There are lots of different manufacturers of reconstituted stone products, so google search for reconstituted stone, rather than Caesarstone, which is the market leader and a brand name.

Make your selections from seeing real samples in your home, as images off the internet are deceptive for colour accuracy. I like Caesarstone as it feels like stone, whereas some of the competitors feel more like plastic.

A lot of the costs to reconstituted stone benchtops comes down to the labour content for installation. For instance I had a client who was shocked that her Caesaerstone laundry benchtop was so expensive, until I explained to her about the manual labour needed to finish off the edging for the hole for her undermount sink and her benchtop edge detail.

David Wilkes Builders · More Info

Best of luck with your selections,

Regards

Dr Retro

of Dr Retro House Calls

Hi Alex & Christie, you may like to search "Reconstituted Stone" which is what this type of product is called. In addition to Caesarstone & Quantum there is also Essastone, Silestone, Stone Italiana and Smartstone. All of these feel and sound like stone. We have a small section on our website about the various properties of Reconstituted Stone if this is any help.

If you are looking for something different to the manmade Reconstituted Stone products but want the feel of stone, you may also like to look through the range of real Natural Granites and other Stone available. Wholesalers CDK Stone have a good site to help give an idea of what's available, though these slabs are all best seen in real life.

Hope this helps.

Regards

Malcolm

Thanks so much for the replies - This is really helpful. I'll try searching using those keywords instead to find some showrooms around Sydney that we can visit. Thanks again!

Hi alexandchristie, in addition to our Quantum Quartz range, we also offer natural stone and large format porcelain sheets - QuantumSIx+. Check out our website to view all 3 product ranges https://www.wk.com.au
Or feel free to pop into our showroom to view samples/slabs and pickup samples
: )

There are many different brands of manufactured stone, another option that hasn't been mentioned yet is SileStone, they have quite a few more colours than Caesarstone so if you're not finding a colour you like with them, SileStone or like mentioned above, Quantum Quartz could be good brands to look into.

Good luck with your project!

Hi Alex and Christie,

Quantum Six is a beautiful product that is essentially a large porcelain tile (slab) that is screen printed to replicate an effect for example marble. It is very realistic in appearance to that of natural stone. It comes in either 6mm or 12mm thickness and the edges can be book marked so it looks like a thick stone slab. There will be no joins as slabs are either 3200 X 1600 or 2400 x 1200 which aesthetically looks fantastic and is hygenic for your wet areas. Very easy to maintain and is resistant to heat in addition it would be a lovely surface to work your pastry. I recently used this product in a kitchen and it has come up beautifully the clients adore it and it has become the focal point of their kitchen. Happy to assist you if required. Thanks Collaborative Interiors

If you are in Sydney, perhaps check out the stone benchtop options at Bunnings. I have a beautiful kitchen from Bunnings, and the priciest item was definitely the benchtop, but well worth the cost. Essential Stone was the provider, and my bench top was made on the Central Coast. there are three levels of quality and one is sure to meet your budget. Mine was in the mid-range and it is stunningly beautiful, they did an outstanding job at installation and I couldn't be happier with it.

http://www.essentialstone.com.au/stone-benchtops/

by the way, that is a manufactured stone :)

Hi Alex and Christie, I am installing a kitchen this week using a product I have used before and that I really like. It's Mirostone - a 100% acrylic product which feels and looks just like the reconstituted stone - it even feels cold like stone - yet it's much cheaper than any reconstituted stone I have found. Being 100% acrylic it's not porous which also means it's very hygienic. It's resilient to marks and staining so will be good for rolling out pastry dough. However, it should be treated with care like any benchtop and a chopping board or hot surface board used when required. Marks and stains can be easily sand-papered away - that's right, sandpaper - but because the stone colour goes through to the base, you aren't left with a discoloured patch. It only comes in 7 colours from white to grey, but it's a really nice product. I believe it is available Australia-wide from the distributors in Adelaide (where I am based). Good luck. Cheers, Penelope

Jodie Louise - Why don't you recommend essastone?? I am looking at using the ash concrete and the unique calacatta but am finding it hard to get any info or reviews on them anywhere.

MrsRicho Call a Stonemason and ask there preference on stone and what they recommend. I presume not a lot of people know of Essatone I believe its a branch of Laminex Group laminates.

pour your own concrete top any colour/finish you want at a silly cheap price and spend the thousands saved on a holiday...

Plush Design Interiors...not heatproof though is it , which means it shouldnt be mentioned as any sort of alternative in this story..