Not to sure what direction your taking? You're building a house right now and not getting what you want? Looking down the road 10 years to get what you want?
I chose a shaker, arts and crafts kitchen in QS oak and granite counters, cause that's what I wanted. I don't worry about 10 years from now. The future is now. Get what you love in this house.
I thought I was only going to live in my house for 5 years, many many moons later, I'm still here, but then I get emotionally attached to many things, our house being one of them.

see ya later, going to Home Goods to get a bunch of blue tablecloths!

Joann

There will always be trends. I have granite, because my husband loves it. After all, he is 50% of the household, so there you go. I guess I have tried not to think about liking my house later, as I never have lived that way. I do try to buy quality items that hold up. I would have much preferred soapstone countertops or even marble, but I am not the only person who lives here and most everything else was my choice and the colors we chose are pretty easy to live with. I particularly did not want stainless steel products as I have lived with SS sink that I was not too fond of in the past, but DH liked that also. I did get the dishwasher, refrigerator, stove and microwave I wanted although maybe not the color.

I was able to get, like I said, the shutters I wanted, the paint colors I wanted (some of which I did not like later on down the road) and I always get the soft items I like such as bedding, towels, etc. I am always the one who picks out furniture with the exception of the leather sofa my DH loved those many years ago which we still have. IT's brown, like everybody else has now but when we bought it 10 years ago, no one else in our area had a brown leather sofa, although I wanted beige. Ten years later, brown sofas are everywhere, but that's okay.

If I decide to sell my house, I am sure it will be bought by someone who likes the neighborhood, the floor plan, the quality of a well-built house, the workable kitchen with its large pantry, the convenience of a large laundry room with its own little half bath, laundry sink, closets and cabinets, who will love flowers in a near-acre-sized garden, a cottage gardenshed, nice attic for storage, a shop with electrical outlets and heating, so if counter surface is the only selling point, I guess we are stuck with our house. :)

I really can't imagine thinking about what people will want 10 years from now - 10 years from now, we'll probably remodel our kitchen again so we'll have to see what we like at the time.

I think that the million dollar question is *what is after granite and stainless steel?*. That way everyone that wanted to could get ahead on the trends.
I see more soapstone and concrete countertops popping up here and then. Maybe they will make a big impression and be the next big thing.
We went with granite and stainless because we adore the look. Our kitchen is very warm and inviting, not cold at all. I sometimes wonder if stainless will be the new white, as far as appliances. It seems fairly timeless, and it works in with a lot of different decor/surfaces.
We just built our home, and plan to stay for at least 5-10 years, if not longer. By that time, we will be able to update to some of the new trends that we like. Or, we will sell and let the new owners decide what they want to do. Or, we'll be the ones stuff in the 2000's because we love our granite and don't want to part with it, lol. But for now, we absolutely love our choices and couldn't be more happy with how things turned out.

I understand what you are saying about the brown granite, but I think if it's done right it will still look good ten years from now.
I think that picking countertops is the hardest decision to make. When I chose ours I tried to find a timeless look, more than worrying about what's going to be in style in the near future. I love soapstone, but for various reasons, it wasn't the perfect fit. I chose a black solid surface with a matte finish to give the same feeling. The rest of the kitchen has lots of white (appliances, backsplash, etc) because I think that black and white is classic, not trendy.
Most importantly - I know what colors I like and how often I like to slap new paint on my walls. With a base of black and white, the sky's the limit. I can go from a very victorian kitchen to a 50's retro kitchen, to an industrial super contemporary kitchen.
Right now it's just contemporary cottage.
I think the mission cabs you are thinking about are beautiful and timeless.

Okay to clarify. We have been in current home 2 years. Originall planned to be here 10 years, but things change. We chose certain upgrades--bay windows, smooth ceilings instead of textured, upgraded tile in the bathrooms, a full bath with shower in the basement rather than a powder room or nothing at all, half cathedral ceilings-- because we thought they would be difficult or time onsuming to do later. We passed on other upgrades--wood floors, up-graded counter tops, because we thought they could be done later.

