I've finally been able to get back to the message boards. Gosh it is annoying when real life gets in the way of my computer time! LOL. Wow, I love all the stories of how you approached your granite selection. Happenstance has certainly played a roll in many of the final selections. I recognize many of the granite names of the light granites as ones I have been looking to check out. BTW pbrisjar: I happened to come across the Azul Macaubas and you are right it is beautiful. That is one stone that could definitely make me veer from the white, and as mentioned by gglks I think it could still fulfill my vison, however I won't even hazard a guess as to the price of it, so it is not an option. Costa Esmerelda is also a gorgeous stone. All the choices are beautiful, and I love hearing how you came to have them. I'll be heading out next Wednesday to hit the yards (locals don't have what I want)and hopefully will be able to tag my slabs in this single trip as I'm 2 1/2 hours away (not to mention I hate driving into the city). bluekitobsessed: only 23,542 yards huh? And here I am hoping to do it with 3! I have a list of possibilities which might speed up the process a bit. Has anyone come across Siberian White, Polar White, and Bianco Primavera or Alabama White. I realize that some may be names given by the local yard as the last 2 I've never come across except for 1 site, and that was in the US. Thank you Mairin I agree with your sage advice. I'll go with my gut and if I don't feel the tug to tag it right there and then it likely isn't yet "The One!". mom2reese: Your kitchen is fabulous. All aspects of it are exceptional and your crown molding is very similar to what I want. May I show your photo to my cabinet guy. The molding he showed me is too curvy for my tastes and not really what I wanted for my shaker style cabinets. I was going to just go with his recommendation but after seeing yours I realize that I need to speak up or I likely will regret it. I feel if he can see an example of what's in my head then he will be able to come up with one that will be in scale for my much smaller kitchen. Thanks everyone.

OMG.....the granite with the blue running through it is absolutely gorgeous!!! I agree with remodelfla and Kevin... would be like looking at the northern lights every day!! I'd never get any work done in my kitchen! With that being said, we have something similar to what you're considering on our island; it's called Saturnia. It has browns, black and a bit of dark green. We don't have a cooktop in our island but we use it for prep every day. Love it! Here is a link that might be useful:

Can you just discuss this question about liability up-front? Show him what you're worried are cracks and let him decide if they're a concern? That way if something happens, it genuinely is on him, and otherwise it's not really sleazy if something does happen and you had a suspicion but he didn't. Not exactly sure how or if this is relevant, but I had a slab recently that I was concerned had a crack in it (there's a bit more to the story but that's the short version). My fabricator weighed in with an 'it's alright'. And then while cutting I do think the slab did break; he put in a kind of cinch on the backside perpendicular to the crack. There's a slight ridge to be felt but I think that was there before; that's what I was worried about. I'm OK with it all as I think we were fairly open about everything, risks, etc, before cutting. If the fix hadn't been good I think he would have made good on it. But I feel very free in that the risk was very open and on him. If I had taken that risk on myself only I would have felt horrible about the subsequent issues always. A professional may have a different take on it (as in maybe I should be owed a new slab). But I'd think through what it would mean to you if you didn't discuss the problem and subsequently there was an issue - what then?

Labradorite is a type of anorthite (plagioclase feldspar) mineral under the feldspar group, which crystallizes as either small grains, tabular crystals, or masses. It is frequently found as twins (two crystals joined together). The mineral composition of labradorite is a complex molecular bond of sodium, calcium, and aluminum silicates. - (Na,Ca)AlSi3O8 The hardness of labradorite is around 6 on the Mohs scale, and its physical properties vary according to the amount of calcium in it. It is not very heavy or dense, just like most feldspars. But, its chief uniqueness is its out-of-this world coloring. Labradorite has very beautiful unearthly color, which is often a spectrum of iridescent light play, a refraction of light caused by its internal plate-like structure. For this reason, the most beautiful labradorite varieties are separately called spectrolite. This iridescent-like ability is also shared by other types of feldspar, like sunstone, and moonstone. Otherwise, the normal coloring of labradorite is a plain gray or dull, pale green color. Named after the region of Labrador, in Canada, from where it was first discovered, labradorite has since been found in other places like Norway, Sweden, and Russia, but high gemstone-grade labradorite is quite hard to come by. The most beautiful labradorite pieces are just perfect for jewelry, and can be cut as cabochons to display their magical iridescence. Labradorite is a stone for cleansing and maintaining the etheric body (aura) in good condition. It symbolizes both moon and sun, assisting with transition from one phase of life to another, and helping with the recognition thereof. It helps to provide clarity to the subconscious mind, and helps one to implement the inner messages to the real world. The color of labradorite is regarded by some as extra terrestrial in origin, and is believed to contain some of that outer space vibes in its flaming spectral coloring, providing for enhanced "galactic" derived insight in meditation, and day-to-day life. It has qualities as a bridge between inner and outer worlds of oneself, and between the earth and outer space. As a stone for meditation, labradorite works great as a calming stone. Labradorite has been used in treating mental disorders, and to enhance the various body functions like digestion, metabolism, and eyesight. It is believed the flaming color display of labradorite assists with eyesight problems. (blue pearl, emerald pearl, volga blue, blue eyes, labrador antique, black pearl, artic black volga blue,