sorry everyone, I havent forgotten about posting pics. I just moved and can't find the thing to hook my camera up to computer (and also can't find just about everything else I own!!) I am unpacking more boxes this weekend, hope to have some pics soon.

erinb007, congratulations on your move into your new home. We will be patient for pictures. I know how difficult it is to find anything after a move.

My wife and I saw a large display of the 180fx "Blue Storm" at a Lowe's in Columbus,OH - I swore it was granite and a hugely impressive piece of granite until I walked up and tapped on it. We were in the process of getting a measurement done for our kitchen and we've switched to this product - we have 53 square feet with a couple of odd cuts - total job including tear out of old counters is approx $2k.

richm_4808, any pictures of your new counters that sound beautiful?

Just a small follow-up...

I have yet to do a thing in that kitchen,but...

I was at a new store in the area (or at least new to me) that had the FX countertops already made, at least two of the colors, that is.

Anyway, it looked okay when it was just a straight piece, but I wasn't crazy about it. Looks better in the first picture below than in person IMHO.

They had a small mock-up kitchen done with it and when I saw the seam in the corner of the countertop, that did it for me. I would have to have seams due to size of countertop. Didn't like the mis-matched look at all, especially the area in the front.

bump

Have any other GWers got photos of Antique Moscarello or Red Montana to show us? Have ordered samples of both.

Am curious as to how well you like the sparkly quality of the product surface and whether the twinkle would be just too obnoxious in front of a lot of windows.

saskgal, your kitchen looks beautiful. I never thought of the idea of using formica for the kitchen table top. I love that idea. I also have a glass top (looks about the same size table as yours) and trying to keep it clean drives me crazy. After I get my kitchen and counters done (already ordered) I think I will see if I can find some formica that will coordinate.
How is it attached to the table legs? All I can see on mine are the little suction cups that hold the glass in place.

That seam above could have been avoided. I saw Antique Moscarello in a real kitchen recently, and the installers really did a great job (or the fabricators, first) in matching up the seamed area so it flowed from color to color. That's a shame that they didn't take the time to do that, especially in a showroom. How many others do you think will be turned off immediately upon seeing that? They should have done their display better.

I've been curious about this product as well. It's only going to look as good as the fabricators hired to do the job. Makes you wonder if they purposely sabataged the display in order to sell more granite.

The lowes in my area also has a display of the Antique Mocarello. I too was considering the fx180 until I saw the seam. It looked awful, and this was a straight run...not a corner. I think it looks lovely if you don't have to seam it, which rarely happens.

Have been fascinated by this discussion over the months. Cabinets were delivered today and so I can't dither any longer. I have just pulled out my samples of Antique Mascarello and am hoping that my countertops guy will help me work out a way to use it. I have a 14.5 foot countertop on the longest wall with a sink bump-out just to keep things lively.

The photos above have been extremely useful. Hats off to Sasgal for helpfulness and commentary.

Cat_Ky: Am wondering if you have progressed on the kitchen. You sound a lot like me--med oak kitchen, Kohler white enamel sinks, white appliances. I would suspect we're looking at the same visual phenomena and we've both concluded that it could use faux Antique Moscarello to jive it up. My biggest fear is that the product is too short to use on my cabinets. I will have butcherblock either side of stove so I hope that might mitigate some of the seam problems. In another week, I hope to report more about the fate of my countertop scheme. (Have picked out Nevamar's "Rare Earth Slate" as a backup product. Was married to the idea of Pionite "Bernard" for many months, but it only has a tinge of yellow and no brown at all, whereas these two pull in more of the gray-with-a-twist look that I think I want.

Frankly, folks, that seam doesn't bother me. I've lived with Formica seams all my life and they're just what happens. In fact, DH was pleased that it didn't look worse. He liked the photo! I would think that the shop would tell customers: "This is the most nasty that a seam can get; many are better than this but if you want this product, just be aware that this can happen." It's insurance for them.

If there's enough product to even make a mitered seam, I would have it under the microwave anyway. There are more important things to obsess about, including my window trim and my light fixtures. And my .... well, trust me there is more important stuff in life.

I ordered four slabs of the stuff, about a square foot. It costs postage and a fee. Envelope was delivered within days. See website below, find the Order Samples after the startup intro.

Stores have a large piece of the pattern printed on paper in a tablet which has been very helpful for me--about the size of rectangular placemat. Between the real sample and the paper one of Antique Mascarello, I have done useful planning.

