Do any of these work or should I start over?

I like the 2nd one and the last one, too.

Whatever you choose, it's going to be lovely.

The 2nd to last and last are both Bianco Antigo. I like it, and brought home a sample of it, and the brownish color in it is more gray while my cabinets are more reddish. There was one slab with a big swirl of a reddish gold, but it mostly reads gray.

melissastar, I felt the same way when I saw that one. I thought, this is it. I just wish it had more brown in it.

While I really like Bianco Antico in general, I don't think it sets off your cabs and appliances as beautifully as they should be.

Have you picked the floor yet?

Nancy

And, yes, I'm also in the "Brown Persia creeps me out" club!

Have you thought about something with a grey-blue tone with some bits of gold? Your choices look mostly brown + gold to me - they all look good to me, but it would be nice to see if you could do even better :-)

It would be nice to see how a bluish/grey granite would look with your fabulous cabinets.

I also think a sweeping granite (less splotchy) might look nicest because it's sort of calming, and it would be less attention-grabbing. (Your cabs have a lot of energy, and I think it would be nice to contrast that with something more subdued.)

I loved the 1st one, It picks up your colors (at least on my screen), and seems to invite more choice (or easier choices) for that one last decorative element that throws lots of us off - the backsplash.

All are beautiful, however.

I like the second to last one as an interesting slab, but I don't think I would want it as a kitchen counter. It is kind of what certain kinds of bacteria look like under the scope.

the first is "ok"...all the others, eh. the brown persia (cobwebs), i do not like at all. i know i could never look at that for a long period of time. i would get tired of it and it makes me hyped up, just too busy on for me.

when you find your slab you will know it. you won't feel the need to ask anyone, you will just know. you won't want to go to anymore yards or look at anymore slabs. you really will know it when you see it.

good luck, i know this is a hard decision :)

I also agree with pawa that it would be good to look at some other colors to see if you like them even better.

Good luck!

Actually, we decided it's too busy for our cabinets even though it seems to be a perfect match in color.

Looks like Typhoon Bordeaux (the first one) and Bianco Antico (the last one) have the most votes. I really like both of them, but in different ways.

Pawa, I hadn't considered another color like blue, I don't know why. I'm going back to some of the places on Thursday, so I'll try to look at them all with the idea of complementing rather than matching.

Lynn, our cabinets are made of ash, but they were stained light oak in the mid '80's and I stripped them and restained them Mocha Brown. I know that name isn't very helpful. They are like a medium oak, with a slightly reddish tint. I like the bold grain of ash and this darker stain really picked it up more than that golden oak color. But it's also making it harder to find a granite pattern.

I did a mock up of all the granites I've liked so far. Here is the Typhoon Bordeax:

I also saw some New Venetian Gold today. The guy said that it is different from most NVG because it doesn't have as much yellow in it, but it still has the white spotting in it that makes it look good with white appliances. Dh liked it at the warehouse, but not in my mock up.


You can see all of the slabs and mock ups in my album. I made it public, so the link should work.

I took the white tray so I could see what the stones would look like next to my appliances, and it wasn't until I got to the first place that I found I left my little door at home. All I had was an old door that was still the old golden oak color. It didn't help any.

Right now I am torn between the Typhoon Bordeax and Colonial Gold, with Colonial Cream and Giallo Rio right behind, but that could change Thursday. I sure hope you are right that I will know when I find the right one. I thought I found it today with the Giallo Ornamental, and even put my name on them. Then I saw the New Venetian Gold and thought I liked it best.

Colonial Gold

Dh likes the Santa Cecilia (which none of you liked) because it doesn't compete with the cabinets. I think it's fairly boring.

I do know that it's way too hot to be looking for granite right now!

And like Pal, I actually liked the second one. But in a retro look way. The spots would give it a 50's/60's look so that would have to be what you were going for. No traditional.

Santa Cecelia looks pink.
NVG looks like concrete.

Colonial Gold isn't bad.

Good luck! Keep us posted!

But it really looked more like this

I asked the lady about pricing, and she said it was an exotic. I asked what that meant in dollars and she said the exotics start at $90, so this one is well out of my range.

I went back to the place that had the New Venetian Gold I saw the other day, and they had another batch from the same location, but with a wider scattering of white. He put two together and said it would be really pretty with the opposite ends seamed together. Again, my camera has washed it out.

That one is fine. It matches both the cabinets and will look fine with white appliances or stainless. It's got enough graining not to be ordinary. It's not expensive. And I really liked the salesman at this place. He not only told me pricing, but said if it was ok with my fabricator, he could sell it to me directly and cut some of the cost. I told him I haven't been able to get the fabricator we first talked to to even call back. He gave me the name of someone he thinks does a good job, but asked me to give my first guy a chance to explain why he hadn't called back before going to his guy. I thought that was really decent of him.

Then I went to another place and didn't see anything that really grabbed me until I saw this one, Lapidus. I love it with my cabinet color. It's got a wonderful animal print like pattern, really rich colors. My camera washed it out too.

But.... You knew there would be a but didn't you?

