If you can get it IKEA butcher block is gorgeous and cheap. I understand some are being discontinued, though...

P.S., I just accidentally used an 'i' in butcher block amd activated GW censors, lolol!

I was just peeking at IKEA countertops and am amazed again at how inexpensive it is!

Here is a link that might be useful: IKEA butcher block and DIY laminates

I think ikea has discontinued the solid wood butcherblock, except in island size. They have something else that isn't wood all the way through? Not sure since I'm not planning to use it, just my vague memory from posts--possibly on ikeafans.

"Has anyone simply taken plywood and stained and sealed it? If so, what can you seal it with that is non-toxic?"

Even the best plywood is too wavy compared to the dead-flatness of Medium Density Fiberboard in this application, not to mention superior machinability.

Install some plastic laminate. It's inexpensive and you could rent a router.

You could do a penny countertop.

Here is a link that might be useful: penny countertop

At one point, I was looking into MDO (not MDF) as a flooring option for a utility space. I forget the detailed specs ,but it is the stuff they make outdoor signs from, so certainly waterproof, but you might have to treat edges. I was also looking at skate park material for counters (Skatelite), which is a thin version of Richlite (similar to Paperstone), but I could not sell the "imaginative" angle to the other voting member of the Design Committee.

I did see online pix of both the Skatelite counters and the MDO flooring, but never saw either in person.

My brother has a painted (and polyuthethaned) plywood counter in a cabin. It has held up well to hard use for many years, but yes, you can see the waviness of the surface when the light is right.

This was my budget solution in the house we're preparing to leave. Granite tile butted close with a border of 2x2 misc granite tiles inset.

We had a bar removed that ran the side of this cab which left the side of the former formica countertop with no edge so I removed it and made a countertop out of some leftover 3/4" plywood (don't recall if it's beech or red oak), glued narrow edging on the sides, primed it two or three coats, used glaze to make the paints translucent for the gingham effect, and gave it 3 or 4 coats of a brush-on polyurethane and screwed it in from underneath like the old one was. I made the 'backsplash' from a piece of pine I had left from the shelf I made to put above it.

It was intended to be temporary until we decided on counters for the whole kitchen and me doing something with the cabinets but it's still there more than two years laters and I still like it (the microwave sits there so the top is used everyday).

If you still have your old countertops, you could try decoupaging or using brown paper bags.

Cork

SS sheet metal (see link below)

Also check out zinc sheet metal, http://www.rotometals.com/ZINC-SHEETS-s/29.htm

Or use the IKEA laminate with the aluminum edge.

Here is a link that might be useful: sheet metal countertops

gooster and nosoccermom, I love those zinc and stainless countertops. I honestly don't think I'd ever be able to handle the zinc, but there is an ad on craigslist by a stainless company I will check out.

ghostlyvision, that's what I call imaginative! However did you paint gingham?

marykh, you sure made that counter look beautiful. The marble tile idea still intrigues me, but I want to avoid grout if at all possible.

lori_inthenw, I completely understand this: "....but I could not sell the "imaginative" angle to the other voting member of the Design Committee." I'm going to look into the products you mentioned. Is it the stuff you put on over existing counters?

I know there are companies that spray on (?) material that makes the countertop look new, but I don't have any reference to how it holds up. Also, the worst part of the counter has a seam where the L is and it has gotten wet so many times, it bulges up.

Ikea may be the way to go. When we were there, the DH busied himself with sinks and countertops while I drew out the cabinets. He's in love with the butcher block so I know they have it. The problem, as I see it, is that it comes in pre-measured sizes and you have to butt the edges together with some kind of strip. Plus, the pantry bases were custom made to an 20" depth. The kitchen and pantry are separated by a doorway, so perhaps the tops don't absolutely have to be the same.

Great ideas, more than I knew existed, so thanks very much.

in our postage stamp sized kitchen on the cape we put the ikea black laminate and butcher block in. i don't think the whole thing cost more than a few hundred dollars. dh installed it himself. and i have an awesome remnant butcher block cutting board, too.

ETA: i forgot to mention, they look really sharp.....

This post was edited by elizabeth714 on Thu, May 29, 14 at 13:38

ghostlyvisions: that is a fantastic look!!! Fresh and vintage at the same time. Love it.
Diane

Ann- That penny countertop is amazing!

We have brushed ss counter in the coffee bar/desk part of our kitchen.

Here is a link that might be useful:

Omigosh, I missed the penny countertop! That is aMAZing!! Does the epoxy (resin?) scratch? Not sure I have the patience - or the pennies - to do that, but it sure would go well with the Saltillo floor (which, sadly, I'm stuck with). I love it. How much time did it take you to do?

kaycee2002, I love SS, period. At one time, I had a commercial stainless prep table in the kitchen, but took it out in favor of base cabinets. Yours is beautiful.