Here is a link that might be useful: Formica 180FX

I have a Cabico Kitchen that is being put in. The cabinets are Dove White, the hardware is Cali which you can buy out of Lee Valley Tools (Canada) and the appliances will be stainless. The longest wall is 17 feet, then there is an island 8 x 3 and a small desk area, and 2 levels of counters. I am going to put in Antique Mascarello on all of it. I am still debating on whether I want a single large stainless sink or a composite sink. I will need another in the island.

img src="\\D:\UserData\Carolyn\Pictures\Photos...Properties\Cabico Cabinets.1.jpg"

Sorry, here are the pictures:

These counters will not be in for ~ 2 weeks (hopefully!). I will post more pictures once installed.

Am thrilled to see Antique Mascarello laminate in another kitchen. Raspvalley, will you be seaming the long countertop?

If you go to the manufacturers link - and view the pattern slideshow - the last 3 are the same image, that they must have just changed the colors on. I can see what looks like a man's nose in the same spot on all of them.

I'm wondering, can you glue formica to a concrete?.
While were on this realistic looking laminate idea how about if I pour a concrete (~$3.00/bag) countertop and glue the 180fx over the concrete, so if you knock on the laminate it would sound more like "solid granite" thus adding another level or realism. Is it too much?

Concrete is not suitable for a laminate substrate. If you choose concrete, choose it for it's own properties not because you think it can add "thonk" to a laminate countertop. It can't do that, and you'll just end up wasting money on both the laminate and the concrete. And, concrete for countertops can't be "just poured out of the bag" from a home center--unless you are OK with cracks and it being just plain grey. It's not the hardest countertop to DIY, but it requires more work than that, especially in material sourcing.

Laminate is also not suitable for a kitchen with sink bumpouts or other counter "irregularities". Seams are laminate's enemy, and doing a bumpout restricts you to using the flat edge profile for the least amount of seams (which still leaves yu with the edge seam right at the sink), or you can use one of the other decorative profiles with a LOT of seams around the sink---which is a disaster waiting to happen.

I really like the 180FX, but it's not an inexpensive laminate choice, and as a laminate, it's not suitable to many kitchens except for short term usage because of assurance for water damage at the seams. Seaming "matching" is also a problem, as is shown above. That's a standard laminate seam, which is why it's shown in a showroom. If you want a "better match" seam you will have to pay a pretty good upcharge and then you still won't be able to get a "perfect match". Really good invisible seams won't be possible due to the nature of the material. The longest a laminate countertop can be without a butt seam is 12'. Butt seams are surely possible, but with the 180FX, the seams will be as visible as they are in a poorly matched granite seam---unless you are willing to up your price and pay for several slabs of the stuff--just like you would have to do with granite and even then, it won't be "perfect". It's more suited to a kitchen without seams, such as a galley kitchen

By the time all is said and done, it's probably 50%-70% of the cost of granite. For some, that's enough savings to be able to utilize it in their kitchen within the constraints it has, but for some, it's not that big a leap to move on to granite and get something infinately more durable and natural.

Joy:
That "nose" is hysterical! Now I will always see it in the three "Montana" variants, like those textbook examples from Psych 101 textbook on the page discussing illusions.

Live Wire:
You are making the assumption that a sink is an undermount, right? And that the lifespan of a laminate is "short term usage"?

not suitable to many kitchens except for short term usage because of assurance for water damage at the seams.

Does this speak to laminate in general, or is there something different about this particular kind? Or does it speak to only laminate that is preformed and applied to particle board, as opposed to sheet laminate installed to substrate on site?

"Assurance" of water damage at the seams makes it sound like 100% certainty, and "short term" makes it sound like it will happen in just a few years. I haven't found this to be true at all of laminate. Until this kitchen, where I have 2 sections of stainless and a wood island top, but still have laminate around the rest, I have never had anything but laminate, and all was well over 10 yrs old to 35 yrs old...with no water damage at the seams. I know it's possible, but not even probable, in my experience, if the seam is done correctly. (I am speaking of sheet goods instead of the preformed, of which I have little knowledge and experience.) In the kitchen that was 35 yrs old, the original laminate had been burned in one spot, but that's the only damage I remember to any of the laminates in any of the 5 homes we've had.

Just trying to clarify, as I was curious, not arguing.

Rhome, that's what I was also thinking, that laminates are not a short term product in my experience. I sure hope that someone reading here would go away from this conversation with the idea that a laminate cannot serve over time.

