That's the beauty of natural stone-- so many variations. But I don't think those brownish veins/coloring (if thats what you mean) in the front look bad at all. I like the coloration and the way those veins wrap around and down the edge and then disappear. It's lovely. And once you get stuff on that countertop, that won't stand out as much to you. But I'd never change it, or worry about it. That may not have been the prettiest part of the stone that you liked, but that really shows that it's natural stone (and not some factory man-made "perfect" replica).

It looks like it has already been templated so it will have to stay as is. To get a different result will mean picking out a new slab and going from there. Dianahb brings up good points however. And not sure about what cabinetry you have above, but consider installing under cabinet lighting. That is a great way to brighten the space and bring out the beauty of the piece you chose.

I have to agree. I don't see the problem here. Natural stone has many variations, and your counters look lovely. I understand that you are angry that the fabricators did not follow your instructions, and you have every right to be angry about that. But I certainly don't think the outcome, however unintended, looks bad--just not what you had envisioned and preferred.

I think that is the prettiest section actually! The section to the right has less interest to it.

I agree with everyone else. It looks perfectly good to me, natural. Its a shame you are not happy, I know that kind of thing is annoying and unless you grow to like it, you will end up hating it and taking it out.

I think the section you refer to as ugly is not. It is all part of the natural design. Perhaps you would have been better off choosing a very all over pattered granite or synthetic material. This shows why it so important to be sure the fabricator knows exactly what you want and where. You ( anyone) should be able to examine the piece before it is cut and actually tape off the areas to you specification of where it is to go.

@ sunnydrew, that's kind of shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted, though!

@ nikki - if you had a very specific and detailed written contract on what cuts went where, with photos, etc, then you *might* be able to go after the fabricator to replace it, however, I totally agree with the others, I think it shows the lovely naturalness of the stone that is virtually impossible to reproduce with manmade materials, and I would anticipate, trying to be positive here, than in a week, a month, or a year or two, you won't notice those darker splotches, and in fact may come to like them!

I hope you can see the beauty in the lovely natural variations of your marble. This veining highlight the fact that you used a lovely, natural material.

It's easy to understand why you feel disappointed -- you had a different expectation of the outcome. But I agree with everyone here. What you're seeing as blemishes, we're seeing as natural beauty. If you can see the blemishes in a different perspective, they won't be a daily reminder of how disappointed you feel. It would be a shame to invest in one of the most beautiful of stones and not be able to enjoy it!

Christi, on behalf of Thos. Baker

I don't see "ugly" at all. It's just part of the natural beauty and "one-of-a-kindness" of marble, granite, etc. Our granite has variations in it and even after a couple of months I still see new things in it each day. It has flow and movement, which makes it more interesting to the eye. Enjoy your new marble.

I want to thank everyone for weighing-in on our problem. I truly appreciate the time you have taken and I am clearly out numbered. I've lived with the advice to try and, if not love, then appreciate the counters for the natural stone that they are. The problem is that it feels a bit like trying to force myself into falling in love with someone I don't even like. Beauty is truly in the eye of the beholder and apparently something is wrong with my eyes: the splotches continue to read as unfortunate stains and just because they were produced by mother nature doesn't make them beautiful to me. I've had two kitchens with stone counters -- one with granite, the other with marble -- and every time I cooked in those kitchens, it was a pleasure because of the beauty of the stone. From the remarks it sounds as though we are simply out of luck. Either we live with them or break the bank....apparently there is no fix. thanks again, nikki

Hey Nikki,

It really is quite beautiful. I don't know what your cabinets will be like, but on my screen here, the part of the stone that you don't like looks more yellow/tan with deep brown/dark veins running through it. I just think it's spectacular looking, and-- to be honest-- I feel that if the whole countertop was like the rest of the stone that you DO like (which, on my screen, looks quite mauve/grey/white)-- after a while, you might find that by itself a bit boring. Without those sections you don't like, I honestly think the stone would look a little insipid. I mean-- let that stone take center stage-- and not simply act as a backdrop (which I think it would act as, if it didn't have those interesting veins and brownish/tan parts).
And, again, once you get all your stuff in place-- I'm not sure it will be as annoying to you.

Think of this project as a painting, you add layers to a painting,complete the picture/project and this "blemish" will disappear. You will then say to yourself why was this such an issue. Make everything else perfect around the blemish and then you will be happy.
Good luck

More than anything else I am so sad that you are unhappy with your counter. Like most of us here, we have an expectation of what the outcome will look like. When it doesn't pan out, it has to be devastating. When my granite showed up on the truck, I went out to look at it and felt very unsure. When it was installed I was thrilled. I wish it had worked out that way for you.

