Let's Process Our Feelings II

[quote]jjackkrash wrote:

[quote]EmilyQ wrote:
Let me just say in the meantime that I do NOT like granite countertops.
[/quote]

Quartz is a better functional surface. But it generally looks artificial. What else is better than granite, sealed concrete? No way I’m using a soft or porous stone for a kitchen surface. [/quote]

Yeah, you can tell quartz is not granite but Silestone has come a long way in closing that gap depending on the pattern and color you pick.

[quote]EmilyQ wrote:

Let me just say in the meantime that I do NOT like granite countertops.

[/quote]

When you say this, I feel sad and confused.

Somebody hold me.

Stained, diamond polished and sealed concrete is a pretty good option. And there are lots of different colors and patterns, as a quick google image search of “stained concrete countertop” will show. People have done tile patterns, faux marble, faux granite and faux wood even.

Probably the most important part is it’s sealed well, but after that it works great. A lot of the concretes used are the same mixes used for building bridges; not your typical Quikrete.

[quote]jjackkrash wrote:

[quote]EmilyQ wrote:
Let me just say in the meantime that I do NOT like granite countertops.
[/quote]

Quartz is a better functional surface. But it generally looks artificial. What else is better than granite, sealed concrete? No way I’m using a soft or porous stone for a kitchen surface. [/quote]

I like granite. Marble is nice too; pink, green etc. They’re both nice kitchen top surfaces but I obviously do all my cutting on a plastic or wooden board. I use the plastic for raw chicken because I don’t like the idea of getting raw chicken fluids on a porous wooden board.

[quote]Dr. Pangloss wrote:

[quote]EmilyQ wrote:

Let me just say in the meantime that I do NOT like granite countertops.

[/quote]

When you say this, I feel sad and confused.

Somebody hold me.
[/quote]

It’s going to have to be SexMachine, who agrees with you.

[quote]EmilyQ wrote:
It’s going to have to be SexMachine, who agrees with you.[/quote]

That’s going to be awkward.

I don’t like granite either :o

At least not for kitchen countertops. I have a granite top on my tablesaw and one on a workbench for oil painting I like but I just don’t like the look of granite in a kitchen.

[quote]DebraD wrote:
I don’t like granite either :o [/quote]

I feel like we’ve lost our connection over kitchens and tile and I feel alone.

What do each of you like for countertops?

All right, kitchens. Hockey and I have not really focused ourselves on figuring out where we can reasonably expect to land as far as design goes. There just hasn’t been time to do more than show the occasional picture and critique it. I think I tend more to cottage looks while he would go with either more rugged or more formal, I’m not sure which.

I liked both of your kitchens, Deb, but would have problems with each. In the first one I loved the floors and the cabinetry, but was weirded out by how low the upper cabs were. Sacrifice work space to storage? Meh. Still, I think Hockey would give that one two thumbs up.

Robin’s egg blue is my current favorite color, so I really liked the cozy, clean feel of that one, but I agree about the impracticability of the shelving. I do love the pantry. While looking at houses we saw one that was filled with all sorts of odd nooks and crannies, and it was absolutely charming. There were structural issues, or I think we would have bought it. The pantry reminds me of that house.

Countertops. I really like slate, though it’s not right for every kitchen. I don’t know, I’d have to look once I was clearer on what everything was going to look like. I have two problems with granite: one is that I’m clumsy and granite is hell on people with poor coordination, and the other, larger, issue for me is that I associate it with suburban mini-mansions. I realize that’s silly, but there it is. It strikes me as cold and showy, and to me a kitchen should be neither.

I also like ceramic tile countertops (bungalow style kitchen) but Hockey is absolutely not on Team Ceramic Tile and that’s that. Too, as he points out, it’s as breaky as the granite, and as likely to crack as the dishes I demolish on it. But it has a very warm look to me.

[quote]LoRez wrote:

[quote]EmilyQ wrote:
Propane gas wok burner? Hold on, I have to google. . .ah! I am interested in this! Remind me where you moved - can you cook outside year-round?[/quote]
Yeah, the wok burner is nice. Gets 2-3x (or more) hotter than even the good gas stovetops, which makes cooking in a wok work like it’s supposed to, with all that extra smoky depth from the “wok hei”.

But it also works great with cast iron, and you can get a great sear on steaks and other meats with it. On the other hand, it would need a serious vent hood to be used inside.

Most of the larger Asian grocery stores carry them, although I had to make some modifications to get it to work better with the newer propane tanks.

Moved to the Portland, OR area, so it’s temperate enough to cook outside comfortably for most of the year, and year round with the right clothes.

The wood stove and fireplace are really nice. Is the whole place heated with wood, or is it just a backup/novelty option?

How are you planning to open it up without losing storage or counter space?

My parents put a GE range with a convection oven and warming drawer in their last two places. They really don’t cook on it much, but it’s been pretty nice to use when visiting. It’s one step down from their top of the line stuff, but still very good.

Restaurant supply stores usually have good new and used equipment for better prices than the “pro-sumer” stuff, but you have to be careful with building codes and insurance, since they usually require a different setup (firewalls, venting, fire suppression system) than the consumer products. May or may not be cheaper in the long run.

I don’t bake a lot, but she does, and there’s enough stuff that requires controlled temperatures that it would be useful to have a separate dedicated area. Tempering chocolate, icing cakes/cupcakes, puff pastry, croissant pastry, bread dough, those are all pretty temperature sensitive. Especially the pastry doughs.[/quote]

We have a furnace and use it, but the wood stove is definitely a primary heat source. For now, at any rate. This is a first for me, so we’ll see how I do as winter wears on.

