My favorite countertops are quartz, because I hate cleaning, and I would not really appreciate the "patina" that everyone talks about on a gorgeous hunk of marble. Though I love it in other people's houses--just not my own. With quartz, I like knowing and seeing exactly what I'm getting (no mis-marked quartz/marble/granite). I'd use a company who stands behind their products (research that one!).

As far as pulls and knobs, I suggest you use google images to see how you prefer your handles and knobs. I personally prefer handles everywhere (except perhaps on very narrow cabinets), and here's why: I like the way metal dresses up a kitchen or other room, like jewelry. I like it to look a little bit chunky and noticeable.

With handles or knobs, pay attention to whether your fingers easily grab the hardware, without your knuckles hitting the white cabinets, or you will have constant oily/dirty marks around the handles.

On wide drawers, I like having 2 handles, even though you then really need 2 hands to open those drawers. But that's what to think about.

Lastly, be certain that you tell your installer in ADVANCE which knobs to put where, and SPECIFY that you wish to MARK on the cabinets the exact locations, and of course, a template for drilling must be used. For example, some people like their hardware on the stile, some like it in the middle of the drawer. Some like a knob down in the corner of a door, some like it in the middle of the door (looks weird to me). But there are threads on this website a lot, where some cabinet installer just went ahead without the homeowner and installed the knobs and pulls willy-nilly without asking the homeowner. What a disaster. Don't let that happen!

Thank you Mrs. S - Thanks for the great advice. I am already afraid of my greasy hands and general clumsiness. I will look into quartz when I look at counter tops tomorrow. I like the hardware placement in this kitchen. What is the stile (google but couldnt find L)[https://www.houzz.com/photos/sunset-plaza-traditional-kitchen-los-angeles-phvw-vp~8023774[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/sunset-plaza-traditional-kitchen-los-angeles-phvw-vp~8023774)

For our cabinets, I used bin pulls for the drawers (centered for narrow drawers, at the top for deep drawers) and I used casement latches for cabinet doors.

Here are some similar photos:

Just Google shaker cabinets, and you’ll see tons of varieties of placements for hardware. There’s really no right or wrong, it’s a combination of comfort, function and style choice. Go around and eyeball where you think you would put it on each door and drawer and put mini post-it’s in those spots and make sure there’s no oddballs And that you can actually reach the hardware on the uppers. I did bin pulls centered on my drawer faces, knobs on the lower inner corners of my doors and full handles centered halfway up and my pantry doors.

I mixed it up a bit in my new builds kitchen. I did a chrome pull on all lowers and glass knobs on uppers. Then on my island I brought in glass and chrome pulls.

I did a quartz on my counters. My backsplash I did a gray subway but I plan on changing that as I'm not too happy with it. With your walls being blue/green I would think about doing a marble or white subway backsplash. My island is aqua so I have blue to accommodate to and there are some really beautiful tiles out there.
These are some marbles I'm considering.

a lot will depend on your counter top. I would choose that and get it in before making a backsplash decision.

Marble done in a herringbone patters with quartz counters

rebeccamomof123 - I am so fearful of doing something wrong because I dont have money to redo it. I think I spend most of my life on Houzz :). pink_peony I love your handles! where did you buy them?

You need to be working with a designer to achieve a cohesive whole. You can’t treat one space like it’s a lifeboat divorced from the main ship. It all has to work as a whole.

With what you’ve chosen so far, Constance, your kitchen can’t help but turn out lovely. ;)

Sophie Wheeler - I agree that I need a designer but living in NYC I didnt have the money. This baby boomer is getting her first and last kitchen on a shoe string which is hard where I live. I dont know where I would be without Houzz!

Sammy Thank you this is really hard for me! I was not born with a creative bone in my body!

If you’re getting a new kitchen, that should automatically come with a kitchen designer. Someone has to plan this out, and figure out the cabinets, and how many square feet of counters you have, and all of the other details. You cannot do a kitchen without a KD of some variety being involved. That is the person who should be helping you with all of your details here. The commission on the job is what pays them for the majority of the effort.