We've just ripped out a Formica countertop that I previously could not rationalize covering over; I still liked it and there was never any significant damage to it except for a badly glued corner trim piece that I reglued with Elmer's GlueAll.

We did have an oddball seam on our countertop: a corner with a straight edge, a miter, and a pieshaped piece. That area did hump a slight bit over time, but only because the dish drainer sat directly upon it and not all family members were as diligent as I was in wiping it when water spilled. ( I think we were too young and broke to afford a longer piece of Formica in 1974.)

Instead of thinking of laminates as "short-term," I consider stone countertops to be "ultra long term" and therefore something to be tolerated if you don't like the ones in your house. I have a marble countertop in my bath that I have tolerated for almost 40 years. If it had been laminate, I could have rationalized a change long ago.

It's all in your perspective, I think, as long as the laminate and the stone are treated well and are good choices from the get-go. In my situation, the laminate is definitely the cost-effective choice for a big kitchen, it's more forgiving and more warm to touch, and it suits the neighborhood.

Have been measuring and thinking about the 4 x 8 and 12 x 5 lengths this product comes in. I think that on a long countertop plus two other big sections, if I had three hunks of the 12 x 5, I can get a lot of choices for the miters, but I'm no pro. My countertop guy is coming next week and we'll talk about what it would take to use the 180fx material and whether I should choose it.

The company below seems to be having a 180fx sale right now.

Here is a link that might be useful: Bevel Edge sells 180fx

My carpenter used the sheet goods for my counter and avoided the miter corner by laying the sheet flat and cutting it into an L shape. If your counter is longer than the sheet, then, yes, you'll have a seam. My counter was built on site. MUCH cheaper that way even though I have a good sized piece of "waste" still looking for a place to live.

A lot of the discussion re laminate in general devolves on the uptick of expectations. When our house was built 32 years ago in an upscale neighborhood, granite was not "in," and my counters were done in a white leather-textured Formica. The ell-shaped counter had one seam--none around the drop in sink. The other counters were shorter--no seam. I spent a lot on cherry cabinets w/ pull-out shelves--rather avant garde at the time. All of the above are still in my kitchen. There has been no problem w/ the one seam & the finish is still beautiful--unstained & un-nicked--and I still like it. As with anything, if you take care of it, you can get a lot of mileage.

I'm not talking about the 45° corner seams, although those are subject to moisture infiltration damage as well. I've had customers who replaced their 2 year old laminate countertops because they had a 45° angled sink with the 22 1/2° seams on either side. But, people generally know that the seams between slabs are weak points subject to moisture infiltration. That's not what I'm talking about here when I mean seams. I'm talking about the edge seams.

{{gwi:1985940}}

This picture shows a flat edge laminate countertop that pretty clearly shows the two pieces because it's more apparant for the round shape. The top and the edge are two separate pieces, whatever the shape. The laminate dosn't wrap over the edge like it does with a rolled edge countertop. The seam between the top and the edge is the weak point, and is subject to moisture intrusion which causes delamination and swelling of the substrate. This is the edge that a custom fabricator most often uses when he site creates countertops. This is also the edge used when dealing with "bumpouts". The square profile can follow the edge of the bumpout, but it will have seams at the top, bottom, and inside and outside corners.

{{gwi:1985941}}

This picture shows a beveled edge, which has a seam between the top and edge, and additionally has a seam at the angle of the edge as well to be able to follow the angle.

This pic clearly shows how the edge is constructed and where the weak points (seams) are located.

Post form laminate uses heat and pressure to be able to wrap laminate around the substrate in two directions. It's like wrapping a gift. You can wrap the paper around the front and back of the gift, but when it comes to the sides, you're gonna have to fold it to make it fit. You can't fold laminate, so you have to apply a flat cap edge to the side.

This shows the flat capped side.

To get a side that appears to be "finished" on all sides requires that a rolled edge be cut and applied to the side. This creates a seam. Seams are laminate's weak point.

In this pic, the fabricator has to cut and apply the "pretty" edge in in sections So, you have a LOT more seams that it would appear from the promo pic. There is a seam between the edge and the top everywhere. There is a seam at all of the outside corners. This is a top that would be suited only for an area away from a sink.

Any of these seams around a sink will eventually become water damaged. It's not an if, it's a when.The most durable laminate edges are the ones that are post form rolled under the lip like the bullnose edge like below. Just don't try to do anything fancy with them and keep the corner seams and any butt seams dry, and they'll be very durable.