What I want to do this year, is replace the kitchen laminate counter tops. We will be here 2-5 more years, depending on the real estate market, and will then retire to our vacation home.

That will get a full kitchen remodel. Sorry if I sounded a bit scattered brained, it's only because I am. ;)

DH says to go forward with our plans as if we were going to be here forever, but be prepared to move next year. OY!

I think granite will always be in style. Its the patterns and colors that will come and go. I always try to stay with the simpler designs and colors because (in my opinion) those will stay in style longer

So what's the next big thing? It's hard to predict, but lets run down the options...

Granite - not unique anymore, but still very practical and good looking. Honed granite is a great look and not many people except the TKO know what it is (at least in my market...). Uba Tuba ( a common granite) looks stunning - and very different - when it is honed.

Soapstone - Popular and getting more so. Those black and white kitchens you mentioned probably had soapstone.

Concrete - a great look but not a personal fave of mine due to cracking. Maybe others love it, I don't know :-) .

Solid Surface (Corian and others) - Not as popular as it once was. I personally think that it will become trendy again, simply because it is more expensive now than the entry-level granites. Trendy or not I think this is a great counter material.

Marble - Seems to really be gaining momentum in the counter market. This is not for the faint of heart, however, as it stains and etches.

Quartz - This very practical material is very popular and only growing more so. I think quartz will hold the place of honor in the market for the next ten years.

As for your particular kitchen, I like blacks and charcoals with "builders oak" cabinets. The veining in soapstone will compete with the grain in the wood, but a honed Uba Tuba or a dark grey quartz would be very nice.

Nicole

I am not sure of the next trend- but I would assume, and hope it will take the ecology into consideration- some recycled materials perhaps?

Too bad they can't make countertops out of old decorating magazines - I could furnish a house or two with mine :-)

YES! Chickypea is right! Recycled glass terrazzo counters, all glass counters, paper counters, etc. - these aren't so well known right now, more "boutiquey". They are also pretty pricey. Being green and expensive is a good indicator of up and coming...

Nicole

Cattknap, you think? I just gave my housekeeper two more moving van boxes of decorator and gardening magazines, years of Romantic Home, English Gardens, Fine Gardening, English Homes, Traditional Living, Southern Accent. I gave many, many years of magazines to my doctor a few years back, and yet they have piled back up again.

I am trying to get cleaned out in case we move. Now, do you think in doing so, I have given away the countertops to my upcoming home?

When we moved into our house many moons ago...the countertop range was SS, a SS wall oven, and a SS sink! Even Formica counters with SS trim...Yucky, huh?
We immediately ripped it out and put in a coppertone wall oven, coppertone range, and coppertone fridge coppertone dishwasher and kohler coppertone sink!

In 1986 we put in a new kitchen and had cream color cabs, cream color Formica, cream color kohler cream sink, cream fridge and stove and dishwasher...

Jump ahead to 2006, we put in another new kitchen, SS Fridge, SS stove, SS Franke sink, SS microwave, SS dish washer and granite counters.

So what goes around comes around! Based on my own "Back to the Future" experiences, here's my prediction...Coppertone and Harvest Gold and Avocado appliances, will re surge!!!
Joann

If you're definitely going to sell your home when the market changes, take into consideration the value of the homes in your area and what materials are used in the kitchen/baths.
If the homes in your neighborhood have kitchens that are updated with granite, SS, etc., then I think not using something similar is going to affect the value of your home and its interest to buyers in the future.

I'm one that loves granite and can't see not having it in the future. There are some interesting new counter materials available, but I've yet to see one that's as durable as granite.
I've never considered it trendy.........only that it's now affordable to a larger market.

Also, why limit yourself to brown/beige? There's a huge selection of granite colors out there!

