Funny that you found this tile...I am planning on using the calcutta rex tile in my bath reno. My contractor was discouraging me from using the "real thing" in my shower area; he feels that moisture and marble do not mix, and I am not a maintainance person...don't want to have to seal marble, etc. I found this porcelain tile at my tile store, and currently have a 12X24" polished "marble" sample in my home. I have faked out a number of people so far who thought the tile was marble (including three designers), so I am planning on using it. The sales person at the tile shop said that the company uses many different screens to create the tiles, so the "patterns" in the tile are more natural, and do not repeat or appear as uniform as they do with some other products. I plan to mix in some marble elements... the tile line does not include many trim pieces, so I'll need to mix and match between the "fake" porcelain and the real deal. It'll work, for sure; I've put marble trims up against the porcelain, and they match quite well. Anyway, it is the solution to my problem of wanting marble, but not being able to convince my husband or contractor that marble is a good choice for our bathroom. Another note: I am pretty sure that the sales person told me that the calcutta rex comes in polished in both the 12X24 and 18X18 sizes. (also, retail price quoted was $9.99 sf; my contractor will get a discount, bringing it down to about $7.)

Do you have a sample of the Silestone Lagoon to look at with your tile. I think you are right that it might look slightly off but it's hard to know with out seeing it in person. I also think it might be difficult to find a solid white countertop that will play well with both the white in the tile and your white countertops. Maybe you should concierge a light to medium tone gray countertop. It will provide a little contrast and keep your room from looking too white (unless that is the look you want). I think it would look better not to have too much movement in the countertop since the porcelain carrara tile has lots of movement. I posted a picture earlier in this thread showing the Carrara look alike tile my daughter used in her bathroom. She opted for light gray cabinets and initially wanted a white countertop. She shopped remnants for her countertop and was not able to find something that didn't "look slightly off". She ended up using a black quartz that had some lighter speckles in it. She thought it looked better than a solid color. Perhaps you could find a grey with some flecks of dark grey, black or white in it. I've posted many pics of my daughter's bathroom on this forum but here's a few shots for you so you can see how contrasting colors work Since you probably don't want to go with black, maybe something like Silestones Ocean Jasper Or Moonstone Would work for you. If your not limited to Silestone Cambria has some options that might work too. Snowdown White Greystone Good look with your search for the right countertop.

Bill, I have those traditional white cabinets (photo above) and narrow room with the same layout as the hopscotch bathroom (photo above), if you imagine the bath twice as long and a bit narrower. I've been trying to imagine how I would use the final 3 brands I like to help decide. Rondine has really large, thick veins that run lengthwise on the 12x24. Because of that, people either run the 12x24s across the wall so the big veins go horizontally across the wall, or vertically so the the big veins go vertically up the wall. I'm trying to figure out if it's best to have thick veins going horizontally or vertically if I use polished 12x24s on the walls (in a narrow room with a window on the end). And then what pattern to use on the floor for horizontal veins or vertical veins. Eg if the veins are horizontal across the wall, I wonder if it is best to continue the horizontal 12x24 pattern onto the floor across the aisle. Or maybe it is better to have a clearly different pattern on the floor and use the 12x12 diagonally with veins in random directions. Eg if the veins are vertical to the ceiling, I wonder if it is best to continue it onto the floor and run the 12x24s lengthwise down the aisle. Or if it is better to have a clearly different pattern on the floor with 12x12 diagonally with veins in random directions.

It doesn't stain permanently. There was porcelain mosaic almost 150 years old in our vestibules that was white, rarely cleaned, and it would clean up. The grout was stained. The grout will stain and pick up a urine smell, because I bought a house that was filthy and that's what the bathroom smelled like. It scrubbed out. I don't know that I would design a house around a temporary situation though. Use some sort of mat til he grows older. Also, many European men sit...it does keep the bathroom cleaner.