Unlike the others, I would at the very least have a conversation with the fabricator. Did you voice concern or unhappiness when they did the install? If you did, I think he just might be expecting this call. At the very least, you deserve some type of compensation for his mistake, especially if he admitted to the error.

Make the call. What have you got to lose?

Like the others, I like your stone. But, we don't count. Only your opinion counts as you have got to live with it.

I would just like to add that whenever I've looked at natural stone with a lot of movement and variation, I've consistently been told (by those who work at actual quarries, by sales people/designers at tile shops, and by tilers/installers/fabricators) that if there is only one piece or section of a stone that you really like-- but there's another part of it that you really don't like-- then do not get that stone, because you never know if your slab (unless you choose your slab directly) might just have a lot of the veining that you don't particularly like. I really think someone should have pointed that out to you somewhere along the way.

Diana: I wish someone had given us such a warning and, "notme" In answer to your question: regretfully, no, I didn't complain when the marble was installed. A friend of mine who came over today said she never would have let them install it had she been here. (I wanted an honest reaction from her so I didn't tell her what my issue was. She did a double-take when she saw the counters and gently and diplomatically asked me about them the way a new hair stylist asks about the hair cut you have when you walk in, for fear of offending.) When it was installed, I simply didn't have the confidence to express my dismay. I immediately assumed that the problem was mine....well, it is, actually, but I mean something was wrong with my perception. My friend is a former interior decorator and unlike everyone else who has weighed-in here, she thinks the marble reads stained and not beautiful and doesn't think I will ever feel good about it. Her advice from years of working with clients: "find something you do love....you've spent too much money and too much time to end up with something you're not happy with." My husband, who is not at all eager to spend more money, (quite the opposite) also agrees that there's nothing attractive about it. I can't help wondering if some of the people looking at the photos think it's beautiful because the photos don't quite capture the whole effect. But, again, thank you all for taking the time.

Well, it's hard to tell without seeing everything, I guess. But here's an idea-- I'm sure you've thought of-- but is there a way to remove just a section of the countertop-- without disturbing the rest-- and then have another piece fabricated to replace that particular offending piece? That will, of course, cost you money-- but perhaps not as much as removing everything? I mean, I'm guessing there's a seam in there somewhere, or the end of a countertop-- so is it possible to move part of it and replace without total destruction?

And another idea-- and I don't even know if this is possible-- but I'm guessing marble can be waxed with beeswax, which may change the color somewhat? If you have a scrap piece lying around, you could try it.

I'll add, too-- though too late now-- but when we re-did a kitchen countertop (just this week!)-- and gutted and renovated 2 bathrooms this past year-- you cannot believe the number of tile/stone samples I brought into this house. I think I could open a small tile store with what I have. :) So I don't know if you did that or not, but what I found was that some of these stones look a lot different in the showroom (with their often fluorescent lighting) and warehouse atmosphere, than they do in your own home.

What I'm saying is that there's nothing inherently wrong with this marble; it's interesting, unusual, and striking. I'm guessing that even without the "offensive" veining, you still wouldn't like it. I suspect it's a disappointment to you, because it doesn't look like, in your home, the way it appeared wherever you saw it. So think about whether it's really the entire look you don't like, or just that small part of it. I'm guessing it's the entire look.

Either way, I guess I'd bite the bullet and remove it. Talk to the fabricator, too.

Most likely this vein is running through the stone.

Is that all one piece of rock? I wouldn't think so, but I can't tell how long it is. Is that 2cm thickness, or is there a bevel or ogee edge that's lost in the pic? There's nothing inexpensive you can do about the sink part. If the other one is in a different piece, you might be able to rotate it, depending on how they did the joint and how the piece is shaped. That way it would at least be at the back. Marble is quite soft, polishing the back edge is no problem. It's not even wet polished, you just go up to 400 grit and then use a polishing rouge and it's shiny. Or not even rouge since yours is brushed
If you told the fabricators those veins were supposed to be in the back, then you have some cause to get them to remedy it in some way, even as little as cutting you a deal.
You're not alone in not feeling comfortable challenging the quality of someone's work, but your money buys you the right to do so. Although in this case it's mostly mother nature's fault. I look at it this way - if someone tried to steal that money from me, I wouldn't hesitate to make noise, and getting something you hate is not that much different.

Once you get the kitchen complete you will not even notice it

There is an OUTSIDE chance if you handpicked the stone, then specified the orientation and had it in writing, that the fabricator can be made to redo.

It will be either learn to love it, or have it replaced.