{{gwi:1985944}}

Florantha, thanks for asking. Yes, we have made some progress. Countertops are in. I didnt go with the FX180. I decided to go with the etchings line and Butterrum. I am very happy with them. We put a larger top on the peninsula, so there is now room for seating, the new stove top is installed, and the new hood is installed. The new kolar kitchen sink is installed. I used same faucets, since we had replaced them when we moved in, to the same faucets we had in last house. The flooring we put down right after we moved in. I wallpapered the walls in the kitchen area of this great room over the paneling. The color I chose, is a close match to the paint, I have in the living room, which you cant see in the pictures, since the pocket door is closed. I put up the backsplash, red ruby glass daltile mosiac behind the stove top, and also behind the sink. The rest is porclain mosaic. I still have the ugly avocado oven. I still need to scrub down cabinets,light sanding and touch up here and there, and 2 new coats of poly. Probably a winter project, because I am trying to work in the front yard right now. Our kitchen is mostly cosmetic work, because of my hubbys bad health, and a retirement budget. I am attaching a link to photobucket before and after. Cat

Here is a link that might be useful: photobucket

Live_Wire_Oak: I quote you here: Any of these seams around a sink will eventually become water damaged. It's not an if, it's a when.

As I said above, my laminate is in place 32 years now--not post-formed. Its in perfect condition. How much longer should I wait for the water damage?

Here's a website that discusses the repeat of the Antique Mascarello pattern. It repeats every 5 feet.

Here is a link that might be useful: discussion of antique mascarello 180fx

Hi Florantha,

I will have to seam the long wall. From the left corner to the right they can only go 5' (the other way will be seam free).

When doing a corner, one length can be 12', one way can be 5'. I preferred not to have the seam on the sink run. I am hoping that it won't look to bad as the seam will be on the right of the dishwasher and just before the arch which has cabinets coming down to the counter.

I finally decided on what sinks to use after going back and forth from stainless to silgranit. I chose Blanco Silgranit in Cafe Brown. The strainers will also be in Cafe Brown. The large sink is 33 1/2 w x 22 h x 9.5 d. The small sink is 15 w x 15 w x 8 d.

For the faucet I chose Danze Bellefleur:

Danze also makes a smaller Bellefleur model for a bar sink application, but I am not sure if I will do the same yet. It's a rather large faucet and I don't want to overwhelm the smaller sink.

My sinks should be arriving around July 19...so I am hoping that the counter installer will be ready by then.

I would have loved to do Granite, but... this was 1/3 - 1/4 the cost of entry level granite. The cost of Premium Granite if I lived down South would have only been double! I live up North in Canada and the granite price option is just not as enticing unfortunately.

Here is a picture of a Granite I found over the web... it's called Golden Lake from Granite Warehouse Direct. I think it is just beautiful!

kmsparty, sorry for not replying sooner but I just saw your post now. My husband put clamps around the frame of the table and screws into the tabletop plywood back.

We installed the "Antique Mascarello" Formica 180fx product yesterday. It seems to be great as a laminate product, but if you're looking for granite, go buy granite. The nature of the product won't allow you to have all the bells and whistles that the real rock allows (see detailed discussions above). I am grateful for all posters on this thread--you guided my thinking, decisions, expectations.

I picked out an ordinary laminate product for back-up as well as the 180fx one. Our installer is a garden variety, competent workman. He's not a high wire artist and he needs to go home at the end of the day, not stay for extra hours to obsess about things. He liked the concept of the long-repeat product and said he'd try it, but I don't think he had thought through the implications, esp. the idea of waste, so he didn't buy as much product as I thought he needed. "It will be fine" he said.

The idea of matching edges seemed so easy to him when we started, but by the middle of the project, I was steaming, probably because I've read too many of these highly critical GW threads about matching seams and edges. Once I relaxed and let him go about his business, all was fine.

(I think it's interesting that a number of friends' redone kitchens--upscale updating of well built 1950s homes in St. Paul suburbs--mostly have laminate countertops, laminate floors, and white sinks. Our kitchen fits right in with theirs in aesthetics and cost, but ours is DIY. Their kitchens have more stainless steel and more elaborate refrigerators and ranges than ours; they find us humorous.)

A G-shaped kitchen has three blind corners and therefore three places where countertops change directions. We decided to put butcherblock along the bottom of the G, which allowed us to avoid some laminate seams. There is one mitered seam in the upper left corner of the G and there's a seam at the double sink. The bumpout of the sink and the curves of the outside of the peninsula make it impossible to just turn down the edge of the Formica for the vertical edging. You just gotta live with it.

