Sigh. I personally think you can handle this yourself. The two times I have tried to get professional help, it was a waste of money.

Honestly, what other combination can she come up with that we haven’t. You are limited because you are keeping your oak cabinets.

Of course the designers now will disagree with me.

I would only use one if I personally know a satisfied client of theirs. Someone who helped them with a similar issue.

You will pay for her time and effort whether you decide to use her advice or not. Yes, it’s pricey. Which is what happened to me. $1500 for backsplash advice.

What does she mean by local store? Are you not going to a yard to actually see the slabs?

The designers here will walk you through the steps and only you then can decide if it will worth the money.

I disagree somewhat with @eld6161. It depends on the designer. Definitely she should be taking you to a stoneyard or stoneyards, not a local store. But we need to be sure she actually said “local store”, or did the OP misremember or mishear.

While I designed most of my kitchen myself, I needed help on the myriad choices in granite counters (I did know I didn’t want Quartz) and backsplash. I paid an hourly fee to a very good designer. I am certain I would not have been able to choose counter and backsplash without her. She was great. Sidenote - we did not choose the backsplash until after everything else in the kitchen was installed, and she was so right about that.

Also, not only did she help me tremendously in these choices, but she had worked with a top-notch stone fabricator, and an expert tile installer, and I benefited from those relationships. Some of the best contractors won’t return the calls of an individual homeowner, but they will for a designer they’ve worked with for 20 years.

Having said all that, I don’t know if the designer the OP has mentioned will be good or not. I can’t tell that across cyberspace. I advise the OP to talk to a few, and see pics of work they’ve done.

@eld6161 Thank you for trying to talk some sense into me! We would look at actual slabs. Where I am located there must be over a dozen tile and stone places in a 5 mile radius.

I am very much a neutral/plain person. I like my key pieces such as furniture to be more plain or classic and then dress it up with accessories. Based on that the only real option I see is a creamy white marble look quartz. I could dress it up with a nice bronze or black faucet and cabinet pulls, a fabulous sink, and figure out the backsplash once it’s installed. So many brands have the marble look options that I‘m sure I can find one that is cost effective which would be a bonus and maybe I won’t be so worried about making a large investment.

Local store??? it should be a kitchen showroom . You want to see counters w various cabinetry styles and species etc. maybe she is just shortc utting the eXplanation. You can find granite showrooms easily and they will send you to their yards to inspect the slabs . They will give you prices in their showroom / the owners are often present to advise abt various availability and so on. There are many showrooms and fabricators in the Detroit tri county area. Myself..... I’d take a drawer/ door front of the cabinetry and go do some of this on my own. But if you want someone to produce the result FOR you , yes you will pay, sometimes it’s okay ... but this process is discretionary. What counters have you looked closely at?

@herbflavor I call it a store but I suppose you could call it a showroom. I have been to 3 so far and did take a cabinet door. When I think of a showroom I think of an IKEA type place where they have full kitchens on display. The warehouses do have full granite slabs but most only have samples on display of quartz. The place I went to today had an entire wall with what I presume are more popular quartz styles in larger versions. These places may have a handful of setups with a small cabinet and sink but nothing similar to my cabinets. I have tried looking at models of new construction near me but they are all white cabinets. I also have a realtor friend who gave me an MLS account so I could browse kitchens of homes for sale in my area for ideas (many are quite busy granites).

I really think my best bet will be a creamy marble look. Vadara (local in MI) had several options they might work as well as MSI. I am now viewing full slabs online to find a veining I like. I do have 2 small counter sections and want to ensure they have some marbling and that it’s not just 1 big thick vein across the middle.

These are 3 options from Vadara. First 2 are warm white and the last one (Blanco) is a neutral that has both grey and brown veining. Last photo is MSI. I have seen all of these in person as a small sample with the exception of Calacatta Valentin because it’s a new option. I have a photo of my door next to some potentials I looked at yesterday. I probably should have paid better attention to lighting. They all kind of look the same after awhile.

You are right. Grays, no matter what people say, are still very popular so when you go they are still in the forefront. This is why I did my bathroom in gray.

Newly modeled showrooms will have white quartz with gray. At least that is what I found.

We all have a tendency to over think. You need to decide in what direction you want to go.

Visit the stone yards. The black will be straight forward. You can look at a Virginia Mist too. It is black with some white veining. In my opinion, the Costa Esmeralda will have the most variation

i personally would not rule out the Giallos. They are an inexpensive option. They come in light and dark.

Shannon, can you share a photo?

@eld6161 I am still trying to locate Costa Esmeralda to at least go look at it in person. It looks absolutely gorgeous in that photo you shared, I just don’t know if I would want it in my kitchen. My problem with black is that I feel it will date my kitchen even more and not look cohesive with the surrounding space. Living room and kitchen area are connected and share a wall that is neutral/warm medium brown (SW Portabella).

With the marble look I would be aiming for a mix of old and new. I have not done so yet, but may also look at what Corian has to offer. I do have some “modern farmhouse” decor in my living room. I have also been considering doing a farmhouse sink.