But, there was a funny streak running from the top right corner diagonally about 2 feet where they had filled with granite granules and some kind of epoxy. When I looked at the edge, it had a deep V on the backside, and I asked if the corner had broken off and been repaired and the guy said yes. I asked what that would do when they cut through it and he said it would be better to cut around that spot.

This was a price grade above the lower level, and even though he wouldn't give me the exact price, that level starts at $50 per sq foot. And I would lose at least 2 square feet off that piece. The next piece was the same way.

Is it normal for them to sell slabs with a broken corner glued back on?

Here's how it looks on my mock up.

Sorry, but I think the other choices look too gray...at least on my monitor.

i agree with lav. lass, the others look too gray.
but again, it depends on what you are going for.
i gravitate to more "warm" colors - grays to me are more "cool".

My personal preference is to go for something that has more left-to-right movement, but that's just me.

I also like the orion! but wonder about how dark it's going to make your kitchen look.

Before I consider the lapidus, what do you think about that corner that has been repaired and the crack filled?

The typhoon Bordeaux has beautiful movement in it that really sets it off. The swirls have a very calming effect. It is my absolute 1st choice overall regardless of lighting, paint color, etc. The overall color is sedate and lets the swirls really be the centerpiece of the granite--absolutely lovely.

#6 appears similar in color to #1 but without the movement. It appears more uniform. It won't be very eye catching, IMO, but would be a very safe choice to make.

Orion is spectacular and if you had lighter cabinets, it would be the hands down winner, period.

The NVG you photographed appears to be one of the more unique looking NVGs out there. That is a good thing IMO. Again this would be a safe choice to make, but not very eye catching.

So bottom line, Orion is #1 but only if you have enough light in the room when you take into account the dark cabinets, Typhoon Bordeaux is next then the NVG, then pic #6. Do you have an island? Perhaps you could do the Orion on the island and one of the others on the perimeter and get the best of both worlds?

Hope this helps!

I did a stain test on the Typhoon Bordeaux, Colonial Gold, and a gray warming trivet I've had for years. The Colonial Gold stained but none of the others did. I really thought the gray would since I have used it for trivet and cutting board and never once put any kind of a sealer on it.

As a backup plan, I also like Steel Gray. What do you think? Better or worse than Amarillo Rio?

of the above 2 I like the Amarillo Rio best.

P.S. sometimes those funky weird spots in a slab turn out to be your favorite part once it's installed.

Lapidus and Colonial Gold are my favorites too, but I did a stain test with a piece of the Colonial Gold and it didn't pass. So now I'm afraid of it. They said it was sealed, but after talking to the lady at the granite yard, I think it just had the resin used for polishing, not a sealer.

that lapidus looks so darn good with your cabs!

About what I would like to be the focal point, I don't know, probably the granite. My cabinets are pieced together, we're having more doors made that won't quite match the old, so a little distraction from them would be good, iykwim.

DH and I had a few of these conversations to sort out our choices. Once you agree on the focal point it will be easier.

Still like #1.

I decided to get the Giallo Ornamental. It's doesn't thrill me, but at this point, nothing under the 3rd level does, and I just can't see spending a lot with these cabinets and this house. It would be like putting a tiara on a pig, and let's face it, our house is the pig. The Giallo Ornamental will be an improvement over our worn laminate and will satisfy buyers if we decide to sell in the next few years.

This is the one I picked.

Now the part I thought was going to be easier, but isn't. Finding tile to go with it.

Not to confuse you even more but have you considered two materials or patterns on separate sections of counter tops?

Not to confuse you even more but have you considered two materials or patterns on separate sections of counter tops?

I picked Kashmir Gold.

But I saw a marble, that was like Sunny, but more gold, and the lack of movement looked so good with the cabinets, so calm and peaceful that I fell in love immediately. But it was marble, and I don't want marble. There were a lot of different Kashmir Gold slabs, some with a lot of movement and the ones I picked with very little.

I think I'm OCD enough that any distinct pattern with my cabinets would eventually drive me nuts. I don't function well with clutter, eclectic decor (yes I am matchy-matchy and my dh's insistence on a recliner that doesn't go with anything has caused many arguments), or bold colors.

It just took me awhile to realize that that was why I wasn't bonding with any of the granites. Except Lapidus. The kitchen in my next house will be built around Lapidus.

We bought granite to put into house we own and were getting ready to sell...thought with the market so dead 3-4 yrs ago even more than low price having upgraded kitchen and baths would be better selling point...
so I picked NVG to go with medium dark oak cabs (original) and a light tan new larger format tiles, and tan walls...they look good but they are not striking...that kitchen as no long runs except for bar counter behind sink and it is not really focal point of kitchen....
thought in THAT kitchen having a strong pattern was more distraction and jumpy look...so went with NVG...

in MY house with a long raised counter top behind sink and long island a more dramatic pattern would have been good focal point...but I didn't get to make the choice....
so it is not just what the colors are of the elements...but also the "runs" of the countertops you will have...
short, broken runs separated by appliances or cabinets to me says use a less dramatic, more even pattern for several reasons....but I am not kitchen designer or artist...
I bet your choice will be great---but I do see your point about building a kitchen around the Lapidus...I loved that pattern when I was shopping...