Debra- kitchens are either like this one is currently, old in an old house (which people consider in need of being redone) or custom high-end kitchens. We are expanding this house, so with the price range it will put it into with more square footage, I think people would expect it to be more than it is now. I like the galley style and don't want to open walls if I don't have to in a home this old, which are the reasons we won't put the kitchen completely into the extension, which will go out the back behind those double windows and be built over the next year. Lesmobo- 1 year! And I thought 5 made it hard! I agree soapstone is more classic. I wish I didn't have to consider the next owner, and maybe I shouldn't considering we said we'd only be in this state for five years total and it's already been almost 10 with a plan for five more! Ardcp- what your kitchen designer said is why I wonder if the granite is the better choice. Most people won't know that soapstone is the more expensive stone, and it might be a turn off for some because of the patina it will develop. Smalloldhouse- I love that kitchen reveal! The range hood and open shelving are a thing of beauty. Honed Virginia mist also is on the short list of countertops we are considering, though it's btwn the black mist and the soapstone in price, so I wonder if I'd regret not spending that little bit more to get the soapstone. Kathy- I am in the NYC metro area, Bergen County, NJ. I'd LOVE to hear your source. Even Kraftmaid from big box store were priced at 14,000. That's with a cabinet range hood that I could get rid of to lower the price, but still seems like a lot when stylistically it isn't my first choice. What you said is exactly what I worry about- someone looking at nice counters on cabs they want to replace and thinking they wouldn't want the waste, or just buying it and scrapping it, which would create waste that I would hate. Sammy- I think I will have to get a cabinetmaker in to price it out. I know from reading other posts on GW that it often is less expensive, and it's good to hear your experience was the same.

Okay, here are the shots of my main living space. You can see in the last photo the new color I painted in the foyer/hall area. I was trying to work with that family for the kitchen since it's all open to each other. I just remembered (duh) that my fireplace insert is that dark green/black a couple of you mentioned. So it would make sense if that color was carried into the kitchen. I love the idea of something distressed. I'm not sure if I can get dh to go for white walls - although we have some white doors and windows. I have also considered using wood inserts in the cabinet doors and on the backsplash. Also, there are a couple of posts currently on the kitchen board about cabinets painted to mimic wood or at least the colors of wood. What do you think about that as an option? budge - I totally agree about the counters. Trying to make them work has been the biggest challenge. I'm just not into them...even though I have green trim outside and a huge green metal roof. If I could be sure painted counters wouldn't be a big pain to maintain, I'd go for it. I saw on Color Correction on HGTV recently where they painted over ceramic tile counters with some sort of epoxy. I haven't had any luck finding out on the internet what product they used...but it's still on the back of my mind. patricia - great idea about the bathroom refinishing pros. I hadn't thought of that. I'll have to check into that. Can I say thank you again and not sound like a broken record?

If your long straightedge is bowing from the pressure of the router, you could support it in the middle by butting a two-foot-long scrap of particleboard (or almost anything, really) against the back of the straightedge and clamping it to the far side of the counter. That said, as long as the bow in the front edge is a smooth, even contour without abrupt jogs, it shouldn't cause any problem with the laminate. It might be better aesthetically if it were straight, but the laminate doesn't care if it's got a gentle curve in it. It's hard to imagine the counters are sagging on the sawhorses so much that they'll be permanently distorted by gluing laminate on them in that position. However, you'll need them fairly well supported for the glue up so you can lean some of your weight on the roller you use to press the glued surfaces together. For that reason alone it's worth supporting them well. You don't need a lot of sawhorses; I'd just put a couple of 2x4s on edge, on top of the sawhorses to provide even support along the whole length. You'll need to stabilize those 2x4s a bit, probably by nailing or screwing a couple of cross pieces between them, so they don't fall over flat at some inopportune moment. What size router do you have? There's nothing wrong with holding the router sideways except that you don't have practice doing it, and it could be difficult if you have a large, heavy router. The ones made for laminate trimming are small and light and can be held at odd angles with one hand. If you're stuck with a bigger, general-purpose router then it may be worth getting some help to set the pieces on edge as you described. You don't need a giant vise; just clamp it to some stable vertical object like a cabinet frame or the side of a sawhorse. When the clamp gets in the way, stop routing and repostition as necessary. Whichever way you go, if you've never done it before and you can't afford to goof, PRACTICE on some scrap!

We have the Labrador laminate on the perimeter of our kitchen. It reads more as a black to my eyes, even though it has flecks of brown and gray in it. It looks quite a bit swirly-er on the sample chart than it does in real life. When we first put it in, our cupboards were a golden oak, and the color of the wood really looked nice with the laminate. They played very well together. Since we added a variety of mismatched cupboards to expand our storage on a dime, and since I was trying to lighten the space, we decided to paint them all white to help them blend together. It was a tough call at the time, because once the counters went in, I liked the wood a whole lot more than the way the cupboards looked with the old "butcherblock" laminate that was there before. The labrador hides dust and dirt very well. A little too well for me. : ) I have to clean by feel, since things can blend right in with the pattern of the laminate. When it comes time to redo, I personally will probably go with something lighter colored, since I feel like the darker counters are light-eating (might not be a problem with proper lighting), but I did want to let you know that this laminate looks good with wood. FWIW, here is the kitchen as it looks now: