Not at all. You want some kind of field border, so as to set the framing off.

Thanks :). I LOVE the granite you are considering. I know I've seen other kitchens on this forum with granite behind the cooktop and a different finishing option where the granite transitions to the tile, but my mind is drawing a blank right now. Our tiles are 24x4 solid color porcelain tiles (Casa Dolce Casa Neutra Tortorafrom the Casamood collection). We used a design/build firm and their cabinet maker also made the beams. The designers tried to give us the feel of a hearth-look cooking area without actually having cabinets or sides interfere with the countertop, which is how we ended up with the beams framing the granite. The granite is actually also bumped out from the wall in addition to the granite thickness. From kitchen remodel The side beams are sort of L shaped and were then scribed to fit around the granite and vent. It seemed like a rather labor intensive way to do it, but it turned out nice :). I was a little concerned about having wood taht close to the cooktop, but it hasn't been an issue with the way I cook. Generally, anything I cook with high heat is on the center burner From kitchen remodel

Wow, I never realized you didn't have to have a jog up (or not much of one) at the sink. I'll have to mock that one up on the wall and see how it feels. We do have a pretty tall faucet, so that might push us into a jog up. Unfortunately, this is a small (15 linear feet of cabinets) kitchen, so cabinet space is at a premium, and I don't have particularly pretty dishes. :-) So it's all going to be doored up. We're doing laminate counters, so a jog out at the sink is out. But I'm going to remember that for my next kitchen, as I like the idea and now understand the utility of it. 18" of space? I always thought it was 15", and that's what we did in our last kitchen. Joanie: Did you really mean the bottom of the microwave is 36" above the counter? That seems too high to reach. Buehl: Yes, we sold Weedy Acres (finally closed about a month ago) and moved to a town 100 miles away that I've been commuting to for 4 years. I'm impressed by your good memory of our thanksgiving week kitchen blitz back in 2007. This one's going more slowly, as it's a completely different scenario: tiny fixer with a budget to match: $10K for the whole house. Here is a link that might be useful: our current project

I have a Sargent Steam. It generates steam at about 300 degrees. It works very well, but I'm not sure I use it often enough to justify the initial cost. I find that it's easiest to use if I have a rag or sponge in one hand and the steamer in the other. The brushes and sponges attached to the steam nozzle are awkward for me to use in our many tight spaces. (We live in a small Victorian house.) But grease and deposits on tile come rolling off. I also have the steam pressure iron accessory, which is amazing.