From: Goodhousekeeping.com
It’s natural to focus on looks when deciding on a new kitchen countertop, but there are other factors to consider too. Carrie Schulz, head of design at Block Renovation, a service that streamlines the planning, designing and building process for homeowners, recommends concentrating on aesthetics, functionality and cost when zeroing in on the perfect countertop material for you. “You want to make sure the countertop will fit into your budget before you fall in love with it,” she says. “How the material wears and how hard you’ll have to work to keep it looking new are also key to the decision process.”
Here are more expert insights into those three key factors:
✔️ Aesthetics: Our experts say it’s best to ignore trends and choose the pattern and color that you love the most. But if you think you might be selling your home soon, it pays to stay close to current design trends. Light, neutral hues with minimal pattern play continue to curry favor, which has helped drive interest to quartz. “A lot of homeowners still want to keep it simple and clean,” Schulz says. For those looking to make more of a statement with their countertops, materials with dramatic veining, including marble and other natural stones, are a popular choice.
If you go the dramatic route, it’s important to work closely with your installer on the placement and positioning of adjoining slabs so that veining lines up. “If you end up with a pattern mismatch, it will drive you crazy every day,” Schulz says.
Don’t forget about the backsplash, since it’s another strong visual element in the kitchen. Whereas subway tile and other contrasting surfaces still have their place, many homeowners are now choosing to use the same material from the countertop up the backsplash, creating a sense of continuity and cohesion.
✔️ Care and maintenance: Think about the porosity of the countertop and the finish. A nonporous material with a polished finish is unlikely to absorb anything, making it stain-resistant. Honed finishes, in which the surface has been ground down to give the countertop a softer, matte feel, require a bit more care, but you might be willing to put up with that for the softer feel and reduction in glare. A porous material like marble with a honed finish will require near-obsessive upkeep (regular sealings throughout the year, lightning-fast clean-up of spills, treatment of etch marks with a special poultice, etc.) to keep the surface looking new. Bottom line: Do you want to fuss over your countertops or keep maintenance mainly to a daily wipe-down?
✔️ Cost: Most homeowners spend about $3,000 on the installation of new countertops, according to Angi, the home services marketplace. But the price tag can go as high as $8,000 (and even higher for imported materials, like calacatta marble from Italy or a Van Gogh granite from Brazil) and as low as $400 for entry-level laminate. Of course, the actual cost depends on the size of the countertop, so it’s good to look at square-footage prices. You should expect to spend around $40 per square foot for affordable materials, like entry-level laminate and butcher block, and $150 or more per square foot for a rare natural stone or top-quality quartz. That doesn’t include edge treatments, which add another $5 per linear foot for a standard square edge, all the way up to $60 per linear foot for an S-shaped ogee, which adds decorative flair and also reduces the risk of chipping