Kitchen Reno- Part 3 (COUNTERTOPS)

This is where the fun begins! We got the kitchen demo'd and the cabinets ordered. Now, we get to pick our countertops! We are starting to see a light at the end of the tunnel!

We visited 2 countertop stores. I would highly recommend visiting a 2-3 places so you can see the difference in inventory. It's also a very good idea to bring the sample cabinet you are using (if you ordered one) with you to make sure the colors work well off each other.

We knew we wanted something light and we wanted the veining to be minimal. All of the granite we looked at was a little too busy for what we wanted. We ended up at a place called Leonardo's. The owner travels the world finding the best and most unique pieces of stone. The show room was so much fun to walk through, he had so many beautiful pieces!

We ended up going with something called Mont Blanc Quartzite. It was beautiful! It had just the perfect amount of gray and the perfect tone. When we placed the cabinet up to it, we just knew it was the one! There are light and dark grays running through it, as well as a sandy beige on some parts of the stone.

The first thing they did was come out to measure. We had to have the cabinets installed and perfectly level. They use a laser technology to trace exactly where the countertops will be so it can be used when cutting the quartzite (probably not the right verbiage, but you get the point). We had to wait a couple of weeks for the installers to come back out and place the countertops. We also had to have the farmhouse sink installed since it sits under the countertops.

Baby is sleeping, a good sign!

I think this was a turning point for our renovation where we felt like we could FINALLY cook a home cooked meal for the first time in months. We just had to add a few finishes.

The only downside to these countertops is that they are very hard to maintain. We have 2 kids now, and it's not even them. It's more of the oil, grease, etc that's inevitably going to get on the stone. Niko is the cleanest person I know, he wiped down the countertops like it was his full time job. Literally. We sealed them regularly and only used an approved cleaner/sealer. He would barely let someone else cook in our kitchen with fear they would get a stain on the stone.

It still happened.

Our friends, Sarah and Trevor, went with something called Silver Stone Granite. You can find slabs with a similar look and they hold up much better!

After it's all said and done, I love the quartzite but I'd probably never purchase it again just because of the maintenance. Hopefully this helps in your countertop purchase decision!