Thanks for the input. We’re personally not fans of granite. Can I ask what you think is too much?

That's an interesting idea! We'd love to be able to afford the quartzite all around, but then we've also read lots of stories of quartzite staining occurring around ranges because of the heat causing the sealant to breakdown. So much to think about!

I did want to clarify that we only have white and black cabinets. The floating cabinet in the dining room will be white (not wood as shown in the rendering), and the cedar battens are just for the back and sides of the island; the cabinet fronts themselves will be black. So when you're in the kitchen, you'll have black cabinets under both work spaces (the island and the perimeter), and the white cabinets will surround the refrigerator wall. More like this (which is a terrible mock-up that I've done from the cabinet maker's plans):

You really do have 3 cabinet finishes here, wood, white, and black. You will see all 3 finishes together in one space. Then 2 counter finishes. It really is a lot going on. Although, this may be something that doesn't bother you. With black perimeter counters, I worry that the black will be a different "shade" of black than the cabinets it sits on, so will look off. I really wouldn't like a brighter white quartz that would compete with the beautiful soft white of the quartzite. This is a tough one!

@Amy Lynn - I know - It's a toughie! It's interesting because I was worried the kitchen was leaning a little too "plain," but the last 3 comments have really opened my eyes. My clarification wasn't meant to be defensive; I just wanted to make sure I was laying out all the specs correctly. Sadly, we may have to just do the basic White Zen for all countertops to avoid any conflicts.

No worries Matt! To me, your clarification didn't come off as defensive at all. I just wanted to try and make you think of things that sometimes we turn a blind eye to in our planning process. When we show our plans to others, who are detached from the decisions, it brings clarity to the picture as a whole instead of all the smaller details we get hung up on.
I really love the quartzite you are considering and think it would be so beautiful on all counters. I also love the white, black, and wood mixture. Hopefully, you will come to a decision you will love for years to come.

Your glass cabinets are beautiful, different and a star. I would eliminate the wood pieces and make island the same all around. Save some $$ and eliminates 1 element. The quartzite is also stunning. The 2 together makes the kitchen wow. There must be a simple color perfect simple plain solution. I just not have the answer. Bet others here can find it.

@husterd - I have faith in this community! Thanks for the tips :)

Problem solved: we’re going to do Dumond Quartzite on the island and perimeter. Thoughts??

Oh beautiful! That quartzite is gorgeous. I'm glad you found a great solution. Hope you post pictures when it's done. It's looking to be a unique kitchen!

Good choice

Thank you! You all definitely helped reign us in!

Excellent! It will look stunning with all the same stone. Please post finished kitchen. FYI I have had quartzite Fantasy Brown since 2015. No problems at all. Admittedly not much cooking going on here.

I love your second option! We just had Calacatta Lux installed and it’s amazing how the lines vary so much. Pro tip from my fabricator was use the same stone for all or contrast (light stone vs dark stone on perimeter and island) but definitely do not use similar tones.

@ciena24 that stone is gorgeous!

Wow. That second choice is gorgeous! I’m glad you can use the same stone all around. It will look much “cleaner” which is the look you’re going for. Make sure to have time for an appointment with the fabricators to figure out where the cuts will be and how the lines will look where you have seams. Great decision! And yes, keep us posted on your progress.

@RedRyder - yes, absolutely about meeting with the fabricator. Thank you for the tip :) We already came up with a general idea (the blue tape marks), but we've since gotten much more detailed...including paper cutouts to scale!

You can never be too OCD with fabrication. It’s so important. Love the idea of paper cutouts to scale!

@ciena24 how have your counters held up? i have a hold on a slab of calcutta lux.

It’s coming together! The wood strips will continue around the base of the island. Should we paint them black to match the perimeter cabinets or white to match the refrigerator wall of cabinets??

Gorgeous I wouldn’t distract from that countertop. It’s beautiful!!

Hey Flo - agreed! We think the wood color adds another tone that’s unnecessary, so we’re trying to decide between painting it black to match the perimeter or white to match the fridge wall. What do you think? I think black will make the quartzite pop bright, but it may make the island appear too dense/ heavy; white will brighten up the space (which is already bright), but make the quartzite look more gray.

Here are a few more for context

Beautiful! I do really like the natural tone of the wood strips on the island with the black and white, but you clearly have great instincts, so I’m sure whatever you decide will be the right choice. Bravo!!

Can the wood be the same color as the flooring?

This is just gorgeous and so different! If paint is necessary, I would do black. I think white will just detract from the countertop and may even fight with it. I was unsure if the white cabs on the refrigerator wall would look ok but they do! Make that the only white ones in the kitchen.