Constance since your space isn't large and open I personally wouldn't do too many different hardwares. Go for pulls on bottom knobs on top perhaps and call it a day. I would also keep the finish light and bright. ORB or black would get really busy quickly in that space. You eye wouldn't know where to rest. I would also keep your counters light. Since this is your one and only kitchen revamp pick timeless finishes. I think the white cabinets are a great choice and it looks like according to your plans wood floors through out. Also good. If you don't want to deal with real marble there are plenty of quartz counters than emulate marble. Also Denby is a very durable option. Google that. Or punch it into Houzz search bar there are other discussions about it on here.

This is my floor for reference

Beautiful floors. Realized my auto correct was at work after re-reading what I commented earlier. Danby Marble not Denby. Here is a great read about it.

https://www.theglampad.com/2013/06/danby-marble-bliss.html

These are some of my countertop ideas; I appreciate any insight

The bottom photo... I'd rule out the one on the far left. It seems to be cooler in tone than your cabinets. The one on the far right is gorgeous, but will definitely be the star of the show and will necessitate a pretty subdued backsplash. The center one is more tame and would give you more backsplash options. It also seems to be the warmest of your choices. I think either #2 or #3 will work, it just depends on your preference.

Do you have any photos of them with the wall color and cabinets in one shot? Preferably with them in the right orientation (walls.and cabinets vertical, countertop horizontal).

Kathryn P does this help? I might need to get someone to hold them closer. The cabinets are white dove and the walls beach glass

I think the top sample and right sample both work. It's just a matter of how much you want your counters to be the focus. Do you have any thoughts on hardware finish?

The movement is smooth and flowing. Very pretty. The one on the right is in just about every kitchen there is because it looks good with everything but it is going to be one that 10 years from now dates itself .

Kathryn P I want the hardware and the backsplash to be simple

That hardware looks nice! The one you have circled, is that a second sample as the one further up with the 3 lined up, or did you switch samples to something else? I agree the one on the right is the safer, more used choice. My preference is the top one. I like the black vs grey, but that's just a personal preference.

I think the hardware is a little too bulky for a smaller kitchen. I’d try something a little more streamlined. I do like the finish though.

I would try a simpler style of hardware. Check out Century Hardware's Stainless and Modern Geo Collections. https://www.houzz.com/collections/centuryamerica

This is also a way that I have been advised to go.

So thanks to all the people on different forums I have learned a lot. When I looked at the whole slabs they would look very busy in my apartment and I have to have a seam because it won’t fit into the elevator in my building. So now I have some new choices, I really appreciate all the help. Thanks to Houzz I now have hardware in the kitchen.

More styles

I love 2 and 4. ......6 looks very green on my screen. 5 leans that way too. 1 solid gray? 3 looks like 6.

thanks pink_peony, I took the photos during a rainstorm so I could see how they would look in the dark. I am partial to 2 because it is a little different. Doing a kitchen from scratch is really hard (the location was moved because of size constraints) I got ripped off on the cabinets so I have had to wait to have enough money to get the countertops! I have learned a lot about doing a renovation!

http://www.spectrumquartz.com/products/escape/

Keep it simple. I used the same pulls on doors and cabinets. The large drawers have a 14” pull. I wouldn’t use small cup pulls on large drawers. I can easily open the large drawers with one hand.

I love 2. It’s beautiful. 5 eh, not my favourite. I also like 4. It looks like a cloud :-). But of the three entire slabs i love 2.

Steve - your kitchen is beautiful!

If you use a counter with a linear pattern like #2, you'll want to discuss with them how they'll match the pattern at the seam.

mayflowers - Thank you - that is the concern! I think I will have 2 seams event hough my kitchen is small

Constance-

If the slabs wouldn't fit in the elevator of your building, why couldn't they be carried up the steps?

People that live in apartment buildings don't select their furnishings by the size of the elevator, or the stair well, or the hallways.

Have you ever noticed scenes like these?

