for now, just to say I love your plan..just beautiful

i'll think some more about countertops

I love it. How about stainless steel for the countertop?

Rita - I did think about stainless, but it's so cold to the touch.

This is a little silly, I think, but let me share. In my current kitchen I have truly beautiful Madre Perla countertops. One thing that irks me is that on cold Maine winter mornings when I sit at the island I can literally see the heat of my coffee being sucked into the stone. I have taken to putting a cloth between my cup and the counter to insulate the coffee.

I could do stainless on the L perhaps with something less cold on the island. But, what's less cold? This is when I start to think about butcher block. I am just not sure I like the look of bb with the exposed edge cabinets. And this is further complicated by some pondering I am still doing on the hood/uppers. I know I want the hood/uppers to be boxy/linear like the below. And I think they wont have the exposed edge, I want them to be more like a solid block. I need to decide what color they will be. I sort of think they should be clear coat. And if they are that complicates the use of BB.

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I think DLM's reasoning is much better than mine on this. The Corian is warmer to the touch and eye- plus I didn't take the flooring into account. You can get a super modern thin top with them too. I think that white top will allow the exposed edges shine.

You have plenty of time to mull. Take a look at Bulthaup kitchens and see if anything there inspires you for the countertops.

Take a look at Dekton-Trilium pattern is what we selected for our hopefully uber modern kitchen. It is industrial looking. Also, we found that Home depot had the best price of this very pricy countertop. We are happy with ours and get compliments.

Holy Moly! Is this ever nice. Never heard of Kerf Designs before but yes, I've seen the style before in European decor magazines. I like it very much. Your mood board is swoon worthy.

For a countertop, have you thought of recycled paper? I remember reading about this option when we did our kitchen a dozen years ago. Not sure if it's become an affordable option but I do know it's considered a green one.

Richlite

Paperstone

Either Corian or laminate would be much warmer (or more accurately, I think, less heat conductive) than stone, quartz, or products like Dekton.

I like the look of Richlite and Paperstone but had read some negative reviews about them when I was looking at them. That was 10 or more years ago now, so the product may have improved.

Love your choices so far. I’m assuming that since you didn’t link to it, you haven’t posted in the Kitchen forum, but as for counter options, there’s a lot of good information and feedback there regarding the variety of choices.

Anybody remember debrak’s [heated island[(https://www.houzz.com/discussions/my-hot-island-dsvw-vd~2420329)?

Thanks so much for posting the link and pics. I've been looking for inspiration for our MCM kitchen at our lake house and this fits the bill exactly. Beautiful and different. Please keep us updated with what you actually do. Mine will be the poorman's version as I'll be doing the work myself and would love to see how you do it right.

I really like your choices so far and everything will be just great. I do think it is time for you to brave the Kitchen Forum again, though. I was just going to mention heated countertops as a solution. Some other materials to consider include recycled glass and concrete. The latter may only be a slight improvement over stone. A compromise solution could be butcherblock/wood for the eating areas and a solid surface or stone for the wet/hot areas -- or split sides.

“I do think it is time for you to brave the Kitchen Forum again, though.”

I was surprised to see this. I haven’t been to the kitchen forum in years and got a wealth of information when I did. Did Houzz strike again? Now I understand why you didn’t link there, sorry.

My niece had a very large island that was stainless and it got very scratched up, she was thinking about having it buffed out before she moved. I know what you are saying about the cold stone island, I have soapstone and I love it, but it does suck the heat right out of everything...it does defrost meats at an alarming speed!

I agree with others who have said there is a certain ‘warmth’ to materials like Corian. But having had it once in a kitchen, I was disappointed in how easily it had surface scratches. DH and I are not particularly rough on things, but it was ridiculous.

We eventually replaced it with granite and still have Corian in a spare bathroom and it still looks nice, 20 years later and is so easy to care for there. I love granite and quartz, but yeah, they are both a heat sink.

My son and DIL have a new home with a really pretty almost solid quartz in a couple of bathrooms that might meet your needs, appearance-wise, without feeling cold. Shop around and see what you think.

Honestly, for modernity and eco friendliness, in my next kitchen I will probably go back to laminate on any surface that’s not next to a sink. I have butcher block now on our island. It’s been about five years and it needs major maintenance, my husband sanded and sealed it recently but it didn’t bring it back to fresh.

We have quartz on the run next to our sink and I’m very happy with it. Not as eco friendly in my opinion but very hard wearing.

Coming back to this thread to post an update.

I may not go with the exposed edge. I may do full overlay instead. I am concerned that it will be too much visual business. I am thinking I want to have a funky backsplash and it can be only one or the other or it will be overload. Additionally, I think the exposed edge looks best when the cabinets are handleless and I am not sure that will work for me.

Color: I went past Roycroft Bronze Green and am now firmly in the deep dark greens. Haven't picked the exact color yet.

Counter: We have our slab of White Fantasy Granite reserved. I lost the swoon-worthy piece of Nuage quartzite that I was going to use for the island. When I saw it, and fell in love, I was shown a full slab behind it was the 1/2 slab I needed and could afford. When I went back to view the 1/2 slab it was a disappointment, so I moved on.

Here is an updated moodboard, It shows the back wall, the kitchen is a L with a island. 2 of the large pendants shown in the mock up will hang over the island. My granite is a whiter. The shown backsplash is just an idea, I like the pattern, but I am not committed yet. The tile colors will be TBD - Sonoma Stellar. The moodboard shows 2 greens on the cabinets; the one on the left is SW Forestwood, the one on the right is SW Ripe Olive.

I love the backsplash pattern in your mood board. Very cool! Love both greens; don't know how you could choose. Well, I guess it's all about how the colours look in your space. (If they both look fabulous, flip a coin.:)) I'd go with a plain countertop if doing a pattern on the backsplash but that's my preference.

Great update! Love the backsplash

I thought of you when I saw these kitchens. They are clad in Corian with the body of the wood exposed- so not an applied t=strip of wood like the 90s. I love them, They are from Jack Trench in London.

https://www.jacktrench.co.uk

You can see how the doors are made here:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BxsHP7_hn9x/

I know you said you want polished concrete floors. My daughter has concrete counters and island top. Beautiful idea. The drainboard is ridged and sloped to the sink. Next to the stove is a built-in gizmo for hot pots.

the thing is they.are.supposed to be aging and gaining patina, which means they are hard to keep looking nice. There are worn spots in the work areas, and sometimes stains are difficult to remove. They are about eight or nine years old.

Tartan, I can actually imagine myself flipping a coin at some point.

Rita, I love those Jack Trench cabinets.

Flipping a coin works well with options of equal value. If you have a 'secret' preference for a colour, you'll wish for it when the coin is in the air. If you don't, you'll be happy to see whatever lands. It gets you moving either way.

Exactly! Make a choice and if it disappoints you, it's the wrong one. :)