IF you do have it replaced, you can always have the removed piece made into a vanity top or cut to top a table (coffee/end/accent) somewhere else in your house. Or be able to sell the removed piece to someone else.

I don't see it as a detriment unless you didn't want the yellow/brown/rust in there at all.... in which case you should have picked a different piece.

I think it's rather nice looking. However, you are the one that has to live with it.

Everyone, Nikki is asking for advice about getting the problem fixed or redone. She did not ask to hear your option about the marble color

Agree with Thos. Baker above, especially the donation to Habitat -- and simply use that as a tax write-off. That's probably what I would do (after exhausting some of these other avenues). Then when you do choose another marble, get samples and bring them home and check them out in your own lighting and space.

Build a story around it. You got the marble from an old church in Portugal that had been ravished by fire in 1493 (villagers were upset that Chris Columbus had proven the world to be round). After a decades long rebuilding, the church enjoyed many prosperous years until 1745 when a beekeeper's bees (flock? Colony? That's it, colony), a beekeeper's colony went mad and in a scene that would later be modelled by Hitchcock in "the Birds" swarmed the church (rumours later surfaced that the priest had been carrying on with the mayor (yes, the mayor!) and the bee attack was divine intervention). (To this day, in Portugal, mothers say to their misbehaving children in the playground, "don't make us come over there and go all bee on you".). The bee-festation left honey marks all over the place.

There was a relative period of calm after that until Stephen King came to visit one summer, with Dionne Warwick from the psychic friends network. Ever since then, by staring at the bee stains, an old villager could look into the marble and see which judge would be disqualified during the next Olympics. (And let's not discuss the Harding/Carrigan years, except to say, marble CAN weep--tears of blood leaving further stains.)

The village was abandoned during the Clinton/Lewinsky ordeal, for fear (even though neither was Portuguese, she did like her chorizo sausage, shall we say, and that was threat enough) that the local bees would be reignited and no one would be safe. The villagers dispersed. Years later you found the marble on eBay.

A priest comes annually to bless it but on Mother's Day you can see your mother-in-law in the veining. You use a big tablecloth that day.

Meanwhile, down the street, your neighbours' houses are all full of costco interiors. They envy you and your historic burned out church bee infested anti sexcapade prescient marble.

jpp221: Excellent. You made my morning. :)

It looks like we have our solution...just hope I can remember all of the rich details of our story....

jpp221...that was great!! You should write a screenplay around Nikki's marble and take it to Hollywood. They'll buy it! Then they'll want the marble slab brought to Hollywood for the movie they'll produce. That gets the marble out of Nikki's house and you guys will all be rich and famous! Problem solved.

Christi, on behalf of Thos. Baker

Wow and I thought Typhoon Bordeaux was a mouthful.

I will rename this new look in Marble "nikkispissed". Much easier.

Hi Nikki -- here's a couple more options for you to consider: some people list and sell their marble and granite counter tops on craigslist and ebay. There are professionals who look for pieces to use on projects -- most likely small business owners specializing in remodeling jobs and looking for opportunities to provide their clients with something special. Others contact local stone, tile and counter top manufacturers and fabricators, who do buy used marble for resale. Since yours is brand new, maybe you could get a good offer on it. All of this, of course, if your fabricator isn't helpful or responsive to the problem.

Christi, on behalf of Thos. Baker

Another good suggestion, though I think my preference would be to donate to Habitat for Humanity. It's such a wonderful organization...if they could use the marble in one of their houses, it would take the sting out of this situation. I am concerned, however, that removing usable chunks will be tricky since I'm assuming they used epoxy when they installed it. Does anyone know about this? nikki

I agree with everyone! I love it! The crazy unexpected veining is what I love about natural stone!

Installation methods vary. Some use Liquid Nails, some spot epoxy, some do both LN and epoxy. Some thin set backsplash (though that's rare IME). Seams are generally epoxy, but if done carefully, it can be re-cut along the seam with a grinder and dry diamond bit blade. You might be lucky and have the seams done with colored silicone (which I think is better, but can't be color matched as well as the epoxy).
Many times it's just set on the cabinets (after all, it is pretty heavy) and just siliconed to the cabinet walls. you should be able to remove splashes, sink, etc, and cut silicone and have some freely moving rock. Get a wonderbar to scoot it off the wall enough to finish the seam cut.
Habitat has a store called the Re-Store that sells donated stuff that they can't use in an actual build, so either way they'll get something out of it.

I love it.

Thank you Santos for taking the time to explain the possibilities. The information you've given me is responsive to my question and so very welcome. I hope Habitat will benefit too. nikki