Thank you all! Now you’ve got us considering just leaving them natural wood. We do have some other fluted wood accents on the exterior and interior, so it would continue the theme. We felt it was potentially too much to bring it into the kitchen and introduce a 3rd tone, but you’re all making a strong case for keeping it as the natural wood. More to come!

I don't see the wood as a third tone if it's the same color as the flooring. It's adding warmth IMO and shows the fluting better.

Consider that you're viewing it primarily from the living room. Keeping it wood makes it look more like furniture. Do you want to look at a black or white box from the living room? I think wood is so much more interesting. You'll likely have some chairs in front of it. Keeping it wood gives you more flexibility on colors for chairs if you go upholstered or use some color chair that ties in with the rest of the house.

I really like the wood on your island. Let us see the finished product when you are done.

Either choice will work. Here’s a way to test the black paint idea: buy black poster board and tape it around the island. Keep it there for a few days and photograph it. Then you have a fair comparison. The kitchen is drop dead gorgeous already. You did SUCH a good job. I don’t think you will mess up the island if you leave the wood or paint it black. (My first instinct was black, only because it contrasts the stone more and the stone is the star of the room. But I like the wood too.)

@tozmo1 - thank you for the visuals! You guys have been so helpful and encouraging… I’m excited to see which way we go now!

@Matt Martin id love to see a finishe product. do the counters come off as warmer or cool to you? thanks so much!

@ciena24 i would love to see your kitchen with the lux countertops!

Hey Shiloh - we’re just waiting on our fridge and then I have lots of photos I can share!!

I think it comes off warmer, my partner thinks it’s cooler. So it really depends on what you pair it with. The golds come through a lot, so it contrasts greats with white cabinets. But the light spots are a lot lighter than most quartzites, so that makes it cooler.

Photo time! We still need to replace the barstools (we're thinking this in black w/ black leather: https://www.madfurnituredesign.com/mad-furniture-design/sling-bar-stool) and finish the trim above the fridge, but I was too excited to wait. @Shiloh S - you can see how the stone looks warm in the 2nd photo but cooler in the 3rd - it really does change!

Thank you everyone for all your input throughout! It truly was invaluable in helping us create our dream :)

Beautiful!! Congratulations, and enjoy your new kitchen. Wonderful choices.

Gorgeous!

Stunning! Looks special and unique. Bravo!

She’s a stunner! Matt can I ask if the pricing made this Dumond quartzite more affordable than your original idea to do quartz on the perimeter? I’m in the same situation as you and trying to figure out the right material and countertop combo to save money, without going porcelain everywhere.

Beautiful kitchen!

@Jenny - your renderings look gorgeous! Our situation was a little unique as apparently quartzite exploded in price right around when we were finalizing our selections. Luckily the Dumond quartzite we went with was part of an older lot that the company who was doing all of the rest of our counters still had in stock, so it was still at the older pricing, which was about 30% less than the Calacatta Lux that we loved at the new pricing. It still put us slightly over budget, but we went pretty basic throughout the rest of the house, so we were really close to on budget.

We LOVED porcelain, but unfortunately no stone yards around here would do it with the sink cutout in the island - it’s just too brittle during production. But if you can find someone to do it, I think porcelain is an amazing option.

@Jenny Your kitchen is going to be beautiful. If you haven't already checked, there are a lot of discussions on Houzz about porcelain countertops. An experienced fabricator is the key. I was going to do one on my island but the only fabricator who was recommended for it left town after his divorce (so the inside story went) so I didn't do it. Would love to see your kitchen when it's done. @Matt Martin 's turned out beautifully!

Looks great! Any pics of the working side of the island - are those fronts black or white? My 2 cents on the island stools you are thinking about - how comfortable do you and your guests want to be? I’d like a cushion on the seat if possible….and let us know how you like the cooktop by the window. I keep trying to persuade when the situation warrants it but no takers so far :)

A couple more updates, including the working side of the island and the new stools! ( @thinkdesignlive - they have a cushy seat!)

@thinkdesignlive - we LOVE the window over the range. We use the front burners a lot, so there isn’t a lot of splash onto the window. And even when there is, it’s easier to clean than a tile backsplash with grout!

Speaking of tile backsplash with grout, we did the window recessed with a tile surround for fire safety. That way we could still save money by doing a wood framed window instead of metal, while getting city sign-off.

It looks absolutely fabulous. We just ordered a Calacatta lux. I just wanted to check in and see how happy you were with that. Some older posts from 2018 seem to have had staining problems around the edges. Have you had a good experience? Thank you again. Appreciate your comments and wish you the best. Looks beautiful.

@ciena24 How has your Calacatta Lux held up? Have you had issues with staining and etching? I read so many nightmare stories on this site that I'm really reconsidering putting that stone in my new kitchen. Thank you!

I would also love to know how everyone's calacatta luxe is holding up!

Where did you find your black and glass cabinets? Fab!