Counter-top Advice for old outdated farm kitchen

9 years ago

So we have completely updated our cabinetry in our kitchen. We have stained the cabinets a darker more modern color to compliment the updates we are doing throughout the old farmhouse we purchased. We are just having one dilemma, we do not have the time/money immediately to purchase new counter tops.The old laminate counter tops had wood along the edges so we stained them to match as well, however we are still left with the blue laminate gross-ness! Does anyone know of any suggestions on how we could change the color or do anything with that until we have our concrete counter tops purchased and installed? We are also planning for the counter-top to be grey. Should we wait to update the back-splash after we get the new counters in or before?This is our first house so any help or advice is greatly appreciated! Thank you!!

Before Staining:

After Stain:

Hardware we will be using:

Lovely blue laminate countertops:

This post was edited by Alexz7272 on Mon, May 5, 14 at 11:12

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Comments (4)

live_wire_oak
9 years ago
Off the shelf slab laminate counters would be an easy DIY fix for this kitchen. And would be more functional than concrete too. Concrete is darn expensive to have done, and it stains and etches just as badly as marble. It will acquire a patina of use with stains and rings and other signs of wear.
crl_
9 years ago
Definitely wait on the backsplash until the final counter tops are in. I have seen online people paint over old laminate counters as a short term fix. I have no personal experience with either doing it or living with it though.
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Alexz7272
Original Author
9 years ago
Thank you for the advice! I truly appreciate it. It was stated that concrete might not be the best bet. Can anyone give any more advice on what is best? We live in Colorado (not sure if that makes a difference) and we cook everyday, so the counter-tops would be used constantly. Truly we are not sure of what materials we want/should us. Thanks again!
greenhaven
9 years ago
You need to do some homework. Every material has it's pros and cons, and it all comes down to what you are willing to live with. "Best" is completely subjective.

Frankly, if my DH had not felt so strongly about our using a "higher end" counter top (we ended up with engineered quartz) I would have done a laminate. They are durable, warm, soft, and very inexpensive. Completely low-maintenance if you are not careless about using them.

Our quartz will be fine, and looks fantastic, but we spent nearly three times what we could have spent on a high-end laminate.

IKEA has some DIY laminate for incredibly little cost if you are willing to put in the effort and will buy you plenty of time to do some research on your countertop options.

Here is a link that might be useful: IKEA wood and laminate countertops