Forget the waterfall.

If you want both sides to match perfectly you need to buy a pair of bookmatched slabs. In the stone I wanted I could only find sequential slabs so I have one perfect match and one good match. No one knows the difference. Skip the waterfall if you are going to use speckled quartz.

Thank you Hallett! So when I go to look at the slabs I will ask for “book matches”. I just realized that Costco has program with Consentino countertops.

Another idea you might consider if you can’t do book matched slabs is to only have the waterfall on one side. We did that in our previous kitchen (though the countertop material was solid walnut, not stone.) On the non waterfall side of the island we had a paneled end that matched our cabinets, and we placed an electrical outlet and a long towel bar so I could hang dish towels. The waterfall side was the snowy side that was visible from the family room and the entrance to the kitchen, and the non waterfall side was on the working side of my island and was behind me when I stood at my main kitchen sink and was a very handy spot to dry out damp dish towels. If you decide to do book matched and have it on both sides (which I think is also beautiful) you do also need to consider where you will place an electrical outlet because it’s my understanding that it is required by code most everywhere to have one in a non moveable island.

Oh lord.... stupid autocorrect... showy side of he island, not snowy side.

Unfortunately, I don't think your kitchen is a good candidate for waterfall sides, which look really crammed together and overdone in a modest sized kitchen like yours. There are a limited number of kitchens in which a waterfall island actually looks great. In reality, it is just a great trend to get most people to double the amount of stone they are purchasing.

Here is the zoomed out pic of the room you are using as an example. This spacious kitchen - with two windows, a high vaulted ceiling, a custom hood that disappears into the wall, and loads of space between the sides of the island and anything else, has enough breathing room to take on the heft and business of all that stone.

@SKMOM - thanks for your input. I was thinking to do the fall on 1 end only. The designer suggested otherwise just based on the photo of the kitchen I liked. The cabinets will not be installed until mid June so I have time to think and visit few other stone centers.
The electrical code for island just changed. They want no outlets other than a “pop up” on the slab itself (there are other options for an island with raised sitting part, but my island will be 1 level). Many folks think this new code is ridiculous.

@KENDRAH thanks for suggestions. My kitchen drawn as is (limitation of software) does not show that the kitchen is completely open to living room and dining room (I have no walls). The island is not huge … there are 48” between stove and the other wall where fridge is … so I think it will work. I am contemplating making the window bigger but I might scratch the idea for now and just make it visually bigger with a wider trim.

Perhaps consider porcelain. This could be accomplished with it. I think thou that it is a bit trendy? Personally I would rather spend the extra $ for a solid backsplash. More bang for the buck and in my bias opinion it will be the gift that keeps on giving and is more timeless. You didn't say what cm your tops are. I assume 3 cm?? Spend the money also on a mitered edge instead of waterfall. Good luck 

If you can afford it, if it looks good on the outside of your house, and if the view is anything decent, I say a very strong yes to a much bigger window. It will really enhance your design and open it up.

The national model code changed in 2023, but that doesn't mean that your particular state adopted the model code as written. My state, for example, only adopted parts of the 2023 model code. So, be sure to double check what your particular state is using.

My state, for example, requires 1 no matter what (option 3 is not an option for me). But I can still stick it on the side of my island, which is great because I do not want a popup.

The article below is helpful at explaining what has been going. Because the 2023 model code appears to be punting on the island outlet issue (Option 3--would appear to encourage folks to install an outlet after the electrical inspector has finished the inspection), some people have suggested that yet another update of the model code for kitchen islands will be released in near future.

https://www.nfpa.org/news-blogs-and-articles/blogs/2023/01/18/kitchen-island-and-peninsula-receptacle-outlets-and-the-nec

Meg Gal--according to the new code for islands, you don't have to install any outlets. However, you do have to run wiring to a junction box located somewhere in the island so that a receptacle can be installed at a later date.

I would probably skip the waterfall and do a furniture end style on the ends of the island, not applied panels. I guess it depends on how the supports for the overhang are constructed.

We love our waterfall island. We chose a counter that doesn’t have a distinct pattern to match up. Never regretted our choice once.

Thank you all! @westcoast hopeful ; beautiful kitchen! Love the modern look.

I think the waterfall look is more timeless with a simple counter like westcoast hopeful shows

Bummer that the stone is not long enough. Could you find another longer slab of stone? Cambria makes a bookmatch version for long spaces. I know some Quartzites come in 130 inches it might mean buying an extra slab but you could create your dream

Or you could try something like this...

Durham NC Home · More Info

Maybe go a little smaller allowing you to use the slab you want

High Park Renovation · More Info

Seeing waterfalls everywhere...

South Bend · More Info

smaller counter

Kitchen Remodel - Ann Arbor, MI · More Info

Book Matched and Bold · More Info

Thank you! You all are wonderful. Thank you for all your input! 🌺

Meg:

If your island has a cantilever, make sure it's properly supported please. Mitered waterfall counertops cannot sag; if they do, the miters will self-destruct and there is no cure. Math and gravity are cruel like that.

A waterfall is unsuited to a shaker style door kitchen. Move to a slab door, concrete floors, and a more industrial modern type look, if you want a waterfall. Like a warehouse loft conversion. Most homes are not warehouses.

Calacatta Arno Does have some veins, but is not a busy pattern at all. Match the more exposed side and have the other end as close as possible. It will be fine.

Thank you Debbi! I was reading on MSI countertops … so many people have problems with Arno :-(
In addition the situation got more complicated with the waterfall ; I was told by Pergo rep that Pergo cannot sit under the waterfall edge… so I should install waterfall first than Pergo leaving a gap which needs to be covered with a shoe molding….
Not sure if I love this shoe molding look …. 🤯

I have sold a lot of the Arno over the last few years. Never had a call back with a problem - on any of the MSI Q stones for that matter.

Once the shoe molding is in, you'll probably stare at it for a few days, then after a while you won't pay any attention to it.

Skip the waterfall entirely. Waterfall islands are the 2000 era painted grapes and scrolly corbels of the 20's. Those cartoon style elements rarely suited the houses they were in, even if they were in Tuscany. Waterfalls rarely suit the traditional or builder house that they are forced into either.