Kitchen Series Day 3: Counter Tops

March 13, 2013

Today, we’re talking about counter tops.

The thought of resale played a huge role in our counter top choice for the new kitchen.

I’ve been dreaming of a white kitchen for a while and I always pictured it with butcher block counter tops.

This has become such a popular choice in the last few years and I love the dark, rich look of the wood with white cabinets.

{via}

So pretty, right?

Well, that was the plan.

Then, we were told that our neighborhood standard for counter tops was granite. Our neighborhood has recently become a bit of an investor hot spot. All of those investor homes have granite. Our realtor brought up a great point. In our current market, that’s seen as a huge selling point. If we one day sell our house and all other “fixed-up” houses on the market have granite and we don’t, that could be a problem.

I initially wasn’t happy. Guys, if you have granite in your house or want granite, know that I have nothing against it. I just hadn’t liked that speckled look in the past.

But the more I thought about resale potential, durability, and the overall look I wanted, I decided that natural stone in a white color might not be so bad.

I looked through kitchens from my Pinterest profile and realized that the majority of the ones I’d liked had this gorgeous white marble with gray streaks.

{via}

I never really thought about how much I liked this monochromatic look.

{via}

Gorgeous, gorgeous stone.

And the white color on white cabinets really let’s other things in the room shine. I just wasn’t sure I wanted your eye to be drawn to the counter tops with other things I have planned for the room.

So, we went out to price some…and it was expensive. Not that I expected any less. I mean it’s marble!

But we also were told that it is much softer than granite and is not recommended for use in kitchens. This shocked me because so many kitchen designs use white marble counter tops today. And I love the look.

However, the cost concerns alone were enough to make us think twice. The cheapest marble we found was coming in at $60.00 a square foot! That adds up and I’m not sure the “cheapest” was the best quality, hence not very durable.

So we did what I never said I’d do…we went on a granite hunt.

And we hunted…

and hunted…

I told every dealer we talked to what I was looking for. White with gray in it, more streaks than speckly. Guess what everyone said? “Oh, you’re talking about marble, but it isn’t good for kitchens.” Ahhhh! {I’m still not sure I believe the durability thing…so many designers use it and love it}.

Then, one glorious Saturday morning a couple of weeks ago, we stumbled upon Slabco.

If you’re in this area and in need of natural stone, you must go to Slabco. This is the biggest granite and marble showroom you will ever see…and every local dealer gets their stone here. So, you can see all of your choices in one visit.

We went through the whole showroom and just as we were about to leave, we stumbled upon this baby…

I wanted to cry tears of joy.

This stone is called Pretoria White and is actually much whiter overall in person. But it has my gray streaks running throughout.

I was hesitant to get too excited because granite comes in different price ranges: Low, Medium, and High. High being up near marble pricing or way, way above and that’s the main reason marble was out.

We asked which this one was and I held my breath…

LOW!!!!

This granite that looks like marble that makes my heart go pitter patter falls into the low category! Now, it’s still more expensive than butcher block, but at $40-$45 a square foot, we can afford to do it. The benefit will definitely come when/if we sell one day.

But, it’s awfully pretty…so a huge benefit will be living with it and staring at it every day!

So, I’ve painted a big, neutral, white (gasp!) picture so far: white cabinets, white bead board walls, white upper shelving, this white/gray counter top, and stainless appliances.

As much as I love white, that feels a bit cold, so don’t you worry dear readers, I’m warming it up with an island that I’ll talk about tomorrow.

And of course, some style and personality will be thrown in too 🙂

Comments

Shannon says

March 13, 2013 at 3:22 pm

These posts are such a tease! Love the slab you chose- can’t wait to see the finished kitchen. I’m sure it will be totally pin-worthy 😉

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- Lindsay says
  
  March 13, 2013 at 8:33 pm
  
  Thank you, Shannon! I love the slab too…I don’t mean to be a tease 🙂 Im so ready to see the finished room myself! It’s in my head all the time and I can’t wait to see all these things come together and start accessorizig!
  
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Kris says

March 13, 2013 at 8:10 pm

I love the slab. However, I will say this, if you’re planning on living in this house for a while, you should pick what YOU love. I appreciate the idea of considering resale value, but these things trend in and out every few years. So if your stay is likely to be longer than that, don’t discount your own kitchen dreams!!

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- Lindsay says
  
  March 13, 2013 at 8:31 pm
  
  Thanks for your comment, Kris! You’re so right-you definitely have to do what you love and I hate I didn’t make that clear because we totally are!!! The resale consideration for granite, while it is something to think about, really got us to a granite we love! I can’t imagine anything else in our kitchen. I’m with you, though, if you don’t love something totally, it has no place in your home!!
  
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Kristina says

March 13, 2013 at 10:02 pm

Sad about losing your butcher block counters! We LOVE LOVE LOVE ours. BUT! That granite is beautiful and that’s a good price for granite (I fell in love with some black stuff that was kinda sparkly and it was $70 a square foot! Yikes!). Plus, it will be much more durable and friendly than our wood counter tops (been two years, time to refinish!). So in the end, you’ll be super happy. 🙂
Also! I changed my travel dates! I’ll be in SC from June 17th to July 4th. If y’all won’t have any free days during that time, I will be more than happy to change them again. 🙂 The only thing I have to do is on June 29th–my reunion.

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Cully says

December 31, 2014 at 6:33 pm

I know that I’m a year and 9 months late but can I ask, how long after you did this remodel did you sell your house?

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- Lindsay says
  
  January 8, 2015 at 9:45 am
  
  We’re still in this house that this kitchen series was about 🙂
  
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Tina says

January 26, 2015 at 10:52 am

I love the Pretoria White Granite! Does the Pretoria White have burgundy or the purple specks that are in most granite and if so how much is in it? Thanks, Tina

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- Lindsay says
  
  February 13, 2015 at 5:12 pm
  
  It does have some burgundy and purple, but they’re small specks. The picture of the granite in that post is pretty accurate. The specks are subtle and the granite looks gray and white overall.
  
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Stephanie Brust says

January 31, 2015 at 7:07 pm

I absolutely LOVE the first picture of the butcher block counter and the look of the cabinets and walls!! We are getting ready to do a Fixer Upper, I would love this color palette. Do you know what colors were used on the cabinets and walls?

Thank you,
Stephanie

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- Lindsay says
  
  February 13, 2015 at 5:07 pm
  
  Hi Stephanie! I love that image too! It isn’t my work, though, so I don’t have any specific details on it. I’m sorry about that! I bet you could find similar colors just by looking at the image and create a similar look?
  
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cathie says

November 4, 2015 at 1:48 pm

stumbled upon your site- how are your counter holding up? A side note, I never understood why people would want butcher block- it’s wood- VERY porous. No matter how much poly you put on it ( is it even safe)? wood expands and contracts with temperature/humidity. therefore wouldn’t the sealer/ploy crack? then there’s the whole issue of accidentally cutting into it allowing bacteria to get trapped and grow.. is there something that its coated with that is 100% effective and safe?

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- Lindsay says
  
  November 5, 2015 at 9:00 am
  
  Cathie, I know people seal it often, maybe once a year? I have friends who have them and love them, but we do love our granite! it held up great!
  
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Robin says

June 19, 2016 at 7:38 pm

I love the blue walls.. Can you tell me the paint color?

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- Lindsay says
  
  June 22, 2016 at 7:35 am
  
  Robin, these were photos from other blogs. If you click the “via” below each photo it should take you to the original source and hopefully they’ve listed the paint color!
  
  Reply