Theoretical Granite suggestions :) join in
These are the samples of the cabinet finishes.
The wood one is the island finish , the white. (white dove) is the perimeter top and bottom. The floor is what is shown.
In my mind, I had pictured titanium granite with a light (maybe white, maybe cream, tbd) backsplash.
So now that I am actually getting this done- cabinets should be here within the next week or two... I am seriously looking at granites. I went to one place and decided to let them show me what they would suggest (because I usually steer them and thought it would be nice to see a suggestion) --
1-she showed me a lovely typhoon bordeaux which had a whiter background. It actually looked really good, but I thought it might be too busy.
2- Also showed be a narcarado (sp) quartzite which was interesting but too specific with the tones.
3- White Ice granite which to my surprise looked pretty good with everything. Editing to add, it was just so different from what I pictured. I did schedule to go back on Friday to look at the stones again and will probably take pix. duh.
They did not have titanium.
Looking at my cabinets and flooring, do you think a dark granite is the way to go? ( I do have concerns that the island will be pretty dark with the dark wood and dark granite but I THINK I like that?).
I have called around, and of course the 3 very large yards I went to did not have titanium but I have found one nearby that does.
Just thought before I go on more wild goose chases I would see what you thought.
FWIW the island is only going to be about 5 feet long by 3 feet wide.
I know I am asking this in a vacuum but just curious as to your gut reactions.
I need to fixate on something besides corona.
Oh and I am hoping to get this figured out within the next few days.
Comments (17)
salonva
4 years agoRelated Discussions
Is this a lousy granite installation?
Comments (21)@ Live wire oak. Just a few points. As far as viewing templates at fabrication time, I wasn't even aware that such a service was offered as standard practice - it was certainly never offered to us, or we most certainly would have taken the opportunity to participate as we were nervous about getting a close color match. We have since had two people come round to take a look, and each one has said the same thing, that the mismatched section looks like it comes from another slab that only approximates the rest of the counter in color. It has more of a reddish base to it, while the remainder of the counter-top is more creamy. Secondly, the gap is an issue because the counter overhang is not covered by the back-splash, a point we clearly made to the measurer - the back-splash is going to be in line with the edge of the end wall cabinet and the matching end base cabinet below. Thus the protruding section of the counter top isn't in play - to take that into account would leave the back-splash protruding past the wall cabinet by nearly two inches, leaving an illogical and untidy section jutting out past the cabinets. The guy who did the measuring gave us his assurance that the template would take the issue into account. I have since been told by another fabricator that a common practice with uneven walls such as ours is to notch the drywall on the 'bumps' in order to seat the granite firmly against the rest of the wall. That's actually what I expected them to do in order to fulfill my request for the end piece to sit flush against the wall. I'm also intrigued about your point regarding the back-splash in so far as how one would approach shaping a tile cut to approximate the rounded edge of a counter top? Also, I'm a bit confused about your point for the oven cabinet to be 'skinned' - it must be American woodworking terminolgy that I'm unfamiliar with - I'm an expat Aussie. I installed the cabinets myself and know that the oven cabinet is perfectly in square with the base next to it, because I made sure it was with a view to the granite installation - I even indicated as such to the measurer by placing a builders right angle on the base cabinet butting up against the wall oven unit. Unfortunately there's a slight hollow in the wall directly behind the cabinets - I had to shim them about 3/8" away to compensate - and showed the measurer where the issues were in order to ensure that he didn't throw his measurements off by taking readings off the walls - or of the installers sliding the granite in hard against them later (which they did, accounting for the inclined gap). Had the granite been lined up on the front edge of the cabinets (with the overhang taken into account of course) and trimmed at back then the slab would have lined up near perfect with the wall oven cabinet. As for the sink, we bought the unit from the same guy, so you'd think he'd have a pretty decent idea of the cut out required, particularly as he's carried it for at least the year or since we first started browsing in his store. I could have mentioned all this earlier, but it would have made a long post even longer. Regarding the irregularities in thickness, I have been told that it is quite common for slabs to have variances because of the way they are cut, ground, and polished. But I was also told that a good installer takes this into account. What I didn't picture - I didn't want to bombard everyone with a multitude of photographs - is that the sink looks very odd because of the irregularity. They were able to grind away the difference on the front, but as for the sink you can clearly tell the difference. On one side the granite sits nice and tight near the stainless steel of the sink. On the other side of the join there is a distinct separation all round the visible section of the edge. They had to put a big gob of silicone in to fill up the gap....See MoreGranite install sch for Wed-pics of granite and before shot
Comments (21)Thanks everyone! We were a little nervous about the seam, but all turned out well. Maryallie...We live in Pennsylvania, about 2 hours east of Pittsburgh...sort of western/cental pa I guess you'd describe it. Anyway, there is a granite dealer about 1 hour east of us in Everette, PA called B.C. Stone. They also have a location in Wilmington, NC according to their website. About 3 years ago, a local cabinet maker mentioned that he used them for his granite; we had never heard of them, but if you're not in the market for granite, you probably wouldn't have. He said he used them other than using Lowes or HD. They do deal direct so I gave them a call. They work with many granite yards, so you can choose from their somewhat limited selection at their shop or go to the various granite yards they deal with, select your stone, and they'll have it brought to their shop for fabrication. We really just got lucky as they are close (about an hour away) and they have a very good reputation. I've read some posts hear in the kitchen forum about them. Best way is to really look around and see who you're comfortable with. Visit their company and see what they do and how they do it. The trick is to work with a company who will "make it right" if anything goes wrong. Doge1959...no the granite does not go up the wall. We considered it, but decided against it. It ended up we couldn't do it anyway as we got two slabs, but the slabs were small and we had very limited material to work with and wouldn't have been able to go up the wall anyway. I posted awhile back when we got the slabs but may post again for backsplash ideas. I thought I wanted glass but don't want to constantly be cleaning it every time I see a water spot on it. What would you folks recommend? Should I stick to something simple as to not compete with the granite? Simple white or cream subway? Our cabinets are cherry our granite, of course, lots of shades of green, and our walls a golden/tan color....See MoreHelp! Would appreciate backsplash suggestions/recommendations...
