Hi Leah,

You may want to check out what is available in form, function, usability, capacities, design, material, etc., by visiting just a few displays/showrooms. You can then make an informed decision. Also, search for older posts here.

If I were you, I'd pick my own, then have them install them. Not for cost-savings, but the fact that you should like what you are going to use everyday. Installing your selections should not be a problem

/venkat

The contractor has no incentive to price-shop, whatever it costs, he passes along to you (probably with some amount of markup tacked on.) Absolutely you should buy them yourself, with the choice of sink and cooktop being goverened by the size of the cabinets into which they will be installed, and then provide the template or the measurements that come with the cooktop, sink and faucet to the fabricator.

Also although from the fabricators standpoint a sink is a sink, and they'll be happy to provide one of their standard sinks of the size that will work for your cabinets, I really can't imagine a fabricator being willing to purchase a cooktop as part of a countertop installation.

One big recommendation for sinks is to look at Ticor sinks at Galaxy Tool Supply, many people here on garden web have used them with great results.