My AB leathered reads as black with irregular greyish splotches, which move around depending on how the light hits. My cabs are white and the countertop is a tremendous contrast. It's so "un-granite" looking that a number of people have asked me what my countertop material is.

That being said, the stuff is bulletproof. All kinds of grease, etc. have been left on it for hours and it cleans up without a trace.

I would do it again in a heartbeat.

I don't know if this will help or not-

I have honed black labrador granite. When the stone yard showed it to me, they had some with "enhancer" on it and some without. The enhancer definitely made it more black. I wanted more of a grey black so I chose not to put the enhancer on my slabs. If your DH like s more of a black black, you should look into the stone enhancer

Is it possible to buy a square foot sample of the granite (finished as yours will be)? That would seem to be worthwhile, given the overall expense and the importance of both of you being sure it's what you want.

We used honed AB as a saddle in our MB. They enhanced it for us to better match the charcoal-black porcelain floor tile, so I am guessing it wasn't as dark/black when it was un-enhanced. It looks pretty dark and black now though.

Hi all, Thank you so much for your responses and suggestions. This Forum is wonderful for advice!

Califkitchen - I've seen the enhanced and I think I would definitely want it.
InfoDiva1 - I like bulletproof. I think some variety would be great actually.
cat_mom - I like your name..my daughter is Cat also..(plus if you saw my most recent Fusion picture "Saturday Salb shopping post...)..it's of a Cat!!)
ellabee_2016 - We've tried to get samples, and they just aren't offering yet. I think I have to be ready to reserve before I'll actually get a sample.
francoise47 - Thank you so much for the images. your kitchen is lovely. Your closeup actually shows quite a bit of texture and helps me. And yes, it reads black.
I'll just keep on working towards this and see where I get!
Thank you again.
;-D

InfoDiva1, I'm *this* close do doing leathered AB on our perimeters. I saw/felt it for the first time last week. It's very very nice! Did you have yours sealed or enhanced or does it need it since it's so dark? I've read various things. I just don't want to seal it then have the sealer be the etching problem (which I've also read). Thanks!

Francoise, your kitchen is lovely! I remember your pendants! Those are the ones that aren't made for US, right? I think I looked at those but thought they wouldn't work for some reason. I like them but can't recall what site they were on!

Hi Babs:
I bought the octagonal pendants over my island at ABC Home in NYC.
I'm guessing, (lol) that thanks to my flashing pictures of them all over GW,
ABC Home has jacked the price up from the $119 I paid to 150 dollars each.

They are made by Chehoma (which does not sell retail)
and can be purchased through Deco et Compgnie for 119 dollars each.

Here is a link that might be useful: Pendants at Decoetcompagnie

I think its odd you can't get a sample. I have about 10 granite samples right now from three different places. 2 do not expect to get them back. The other does but is in no hurry. All of them were free.

Go somewhere were you can get samples.

it's the leathered or antique finish that I can't seem to get a sample of and I agree..it's odd. Now we're in discussion about which comes first, antiqued or leathered..or rather which is smoother. I honestly think a lot of places are using these terms interchangeably. I know that when I see/feel it..I'll know it no matter what the "label" is and that's what matters.Looks like I'm traveling to THE place that does these finishes. What I spend in gas could be my backsplash!! Yikes

Babs, my leathered AB has no sealer or enhancer. There's a pic in the link below.

Here is a link that might be useful: InfoDiva's AB leathered granite

We did the leathered Jet Mist, sealed it and it is great. So easy to care for.

I have ''brushed'' Black Pearl, looks a lot like leathered, on my perimeter cabinets. I love it. It reads as black, shows NO fingerprints or other stains after almost a year. A southern exposure window behind it does not cast glaring reflections. Here are a few old pics that might be useful to you:
This shows the granite with harsh sunlight on it in the front, shadow in the back:

This shows the beautiful texture in ''normal'' lighting:

And this shows the ''black'' look of the counter at a distance:

Hope these are useful.

Sandra

Hi Sandra -- Your counters and kitchen are beautiful!
I love the brushed treatment.
It really brings out the variegation in the stone in a very appealing way.

Gorgeous! They are all gorgeous! Ack!!! My heart goes ba-boom ba-boom for Virginia/Jet Mist..but it's out of our range. Sigh. Thank you Sandra for your pictures. Your granite is really beautiful!

Hello InfoDiva! I was just looking again at your picture and your layout looks almost identical to ours! So nice to finally see one similar. I love how your granite looks too!

Hi Sandra! I love the look of your textured granite and was looking for something similar but a little concerned that the texture will make it harder to keep clean with all the little crevices.My mom says cake batter and oils may get stuck... what has your experience been thus far?? Thanks :)

jcee
The texture is SO easy to clean. The variation is slight and gradual, not crevices, but shallow rounded undulations. Just a wipe with a damp sponge and it comes clean. And NO problems with scratching or etching either. It is a tactile and visual delight delight. If it is what you want, I cannot imagine that cleaning will ever be a problem.

Sandra

I found a brushed black pearl today and put it on hold. I'm so excited I don't know that it is really brushed..it doesn't have as much texture, but it's lovely and I'm so relieved. Thank you so much for posting the pictures.

{{!gwi}}

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