I think I 've decided on my counters - Comments wanted (pic heavy)

[SW FL Dem]

I posted about a month ago asking for advice on updating my kitchen. Thanks to everyone who responded, especially Husb2Sparkly for his expert advice. The inspiration for the kitchen comes primarily from my favorite ceramics and my bakers rack which is the focal point of the kitchen. '

Here's a pic of the baker's rack and some of the ceramics.



Here is a close up of the tray that started it all



Here are samples of the Silestone I like - it's called Ivory Coast - it's sitting on the marble shelf of the baker's rack



Here's a pic of more of the kitchen, the green formica has GOT to GO!



Finally here is the counter up against our tile floors which are basically a creamy beige.



I desperately want to replace my stove with a ceramic cooktop, gas is not an option here. Do I stick with white, or change it to bisque or stainless. Of course if I change the stove, that means I need a new microwave, dishwasher and fridge since they are all white. Hubby doesn't care so the decision is all mine. Any input is greatly appreciated.

[wildeyed]

1. If you change the counter top to a neutral,

you might want to consider jazzing up the back splash with some color. Maybe you can find some tile that is similar to your ceramics?

I would buy a white stove, unless you are really iching to replace all your appliances. Bisque alwasy looks dirty to me, I prefer white.

When I moved into my new house, I replaced most of the appliances with stainless, but the refrigerator is still white. Doesn't bother me in the least that it doesn't match. But that is me.

Good luck!

[SW FL Dem]

5. I was planning to put in a tumbled marble

backsplash. I tend to agree with you on the bisque. I have always hated almond appliances because they look dirty. The bisque is halfway between almond and white but it still looks a little yellow.

[wildeyed]

16. Tumbled marble sounds sumptuous.

I like neutrals together as long as the texture varies enough. You might still want to do something different on the backsplash behind the stove.

[SW FL Dem]

18. Yes - you should see some of the textured pieces you can find in

the neutral tumbled marble. We have an Expo (high end Home Depot) near us and several other kitchen design showrooms. The best part is that I have connections to a good Dem contractor you can get me what I want while still supporting a blue business :).

[Stinky The Clown]

2. You'll be very happy with the silestone.

It is what corian was hoped to be ..... a replacement for stone. My ex wife has it in her house and it looks great. (It was only after I married Sparkly that I was able to get my stainless counters!) I helped her put in a tile backsplash after she had the counters installed. She went with a beige 3x6 matte finish tile with a pronounced bevel and used a dark grout to set it off. It looked very nice when done. Her cabinets are a similar shade to yours and in total the whole thing worked nicely.

You won't go wrong with a soft neutral color. For some snap and pop, how about a tile mural ... maybe behind a new range. Here's one of the Amalfi coast (my favorite place on earth).



Here's the link to the mural site:

http://www.aliciatappdesigns.com/murals_on_tiles.htm

As to appliances, if not stainless then white is an excellent choice, I would think. As has been said, off white tends to just look dirty. White is nice and crisp and clean looking. Try for a range with the controls at the front rather than on a backspalsh. I think it is safer to not have to reach over pots to adjust things.

[SW FL Dem]

6. Thanks - I've done a lot of research,

even though there are seams in the Silestone, I like the look much more than Corian. I really like your idea of a mural. I saw several I liked in a kitchen design store several years ago. Your link has several great options. I am definitely leaning towards a stove with controls at the front - It was an issue when my son was younger, but now that he's 13 and 5'6", I can get what I want.

[bearfan454]

3. I like your wrought iron rack.

It's really nice.

[SW FL Dem]

7. Thanks!

I found it at Costco a few years ago and it is one of my favorite pieces in the house.

[NMDemDist2]

4. your choice looks nice and will change the look dramatically, re the stove

I bought a decent glass top stove (Magic Chef with Ceran) and it's not all it's cracked up to be. It looks great and worked well for me when I used it mostly as a table, however now that I'm using it daily, I have a few things I don't like about it.

since I love my cast iron, I am cleaning the thing all the time with the special cleaner and it still isn't coming all the way clean. I don't know if there is any other type cleaner you can use, but I better find out fast since I am going thru the bottle fast.

if you have spotless bottoms on your pans, you may not have the same trouble, but it's not as "easy care" as they make it out to be

you can BREAK the darn glass top too... I am super careful (especially with the heavy cast iron ware) but it's another consideration based on your family and lifestyle

on the plus side, it is a great additional work surface

on the down side, a regular electric stove top looks brand new with new drip pans on a regular basis