Didn't they used to do real linoleum countertops with SS trim? Fabulously retro!

Whatever the next trend, when you add 10 years to the date that you install your new Granite/soapstone/slate/concrete/laminate, it will look like the decade when people were buying it in droves. That's just the nature of the beast.

Red

LOL Patricia - hey I didn't know you were thinking of moving from your gorgeous house.....we hope to be out of ours by the end of next summer....the housing market here is pretty sad - some things selling, but not much. I am actually cutting out articles and throwing magazines away in droves - I just can't bring myself to throw my 12-15 year old Christmas magazines away....there is still good stuff in them......I might need them...hey it could happen :-p).

I started to read other's posts, but realized it was basically opinions and guesses so thought I'd just add mine to the rest.
Our home if just four years old. We built it with energy efficiency and earth friendly products. Not realizing how popular the now "green" trend would be. Personally I hope it stays that way, but it's been here and gone before, just like everyhing else. So one never knows. We can only hope the trend continues because it's important to think of the earths and our own health. Chemicals are not the answer in either home products or consumables.
We chose Silestone (link below) for a number of reasons. They have a variety of color and style choices, made from 93% quartz bits mixed with a bonding agent (which I'm having a brain freeze on now) and reasonably priced. Now Silestone is even antimicrobial.
So my best and hopeful guess would be the trend to use "green" products like Silestone and other counters that are made from recyclables (I've even seen one made from old shredded dollar bills) and renewables such as bamboo.
I hear Home Depot has a special label to make items that are "green" brought to their customers attention easier.
Happy hunting!

Here is a link that might be useful: SILESTONE please choose your country's flag to enter

I don't get why people think that the countertops are the end all decision in a kitchen. Let's compare the work to replace those verses the cabinets? You remove the glue betwen the countertops and the cabinets, yank...and you have no countertops (sure you have one more step if you have a backsplash, but still...easy removal! I did mine myself...corian...YUCK!) Anyhoo, no biggie. Removing the cabinets...sheesh that's some work!

Then there's the cost. My kitchen is a good example...my granite and stainless counters will come in around gosh...$9,000 to $10,0000 total. (The stainless run is a custom piece and the balance are granite). My cabinets are coming in (bids) between $40,000 and $70,000). Now common math tells you...you can replace countertops (even high end expensive ones) WAYYYY WAAAAYYYYY cheaper than your cabinets!

So get what you want NOW and don't worry about the need to change. It's an easy change to swap out countertops, but a huge change to swap out cabinets. Spend time worrying about the cabinets :) The granie/soapstone, whatever, is not the place to worry about making a change.

I think personally that uba tuba and taupe granite will be somewhat dated. But natural stone has been used for hundreds of years, so are you really worried about it being dated? I didn't go into any kitchen in germany (castle tour) that didn't have etched stone in the kitchen. I certainly didn't think....Oh gad those are SOOOO 1700!!!

If you like blue, use blue. Yes blue is a bad color for a kitchen if you've been trained in culinary theory in any way. I personally would never use it in a kitchen as it's not a good color for food (and it's not just that it won't stimulate the appetite...it's that blue isn't a complimentary color for food). That being said, I'm helping the neighbor pick out a blue granite for her kitchen, which will be lovely with her oak cabinets. So if you like blue :o) GO BLUE!!!

I keep seeing posts about granite being dated in 10 years and I don't see it happening. We had granite in our house 10 years ago and it's still as popular as ever.

I have a client at my bank that I like and chat with a bit. Her DH is a doctor and they are fairly wealthy. They are building. She is designing her new kitchen and hates her architect. She's been everywhere and sees "Nothing" she likes. She wants something unique.