Oh, the pennies aren't mine! I've seen it before, and thought it fit with your request for imaginative/inexpensive. I've seen it used for bathroom flooring as well.

Google penny countertop - I found a few sets of instructions when I was looking for a photo. I even saw one where they used a combination of shiny pennies and old dark pennies to make a pattern!

Here is a link that might be useful: penny backsplash - pattern

Oh my, I love that penny backsplash!

Thanks powermuffin :) - and tomatofreak, I just measured, marked and used painter's tape, once I got the plan in my head of how to accomplish it (base paint white, then all the tape going one way, yellow paint, all the tape going the other direction, blue and green paint), it was easy and fun.

For your whole kitchen, Ikea tops are probably the way to go, we have an Ikea about 10 miles down the road, we'll probably hit there whenever I can talk the ol' man into springing for new tops for all the cabs. I like less expensive so when I change my mind (or decide to DIY something) he doesn't cry too hard. lol

Oh I have always loved those brown paper bag decoupage floors, what a great idea for a counter.

not sure where you are but I am closest to the two Chicago burb IKEAs. I was actually thinking about making a run and grabbing some BB while I still can.

Great. Now I am becoming a kitchen hoarder. Today I passed over a wicked cool working vintage stove but did bring home some antique cabinet doors.

I've seen (online) counters made of 2x stock. The link below shows one, and she stained it to mimic butcher block and then seals it with polyurethane. For her small kitchen, she said it was $56 in materials and $18 for trim.

Another blogger used cedar 2x6's for her bathroom vanity which could also be used in a kitchen: http://www.domesticimperfection.com/2012/05/rusticindustrial-bathroom-vanity/

Good luck :-)

Patty

Here is a link that might be useful: Fake butcher block with 2x6's and 2x8s

We are in a temporary house on our property while we build and did a small budget kitchen in it ( entire kitchen including appliances bought used off cl was 2700.00) . Anyway, we used ikea island size butcher block for the island and then used plywood for the perimeter counters. We painted the plywood with rustoleum brand chalk paint (2 coats), then sealed with a water sealer. One 4x8 sheet of plywood for 38.00, my husband cut to fit the cabinets. A can if chalk paint 15.00 and some left over sealer gave us some decent counters! They seem to be holding up fine, we have a 2 and 4 year old and they aren't showing signs of swelling and have no obvious stains.

Psbjmb I enjoyed those links so much!

Mrsfireman, your temp counters looks so great. Why did you choose chalk paint over regular paint?

psbjmb, I loved that blog - and the bathroom! It's exciting to see that people have stepped outside the box to create something different and beautiful.

mrsfireman, the more I see of kitchens like yours, the more I'm convinced that less expensive can be just as functional and pretty as expensive. Since I barely have funds for 'cheap', that's why I'm looking for solutions like I'm finding here. One question: Did you seal the plywood on both sides and ends?

I would seal it completely tomotofreak, just like you would any wood surface in a moist (kitchen) area. Since plywood is made of glued layers I don't know if not doing the bottom would cause bowing later on, but I would just to be on the safe side.

Greenhaven- I can't take credit for the idea, I actually saw it in a country living magazine a few months back. A lady had done it who built a very small home in Montana I believe. She called them her faux soap stone. It didn't explain in the article why she chose chalk paint, maybe because it's meant to be wrote on and cleaned off frequently so it holds up to alot of use? That's my best guess anyway

Tomato- we did not seal it underneath but as mentioned above, it is probably a good idea and really not much extra work. We have an ikea farm sink that we mounted over the counter, then siliconed around. I try to make sure I wipe up water if it splashes or spills somewhat quickly.

Eta* I'm not a counter specialist so take my advice for what you will. But when we were buying the plywood it was initially bought as the underlayment ( I think that's correct) for the granite or other material I thought I was going to use. I got tired of spending money on a temporary kitchen and figured as long as the plywood didn't warp, if I hated my painted counters then I already had the plywood down the have the other counter installed on. So it was a win win situation in my opinion. I don't want to hi jak your thread but if you want some more info or pictures on my very very low budget kitchen, I'll gladly share.

This post was edited by mrsfireman on Fri, May 30, 14 at 18:35

Last night on "Rehab Addict" the hostess used solid doors for her counters.

She cut them to fit, painted them black, and put a couple coats of epoxy on top. Total cost was under $ 100.00 (I think).

ML

If you could get your hands on either discarded school chalkboards or pool table slate, that would be a cool option, too.
See thread below with links.

