Wow - I’m not even sure where to start . . . I was going to try to stay above the fray but when accused of intentionally scamming or cheating a contractor - I can't resist commenting. For starters, can you just imagine what would have transpired if I’d asked the painter and the fabricator to come together to discuss who was responsible for the granite breaking? The painter, I’m certain, would have washed his hands of the whole thing the very minute it was even suggested that the granite wasn’t properly installed. And the fabricator would have insisted that he installed it properly and dare us to prove otherwise. And once both of those parties denied any culpability, we, the homeowners, would have been left with no recourse at all. The MIA standards are ambiguous at best. They provide a guideline for installation and suggest remedies in various situations, i.e. shims to mitigate cabinets that are unlevel, etc., based upon a fabricators assessment of what's needed - which is totally subjective. There are “tolerances” for everything so that a “range” of conditions is considered acceptable, which would make it nearly impossible to "prove" an improper installation based upon them. They also speak at length about “stones of lesser soundness” due to fissures, hardness of the mineral matrix (whatever that is), etc. Our friends just installed Cosmos granite and were told to NEVER stand or sit on it due to its large mineral deposits and overall fragility, although I assume it was properly installed. Someone here on Gardenweb even posted that her granite cracked because she used her crockpot on it - was that a result of improper installation? Given the nature of stone, you simply cannot say that a properly installed granite countertop cannot be damaged “except with a sledgehammer” and there’s also no way you can say, sight unseen, that our granite broke due to improper installation. We look at it as iroll said - the painter’s crew damaged it - nothing more, nothing less. It wasn’t broken when they arrived and it was broken when they left so we simply cannot be made to feel guilty for holding them responsible. We also did everything we could to make sure our painter didn't have to pay any more than was necessary. When the original invoice the fabricator sent was for $2034 and included an $848 upcharge for the exotic stone, we spent half a day arguing that we'd already paid the upcharge for that slab when we originally purchased a small piece of it. They didn't agree and were adamant that the upcharge was valid, saying they'd only charged us a premium for the small piece we used, but we finally convinced them to remove it. So in essence, I guess you could say the fabricator and the painter are sharing the cost of replacing our granite - one paying $1186 and the other $848.

Thank you elsa42. I keep reminding myself that this is only one piece of the finshed room(s) but it is oh so scary! I took 3 sample boards, all SW-- Pavillion Beige, Sands of time and Nomadic Dessert and went over with all samples of tiles/flooring/cab for each area and played, got different opinions. The Pavillion Beige really grayed out, the Nomadic Dessert was a good match but I originally thought it would be too light given the natural light so chose Sands. Now the Sands is a beautiful color--like melted milk chocolate--but seems to warm and deep - I did match to tile in #17pic but again it now appears much deeper and darker now that whole room is painted...

We finished our remodel in August. So, why am I still here? Guess the emotion of it is slow to leave. Anyway, I felt panic at different stages. I still look at the new tile floors in the bathrooms and think "why didn't I put that tile in the kitchen?" The kitchen/entry/laundry/powder room area has the same tile and at the last minute, we switched tile choices to something that seemed better and less costly. It wasn't until it was all in that the reason it was cheaper became apparent (color doesn't go all the way to edges on some tiles). Fortunately, the grout is close to tile color and this shortcoming isn't noticeable to others. Now, I love the new kitchen even though there are parts I'd do differently. It is so much more functional and attractive than the old one. People say "Wow" when they first see it. As time goes by, my need for perfection is replaced by enjoyment and pride for what was accomplished. It took me a long time to pick paint color. When the walls were painted, window coverings hung, and pictures put up it felt done. You'll soon have summer to enjoy without remodeling stress!

I looked at the colors you mentioned in BM's online virtual paint program. Below is a screen grab of how your colors looked together. The top photo shows Classic Gray around the fireplace and Gray Owl on the window wall. Oxford White covers the trim and the ceiling in both photos. The bottom photo has Newburyport Blue on the fireplace wall with Classic Gray on the window wall. I prefer more contrast so I like Gray Owl with the white trim better than Classic Gray. I very much like the contrast of the Newburyport Blue with the light wall and the wood. I personally prefer that color is balanced across a room so I would add a dark blue sofa to sit opposite the fireplace wall in the bottom photo. I know the above photo is not your room; it's how I would do the room in the photo.