In my opinion, black is timeless. Black counter, white backsplash is farmhouse to me!

i think would not interfere with surrounding colors as it is in itself nuetral

@eld6161 That black is interesting and different. Very eye catching. It does look more matte and maybe marble? Left side looked more solid, but right looks like a marble.

You can achieve the same look with black granite leathered or honed.

the only issue is upkeep. Not as good as polished.

Look at Virginia Mist

@eld6161 I really think I’m going to go with the black. I can’t tell you how many people said how great it looks!! I did a simulation of my kitchen with both black and white and the black just pops. I’m really glad you shared that photo. I had not considered that at all. Next step is to pick the material. I need to do some research about different options and which might minimize fingerprints and water marks. I think leathered is out but a honed granite or matte quartz are options. Next decision is if I go with a farmhouse sink black, white, or stainless and faucet finish.

The black will look great in a honed finish and very easy to take care of, we did Cambrian Black honed granite in our last kitchen and it was stunning.

I agree! That is the way to go. I would not do a black sink. They show water marks. Stainless is the easiest to care for.
But for the farmhouse look, white is the most popular.
I’ll be interested to see how they would install farmhouse sink in your cabinets.
A simple white subway tile backsplash will complete the look.

Hi Burtnyks - some local resources for you:

Slab Yards: PMP in Troy and Dwyer in Farmington. The two best we have in SE Mich.

Tile: Beaver, Cercan, Ann Sacks, and Virginia in the Design Center. Ciot close by on Coolidge between 14 Mile and Maple. Virginia and Beaver also have locations in Sterling Heights and Farmington, but I'd stick with the Troy location, just so you can hit up all those places and make a day of it.

You don't need a designer for just a splash and a counter. You got this.

@eld6161 I have a call in to a carpenter because they will need to cut out the faux drawer to do the install. But I’m still trying to assess the expense. I didn’t realize how expensive farmhouse sinks are, plus a carpenter may need to reinforce the bottom since some of those sinks are pretty heavy. I’m trying to figure out the appropriate size. If I got 9.5” deep it will still have a border above the cabinet doors.

I forget which user chimes in with the great oak kitchen idea book and I hope they do.....I think you need an earthy granite that mixes in the warm with the white if you are keeping your white appliances. Black or charcoal counters look good with the oak but only with stainless or black appliances. Your simple mock up shows that truth.

And if you don’t like that idea then your next best bet will be a solid white quartz or Corian that matches your appliance white....don’t do a creamy white counter with your white appliances.. it will look crisp and modernized if you coordinate your whites very carefully.

@thinkdesignlive I will be upgrading the appliances to SS. Just waiting for 1 of the 4 to break which quite frankly should be anytime since they are 20 years old. I’m sure it will happen conveniently after I cut the final check on the other upgrades. . 🙂

@L thomas You have experience with Dwyer? When I first started shopping around I got a quote on Envi quartz but never heard of it. I have seen it more frequently as I shop around more.

@User Every car I have owned has been black. I was a little concerned about it, but it’s just me and I frequently wipe down my counter so I’m not too concerned. I have heard mixed reviews from friends. Some say their black counters never look clean and other that said they have no issue. I do intend to do my research on the different brands and options as far as stone and quartz.

Just curious if anyone else would chime in on a white vs stainless farmhouse sink? I think white is doable as there will be a white backsplash and is probably more typical as eld6161 stated above. I think stainless would be the cheaper alternative but I have also read some people comment that it’s hard to keep it free of fingerprints. My parents have stainless steel appliances and don’t seem to have any issue with fingerprints.

Alternatively I could just go for a standard undermount sink. The only reason I like the farmhouse is because it has some nice contrast and takes away some of the wood. And I just like the look of it.

@burtnyks experience with Dwyer with natural stone. Not quartz. I was speaking more to service. They do a good job.

I don’t think the layout of your kitchen supports a farmhouse sink. Visually the way your perimeter wall jogs out it will be visually cleaner to stick with an under mount.

You may want to post more photos of the whole room for us to have a more complete understanding of your space.

We used Cambrian Black for our countertop because it’s a extremely dense granite that can be used for exterior cladding and when you hone it the stone is still solid black, we used a water based stone sealer which also had an enhancer in it to keep it nice and black. We did not have 1 problem with water marks or finger prints. We also only sealed it once in the 5 years we had it .
We now have a quartz top and it scares me, I’ve always had granite countertops and no issues , I feel that the quartz is fragil and makes a lot of noise when you put something down on the counter, but that might just be me.
Good luck in your search, you have great advise on the forum.

I really should stop looking around. I went to PMP Slab yard that was suggested above to take a look at the granite. I ended up gravitating towards Calacatta luxe quartzite (2nd pic) in 3 different locations while walking around. I don’t know if I’m just blinded because I find it really pretty, but it seems to photograph more grey than I perceive in person. It is listed as a beige. I think it’s come down to Absolute Black honed or Calacatta Luxe honed. I checked out jet mist but the ones available really had a lot of white and the honed slab looked quite grey to me, but it was also outdoors in direct sunlight.

In my experience, Calacattas tend to photograph gray. It’s bizarre. I’ll find a piece with some lovely caramel veining. Take a photo. Pull the photo up later and the damn thing is all grey veined. It happens 🤷🏻‍♂️