Here is a link that might be useful: old blackboard counters

Speaking of concrete, you could use concrete countertops and stain them however you like, but the stain is best if mixed in the concrete instead of applied afterwards.

Lars

mrsfireman, please do keep posting your info. I would love to see more photos!

I think I would like concrete countertops; I'm just too scared to tackle a medium I don't know a thing about.

A new to me laminate panel product that looks intriguing, esp. since it's being touted as self supporting and they are showing it being used for undermount sinks...

Stratificato by Abet Laminati

Here is a link that might be useful: Stratificato

Definitely the penny countertop! Time consuming, I'm sure, but so cool and inexpensive. I've seen a penny floor in a small bathroom, and am told it is easy to take care of and always the topic of conversation with guests! Check google and YouTube for ideas and how-to-do.

After working in a bank for many years and hand counting coins brought in, in all sorts of containers...before we had a machine to count it, there is no way I would ever use filthy, grime attracting pennies! Pennies attract more crud than all other coins. Stuff may look pretty with copper pennies, but I swear all those penny savers carried them around in their underwear! Use your imagination there for what had to be picked out or flung out onto the floor! Not in my house!

That said, I did sand down my laminate counters and use chalkboard paint with 3 coats of paste wax. I have new tops ordered (corian) but the painted have held up surprisingly well.

killinsnakes, I could always wash the pennies! Even spray 'em with copper paint. My problem is patience; I don't have much - or any, really. No time, either. (I swear, I never carried pennies in my undies!)

ci_lantro (mmmmm, I do love that herb!), that is a very interesting product. I'll have to see if I can find a source and prices for it.

Ikea may be the way to go. When we were there, the DH busied himself with sinks and countertops while I drew out the cabinets. He's in love with the butcher block so I know they have it. The problem, as I see it, is that it comes in pre-measured sizes and you have to butt the edges together with some kind of strip.

That would be their new wood laminate called Akerby. It's a thin sheet of wood on top of a substrate. Their real butcherblock is called Numerar, and it's wood all the way through. Numerar can be cut with woodworking tools to whatever length you need. It also comes in wide (I think 39") for islands, so you could use that for your deeper counter. The Ikea site is showing beech Numerar in stock at my closest store, so you might want to check yours too. The last time I looked, it wasn't in the showroom; but they must have some pieces stocked anyway. [edit: Oops -- just double checked -- it's only the 39" wide one that they have in stock. It could be ripped down to the right width, but that does make it a less attractive option.]

Lumber Liquidators is another source of inexpensive butcherblock.

Did I mention that I LOVE our wood counters? If anything happens to them I think I will have to get more wood. Laminate honestly would probably be my second choice; I know neither of these is high-end but I really like having a quiet counter that is not hard. And the butcherblock is beautiful.

Here is a link that might be useful: Ikea Numerar (first 3 are solid wood butcherblock)

This post was edited by northcarolina on Sat, May 31, 14 at 0:53

Tomatofreak: wash 'em if you want, but I would always be looking through the clear coat on the countertop looking for that stragler! Kind of like looking for Waldo!

I'm late to the party, but I made my own Butcher Block countertop from maple pieces I got at a reuse center. It's 16' worth and I just love it. The pieces were $2 - $3 a piece, and the pieces were 10' - 12' long. About 2" thick. Glued and clamped. Today, knowing what I know 4(?) years later, I'd probably glue and screw, or glue, pocket hole screw and clamp.

On the other side, I have Wilsonart 'Olivine' counter and love it, too. A friend made that for me, because all I had was plywood. What a dirt catcher. It was nothing short of gross. Anyway, someday that side of the kitchen will be soapstone.

Rehab Addict used hollow core doors, not solid slab. Not durable enough for my tastes. Although they make excellent floating shelves!

Here's my countertop in progress:

CEFreeman, I'm a little green looking at your project! I am also a wood lover and nothing would please me more than a handmade butcherblock.

northcarolina, thanks for the tip about the differences in Ikea butcherblock. It appears that Ikea only makes panels in 73 1/4" lengths. I need to learn how people install them so as not to have butted-up seams. Is this possible?

Copper is anti-microbial so the pennies may look grimy, but they probably aren't germy.

My neighbour got butcherblock that was designed for workshop use - it was way cheaper and seems like the same stuff.

I also love the large format tile counters with narrow grout lines - practical, budget, and DIYable. I've seen it done with soapstone tiles on ikeafans.com - very successful.