Counter slabs can also be brought in through windows, so you don't have to have a seam. Your fabricator should know this. Your contractor should know this. Someone is asleep at the wheel. Your kitchen designer would have told him this.

(Unless they told you this and you were unwilling to pay the surcharge for the hoisting, but that is not what you said above.)

Which brings me to the next point.

Using quartz, you may not like how it looks where the seam is. There are a multitude of threads on Houzz of people having quartz counters installed and not liking how it looked because of the seaming.

And did you look at sample #2 above? It already has a ring stain on it!

It seems like you haven't thought of Corian.

Take a look at Corian Rain Cloud, it look like marble, and doesn't have stain issues, or the problems with seaming that quartz does.

"Corian® Rain Cloud. Corian® Rain Cloud has a neutral off-white base, with tender gray veining and traces of "barely there" large translucent and ultra-fine dark particles that create a soft and entirely natural effect.Rain Cloud | Corian® | DuPont Singapore"

With the counter in Rain Cloud you can go with a light, simple back splash that marries the counter and the cabinets.

I like a simple tile like a square tile or a subway tile , laid out in either one of these patterns

Your kitchen is small, and it is important to decorate with a restrained, refined hand.

You want to go in your kitchen and feel it is light and elegant, not overdone and oppressive.

It's like getting dressed. You want the right look, not too much.

You don't need to worry about there not being enough color in the kitchen.

You will have some things on the counter like a coffee pot, a canister of utensils, a vase of flowers, a colored dishtowel,etc to give some life and color to the kitchen

It must have stung to have been cheated with your cabinetry.

It is my understanding that working with a Certified Kitchen Designer would have prevented this.

The KD (in addition to presenting you with the panoply of choices given your needs,budget, layout and tastes) knows the sources from which to obtain the materials and competent labor at a fair price, and resolves any disputes and problems.

For a busy working consumer, isn't that invaluable?

There are significant and costly choices remaining for you in your remodel, the back splash and counter top, that can easily cost you almost $10,000.

And a lot of stress.

Sure you can get suggestions from people on Houzz.

It can be a fun way to spend some time and get some ideas.

Some Houzzers are professionals, some have remodeled, some have good taste, and most are total strangers you know absolutely nothing about.

I think that you need to make decisions together.

The counter-top piece together with the cabinet together with the handle, and you need another person holding it for you and you stand back to look.

And there should be some congruence between the style of the kitchen and the rest of the apartment, which we know nothing about.

Granted, it may not be done yet, but you would talk about your style with the designer.

It's great that you can ask for help.

It's great to bounce things off friends and crowd source, too.

Ultimately, isn't it the best to ask the expert in the field, especially when there is so much at stake and much money and time has already been lost?

I've had a lot of trouble with each decision with my kitchen reno, and an interior designer I've worked with shared this wisdom.

• Pick who is going to be the star - the counters, backsplash, or something else. Then everyone else should be backup singers and not try to upstage the star.
• If unsure who the star is, look for the item that has the most visual movement.

Your June 10th countertop selections were definitely all stars. They danced with movement.

Of your countertop samples from 7/17, 1, 2, and 4 are softer, and they open up more options for the backsplash like a fun shape or pattern. If you chose 3, 6, or especially 5, they are much more stimulating to look at so a simplier subway or tile with very similar grout color (less contrast) would be needed to balance it.

When you consider backsplashes, do you gravitate toward interesting shapes and/or patterns?

We thought we had selected our backsplash until the counters were in. Hold off on a specific tile or pattern until they are installed. But in general, where do you want your star to be?

loobab - thank you for all the advice. If I had to do it over I would have hired a designer, unfortunately I am very limited on funds so I did it alone. I am on the 11 floor and my only big window doesnt have street access, the blue arrow is a different building. It would also be very expensive. Iwill look into Corain. I wish I could have waited to have more money!

allie - thanks! I think I like backsplash's simple. I think after this renovation I will know how to do things in the right order! Since the space and the apartment are small I want to keep it simple!