Thanks ck_squared. I love the look of quartzite but I have heard that it can get etching stains similar to that of marble. It's surprising to hear you say it's bulletproof as I have heard so much about it being a sensitive stone... now I am wondering if I should reconsider this. It is gorgeous but I have 4 kids and we do a lot of entertaining so I don't want to be completely paranoid that someone will squeeze citrus onto it without my noticing and it will damage the stone. I am eager to hear what others have to suggest. I have heard of a granite called White Zito or White Vermont and those are pretty - lots of grey striations which we are fine with.

Regrettably, that is not my kitchen. It is one whose colors I tried to replicate, with results so bad (this is how I know how wrong colored stains can turn out) that I had to go another direction completely . The kitchen is by Timeless Kitchen Design. They have a web site and a blog, and even a proprietor -- Kevin Ritter -- who may be able to identify the hardware. For anyone who might yearn to have one of his wonderful kitchens, forum member honeychurch has posted here and on a blog about her experience. The irony is that the photo that so won my heart is actually somewhat distorted from the original, which is slightly warmer in its coloring. Here is a link that might be useful: Timeless Kitchen Design

Fourkids4us, our island is (or at least feels to us) HUGE. We love it. It is a wonderful big work space--as my user name suggests, I love to bake, and it's the perfect spot to roll out dough, let cakes or cookies cool, etc. It also works wonderfully as a buffet area when we have people over. The prep sink really takes up a very small amount of space on the island. I have all of our knives, silverware, tupperware and lunch boxes there, as well as the trash can, so it's a great spot for making lunches and prepping things for cooking. Plus, one person can be working there, with someone else doing dishes at the other sink, or tending to things on the stove, and no one is in anyone's way. We had lived in this house for about 11 years before doing the remodel, so I knew what I liked and didn't like about our previous layout. As you may be able to see, we kept a lot of our previous layout intact, because parts of it worked well for us. I did try, though, to "zone" things when we reconfigured the layout--baking zone, fruit & veg prep/lunch packing zone, coffee/tea zone, clean-up zone, etc. I have cooked and baked a lot in the new space (including making a wedding cake for 300 people!), and I don't have any things I would change or do differently in the future. All of that planning and obsession about details before construction seems to have paid off--thank you, GW! :) As to the openness to the den--it is a new experience to be all together in one room, and certainly there is noise carry-over between the two rooms. However, aside from using the blender or the coffee grinder or things like that, I can't really think of anything that I've done in the kitchen that would interfere with people watching TV in the den. Plus, we do have a separate living room/dining room, so we still have a spot to entertain or relax that is not open to the kitchen. For us, the benefits of the totally open space have definitely outweighed the drawbacks, but I think it is important to carefully consider the implications before just tearing into walls (as satisfying as it may be!). Best of luck coming up with a plan that works for you and your family!

Thank you! They are Conestoga cabs, the blue is SW Commodore (they go off the SW colors), they really are not *that* bright. :) I'm from NY too Audrey! When it came time for the backsplash I waived the white flag financially and decision making-wise. I love the water jet cut tiles a la Ann Sacks and such. I think they would look lovely with what you are talking about. Light blue or green are pretty. If you want to stick with white maybe milk white glass in a staggered brick pattern (not subway tile, they are different sized rectangles, I think I saw them at Tile Bar) But I do love me some subway tile. ;)