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newenglandsara2

trying to find non-busy, gray quartz countertops

newenglandsara2
9 years ago

Hi there,

I am trying to find a light-medium gray, quartz countertop option that doesn't include a lot of dots, flecks, etc. We picked a backsplash we love, but it has a fair amount of pattern to it. (See below:)

http://lunadabaytile.com/LBT_rainbow_p2.html#Pisces

We are hoping to stick with a non-busy look for the countertops so that the backsplash and countertop don't compete too much. The cabinets will be European beech (a warm colored wood) in a Shaker style with lots of glass uppers. The floors will be a light oak with a water-based, natural finish. I don't want the counters to be too dark since I really go for a "light and airy" look. However, I want them to be dark enough to ground the space.

Any suggestions?

Thank you so much!

Sara

Comments (18)

  • robo (z6a)
    9 years ago

    We chose CS Alpine mist. It is a very light grey with a slight greenish undertone and light white veins. Very quiet. Probably too light for you.

    In our kitchen:

    Promo image:

    If you think you might be interested, try to find a slab or thick sample to look at. The grey seems translucent and the veining has some depth so it's prettier (IMO) than the thinner sample chip would lead you to believe.

    There might be some others from CS that you might like, e.g.
    Oyster or sleek concrete.

    This post was edited by robotropolis on Thu, Jul 31, 14 at 13:09

  • Susan St. Pierre
    9 years ago

    Caesarstone has "Concrete" and "Sleek Concrete". The "sleek" is warmer grey. Both are very much medium tone greys. Pebble is another grey but it might have too much movement. IME, they are more speckly on my monitor than they look in real life.

    Cambria has a color called "dunmore" that is lighter than the two Caesarstone greys. Lighter still is their greystone.

  • musicgal
    9 years ago

    MSI has one called Grey Flannel. Perfectly solid medium gray. Ikea showroom had something similar. Best wishes.

  • malabacat_gw
    9 years ago

    I know you're looking for quartz, but if you're open to another material, Neolith products, which are porcelain, have some non-busy gray color options. I don't have it myself, saw it after I'd already picked my countertops (I'm going with CS Honed Pebble).

  • alison0707
    9 years ago

    we used ceasarstone concrete in our recent kitchen remodel. it is not busy at all (which is why we picked it) but is more of a medium gray. not sure how light you want to go -

  • Marc Johnson
    9 years ago

    Was in the same boat - didn't want too busy, but wanted a little bling/sparkle.

    Eco Polar Cap is a really subtle one - we loved it and almost did that one, but it ended up being too subtle for us and we went with Hanstone Speccio White.

  • newenglandsara2
    Original Author
    9 years ago

    Thank you so much for the great suggestions (and the gorgeous kitchen photos!) :-) So far, I have "Sleek Concrete," "Dunmore" and "Graystone" on the top of my list to check out. I actually liked all of the countertops mentioned, but a few were either too light or too dark for our kitchen. I was not able to find "Gray Flannel" on the MSI website, but I saw some other possibilities on there. (In general, I learned that there are more quartz companies than I realized!) Now the trick will be finding showrooms that will allow us to borrow small sample chips.

    Many thanks again!

    Sara

  • oldbat2be
    9 years ago

    We have Cambria Torquay, definitely non-busy, maybe a little too non-busy (she muses....). Quite a few threads on Torquay (in which there will be references to other similar surfaces), which may be helpful if this appeals.

  • sixkeys
    9 years ago

    I was original looking for a lighter grey, here were the options that I found:

    Quantra Silver Oak - the lightest
    Silestone Kensho
    Caesarstone Haze - light grey but has a pinkish undertone

    All of the above had tiny flecks, but they were so small that I thought they were very tasteful. I ended up choosing a more medium grey, Coastal Grey by Pental. It is almost an exact match to Raven by Caesarstone but much less expensive. Here they are:

    Here is Kensho:

  • bosma
    9 years ago

    We used cygnus by silestone. It is a very subtle grey. Good luck!

  • emmers_m
    9 years ago

    Pebble is being installed in my renovation project on Monday. To me it counts as 'busy,' but I would have picked Cemento/Concrete as more to my taste.

    I will be putting the house on the market, though, and the lighter tone and more figured look of the Pebble seemed more broadly appealing (I think). I looked at Cygnus, but it had a greenish undertone that didn't work with my white cabinets and blue/purple/gray paint.

    ~emmers

  • malabacat_gw
    9 years ago

    Hopefully this isn't too much of a hijack, but emmers_m will you post pics of your countertops once they are installed please?

  • Christina03
    9 years ago

    My husband and I just decided on Concerto its from MSI. Not busy at all, reminded us of Concrete. We paired it with Fairy white for the island. Good Luck

  • emmers_m
    9 years ago

    malabacat, here is a picture of my Pebble countertop as installed today. Disclaimers apply: this is still an active renovation project, the countertop is pretty much the only completed feature. I designed this kitchen on the fly, without counsel from this forum (I hang out in the gardening forums and didn't really know what was available here until I saw this post on the recent posts) and the intent to sell the house.

  • emmers_m
    9 years ago

    closer view:

  • malabacat_gw
    9 years ago

    emmers_m somehow I missed this! Your countertop is beautiful, exactly what I've been envisioning! Thank you so much for posting these pics :-)

  • helenorourke
    6 years ago

    how have you like the honed pebble counters over time...I hear they show lots of smudges and hard to clean? Are you finding that? ThX!