Installers cut long narrow strips of the product from the edge using a specialized tool, somewhat as I would if I were cutting the selvedge edge off a piece of fabric. These become the vertical trim piece. We had a pile of long strips to choose from, as well as numbered ones which we predicted would be our best matches for various purposes. But...if you want to play the "black streak goes with black patch, ivory patch goes with ivory streak, brown line needs to line up with brown line" game, we didn't always win. The corner miter seam does not line up much better than the one posted above, for reasons that are more interpersonal than physical.

Oak cupboards have a distinct personality and I've expended a lot of angst trying to pick something for the countertop that doesn't fight the oak but complements it. I think this works. For months, I've said that I didn't want a shiny countertop because of all the windows and ceiling lights, but because of the long lengths of counter, I wanted the look of a large seemingly random pattern even more. I don't mind the embossed twinkle (after a half day of familiarity with it) but I am very glad we got the most matte finish on our cupboards.

This is a Flickr URL, so you can click back in time to see other images also. (The red backsplash areas on top and bottom of G will be covered with ivory tile backsplash this fall, I think. Not sure if the other red parts will be painted green or remain red. Front of peninsula will be painted green or red. Red on floor is merely paper, protecting the new oak floor.)

We bought one 4-foot Ikea butcherblock $90 and one 6-foot at $130 or so--can't recall. Installation of countertops and the materials came to $1500, but DH was there working with the installer, a friend of ours. Probably an insider's price, yes?

Here is a link that might be useful: Antique Mascarello is installed with unstained oak cupboards.

I know this is an old thread, but since I used it in selecting my formica countertop -- 180fx in golden mascarello -- I thought I'd describe the results. We chose it for the countertop in our L-shaped, 12x12 farmhouse kitchen. The cabinets extend to the 8' ceiling, topped with crown molding, and are soft white Shaker-style with inlaid doors, brushed nickel cup pulls and standard knobs. The backsplash is white beadboard and the walls are a soft creamy color that looks like a warm beige in natural light and soft yellow in artificial light. Floors are a white oak with medium-tone honey finish. The wall and floor colors pick up the beige, gold and rust tones in the countertops beautifully, and the counters are a nice contrast to what otherwise would be a very bland, white-on-white kitchen. The countertop has a beveled edge, with a "bump-out" for the sink to add some architectural interest (meaning, the sink and its surrounding counter extend an additional 2" into the room). Everyone who walks in exclaims about my beautiful, sparkly "granite" countertops -- until they touch them and realize it's not actually granite. There is a corner seam, which is not overly obvious, and to the extent the patterns don't "match" along the seam, this just mimics what happens when actual granite is used, so it doesn't bother me a bit.

I just saw a kitchen yesterday in the Antique Mascerello with a valenica edge and the price is $36.84 per LF (in that color with that edge)at Lowes. It was beautiful!!! I was going to do granite, but have decided to go the less expensive route and do this fx180 formica.

I purchased kitchen and bath countertops in Calacatta Marble. I ordered them from Lowe's, so they came out and measured and then I went in and ordered them at the store. I told the Lowe's representative that I wanted the squared off edge, because that would look most like a natural marble countertop. When I got them, every seam is a black line where the cut was made. Very disappointing because they don't look like marble countertops, they look like formica countertops. When you look at a large piece of the calacatta marble, you are never presented with the idea of what a cut edge will look like. Seems like I got taken for $800.

Hi @Jajajeal,
I am considering either the Calcatta Marble or the Tavertine Silver for my kitchen counters. Do you have any pictures of yours? So far all the pic I have seen look great so I am curious to see the other side to that story.

Also anyone else able to comment on durability or staining( especially because I am looking at lighter colors)!

Thanks!

Just had the golden mascarello installed in our kitchen with bullnose edge.

We are pleased with the product and the price! Now we just need a backsplash.

I had my heart set on butcher block counters until I mistook Formica for the "real deal" at my Lowe's. Unfortunately no one, and I mean NO ONE at Lowe's could give me any info. I think it is indicative of the granite-industrial complex. I visited 5 stores and called Formica directly, and was finally directed to our local distributor who was not helpful.

The Formica website touted the new IdealEdge line, which no one I spoke with seemed to know anything about. Though, on the web it looked pretty great. I finally harangued someone (at a 6th Lowe's) into giving me a price- about $22 per square foot for the premium edge if you install it yourself (at least in Ohio). A tough decision, for sure!! Basic Corian or other solid surfaces go for under $40.

