Thank you, Kathryn P! The appliances will be stainless (I know, the rendering makes it kind of hard to tell), and the farmhouse sink will be white.

Over the years, I've come to realize that kitchens tend to be a bit "choppy" unless they are VERY large. They also have a LOT going on in them in terms of various surfaces, styles etc. I've found that I"m happiest when it is all understated and harmonious - kind of blends together. The room always feels bigger and airier that way, and it becomes a more serene place. Serenity in the kitchen is a good thing!

You can use either, but I think I favor the London Sky. I think your kitchen is going to be gorgeous!

It's not obvious from the small samples but i think that the veining is far more dramatic/pronounced in the silestone and more subtle in the london sky. I personally like it more subtle in fake/engineered stone and would go with london sky myself, but splitting hairs and I think both will be nice.

With stainless appliances, I'd stick with the London Sky. I like the warmth!

I know you're here for finishes advice, but your layout has room for improvement. If you'd like help with that, please post a 2d drawing. You can also start here: http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/4306041/m=3/new-to-kitchens-read-me-first#addAnswer

You guys are so wonderful. I love this site because everyone really takes the time to answer so thoughtfully and generously. Thank you!

benjesbride Thanks so much- we have a very strange layout (part of the kitchen is actually in a hallway), and unfortunately, after months of reworking the layout and exhausting all options, this one made the most use of the space. Another bummer, we have a concrete subfloor and neighbors underneath, so moving plumbing is not an option. Because of the way the place is laid out, we are unable to knock down or move any walls. All we were able to do was move the appliances around, which we did. Believe me, this is a VAST improvement from what is there now. Also, we've just ordered the cabinets, so it's kind of a done deal :) But thank you!!

Have you seen Katrina's kitchen reveal? http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/4212346/reveal-before-and-after-nyc-kitchen-basically-done

She had similar restrictions being in a NYC apartment/coop. She came here thinking she had a finished design and that all ideas been considered. Almost 300 comments later she had an amazing solution for her space http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/3490660/i-think-my-kitchen-design-is-finished-any-suggestions

We love layout puzzles around here and I'm continually amazed at the creative ideas people come up with that I would never think of. Personally, I wouldn't call it a done deal yet if it were my kitchen.

benjesbride AHHHH!! I wish I had known this a few weeks ago! We've already ordered the cabinets... Noooooo! I guess it doesn't hurt to post and see what happens, but what if I LOOOOVE it, and then have to pay a huge amount of money to alter the cabinet order? hmmm. Tempting.

ETA: Holy Canoli- benjesbride, you and the other people on that thread are so talented/amazing! I am SO tempted to post a drawing and see what you come up with. We've only just ordered the cabinets last week, but I know if I made a lot of changes, it would hit me hard in the pocketbook.

The one on the left. Gorgeous.

LVasquez, I think you should start a new thread and repost. You can even use Katrinas headline: kit design finished any suggestions or something like that. I say this because the headline will let the design gurus know you're looking for layout, not cosmetic, input.

ETA: be sure you mention the restrictions you're working with.

barncatz I will, thank you!

EDIT: Done! :)

Cancel that order! You can do SO much better. With the layout, and with the choice of cabinets. I'd never order Chinese sourced cabinets and then put Quartz on top of them.

GreenDesigns Youch- that was a little harsh. We had a number of designers take a crack at the layout before settling on this one, and because of the restrictions, this really was the best use of the awkward space. (Although I did start a thread to see if anyone here could come up with anything better.)

I'm curious- why is quartz a problem on these cabinets? One of the reasons I chose Cliq was that it had great reviews right here on houzz.

Just wanted to thank everyone again! I think we finally settled on a color, now we just have to pick a slab :)

What color are you having your cabinets painted? A designer we consulted with often recommended Cliq cabinets to her customers, and we considered them. I think your rendering looks lovely (just imho, of course ;))

Yes, what are your cabinet colors? I love the color in the rendering.

Jessica Clay thank you so much! I really do love it, and that's all that's important in the end, I guess :)

To answer both you and sheepla -The cabinet color we chose is Urban Stone. It's hard to tell from my photo above, but its a really light and warm gray. I don't know if I'm allowed to post links to other websites, but the cliq website has some really beautiful photos of this color in different kitchens. I feel like its a calm and soothing color without being boring. I'm excited!

OOH! Actually here is a photo of the color next to the studio gray color and white. You can really see how subtle it is in this photo... I took this at a different time of day than the one above, and you can see how much cooler the gray looks.