Wood Countertops

                                      It's pretty easy to see how "butcher block" got its name:

      A necessity for the butcher shop, wood was probably one of the earliest and most enduring choices for residential countertop material as well (WAY back in the day).  It is renewable (can be sanded and re-finished), can be cut on directly (though some people keep a separate cutting board or block), and is an easily obtained, abundant, and renewable natural resource.  So why don't you see wood countertops in many homes today?  The main reason is that laminate, granite, and quartz have edged out the sometimes less pristine-looking wood.  These other materials are more durable and, overall, more popular today than wood tops.  But more and more, high-end wood tops are seen on islands as a design component, and even in sink areas where they will be exposed to a lot of moisture.  Why is wood starting to make a comeback as a countertop choice?   For one thing, it is a warm and inviting material in contrast to the cold, hard feel of stone countertops.  It is a renewable resource, which is important for our planet.  And it offers many options for unique designs, with a great variety of wood species, colors, plank widths, inlays, and edges.  Tigerwood, Black Walnut, Bamboo, Maple, Mahogany, Wenge, Zebrawood, Beech, Hickory, and Cherry are all used as countertop material.  They can be finished with a durable non-toxic finish material or they can retain a "living finish" that only needs a food-safe mineral oil applied several times per year to protect it.  Even with a durable finish, water puddles should be wiped up right away.
     Using wood countertops in specific areas of the kitchen, such as a bar top, an island top, a desktop, or a baking area can not only enhance the design of the kitchen, it can add a warmth and beauty that's unique to wood alone.  Consider adding some wood countertops to your next kitchen project!

 

Something Old is Something New

     Sometimes something that's truly old can be exciting and new. For example, here's something you don't see every....eon!

Embedded in this beautiful granite slab are the fossil remains of sea creatures known as orthoceras and ammonites, dating from the Devonian Period. Occasionally there will be fossils in granite but these are particularly interesting in their shape and size. The granite, once polished, becomes more than an attractive counter or backsplash--it becomes a conversation piece as well. It certainly rates a closer look, especially when used as a bar countertop or bathroom vanity top. Used in those ways, it causes your guests to stop and appreciate the beauty of nature.

One design idea would be to include the granite in a youngster's bathroom. The embedded fossils could be part of a dinosaur theme if you have a child who is nuts about dinosaurs. However, there's the advantage that the granite could easily become part of a more mature decorating theme in the future. After all, something 360 million years old is..........timeless!

"Revealing" How I Feel About Granite

I can't help it, I just LOVE granite!  The flow, the patterns, the colors and textures......... they just enthrall me.  When it comes time for a client to select granite for their kitchen remodel, I go with them to the supplier to look at the wide variety of slabs.  It's an important part of the total customer service that we offer our clients at HearthWood Kitchens.  We give them a great deal of guidance and advice so that they can make good choices for the materials that will become part of their new kitchen.  When we go granite shopping, I can guide them away from the softer and more problematic stones, and give them advice on color, pattern, texture, etc.  We make choices that will work together for a beautiful end result.  The bonus for me is that looking at granite is something I just love to do!  With my background in the visual arts, looking at some beautiful granite can give me that same "aesthetic emotion" that people get when they view a breathtaking work of art.  No surprise there, since natural stone is Nature's artwork!  And I never get tired of looking at it.

But, aside from expressing the fact that I get excited about granite, I would also like to mention one of the practical details that needs to be considered when choosing granite countertops.  That detail is called the sink reveal.  An undermount sink is the most popular sink choice when people opt for granite or engineered stone countertops (Cambria, Silestone, Hanstone, Caesarstone, etc.).  Take a look at the diagrams below.  The countertop is shown in grey.  The undermount sink will be attached to the bottom of the countertop, and the sink cut-out in the granite will have polished edges.  The "reveal" is the portion of the sink edge that will be either hidden (negative reveal in top diagram) or visible (positive reveal in middle diagram).  The bottom diagram shows a zero reveal, or a flush mount installation.

                                                             NEGATIVE  REVEAL

                                                               POSITIVE REVEAL

                                                    ZERO REVEAL (FLUSH MOUNT)

 The drawback to the positive reveal is that when you brush crumbs or spills off of the countertop into the sink, they will land on the exposed edge of the sink and you will then have to clean that off, also.   Not very practical, and it's surprising that many sink manufacturers actually recommend the positive reveal installation. We always choose the flush or the negative reveal. This is just one of the many details we guide you through when we help you select new countertops for your project.  Keep reading my blogs to learn a lot more about the process of getting beautiful new granite countertops and all the details and options that we can help you choose.