When you are redesigning your kitchen there are 101 different things to take into account. It might not seem so at the outset, but there are lots of little things such as “Should I hang this door on the right or the left?” “Have I left enough room between the cooker and the island?” You get the idea.
One of the most important things is the material that you are going to use for the worktops. It is important for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the look of the worksurfaces. They are in a horizontal plane, and there is quite a bit of them, so along with the floor they catch the eye easily and are always in sight.
Do you want worktops that are all one colour, or do you want natural stone with all the variations and grains that natural stones contain?
Then there is the matter of how strong they are. Can they put up with the constant amount of work that they get? Will they chip? Or, if they are wood, will it scratch? What if I drop a pan on them from a height? Can I put a hot pan on them straight off the hob or out of the oven? Are they porous? Will they stain? Can they harbour bacteria?
All of these are questions that you need to ask yourself, as well as how much cooking you really do. Many people today have a lot of meals that are takeaways – anything for an easy life – and so don’t do a lot of cooking.
Of course, another thing today is that many people entertain friends and family in their kitchens. Long gone is the dining room in many homes. So, the look and appeal of the worktops is important.
Natural Stone
This last point is why we are seeing more and more people opting for natural stone worktops at Marble & Granite, and one of the most popular is marble worktops in Ruislip – and not just in Ruislip, either.
Why?
Because of the incredible natural sheen that marble has. There is something about marble that makes it stand out quite like no other stone. Not for nothing was it used in the Taj Mahal and the Lincoln Memorial.
Many people think that marble is white, and in fact a lot of it is. However, there are slabs with incredible veining in them, each one being different of course, because marble is a natural stone. And not all marble is white. There are shades of browns, reds, greys, and even Belgian Black Marble! Black marble? There’s something you never knew!
Many people believe that marble stains, and to a certain extent that is true. However, it depends on the porosity. There are some marbles that are less porous than some granites. But the way to deal with that is to have the marble sealed, which you need to do with most other stones as well. It’s not a big issue, as you can get sealants today which will last for up to ten years. And your kitchen will have the most stunning worktops you could wish for.