I have butted-up seams in my butcherblock. One is at a corner, and one is in the middle of the sink. The alternative to having a seam at the sink cutout was having it go right across the middle of the counter in the main work zone, and that would have looked ridiculous, so at the sink it is. We have a topmounted sink with a wide flat deck at the back, so there isn't much seam visible. I filled the seam at the sink with matching wood filler before I finished the wood and it's been fine, no separation. You can see the line but it isn't too obvious. The one in the corner I just left as it was with no wood filler, since it isn't a wet or heavily-used area. There are reasons you aren't supposed to miter corners in butcherblock countertops (I have no idea if they're valid reasons) so we just did a simple butt joint there.

I should add, I used the 96" long Ikea butcherblock. Our longest counter run (the one with the sink) is something like 14 feet long ending in a corner, so it wouldn't have been possible to cover that with one big piece of butcherblock unless it was built in place. Even a 12-foot piece (not going all the way to the end wall but butting up against the perpendicular piece at that corner, if that makes sense) would have been very difficult to weave through the doorways into our kitchen. I might have been able to work with 73" lengths in our kitchen, but it all depends on your layout and where you can make the seams end up. Different suppliers carry different lengths, so you can look around and see who has something that fits what you need. Ikea's BB was about $500 for our whole kitchen, about 22 linear feet, and that was a strong motivator for me to use it. That plus I honestly did like wood better than anything else I looked at when I was countertop shopping. (Well, except soapstone -- that was the only stone I liked and the quote I got was about 7 times the cost of Ikea butcherblock.) It's a shame Ikea doesn't carry the long lengths anymore, but if it was a quality control problem then it's probably for the best in the long run.

The Numerar in solid wood, both beech and birch, (73" and 98", 25 5/8 wide) is still for sale online and at my local IKEA.

Speaking of which, is there a difference between the two types of wood other than the color and grain?

Menard's also has birch butcher block--best prices that I've found. No other wood species.

Here is a link that might be useful: Menard's

I'm making a pine countertop for my island. It will have a cooktop in it and I'm only using mineral oil on it. That way if something particularly ugly happens I can sand out that spot. I'd love to have that scrubbed look, but I think that's an age + multiple cleaning process.

The sides have a chamfer so I'm planing the sides that will be glued & pocket-hole screwed together, then sanding for a smooth finish. $18 for the 2x wood in 8' lengths, which is the exact size of the ugly laminate that's there.

I'm going for a rustic vibe and figure an $18 investment, plus the planer I'll use on other projects, is worth the experiment.

The other laminate tops are painted and sealed. Unfortunately I have some areas that need to be retouched, after using Lysol Kitchen cleaner. I should have stuck with vinegar and water!

Now, I have to figure out a top for my vanity. I'd love to have Water-loxed walnut, but DH is messy and leaves puddles on the current cultured marble. I might have to spend some dough for that one!

ci_lantro, there's not a Menard's anywhere near here, Arizona; I sure wish there were. That's a great price.

alex9179, I'd love to see some photos; your project sounds beautiful.

I have to make a decision soon; the rascally cat has figured out how to move the cardboard to one side and fish things out of the drawers!

Has anyone heard of or used this product. I like the look and finish these folks gave their countertop - and *love* the price they paid for the entire project. My only concern is that - to me - it looks a little too much diy. What do you think?

Here is a link that might be useful: Ardex 'concrete' countertop

Hm, I think that it looks a bit too DIY, especially taking into account that things usually look a bit better in a picture than in real life.

About 10 years ago I gave a friend a 12x12 granite tile. She had 40 yr old counters, I think linoleum. She painted her counters in layers and matched the tile perfectly. She did say over the years she touched it up a couple of times.

I think that "concrete" countertop would look better in grey (not black) and with a low gloss topcoat instead of high gloss. The high gloss is not forgiving.

I chose porcelain tile. The tiles are large, but I get so many compliments I would never use another. My maids love cleaning my kitchen. They don't streak! And they feel wonderful. So tough, you could dance on the countertops!

Our media room / bar does have granite. It streaks! But it goes with the decor of that room.

Not sure porcelain tile is a budget option though. It's like any tile. You will pay for installation as well as the tile.

what about DIY wood countertops maybe? it will still cost maybe $500 though. : / but for super high end look on super low end budget it might work? thought I'd throw it out there (since I have a super hate for ikea and their wood butcher block because it's all scraps glued together and it's out of stock all the time).

the serious DIY is even cheaper but it might have knot holes in it that you have to stick some wood glue in and fill in yourself. the homeowner one has knot holes prefilled but is a little more $ (still not much).

plus you install yourself which can be a biiiig fat cost.

ps. do I say super too much? : )

Here is a link that might be useful: diy wood countertops - serious DIY ones are super cheap