In a different vein: three striking kitchen worktop materials
While the soft mottled greige kitchen worktop rules the roost (see our current special offer) and gentle whites and greys with long veins sell like hot cakes, there is still a market for more striking, bolder-veined worktop materials.
This week we look at three very different worktops which have in common a boldness and strength of pattern. These are not for the faint-hearted – but they make a statement and will give the wow factor to a kitchen where, perhaps, relatively muted-tones in everything else threaten to drown the room in blandness.
Dekton Kira
Dekton Kira: 3200x1440x20mm slab
Dekton Kira is one of the most realistic and beautiful sintered particle stones we have yet seen. The colour and vein pattern are a deliberate copy of the Spanish Marble Gris Pulpis and offer a look which is at once both understated and yet quite strong. The surface texture is matt – a very natural-feeling non-polished look and touch.
Like all Dektons, Kira has a super-hard surface, being extremely scratch, heat and stain resistant. It certainly beats granite and quartz in those areas. On the other hand, like all Dektons, Kira is relatively brittle, with less tensile strength than other options. It isn’t suitable for big overhangs and some layouts with awkwardly-placed cutouts. Heavy bashes from hard objects threaten to create more major damage than the small dinks or chips you might see in natural stone or quartz.
Our counsel is to decide if the pattern of a Dekton is a unique must-have. Talk to us about its suitability for your kitchen plan in terms of overhangs and cutouts. If that discussion gives a green light, buy it boldly, making sure you have appropriate home insurance cover for any replacement down the line if there is impact damage.
Our article “Kitchen Worktops: No One Magic Bullet!” looks at some of the claims for different materials and urges a realistic view of what they each offer.
Dekton Kira – a stunning marble copy from Cosentino
Cambria Portrush Quartz
Cambria Portrush: 3350x1660mm slab
Cambria Portrush is the latest in Cambria’s Brittanicca family of boldly patterned kitchen worktop stones. Take a look at our case study on Brittanicca to get an idea of one of these stones in action. Portrush has the same strong vein, but in blue with gold-mirror chips. The result is less natural, but clean and robust with huge visual impact as a kitchen worktop.
As a quartz, Portrush avoids the brittleness and weakness of Dekton, and it’s surface is still highly stain resistant. This stone is not cheap, but to bring a really vigorous pattern into your kitchen, it is hard to beat.
Belvedere Granite - Leathered Finish
Belvedere Leather: Two slabs available 3100x1900x30mm, one offcut available 2059x1900x30mm – all sections from matching batch
And finally… an actual granite. Belvedere is a lovely natural kitchen worktop stone with big white/cream veining. In the leathered finish the surface is matt, with ridges and depressions which reflect the hardness or softness of the material itself – you can actually feel the pattern with this stuff! We have installed a number of sets of kitchen worktops in Belvedere over recent years, with some very happy customers, like the lady who came in to help us plan the use of her stone.
We happen to have two and two thirds slabs of Belvedere Granite in the leather finish (the batch pictured here) which was held in stock due to an error and is thus available at a stock granite price. Grab this bargain while it’s there!
We are Affordable Granite, the leading granite and quartz worktop supplier in Surrey, Sussex and across the South East. We want to be the best in the business for customer service and advice to anyone who is doing up their kitchen. Call us for a quotation on 01293 863992 or by email on sales@affordablegranite.co.uk.
© Images from Affordable Granite / Andrew King Photography