My kitchen is on the smaller size. It's a 14' X 20'. I redesigned the kitchen to make it more user friendly for me. My home has a an open living room and kitchen concept. My cabinets are RTA Elegant White Shaker Cabinets that are L-Shaped. The stove was in the middle of the kitchen in an island that was virtually useless with a huge boxed in hood vent. I knew that was going to be one of the first things that I changed. Wow! Removing the huge hood vent and putting the stove along the wall opened up my kitchen tremendously. I decided to put a functional island in with cabinets on 1 side and an eating area on the other. Since I lost the counter space from putting the stove along the wall I decided to put a butcher block top on the island so I would have more workable counter space. I am considering raising the eating side of the island up, as it is uncomfortable to bend over and eat. How high should I raise that side of the island? The island is the standard height of 34.5". This is my first remodel and I have searched and seaedrch on how do I get the right size butcher block when I can't find a 24" X 72" or a 18" X 72" in the butcher block that I found that I like. I like the darker with some lighter color Walnut butcher blocks. Also I am having a hard time finding a color counter top that goes well. I know that I am not a granite person. It is too busy for me. I love the Cambria marble with the veins that run through it, however that doesn't fit the budget. I have searched and searched and I have decided to go with a laminate for now. I have haven't found a combination of the laminate color that I think goes well with the butcher block. Help!!