"HeyBub" wrote in message
m...
windcrest wrote:
On Aug 24, 5:46 pm, "Thomas G. Marshall" wrote:
Are you guys seeing alternatives to granite these days as something
"in"? My eyes are starting to gloss over when I see brand new
kitchens put in with this and other stone that just seems somehow
(maybe?) ready for retirement only because it's been done and done
and done.

The reason I ask this is that already in home improvement shows they
are removing Corian to update to stone. And Corian seems to have been
big not even 15 years ago. But somehow stone tops are all starting to
look the same. At least getting there.

Are you guys seeing stainless steel? Or concrete? Something else
starting to get a foothold? I'm updating my kitchen (hopefully) soon.

Or is granite here for a much longer time than I'm pondering?

THANKS!


It depends on your situation/family. If looking for affordability you
cant beat laminates like Formica. If you are a young family with
several kids then I would say use Formica until they are grown up,
then update your sure-to-be-dilapidated kitchen with granite later.
Three kids will do in a kitchen in about 12 years time. If you are
about to prep a house for sale then go with granite. etc. etc. etc.
I agree that Corian is out of fashion, stainless looks too industrial,
concrete will have you looking hard for truly qulified installers.
But granite is timeless, Formica is practical and cheap to replace
when it goes in/out of fashion, sythetic stone commonly called
"quartz" is expensive if you want granite thicknesses and probably
more subject to fashion trends than granite. In my area (Chicago-
land) a nicely finished granite install with fancy edges is still the
gold standard.

Excellent summary!

About a year and a half ago we remodeled our kitchen. After much shopping
and comparison we went with a product called Silestone. It is a composite
of crushed quartz and epoxy, polished and shaped. It was quite a bit
cheaper than granite and does not need to be sealed to prevent staining. In
the time we have used it, we have NO scratches visible. It is available in
many patterns and colors, with or without integral sink.