We Have Counter-tops!

 This week our counter-tops arrived and I am pretty excited! Our kitchen sinks came at the same time but the faucets and drains aren't getting hooked up until Tuesday so we can't really use them yet.

   You may remember that I really wanted to have slate counter-tops. Well that is not what I got but I am pretty happy anyway. Slate seems to be a pretty hard to come by option in Minnesota. The cabinet guys that I talked to about it were always very hesitant and none of them had ever put it in before and they were unsure of it. Meanwhile I would tell them about all the good reviews that I had read and the pictures I had seen. They check on it for me. The stone holding place in MN was supposed to be getting some in from India (which I was unsure of as I thought it sounded like New England slate would be better). So we waited for the slate to arrive. When it did arrive they were still unsure of it so I drove 3 hours south to check on it.

   When I got there they told me that they thought that the people in India called it slate but that really it was a soapstone. It was an absorbent stone, scratched easily and was reacting badly to acid. Well that didn't sound to good. Then I looked at the slab that they had. It was ugly! It had streaks of purple, green, white and grey and it was done in a leather finish but unlike the other leather finishes I had seen it was not just textured but truly bumpy. Anyway - I didn't want that slab at all.

  As far as my cabinet guy knew there was no other place to get slate closer than Chicago. At this point I just really wanted to get my counter-top and not pay a fortune. I had looked into shipping some in from New England a little but decided to stop pursuing that and just choose something else.

  So we went ahead and went with Granite. I was a little blue about that as I really wanted to have something different then every other stone counter-top that I see but I am actually really happy with it now that it is here.

   We got a granite called Opalescence. I had it done in the honed finish so it is not shiny. I really didn't want the polished look. I think it actually looks a fair amount like slate. It doesn't feel quite as silky as slate but it still feels very nice. I am feeling very blessed!

 The guys that installed the counter-top were really friendly and we had a fun time visiting with them and learning a little about their trade. They deal only in solid stone counter-tops and come from a couple of hours away from here.

These counter-tops can handle hot pots being placed on them and don't require much/if any maintenance. They should last as long as the house. I was told to be careful not to place a cut citrus fruit on them as it will kind of etch them and leave the design of the orange (or whatever) on it. Interesting - it almost makes me want to experiment - but not quite!

  We still need our light fixture above the island put in and the covers for the outlets put on, the faucets installed and the windows cut out better and trimmed and then I think the kitchen will be pretty much done. Hooray!