Hi folks-

We're preparing to redo the kitchen, including new cabinets and
countertop. We love granite but are not looking to spend what it would
cost to have our main counter area done in solid granite.

We were just at a bed and breakfast place that had BEAUTIFUL granite
tile counters. "Reddish with black splotches" granite 12" tiles with
thin black grout seams. Absolutely stunning.

Anyway, I've been researching the subject, and found a problem. I've
found the square tiles at lots of places, but no bullnose or other
finish pieces needed to round the tile over the edge of the counter, or
to handle exterior corners. Basically all I can find are the squares.

I've found that there are "bullnosing" services, that will do the job
for big bucks. But that's something I want to avoid.

Also considered is the use of common black bullnose (and other finish)
pieces with the granite reserved just for the main surfaces. This would
be inexpensive, maybe just a couple hundred bucks worth of granite tiles
and a few bucks for the edge pieces.

Does anyone out there have experience with this kind of thing? I want to
explore all the alternatives before buying anything.

Suggestions, anyone? Is there a specific supplier that carries the
granite finish pieces as stock rather than a custom service?

Marc

You have a few options:

1) Expo (and I am sure other stores) have individual granite bullnose pieces
that you can buy... Expect to spend $10-25 per piece...

2) Make your own "flat" bullnose pieces by miter cutting the edges of the
granite... Family Handyman has a very in-depth article on this... Even had
plans to build a jig for use with a tile saw...

3) Use an alternate material... I used wood that exactly matched our
cabinets... Looks awesome...

4) You could buy a granite sanding kit (about $250 on eBay) and actually
round over your own pieces of granite to make your own bullnose... Pretty
cool but VERY time consuming... We had roughly 30 linear feet of counter
tops...

I looked into all of these options and finally chose option three based on
price and looks... We are using Premiere Black 12" x 12" granite tiles with
black grout... We have olive green cabinets... The olive green border
against the black granite looks incredible... Much better than the black
bullnose against the black granite... And, it was literally a 100th of the
cost of granite bullnose and it looks better...

Good luck,
Mark

"MAG" wrote in message
ganews.com...
Hi folks-

We're preparing to redo the kitchen, including new cabinets and
countertop. We love granite but are not looking to spend what it would
cost to have our main counter area done in solid granite.

We were just at a bed and breakfast place that had BEAUTIFUL granite
tile counters. "Reddish with black splotches" granite 12" tiles with
thin black grout seams. Absolutely stunning.

Anyway, I've been researching the subject, and found a problem. I've
found the square tiles at lots of places, but no bullnose or other
finish pieces needed to round the tile over the edge of the counter, or
to handle exterior corners. Basically all I can find are the squares.

I've found that there are "bullnosing" services, that will do the job
for big bucks. But that's something I want to avoid.

Also considered is the use of common black bullnose (and other finish)
pieces with the granite reserved just for the main surfaces. This would
be inexpensive, maybe just a couple hundred bucks worth of granite tiles
and a few bucks for the edge pieces.

Does anyone out there have experience with this kind of thing? I want to
explore all the alternatives before buying anything.

Suggestions, anyone? Is there a specific supplier that carries the
granite finish pieces as stock rather than a custom service?

Marc

In article , says...
You have a few options:

1) Expo (and I am sure other stores) have individual granite bullnose pieces
that you can buy... Expect to spend $10-25 per piece...

2) Make your own "flat" bullnose pieces by miter cutting the edges of the
granite... Family Handyman has a very in-depth article on this... Even had
plans to build a jig for use with a tile saw...

3) Use an alternate material... I used wood that exactly matched our
cabinets... Looks awesome...

4) You could buy a granite sanding kit (about $250 on eBay) and actually
round over your own pieces of granite to make your own bullnose... Pretty
cool but VERY time consuming... We had roughly 30 linear feet of counter
tops...

I looked into all of these options and finally chose option three based on
price and looks... We are using Premiere Black 12" x 12" granite tiles with
black grout... We have olive green cabinets... The olive green border
against the black granite looks incredible... Much better than the black
bullnose against the black granite... And, it was literally a 100th of the
cost of granite bullnose and it looks better...

Good luck,
Mark

Mark- thanks. Great followup message. Lots of options to explore. I'm
sure Expo would love to sell me those $25 granite pieces, as well as a
$400 faucet. :-)

Marc

Yeah... Expo is really over the top... I went to Expo a few times just to
look around... Found this really cool sink... Went to Home Depot and the
exact same sink (down to the model number) was at Home Depot for almost $275
cheaper... It wasn't on sale or discontinued or anything... Wow...

Good luck,
Mark

"MAG" wrote in message
ganews.com...
In article , says...
You have a few options:

1) Expo (and I am sure other stores) have individual granite bullnose
pieces
that you can buy... Expect to spend $10-25 per piece...

2) Make your own "flat" bullnose pieces by miter cutting the edges of
the
granite... Family Handyman has a very in-depth article on this... Even
had
plans to build a jig for use with a tile saw...

3) Use an alternate material... I used wood that exactly matched our
cabinets... Looks awesome...

4) You could buy a granite sanding kit (about $250 on eBay) and actually
round over your own pieces of granite to make your own bullnose...
Pretty
cool but VERY time consuming... We had roughly 30 linear feet of counter
tops...

I looked into all of these options and finally chose option three based
on
price and looks... We are using Premiere Black 12" x 12" granite tiles
with
black grout... We have olive green cabinets... The olive green border
against the black granite looks incredible... Much better than the black
bullnose against the black granite... And, it was literally a 100th of
the
cost of granite bullnose and it looks better...

Good luck,
Mark

Mark- thanks. Great followup message. Lots of options to explore. I'm
sure Expo would love to sell me those $25 granite pieces, as well as a
$400 faucet. :-)

Marc