[SW FL Dem]

8. Good points!

When I lived in CA and AZ - we always had gas. Unfortunately that is not an option here. We don't have piped in natural gas in this part of FL. If I built my house, I could have had huge propane tanks installed, but we are the second owners and we'd have to tear down the house to run the pipes. I don't have any cast iron, I mainly use my 20 yr old Calphalon pans, the bottoms aren't clean but they didn't cause a problem when I used the ceramic cooktop in our rental when we first moved. Trust me, I know about replacing the drip pans! You can get a full set of 4 pans for my stove at Home Depot for $10. I tend to replace them a week or two before we have company, don't want them to look too new, or too old!

[NMDemDist2]

9. well you have it figured then, good! and you think your forest green

is bad, check this out LOL. if you are kind you can call it "dusty rose" but it's pink any way you look at it

[SW FL Dem]

11. My last house was built in 87 and it had tile counters exactly that

color in the kitchen and the master bath. I guess it was in style at the time. Living with the green now and the pink then is a large part of my decision to keep the permanent things (tile and counters) neutral and use paint and accessories to add color.

[Frogtutor]

12. Have you tried using a razor blade scraper before using

the ceramic stove top cleaner? This is what the instructions that came with my GE said to do, and it really works. You could scrub and scrub all day and still not get something off that would come off with one pass of the razer blade!

[NMDemDist2]

14. it's not food particles, it's discoloration of the gray part that turns

brown and burnt looking

[Frogtutor]

20. You might give it a shot, anyway

That's about all I've ever used it for is those brown and black burnt looking places that you wouldn't think would scrape off. Besides, razor blade scrapers come in handy for lots of things!

[NMDemDist2]

21. I bow to your superior knowledge and experience

the scraper just moved from DH's tool chest to the kitchen junk drawer

not perfect, but there was more gunk on there than I thought

[Frogtutor]

23. Aw, now; no need for bowing...lol n/t

[Stinky The Clown]

10. This is the type of range I was describing

This happens to be by Kitchenaid, but I am sure other manufacturers make a similar item.



This has front controls and no backsplash. It is a drop-in range, not free standing, so it is more mated to your cabinetry. Essentially, it has no finished back, sides, or base. It relies on the surrounding cabinetry to make it appear finished. The lack of a backsplash allows placement of that mural you know you want!
:evilgrin:

[SW FL Dem]

13. That is very similar to what I was looking at.

I like the look of having the controls on the front. As long as it is the same size as a standard stove, it should fit in my cabinet space. I saw a couple of stoves (don't remember the manufacturer) that had two ovens instead of a storage drawer. In my old house I had two wall ovens, that was really handy when cooking several items that need different temps.

[Stinky The Clown]

15. It is a standard size

That Kitchenaid was a standard size - 30" That size probably represents 90% of the stoves sold today. (Didn't check the veracity of the percentage anywhere ... just my guess.)

We used to have two wall ovens. When we redid the kitchen we opted to replace that stack with a single convection/thermal oven with a microwave//quartz/convection oven above and a warming drawer below. We find we use the warming drawer more than even the microwave!

My brother just got an electric drop in range with two ovens. One is a small microwave located just below the burners and a regular sized oven below that. I can't recall the brand.

[wildeyed]

17. I have a high end Cuisinart toaster oven.

It maintains it's temperature well enough and is big enough to bake and broil small items like deserts and side dishes. Just another option to consider.

[NMDemDist2]

19. i have a small cuisinart toaster oven that I use in the summer if I need

to bake something. and a covered BBQ i can roast in

in the summer in Phoenix you avoid turning on the big oven if at all possible LOL

[Vektor]

22. Oh wow! I have the same exact ...

...Baker's rack! As well as Silestone counters - mine are "Brazilian Brown". I like them better than granite. Same look, less environmental wreckage, less expensive, and no maintenance.
You will love your new counters!
I vote stainless appliances, but that's just MHO.
Good luck! I'm sure it will be gorgeous.

[NMDemDist2]

24. wow FL Dem will have a real user verify her choices, too cool

hey Vektor be sure you go back in our archives and start printing out recipes, there's a bunch of them (I had to start a folder)

[Vektor]

25. That's a good idea!

Never can have too many recipes. :-)