Now, I like this woman and I understand her frustrations with the people she's hired. She dresses other people for mad money and is a very splashy, larger than life person in her own right. She's considered an expert in makeup, boutique fashion, and hair. But what I don't get??? How can you go into other's homes, look at high-end models and decorating magazines, and see "Nothing I like!" Really? I interpret that as "My taste is so exquisite that no one else has yet done what I could do, or found what I can find, or put things together like I could do it!"

Sometimes I think that that is the thing with the "I hate granite" crowd. They are on to the next big thing. Well, that's fine. And not loving granite is fine. I don't love laminate. That's fine too. But every natural material, whether it be maple or oak, granite or stone, bamboo or marble or slate, is going to be used over and over and over through the years. Un-natural, man-made materials, such as plastics and Corian and concrete and aluminum, are going to get wide play too. That's because many of them have cool properties that work in a variety of settings. 2012 may bring aluminum cabinets with aggregate flooring as the hot trend. Kitchen painted in cool raspberry or silvery grey of course.
Too many want to pronounce certain materials as being 'out'. They may not appeal to you, but they may have just now this moment caught my eye and I want them!

Red

If you collect Blue Willow (as my mother and I do), you know that it's a perfect, very appetizing backdrop to food....and that, and Blue Canton, has been considered so since around the 1700s.

I have seen some gorgeous blue kitchens (designer Betty Lou Phillips did a beautiful Fr. Country kitchen in blue---it's my dream kitchen if I had an unlimited budget) and I love this blue DR (below, left) in Mary Carol Garrity's own home. I think that a lot depends on the type/tone of blue used in dining rooms or kitchens. :)

{{!gwi}}

justgotabme - the bonding agent used for silestone and most engineered stone is plastic - resin/plastic - same thing.

This tells all about it.

Here is a link that might be useful: what are silestone and corian made from

My mantra.
Get what you really love. Love where you live.

Let the fads go where they may. If you love blue and want blue, honey get some countertops with blue! Life is way too short to second guess coming attractions.

I can't see what can replace natural stone for counters - here I include granite, marble, slate, soapstone, travertine.

No manmade material comes close. lets see what they can come up with but I am not holding my breath :)

Thank you Cattknap. I could not think of the word resin then! And yes, you are right resin is the same as plastic. I personally think they started calling it resin is because plastic sounds "cheap" or "fake". My point with the Silestone and other products is the earth friendliness since it doesn't use large slabs of stone, but the broken pieces. I would have loved to have found a way to purchase our counters with recycled "garbage" so to speak. I thought the one made of old shredded dollars was an awesome idea.
We're learning about green living all the time and one of the most important things is if it's in good working condition why throw it out in the first place?

If ya like the BLUE then by all means keep the blue and save your $$ for something you do need.

Well now, saving the world and everything is nice, but Silestone is not the answer to that at all. It's made with plastic which has to be manufactured on it's own, then the counters have to be manufactured, and darling they're not just picking rocks up on the beach, they're taking them out of a quarry just like the slab granite meanies do. It is cool stuff, don't get me wrong, but if you think you're doing good for the environment by buying a hunk of plastic with crushed rocks in it, verses a simple slab of rock, you're kidding yourself :o)

I read an article in the mid-1990s about how everyone in the wine country of California was ripping out the granite countertops because "everyone has them now." In their place, they were installing handmade ceramic tile because "It's so much earthier and unique." I was in many homes in the late 1980's; they had granite countertops, usually absolute black, occasionally blue pearl. When I was growing up, a number of houses in the family had blue pearl or emerald pearl fireplace surrounds, those who did not have marble. In other words, I'm not too worried about that urgent design update from the mid-1990's because, it seems to me, stone has always been around and always will be, somehow or some way. I have not been in any private residences in the wine country lately, but I would bet that at least some folks are (gasp) using granite. I'm sure I don't need to point out how much and how long marble has been in use for a countertop material. And I still recall the divots in my high school chemistry lab soapstone and how I wondered who had blown up what in the preceding years in order to create that effect. I'm just not too worried about stone becoming obsolete. ;>)