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Original poster

Kitchen worktops - opinions please

51 replies

jasper · 04/11/2003 20:39

I first asked about kitchens here 2 years ago and still have the cobbled together painted several times 20 y.o. kitchen
However am now at advanced planning stages and want opinions on worktops and sinks.
Go ladies !

OP posts:
CountessDracula · 04/11/2003 20:45

Granite. You can put anything but lemons on it and it is wonderful. Even if you can only afford it either side of the cooker go for it. My personal fave is the matte black sort.

tinyfeet · 04/11/2003 20:52

We love Corian, cheaper than Granite, but really nice.

hoxtonchick · 04/11/2003 21:22

We've got wooden Ikea ones, & this is the second house we've put them into. Pretty pleased with them, they look great, v. easy to care for & err, that's it. Not as great as granite though, CD....

hermykne · 04/11/2003 21:30

got to be franke sink stainless steel my pref- with really good taps .
worktop
beech / granite matt black is cool but sometimes i think too much granite at that level can be overpowering, like Countess's idea to just have in a certain place.

princesspeahead · 04/11/2003 21:31

nero assoluto granite very nice for an urban look as CD says, lived with this for several years and loved it.
now I'm in the country it is wood. and a bit of slate.
urban sinks - heavy gauge undermounted steel.
country- good old butlers sink

princesspeahead · 04/11/2003 21:31

oh, also rented a house with corian... never really warmed to it. easy to keep clean, but feels plasticky and not quite right somehow... sorry tinyfeet!

Mo2 · 04/11/2003 21:47

Ooh - flecked granite, definitely. Not the plain black sort - it's a devil to keep shiny..

What's the problem with lemons on granite CD, hadn't heard that one (I know oil can soak in and stain)

suedonim · 04/11/2003 21:51

Only get a butlers sink if you are happy to have backache! We used to have one and they are so deep that you have to bend down all the time. When we moved into that house , the wooden drainer had a profuse growth of green moulds/alga/weeds/detritus between it and the sink - euugh. The new style of porcelain sink units, complete with drainers, look nice, though.

I'm having a new kitchen installed next month - hope the men are gone by Xmas Day!!

Davros · 04/11/2003 22:24

Corian is very good in terms of wear, would take a bomb to mark it. Design choices are good (but don't like the style we've got that was here when we moved in )

SofiaAmes · 04/11/2003 22:34

Don't use stainless steel. What's your budget like? What"s the rest of the kitchen like? I'm a big fan of very big, very deep stainless steel double sinks.

SofiaAmes · 04/11/2003 22:34

sorry, the no stainless steel was for the worktop, not the sink.

pupuce · 04/11/2003 22:42

I don't like granite because you can see watermarks (for example when you clean it with a cloth).... and wood is great EXCEPT around sinck (I have Ikea wood too - very pleased but it has rotten a bit around taps).

Original poster
jasper · 04/11/2003 22:52

Thanks all.
Sofia, budget reasonable as after much deliberation I am buying some basic units(can't afford really good ones - Brookmans etc. - and IMO the middle range ones like John Lewis of Hungerford are no better then IKEA) and will spend most of my budget on worktops, sink and taps.
The house is old (1830s) and the kitchen big and square but the units will only go along two walls. I like granite for durability but think it might look too modern in our house.

OP posts:
Davros · 04/11/2003 23:01

What about tiles? They look great and you can choose hard wearing ones, lots of design choice and don't have to spend a fortune if you're clever....

pupuce · 04/11/2003 23:05

Davros- totally agree with you.... tiles will look great in a old house and they are very durable.
MIL has them with her Aga kitchen

SueW · 04/11/2003 23:18

This reply has been withdrawn

This has been withdrawn by MNHQ at OP's request.

CountessDracula · 04/11/2003 23:25

Tiles look great but the grouting harbours grot. We had b4. I must say for look I prefer wood. Granite is so great though - we inherited a granite worktop in our last house and I wanted to rip it out and bring it with!c

tinyfeet · 05/11/2003 02:40

If you're worried about looking too modern, you definitely would not want Corian. Wood does sound good. I would spend extra money on porcelain double sink and good tap.

Davros · 05/11/2003 08:50

Well MY mum had tiles (na na na naa na!) and they looked good, she liked them and no problem with muck in the grout. I still like them. Not keen on wood it seems like carpet in the bathroom ifkwim. We had a wood floor in the kitchen when we moved in and it was wrecked very quickly, also visited some friends with one recently and it too was wrecked.....

codswallop · 05/11/2003 08:52

My frnend has dark marble and says never agin because of streak factor and she is single with no kids so hardly ever wipes...

codswallop · 05/11/2003 08:52

Tiles no good for pastry making I am informed

hoxtonchick · 05/11/2003 08:52

Snap, Pupuce, about the mould round the sink. Must get on the case again...

pupuce · 05/11/2003 09:21

What do you mean?
Cods - My MIL makes pastry all the time but she does it on table.

Davros · 05/11/2003 09:27

Good point COddy. Must confess I am speaking as eater, not cooker as husband does ALL the cooking heh heh

Tom · 05/11/2003 09:33

Go for wood - IROCO is best for it's price. Lurverly With lots of oil all over it twice a year.