I'd be interested to see what the counters looked like. I do love the look of glass counters -- sorry to hear that you had such a terrible time with it! :(

Never heard of it, but turns out it's concrete with crushed glass (and seashells). If this is the look you want, sounds like a good option for you. I would consider quartz (Caesarstone, Dupont Zodiaq, Samsung Radianz, etc.), because the quartz/stone aggregate is probably tougher than the glass. If you or your SO is VERY hands on, DIY poured-in-place concrete counters sounds like a very cheap option that will give you the same look. Lots of people make their own custom concrete countertops with pebbles/aggregate/glass etc. that is essentially this. Here is a link that might be useful: DIY Countertop

A member(gldnfan) recently posted this about Ice Stone" "DD and janie k - both of your kitchens are gorgeous. To the poster who said essentially that a mix of luxury and budget keeps the luxury from showing - what a load of BS - the amazing backsplash pops beautifully from DD's kitchen and janie's light fixtures and cabinets are TDF. And its already been said but the assertion that luxury and laminate in the same sentence is a no - please, that is simply a narrow minded assertion based on bias. I spent a fortune on ice stone for my island - I once considered laminate because I thought it would go well with my nu-crete perimeter counters and I was having trouble deciding - oh how I wish I made that choice! Everyone loves the ice stone - it is quite the show stopper and I was also seduced. However, it is obvious it will not be an easy care surface and the glass easily chips out in places. I have only had it a month and the seam is chipping - it has not had hard use at all! We used the remnant for our wine bar and lemonade spilled during a party - deep etching within an hour. It is not in a very visible area but is very visible if you look at it so now I am frantic about what gets spilled on the island that is in full light - who needs that? I still like to look at it but I would not do it again." I live in Canada and Ice Stone runs $160 a square foot in our area.

I also have ECO by Cosentino in my kitchen, from 2017. I was impressed by their claims that it needs no maintenance (sealing or other) and now I have severe dark staining around the kitchen faucet (possibly due to our hard water), and no idea how to clean it, as their recommendations are to avoid all caustic or abrasive cleaning products. (Might have to experiment, since it's hard to imagine anything will make it WORSE.) (Btw, this replaced a Corian countertop & built-in sink that had a HUGE CRACK running through it, so yeah, no complaints about glass pop-outs or staining, but...) I have Vetrazzo (also recycled glass) in the bathroom, and even though they say to re-seal it, I never have and it looks great 12 years later. I don't know how it would hold up to coffee, red wine, or soy sauce spills, but at least it hasn't had a problem with water! The bad news is that Vetrazzo was bought by Polycor, which has really under-promoted it, and now it's very hard to find. I managed to get a Vetrazzo fireplace mantel in 2017 from a fabricator who had a remnant, but now neither they nor the fabricator who did my bathroom still carry Vetrazzo. I have also had Icestone in another bathroom since 2017 (I guess I am inadvertently testing all the recycled glass countertop materials) and it has also held up well. No water stains. Of the 3, Vetrazzo is my favorite because of the look (the glass bits are bigger than Icestone and just beautiful, IMHO), but I would also go with Icestone again. Don't buy ECO if you're going to have water.