granite counter tops

Granite counter tops were a hard one for Jake and I. We both wanted a pure white with lots of character and gray in it. Let me tell you...for a good price it is hard to find. This is one thing we didn't mind spending more money on...if we had it :) hahah and we dont. So we settled. But I am happy with what we picked out. We got just a regular granite called "kashmir white."

Here is a picture of what the stone looks like. It alot more tan than we wanted, but I think with the white cabinets it will hopefully bring out the more white in the stone.

This is not what our kitchen will look like, but its white cabinets with the "kashmir white" granite so I hope ours looks like a cool gray like this :)

So there is some new trends happening on granite. I think people are getting tired of the polished granite...which I agree, I like a shine, but not always. So there is something called "leather" or "velvet." It can also be called weathered, textured...lots of names, but all the same effect. I really wanted to get the leather finish, but it was $15.00 extra per square foot of granite...so maybe another house someday :) Can I tell you how amazing this effect feels? Its so soft and smooth, and I feel I could spill stuff all over the counter, and just wipe it clean. I think for places like Utah with hard water, this leather feel could be amazing. It doesn't seem like it would leave lots of water marks.

Jake and I had fun picking out granite. It was completely different than I though it would be. You get to go to this cool warehouse with lots of samples you can take home, and HUGE slabs of granite for sale. I could sit and look at them all day! Some of them had the most amazing, beautiful patterns in the stones. I would want a huge slab hanging on my wall for art.