We've been living with our new kitchen counter for two weeks now... and I have to say, it's heaven! To give you a sense of our enthusiasm, as it was being installed my daughter said... "This is the best thing that has ever happened!" Okay, so maybe my kid is a little bizarre... or maybe she's just an architect in the making who appreciates good material?! But it really is fantastic. I swear this apple tasted sweeter!
In a previous post, Back to the Kitchen, we were trying to decide what counter material to choose. Ultimately, we picked quartz, Chroma in Cascade White. As much as we loved the idea of marble, the modern feel of the manufactured material seemed to fit the style of our home. It was an exciting process getting it installed, so I thought I'd share some photos...
Here's a good close up of the green tile we started with. Half the joints were caulked which made it especially terrible to clean, particularly around the lip of the sink.
Brian removed the wall tile and some of the sheetrock to get a good fit when they made a template for the counter...
Photography by Lillian Marsh
The tile and counter substrate were removed the night before. Thanks to TM & DS for helping haul it to the curb. When the plumber saw it on the sidewalk, he said..."Goodbye 80's!" Amen to that.
The next morning we were ready for the install. (Looks like my pots could use some organization!)
I wish I had some photos of the installers bringing in the counter and setting it in place... it was a real beast. A big thick slab and a super tight fit. It took three guys from Atlas Marble & Granite to get it in... thank you!
Here they are preparing the epoxy to apply to the seam...
We have one seam centered on the cooktop. They leveled the two slabs for a good alignment.
A compressor was used to create suction for a tight joint.
Then we got the plumber to reinstall the faucet and put in a new drain line. Thanks to Bo Turonis for fitting us in at the end of the day on a Friday! Here's a shot with the faucet in place... the single hole lever is great for easy clean up!
I have to say I'm loving this sink. It's from Vigo and a great bargain at $290. At first I was worried about the depth but once I started using it, the deep bowl feels luxurious...well, as luxurious as a sink can be?! And best of all, the dishes are hidden from view!
I talked about our appliance selections in my post, Still in the Kitchen. Here's the new Maytag cooktop we chose. Another good deal for stainless steel at $480. I tried to see it in a showroom before we bought it but had no luck. The price was so good, we took a chance... so far I'm pretty happy with it and it looks great.
You can see we've started the subway tile backsplash (I should say my husband has started it... go Brian!) It hasn't been grouted yet. We are debating whether we should go with white or dark gray. What you see here is close to what the gray would look like. With the white grout, the pattern won't show up as much. Any opinion? I'd love to hear it!
Can't wait to post again once the tiling is done!
Can't wait to post again once the tiling is done!
