price you can't beat them. The height is 26", little higher than what i would have liked, but we've eaten at the bar with them and it's fine. the backs come just above the counter, nice look. Read all the reviews and see what you think. I'm giving you a link to the brown, since that's what you have pictured. Oh, and they sell out frequently but seem to get them back quick enough. Someone on the kitchen forum got them too...but I can't remember who it was?? Good Luck! Here is a link that might be useful: counter stools

Here's ours, which still is not used as a desk, although we're getting closer now that the construction tools aren't here as much. I never thought it should be desk height, but DH did and he won. We have the swiveling t.v. over it so if HE wanted to, he could look at it from chair I think. We still have to decide on an appropriate chair. Currently we have a wastebasket and dog bowls under it. Cute, yes? Items jump from that lower surface to the upper one constantly. I had hoped that it would be a barrier, but it's not. In my thinking, we might as well have had entire surface flat. Cork board between cabinet and desk is now used less decoratively. It's a working message center. That's where calendar hangs, thank-you notes and such are posted and oddball coupons get put. Although there's a "pencil drawer" we keep a pencil mug on the desk. Cabinet above desk is 16 inches deep--allows notebooks for financial statements, phone books, etc. Top shelf is unrelated storage of party gear. A permanently mounted power strip at front of bottom shelf of this cab allows DH to put chargers in here and let cord dangle down so that the device is seen and not forgotten once it is charged. He can turn off power to all chargers with one switch. Lobby is to left of desk. I'm trying to put "things going elsewhere" into the shelves in the closet in lobby instead of on desk--lib. books, stuff for Mom's sr. residence, things going to friends, etc. Otherwise, they accumulate on desk. But that's fine with me--better there than in the rest of the kitchen where they used to cluster, esp on top of refrig. because that was by front door. Because the peninsula is right there next to the desk, I would rather spread out on that to do any work with pencil and paper, but then, I'm a person who needs special glasses to focus on arm's length stuff, so I suppose that little desk just looks like too much work--easier to stand and write at peninsula with my multifocus lenses and squint. I clear pencils and paper and calendar and address book off the peninsula at least twice a day and plunk them back on HIS desk. Computer will never be used at desk, I'm sure. (It moves between peninsula and dining table all the time.) Telephone holder lives on desk, at least for now. I'm hoping to get it wired into a place on wall closer to dining room, but until then, it's here. This cordless phone is another thing that hides throughout the kitchen and has to be put away on desk when I spy it. One benefit of this space: For parties, we can clean off the desk and bulletin board, put up a sign or something decorative like this framed piece, then put beverages here. Keeps traffic out of kitchen. Remember--this is Formica, so it's not going to mind.

ugh.... we are just at this point now and realized that our new counter/breakfast bar is 12' with the sink cutout dead center. My wife is stuck on an undermount and we really wanted granite... we will, of course, be getting a few fabricators to bid it. But is it feasible to do the seam with a cutout at the seam? The front edge of the sink seems a bit vulnerable to me. Also the current layout has the dishwasher adjacent to the sink and I guess we'd need to get the cabinet built with a support at the seam. If we can seam at the sink it would be small, just the length of the front setback (breakfast bar transitions to countertop there)... how well does the bullnose normally line up on a seam? Do they polish it on-site? Are we better off getting used to NOT granite? The 12' counter is not negotiable in our design.

Thanks so much for all the feedback. Honeychurch, your pictures are gorgeous! That makes me feel so much better about considering a bronze finish! breezy, GD, the Moon Night at my slab yard does read rustic to me and my DH. That's what we love about it - it looks like a big slab of gray ROCK, but close up you see the lovely swoops and almost marbles look of the surface. When I see it in kitchen pictures, I like it better paired with wood stain than white cabinets - maybe because with the white it does look too upscale modern, too stunning, but with the wood it looks more like plain stone - except not so plain, and naturally gorgeous. Marcolo was kind to post a picture of the faucet finish, but since several have asked to see my other choices, I will include the actual pulldown faucet I mentioned, which looks quite a bit darker to me than the bathroom faucet from that collection. I don't have my heart set yet on any one particular fixture or hardware, though. But, my home has mostly brownish-bronze fixtures throughout, both on the furniture (and DR sideboard) and outdoor lights. There are few silver finishes in or around the house. First, a gratuitous shot of Moon Night: This is the hutch that the cabinets will be made to match as closely as possible: Faucet: Possible pulls and knobs - the fixed D bar also comes in a drop-pull version by a different company, but essentially the same look. These all come in a variety of nice finishes such as copper, iron, and pewter.