Comments (7)Grandc09 -- we have similar stained cabs like yours, sort of a honey stained cherry. Our granite is Absolute Black and our floor is called "Yellowstone" by Wilson Art. I chose a rhomboid tile (diamond shapes) by Sonoma in three shades: an ivory, very lt. yellow and then a slight darker tint of yellow. Behind our range will be a thin black pencil frame in black and then 5 one-inch rosette tiles to pick up the black granite. The tiles won't be installed for 2 more weeks, so I don't have any pictures yet. I found selecting the backsplash the most mind-bogling task of all decisions I had to make. I took a sample of a cabinet door and a floor tile to a tile store and had an appointment with a designer. After 1 1/2 hrs. I had my tiles selected. I really needed someone who does this daily and could point me in the right direction. I think the backsplash is so close to eye-level I just didn't want to make a mistake. Enjoy the arrival of the baby, and if you don't have your backsplash installed--so what!!!...See Moregranite counter-top seams ... are we being too picky?
Comments (44)These are my pics of my countertops placed Friday June 22, 2018. I cried looking at these seams. It looks so cheap. Fabricator explains that's the way it comes. I explained that I shouldn't be able to see the seams so clearly. It looks so unprofessional. They ended up taking them back to their warehouse. In hopes they say if it is quality control will try and fix it just to make it look better. Otherwise I will have to pay an additional fee for them to come out again to install. I just don't know what to do and if still looks the same. This is the first time I've replaced my counters in 24 years. I don't and can't live with it. looking at this for another 24 years. It looks so cheap and it really was not it's a lot of money to me. I hope fingers crossed that they will fix this problem. They never told me that there would be such seams. I thought the edges were done by a machine and it would be all one piece. I have read up on this and now understand there are seams. But now I do know that they should not look like this. If they are good fabricator you shouldn't be able to see them so clearly. I will find out next week what happens....See Moresalonva
4 years ago
AFritzler
4 years agosalonva
4 years ago
salonva thanked nicole___salonva
4 years ago
raee_gw zone 5b-6a Ohio
4 years agosalonva
4 years agoWell, I went back today (and had DH with me this time) to look again at what I had seen and to look at some others. I had in my mind, after seeing Nicole's lovely visual, to reconsider the typhoon bordeaux. I think I had remembered it differently because when I looked again, it had very little of the white and mostly brown or tan. I did not love it. We looked again at the nacarado quartzite. I had misremembered it too. It really looked good. DH to my shock, really liked it. Looked at a few others but decided nacarado was looking great. We got a chunk to bring home, which has been so helpful. I was concerned in the warehouse that mostly it looked great but occasionally wasn't sure about the flooring with it. So now I have a chunk and have moved it around our kitchen and it looks superb. So I feel like I have made a major decision. It's very subdued but with a good amount of interest.
Here is a picture of the sample in my home on my flooring. I think it's awesome. (the stock images of the stone are so variable and I could not find one that looked like MY slab.
So here you have it-Nacarado Quartzite and my floor. Yes the cabinets look great with it too. The floor was the wild card. I think the photo represents well, but in any case, to my (and DH"s) eyes, in my house, in real life, I am loving it.
nicole___
4 years agosalonva
4 years agosalonva
4 years agoHere is a somewhat better (maybe?) photo of all. Hope I am not crazy but it looks good to my eyes. I think you can see a bit of the darker in the stone.
raee_gw zone 5b-6a Ohio
4 years agosalonva
4 years ago
AFritzler