Opinions on the general cost-benefit of the laminate vs.solid surface options?

Here are a couple of shots of the Formica Calacatta Marble from the 180fx series. Thanks to this forum discussion, we went for it and are so pleased! I had a hard time finding real life pictures of the Calacatta so I wanted to share ours. It's been installed for 4 months with two small children and has held up beautifully. I can't say enough about it. If our budget had permitted, I would have done a double ogee edge. But even so, I love how ours turned out. Please see my blog post here for more pictures:

http://livingthehydelife.blogspot.com/2013/03/the-great-kitchen-remodel.html

and feel free to ask any questions either on the blog or here!

Here is a link that might be useful: 180fx Calacatta Marble Kitchen

My company make laminate countertops. Formica isn't making small samples due to the fact it would give a misleading representation of the color. In a 12ft length of laminate 180FX repeats about 5ft-6ft.

WilsonArt had now produced colors like antique mascarello (Winter Carnival WilsonArt version) and Golden Mascarello (Summer Carnival WilsonArt version) The WilsonArt versions come in the harder HD finish. WilsonArt is coming out with more in about April 2013.

This picture is of Winter Carnival by WilsonArt

I had a quote for these countertops by Lowes and HD installed for $4000, for our 4-sided kitchen. It was just as expensive as prefab granite! For the price I decided not to go for it, and poured concrete over our tile instead (yes, I did use it right from the bag from Home Depot) which cost me less than $100 and no seams.

I don't know if the price has skyrocketed or if it's just the fact that I live in a very high labor cost area, and our kitchen has irregular shapes such as a window to the dining room - but it was certainly not an inexpensive option.

180FX Formica Slate Sequoia

Formica 180FX Petrified Wood

180FX Burnished Montana
(Customer photo, kind of dark lighting)

>I don't know if the price has skyrocketed or if it's just the fact that I live in a very high labor cost area, and our kitchen has irregular shapes such as a window to the dining room - but it was certainly not an inexpensive option.

It's not cheap around here (East coast FL) either, unless you go with the prefab grab and go laminates from the stock areas at the big box stores. Otherwise, one reason formica is less popular in this area is that it's perceived as over-priced these days. Some of those styles are very handsome, but there's nothing budget-friendly about them in this particular market.

One of the reason laminate can be expensive in box stores is because they have to purchase them elsewhere...then they mark them up. Depending upon where the box stores get them, they may have to purchase xx amount of running feet for a particular edge...like an Ogee. You should look for a laminate fabricator, that makes their own tops....probably cheaper. Visit formica's website or WilsonArt for dealer/fabricators in your area. Also, calling a formica sales rep could point you to a good laminate fabricator as well.

I got a quote from Lowes for 180FX. I have 48 sq ft of countertop. I wanted an ogee edge without a backsplash. I was going to do the edge profile on 2 edges. The estimate ended up being $2400. We are getting granite installed this month. The final cost is $2900. I couldn't justify spending that much on laminate when laminate was so close in cost.

I just DIY installed the 180 FX Calcatta marble with the ogee edge on the coffee bar area in our showroom. I ordered it fabricated to my dimensions, which means taking responsibility for those measurements, including the sink location. And, yes, DIY installing. Our retail price for the 10' section would be $275. If I needed that installed, the price goes up. $560 for that same 10' be fabricated and installed.

mleighh Love your kitchen! It is beautiful. I am very interested in the calcatta for my master bathroom. Live_wire_Oak do you have a picture of the counter top you did? Do you think there would be any issues with it being in a bathroom? I am using porcelain calcatta marble in the shower so it will be a totally faux bathroom, but hopefully look nice.

I read today that FX prices start at $22/foot installed. If you go to Formica's website they will send you a free sample of the colors you're considering. I'm planning on going with the FX instead of granite for my new kitchen. I've had granite and I'm not impressed. The new countertops have so many options. I'd rather put the savings into better cabinetry

I have had 2 different condos with 2 different FX180 patterns. I loved each one of them, however, with my new house I am going back to the Dolce Vita as it was my favorite. Both patterns look great with cherry cabinetry.

@smartdesignergirl. Is that a beveled edge( Slate Sequoia)? Was it made on site or postformed? Are there seams between the top and the bevel? @katster575 Is the River Gold a beveled edge? It's so helpful to have these photos..thank you!