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Remodeling Design Dilemma Kitchens

lost on countertops, granite vs quartz

4 years ago

We recently renovated our very dated 70’s kitchen with white shaker cabinets from IKEA. I wanted a quartz with veining but had seen one granite that grew on me and was a great price point. Now three months after our first quote the sq ft price went from $50 to $87. Is that normal? I can’t see why when we were quoted quartz cheaper than that.

There are several different quartz I like (Spectrum Sophistication, Caesarstone Noble Gray and helix, LG Rococo, LG minuet, and hanstone Italian waves). I started to delve into if one brand was better over the other, did my research and had gotten discouraged by some of the comments on here. I had seen a lot of people suggesting against Chinese made quartz and to use one that uses Breton Technology. All of the above except for Spectrum use Breton. However, Spectrum is NSF certified. I need help choosing what color would look best against my white shaker. I want timeless, clean, calming and something that lasts.

Featured Answer

mayflowers

4 years ago

I read a good tip on here once on how to make choices. Compare only two and pick your favorite between them. Compare the winner of that round with another choice until you get to your final choice. But if you find a tile you love, I'd let that determine which counter I'd pick. Ceramic is more timeless than glass.

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Comments (7)

kilcrease1
Original Author
4 years ago
Different lighting for quartz choices
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Like I said up thread, I have both quartz and granite in our kitchen: granite on the island, and a white quartz on the perimeter. The granite is pretty busy with a lot of movement. Even so, because of the highly reflective polish, it's easy to see smears. Oddly enough, it totally hides crumbs and other kitchen detritus (I just wiped a black ball point pen off that was hiding in the pattern!). We've had it less than a year, so we haven't had to reseal yet. The quartz isn't as highly reflective, which I like (my husband wanted the high gloss on the island). The more uniform color let us go with a busy mosaic backsplash, which we couldn't have done with our busy granite. It seems more "smear" resistant than the granite, and the light color makes it easier to keep clean, because I can see when and where it needs wiping down. As far as staining, I haven't had trouble with either surface. Two days after install, I left a box of blackberries on the quartz overnight, not realizing a pool of juice had soaked through. That left a shadow, but it came off immediately with a little Soft Scrub. And as far as heat, as I said, I'm kind of paranoid. It's not that hard to use pot holders, cutting boards and trivets, so that's what I do. Both surfaces have great qualities, it comes down to what you want to see in your kitchen.
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We have polished Organic White countertops. We also get subtle metal marks that won't come out. These counters are just a few months old. No one else would notice it, but I certainly do. I would recommend getting a sample of the quartz you are considering and testing it yourself. Maybe we're just unlucky? Although, the number of websites that say "quartz doesn't stain" seem to be equalled by the number of websites that say "here's how to get stains out of your quartz". We haven't tried Magic Eraser and it is somewhat discouraged since it is abrasive, but we may try that next.
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wolfgang80
4 years ago
Quartz is being used in almost every flip and remodel in my area of SoCal and in almost all tv reno shows. This feels more like a trend than timeless.

Flippers and remodelers used what is now thought of as dated granite for years before quartz took over.
biondanonima (Zone 7a Hudson Valley)
4 years ago
If you want something calming, I would immediately eliminate the darkest, busy option on the right in your lighting photo. I would also eliminate the left-most of the three smaller pieces in the center - it's far too warm with your white cabs to my eye. After that it's a question of whether you want a mostly-white counter or a mostly-grey counter. The remaining two whites are similar, but I prefer the smaller piece with more prominent marbling.

BTW, where have you gone to look at granite/other countertop materials? With granite, there is so much variation from slab to slab, it can be really eye-opening to go to a yard and look at what's available. Something you may not have liked as a small sample may really appeal to you in a larger format.
Becky Richardson
4 years ago
last modified: 4 years ago

I'm going through a similar situation. Yesterday I reserved a quartzite slab, Mont Blanc, for my kitchen. Our shaker cabinets will be bright white and floor is gray/white porcelain tile. The quartzite will be $3000. over our counter top budget but it's not a cost dellema rather a design dellema. We'll have a 5'x10' island in an open design concept home so the island really takes on center stage. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
PRO
Filipe Custom Woodwork
4 years ago
Now three months after our first quote the sq ft price went from $50 to
$87. Is that normal? I can’t see why when we were quoted quartz cheaper
than that.

Price of natural stone being granite etc will fluctuate especially three months later.

1st Choice = 4th piece

2nd Choice = 1st piece.

3rd Choice = 2nd piece.
PRO
Anglophilia
4 years ago
I don't like the dark one at all. I think the decision between the others will be difficult for us due to variations in colors on computer monitors.

Whatever, just keep it simple.

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