Software
Houzz Logo Print
katya_gerwein

Help with decision on what type of granite to get

9 days ago

Hi! We are getting natural maple cabinets for our kitchen (which has old hardwood golden color floors) and trying to decide on granite type. feels important as we hope to live in this house forever and never redo kitchen! leaning toward Ubatuba as we don't want to have to seal much if ever (and cheaper). bake a lot of sourdough (think 500 degree cast iron on counter inadvertently sometimes!). but thinking also about typhoon bordeaux or verde butterfly or something else. opinions? we've had our current granite for over 20 years with no sealing and it has been fine (only redo-ing it because cheap MDF cabinets falling apart....old white porcelain sink (keeping), stainless silver refrig, black stove/microwave, nickel faucet in sink.

would love opinions, experiences, thoughts!

Comments (11)

  • 9 days ago

    Current kitchen photos in case that's helpful

  • 8 days ago

    I would not place hot items on any counter material. You can't neglect physics! Thermal shock can happen on stone slabs, causing a crack, even if it was fine before.

    Why take the risk when all you need to prevent a possible crack is a simple and cheap trivet?

    Katya Gerwein thanked chispa
  • 8 days ago

    Take off one door and go shopping. Stone yards get new slabs all the time and something new might have just arrived. I drove around with a cabinet door for a while, stopping at every countertop place until I found 5 gorgeous slabs of Typhoon green granite. My laundry room and kitchen needed a lot of material and I was lucky that day. Know how many slabs you will need, too.
    There are more countertop options out there than ever, but I am a fan of the durability of granite. Keep an open mind and you probably will find something fabulous.

    Katya Gerwein thanked RedRyder
  • 8 days ago

    We have natural maple cabinets. We went with leathered steel gray granite. It has been bullet proof. We cook a lot. Lots of lemon juice used, red wine, tomato sauce etc and nothing has stained it. 8 years in and have not sealed it. I like uba tuba but I would get leathered instead of shiny polished. We live in a log cabin so it may be a different look than what you are going for.




    Katya Gerwein thanked Clyde Kalvin
  • 8 days ago

    this is so gorgeous! thank you.

  • 8 days ago

    really appreciate all these comments so much. and verde peacock is beautiful too. never heard of it.


  • 8 days ago

    Consider soapstone. It’s maintenance free, no need to oil or seal it. It feels wonderfully silky to the touch.
    If you’re open to that idea, check M. Teixera - they are the best!

  • 7 days ago

    I’ll add that soapstone is the most heat-resistant natural stone- safe for placing hot pots directly onto the countertop, if that’s what you’re looking for, and zero maintenance is required. As you probably know, it is the preferred countertop for chemistry labs- it’s pretty bulletproof, and beautiful, too.

  • 7 days ago

    Soapstone is a great idea. It would look stunning with maple cabinets.

  • 6 days ago

    While soapstone does deal with heat better than most other types of counters, it is not immune to thermal shock.