I like the one on the far right.

Are the samples in photo 2 and the far left of photo 4 the same?

Yes, sorry...just showed them differently. The 1st photo and the last 2 photos show the same samples.

I like the bottom photo, middle sample. I think it picks up the warmth of your floor and the butterscotch glaze without being too dark.

Honestly, you can't go wrong with any of them.

Last photo: middle sample. Same reasons as Czarinalex above.

Sample all the way to the right, seems to have a pink tint to it, which would not be a good thing.

Far right. Keep it simple.

I agree with chispa - I'm pretty sure there is pink in the far right sample. I detest pink - you can't miss the pink in the sample. (or at least I can't) Now, if you like pink that's a different question.

Chess/Anglophilia...when you say far right...you are referring to the bottom photo I assume? Not the dark shades?

Looks like most prefer the lighter tone on tone look. Is my concern of too much soft tone unfounded?

The far right is not really pink. Although it does show it in the pic that way. It is Wilsonart Badaling.

What about the 2nd photo...MSI Romano White...it matches the creaminess better than the pic above indicates.

You can't assume something that looks a shade in a photo is that color because photos lie.

Middle bottom. I bet you far right will clash in some lighting.

I meant the far right in the bottom /top pics - I beleive that sample is the same. Doesn't look pink to me.

It seems as if your husband has a preference and you have a fear - what you don't want. Have you both ruled out high contrast but you are also not liking really low contrast? I glanced through your kitchen ideabook, and couldn't tell what your big picture is.

You can quickly go through Houzz kitchen photos and without analyzing any particulars or details, save any kitchen with light painted cabinets that you like and think is an 'attractive' kitchen. (You can filter by kitchen style to narrow photos but you probably don't need to.) Later, go through them and now look at the counters in the kitchens you chose. That may help you decide if white on white is too washed out for you or is actually an okay look; or whether most of the kitchens you chose have high contrast somewhere, and where; and from there you can look at individual countertop options.

Here is the wilsonart Badaling in a kitchen. It's described as a counter with grey veining with two different beiges.

http://www.wilsonartbadalingquartz.com/

I like the one on the left in the first pic.

I like your first pick, and also the far right of the light colored.

Great advice barncatz! I'm trying that this morning. I'm realizing, I like contrast...definitely DO NOT want a washed out all light kitchen. A lot of photos have white cabinets, light tone counters and even a light backsplash>> Too much light/white for me! The Licsia Hanstone gives the contrast. The Wilsonart Badaling and Arno pictured above (Arno is the middle one) are pretty by themselves...but I'd def have to work in some dark tones in the backsplash, stools or pendants over the peninsula.

I do like white kitchens - light and bright is my preference, always. I just redid my entire kitchen and dining room to remove the old 20+ years of awful yellowing wallpaper, the dark 80's knotty pine cabs and all that trimwork. So yes, I will always chose to go clean and light, every time. :-) However I do think contrast is good - and mine is in the backsplash, and will be in the floor as well. So white cabs, gray backsplash, whte/gray counters, darker floors. My kitchen is certainly NOT washed out. But we all have our preferences, of course - and mine was formed by too many years in a dark dingy kitchen of pine and ugly wallpaper! LOL.

I like the bottom middle one too. You can do a cream or a soft tan backsplash with it.

Stanwich Road · More Info

Chess: Any pics of your renovated kitchen? Love to see the lighter tones with a more contrasting backsplash.

nondesigneraaron, I am just starting to work on the backsplash so I really don't have any good pics yet. But this is what my kitchen looked like before - so you can see why I prefer light! LOL!

Mayflowers: I really like that picture you posted...light and all! Any idea what that counter color/make is? I guess since I'm seeing kitchens of both types that I like, I'm realizing I just like contrast somewhere and need to make sure I work it in.

Chess...Thanks! I really like that backsplash with the counters you've picked! I know it is all personal preference. We just can't decide what our "preference" is yet! LOL I do like the counters by themselves that are lighter so maybe I'm leaning that way. I also have heard some say the dark counters will show crumbs much too easily!

I have to laugh...I think we are replacing very similar countertops! :)

layout · More Info

nondesigneraaron - ha! Yes, that is a big complaint that I have read frequently, about the dark counters. The darker it is, the more it shows dirt.

On my monitor, your cabinets read an entirely different color in photo 1 than they do in photos 2-4 (although photo 4 also looks a bit different from 2 and 3). In photo 1 they look white with just a hint of warmth around the center panel, in the rest they look warmer/creamy overall. Which would you say is most accurate?

Regardless, I would personally eliminate the far right colors in both photos 3 and 4 - I don't care for either. If the cabs actually appear more white than cream, I would lean toward the middle color in photo 3 for a dark counter or the far left color in photo 4 for a light choice. If the cabs are actually more creamy, then I like the left and middle of photo 3 and the middle of photo 4.

The cabs are definitely cream, not white. Waypoint Butterscotch Glaze

nondesigneraaron, in the Houzz photo mayflowers posted, you can click on the more info link in green. That takes you to the photo's individual posting. If you click on the box Questions under that post, you can see what questions Houzzers have asked and whether there are responses. Someone had asked about the counter and the designer replied that it was Dulce de Vita quartzite.

Here's a photo of a Dulce de Vita slab from the internet. Obviously, each slab will be different since quartzite is natural (and usually at the high cost end).

I have a granite that does not show the dirt. I wish I could see the dirt.

Silestone Pulsar?

Pulsar Quartz by Silestone · More Info

That would match perfectly and even though our cabs have it, I'm not a big fan of the gold veins.

Question...if Granite is more heat tolerant and the cost is pretty comparable...why do most seem to prefer Quartz for their kitchen counters? Is it just the maintenance and unpredictability of Granite or something else? Two granite sources told me that the sealing only has to be done every 15 years now and quite frankly it is a simple process. Just wondering everyones take on Quartz over Granite.

What do you all think about this? It is a granite called Typhoon Bordeaux and I might just like it a lot?!?!?? The two images here I found kind of make it look like different colors but I think the bottom photo is the best representation of the sample I picked up. Am I right in that it offers enough contrast but isn't crazy dark. I also like that although it has movement, it is too overpowering?

Fall 2013 · More Info

Typhoon Bordeaux Granite with Full Backsplash · More Info

We installed our first granite countertop , Colonial White, in our kitchen refresh 18 months ago. I clean it with a granite spray cleaner or hot water and a drop of dish soap and it's a total breeze. My installer told me to keep an eye out and when water stopped beading on it, reseal. I haven't had to, yet.

Quartz definitely offers more options if you're looking for a quiet pattern or single color counter. I think the current popularity of a marble look has also helped quartz, because that look can be replicated in quartz without the marble etching issues.

There are lots of comparison threads re pros and cons of granite/quartz on Houzz, either under Stories, Design Dilemmas or on this forum. If you really want to learn about granite, marble, quartzite, search this forum for the Countertop Geology threads.

ETA: I love Typhoon Bordeaux. If you also love it, you just need to bring your cabinets and floor samples and slab shop. It's really fun to love your counters, as opposed to choosing a counter because you think it is inoffensive (unless resale is iminent), and I love your enthusiasm for the Typhoon.