<p>IMHO, hardwood floors never go out of style.</p>
<p>What else?</p>
<p>I don’t think white cabinets will ever go out of style-- or maybe they just go in and out of style with dizzying speed.</p>
<p>I’m getting quartz, Cambria Fieldstone to be precise. I wanted light colored counters but my husband wanted dark and I discovered I just don’t have strong feelings about it. But I do about white cabinets! It was white or nothing.</p>
<p>^I love white cabinets, and white appliances. I don’t like the look of white cabinet-STAINLESS DISHWASHER-white cabinet–STAINLESS RANGE–white cabinet…etc. For those of us who cannot afford custom covers for our appliances, going with the same color for everything gives the most seamless look, IMO.</p>
<p>I like the stainless because it’s shiny. I’ve always been a sucker for glittery stuff.</p>
<p>Well, when I had stainless it was usually smeary, not shiny. I did learn a great cleaning tip when I had it, though: VEGETABLE OIL. Soak a cloth with it and rub it in in a circular pattern. Totally gets rid of fingerprints…for the time being.</p>
<p>We put in blue pearl granite counter tops 1 1/2 years ago. Love them. They have a really nice shimmer to them and look really nice with the color of the mahogany cabinets.</p>
<p>We have two kitchens in the house. The granite/Amish cabinetry/stainless Thermador appliances upstairs is a work of art and gets used once a year. Granite is just too ‘looks nice but I hate to cook on it’ for our tastes. The lower level kitchen has ceramic tile countertop and backsplashes and can take anything that we can throw at it. Seal the grout every 2-3 years and it’s as good as new. </p>
<p>The downstairs kitchen is built like a bar with bar stools, brass, lots of display cases for liquor and glassware / barware, and hidden / concealed Bosch appliances. The black/white tile works very well to keep the ‘bar’ atmosphere. </p>
<p>If I had to choose between quartz and granite I’d go quartz. But depending on the look you want, you may have other options.</p>
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<p>In the 50s/60s/70s, hardwood was taken as an indication that you couldn’t afford wall-to-wall carpeting.</p>
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<p>Where I live it’s been “the thing” for much longer than a decade.</p>
<p>I keep waiting for the higher end homes to switch, but every one I’ve looked at pretty much has the granite/stainless appliances. I like the look of quartz, but I would be really unhappy if I began to see chips. We had granite in our last house for 15 years and never resealed it, never had any problems with it, no chips, no degradation of the surface, was able to put hot dishes on it with no effect. I got tired of the particular style we had, yet I still see it everywhere. </p>
<p>As to HGTV, it is very annoying to see these first time buyers with the tiniest budgets “demanding” granite and stainless appliances because “they deserve it” (they work “really hard”) and saying over and over again “I’m just not willing to compromise.” Then they blame the realtor for not being able to “deliver.” :rolleyes:</p>
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<p>DH once looked at a home built in the 60’s which had some kind of marble tile (terrazzo? not sure) which looked very dated to me. MIL was aghast, saying “But this is terrazzo! What are you thinking?!” I replied, “I don’t care, it looks like the sterile looking flooring at the hospital where I work. No thanks.” I would have replaced it with wood floors, which I find very warm. She still shakes her head about that.</p>
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<p>I think that is what is in the kitchen at our new house. DH wasn’t sure about them, but I think they are pretty and appreciated a change. I doubt I would have chosen them if we were building, but they are nicely different from the typical Venetian Gold I see so often.</p>
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<p>I don’t get this. We never once resealed our granite counter tops in 15 years of having them, and they looked just as new after 15 years as they did on day 1. Are there different grades of granite which have different requirements?</p>
<p>Wow, Nrds4, you have a lot to say this morning. About marbel tiles, it is big around here, a must-have for big fancy houses. I am going backwards; I am considering a wood countertop.</p>
<p>A friend did a 2-3 inch thick wood slab. Sealed and all that for basement party kitchen. Drove 600 miles to pick up but it is out of this world unique and great looking.</p>
<p>We were told that softer (lighter color) granites tended to need to be resealed while the harder (darker) didn’t as much. That pearl blue black apparently is THE most popular used type of granite around.</p>
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<p>Yes, I woke up at 2:00 am with a horrific sore throat and felt like I was trying to generate a fever. This thread was attempted distraction.</p>
<p>I got sent home from work due to the fever, so I came home. Feels like a mild influenza, which translates to misery. :(</p>
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<p>That’s so interesting. I’d never seen it before we found our new house at an open house. Venetian Gold is the most common one I see around here. Also the blacks are big.</p>
<p>The fabricator came Monday evening to measure. He’s delivering and installing my counter tops on Saturday, April 6. </p>
<p>I’ll be glad when this is all behind me. I haven’t had a working kitchen since February 4.</p>
<p>My cabinet door samples came today. Off to look for counter tops this week that match up to the espresso stain!</p>
<p>Great news VH. I heard from a reliable source (wink wink) that the average for a kitchen makeover is three months. I think you are going to get it done sooner. Those counter tops are going to be terrific!!</p>
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<p>Do you happen to know what kind of wood it was? </p>
<p>Nrdsb4, I hope you feel better today.</p>