We haven’t settled on exactly what the space is going to look like once we push back. I would like for the living room and kitchen to be completely open with just an island, but that may not be practical. If not, it will look something like this. Very important to us is the have a lot of window on the back wall because our back yard is really lovely. But of course, then where does the nice, large refrigerator live?


Here is another option for space configuration, though here again I would be sad to lose complete openness to the kitchen table and sitting area in front of the wood stove.


I have green soap stone in one of my kitchens, you might look at that. It’s a nice, warm soft look. It does react to acids, but that’s part of it’s charm and the markings become part of the overall patina.

Fwiw, I agree with you about some granites, especially Uba Tuba which was put in nearly every condo in Chicago. It can be a bit too “look-at-me”. Although, even if you’re terribly clumsy, you’ll never crack it. It’s hard, but not very brittle.

I wouldn’t go with ceramic tile on a counter top, the grout holds all kinds of spills and stains. Also, slide a wine glass on it and it’s guaranteed to fall over and break.

pic is not my kitchen.

[quote]Dr. Pangloss wrote:
I have green soap stone in one of my kitchens, you might look at that. It’s a nice, warm soft look. It does react to acids, but that’s part of it’s charm and the markings become part of the overall patina.

Fwiw, I agree with you about some granites, especially Uba Tuba which was put in nearly every condo in Chicago. It can be a bit too “look-at-me”. Although, even if you’re terribly clumsy, you’ll never crack it. It’s hard, but not very brittle.

I wouldn’t go with ceramic tile on a counter top, the grout holds all kinds of spills and stains. Also, slide a wine glass on it and it’s guaranteed to fall over and break.

pic is not my kitchen.[/quote]

Soapstone is definitely an option. I don’t think there’s anything OFF the table (so to speak) except shiny granite and cheap laminate. There may be matte granites that I could cope with. My issue, btw, is the broken glasses and dishes, not fear of harming the countertop. I lived with granite for four years and came away with significantly less tableware than I started. But again, that will be the case with slate, too. Granite just rubs me the wrong way. My introduction to it (suburban Dallas-Fort Worth) left a poor impression.

I know the tile is impractical. Why must I love it so? The “bad boy” of kitchen countertops.

Actually, thinking about it, I’m a complete slut when it comes to houses generally and kitchens particularly. I love almost all of them, and no sooner do I think that one style is my forever thing than my eye starts wandering in another direction.


I don’t get the cold comment. Is this cold?


I find the colours in granite to look cold and that granite feels cold too.

Walnut is what I’d love. I don’t know how well it would hold up to my slobby ways but I’ve heard you can make it pretty tough using marine grade poly.

But I love how it looks. The pic there has too much ogee for my liking though.

I have walnut in one of my kitchens and I love the way it looks, but wish I limited it to the island rather than all the work surfaces. Acid will cause the finish to become an opaque white, permanently. No one is allowed in my kitchen but me because everyone thinks it’s an f’in cutting board. Every little scratch, bump, and ding show up and are permanent. You can’t set anything hot down without charring the finish.

But, it’s beautiful. Just keep it away from water. And knives. And acid.

[quote]TQB wrote:
I don’t get the cold comment. Is this cold?[/quote]

No, it’s really not. Is that your kitchen? I love the color of the range.

I acknowledge that matte granite is a different creature. The glossy stuff is really where my problem lies.

Wood countertops are terrific in theory, but I would not install them for the reasons mentioned. To much stress. I do like butcher block as an island and would love a big wooden island like the one in my photo above (though I chose those pics for their use of space, not for the elements of the kitchens).

[quote]EmilyQ wrote:

[quote]TQB wrote:
I don’t get the cold comment. Is this cold?[/quote]

No, it’s really not. Is that your kitchen? I love the color of the range.

I acknowledge that matte granite is a different creature. The glossy stuff is really where my problem lies.

Wood countertops are terrific in theory, but I would not install them for the reasons mentioned. To much stress. I do like butcher block as an island and would love a big wooden island like the one in my photo above (though I chose those pics for their use of space, not for the elements of the kitchens).[/quote]

I made a deal with my wife when we bought the house. We tore out everything down to bare brick walls. She could do whatever she wanted as long as I got the Lacanche stove. Five burners including the central cast iron plate. Giant oven. I run it off propane although I have natural gas in the house. She did get to pick the colour :-).

The cabinets are just IKEA, but with a granite top which is a mottled black/dark grey with a slight sheen,but not glossy by any means. We love the combination and saved a bundle, not going bespoke for the cabinets. I wired the kitchen for dual 110/220V voltage so we can use US equipment. Best advice I can give is, find out what is important to you, spend money on that and don’t fear saving money on the trivial stuff.

PS. Lacanche sells restaurant pro stoves under the name “Ambassade de Bourgogne”. Those are functionally identical and less than half price. No Portuguese blue and brass handles, though.

[quote]Dr. Pangloss wrote:
I have walnut in one of my kitchens and I love the way it looks, but wish I limited it to the island rather than all the work surfaces. Acid will cause the finish to become an opaque white, permanently. No one is allowed in my kitchen but me because everyone thinks it’s an f’in cutting board. Every little scratch, bump, and ding show up and are permanent. You can’t set anything hot down without charring the finish.

But, it’s beautiful. Just keep it away from water. And knives. And acid.[/quote]

In other words, don’t use your kitchen as a kitchen.

[quote]jjackkrash wrote:
In other words, don’t use your kitchen as a kitchen. [/quote]