Thursday, April 7, 2011

Tips for Choosing the Right Countertop

quartz

Your kitchen countertop is one of the most used surfaces in your home, so you want to be sure you make the right choice. There are a number of things you need to keep in mind when considering choosing the right countertop surface.

The first step in remodeling anything in your home is to know your design style. An excellent way to discover this is to choose images from interior design and similar magazines that appeal to you. These could range from flower arrangements, kitchen layouts, color schemes to appliances that you find attractive.


Fashion has always been a source of inspiration for kitchen design. So in figuring out your style, take a trip to your own closet. You can get a good idea of who you are by what you wear. Equally as important as your personal style is the overall style of your home: is it traditional, modern, contemporary, classic, transitional, or even nautical? Is the home architecture Mediterranean, Ranch or Spanish? This will give you great direction on the type of style that you are trying to achieve with your kitchen design and specifically with your countertop.

Once you have gathered your ideas and have a design direction, you will need to choose a color for your countertop that complements the other colors in your kitchen. What color are your cabinets, backsplashes and paints? What type of material have you chosen for your flooring?


What style and color are your appliances?


The next critical step in choosing a countertop is to consider what functions your kitchen serves. Is it a high traffic area? Do you have small children or teenagers at home? Do you enjoy entertaining? Are you a passionate cook? If you answered yes to any of these questions, you will need a durable countertop. Your two best choices are granite or quartz.

Although granite is an extremely durable surface, it is not as durable as quartz. Quartz remains the number one rated surfacing material for durability on the market today. Quartz is also the only material that will give you the ease of cleaning while offering a multitude of colors, textures and styles.


Caesarstone is the original quartz manufacturer of heat, stain and scratch resistant surfaces with a Residential Lifetime Warranty. They fabricate surfaces with a variety of different edge options to match your personal style and overall kitchen design, modern or traditional.

To get a crystal clear image of the finished product before installation even begins, check out Caesarstone’s amazing Edge Visualizer Tool on their website at www.caesarstoneus.com/catalog/edges.cfm.This tool features an animated, three-dimensional, 360° view of a segment of a Caesarstone countertop. The tool allows you to experiment with every possible combination of color and edge type.


Remember: your kitchen is the heart of your home, where you, your family and friends spend most of their time. This is where memories are made. Selecting the perfect countertop is a critical part of your overall kitchen design.