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How to choose the best granite for your kitchen worktop or renovation: Top tips
Granite, a sought after, durable natural stone that is prized for its unique grain and suitability for kitchen worktops, flooring, shower trays, bathroom vanity cabinets and more. It is the best and most popular material for a kitchen worktop. However when you are faced with looking at huge slabs of granite, how do you know which granite company to choose?
Use this guide to help you choose the best granite for your kitchen worktop or renovation. To keep it easy I have split the information into three key areas to consider when looking for the best granite covering:
- How to choose the best granite worktop colour
- How to select the best quality granite
- How to ensure a quality granite worktop finish
1 – How to choose the best granite worktop colour
You may have started out with black, grey or white granite in mind, however the sheer range of colours and finishes available can be overwhelming.
Clearly you will need to ensure that your granite company supplies your chosen granite in the colour and finish that you desire. Use these simple tips to help you to narrow the range of choice:
Begin with the colour of your kitchen cabinets. Complement the colour of your cabinets with a granite in the same colour made distinct with a darker colour marbling. Alternatively, contrast the colour of your cabinets with a different coloured granite that incudes speckles or marbling that matches the colour of your cabinets. Before making a decision, get a big enough sample of the slab that you like and take it home so that you can see how the colour works in reality.
If your kitchen is on the smaller side a light coloured granite will help to enhance the sense of space. On the other hand, if you have your heart set on a dark coloured granite countertop, pairing it with white cabinets can help. For a bright with plenty of natural light and neutral coloured cabinets, a dark countertop with silvery speckles will work well. Meanwhile a darker kitchen which only experiences brief periods of natural light throughout the day, will benefit from a light coloured granite to brighten the space.
Timeless black, calming grey and contemporary white granite are the most popular colours, whilst classic brown and beige are other well-used options. Granite slab colours can be solid or interspersed with speckles or marbling. Flecks and marbling come in a wide range of colours that will help the marble to complement your decor. Coloured speckles and marbling can be selected to accent a neutral colour scheme or make a uniform colour pop, whilst block colours can elevate the sense of space and structure.
2 – How to select the best quality granite
When you first begin to look at slabs of granite from different granite companies, it can be difficult to see where the variation lies. However, there are some ways to check that you are selecting a high quality granite company.
Use these top tips to guarantee that you choose the right granite company:
Thickness
Beware of any suggestion of 1½ inch slabs of granite. 1½ inch slabs are a sub-standard quality of granite made from two slabs joined together. Look for 1¼ inch thickness for your worktops, whilst ¾ inch thickness can be used for bathroom vanity cabinets. 1¼ inch and ¾ inch are the two standard thicknesses for granite slabs. You can sometimes get slightly thicker granite 1¼ inch, but for domestic use 1¼ inch is the standard thickness to look for.
Flawless surface
You are looking for a smooth, even and un-interrupted slab of true granite. Granite tiles are to be avoided, they are a low quality of granite with unsightly grout lines. When inspecting the granite slab check for an un-marked, uniform, robust, hard surface. The granite should have a consistent colour and the surface should not have any cracks or significant pitting – look out for tiny cracks around the edges too. True granite is free from impurities, so beware of added elements for aesthetic reasons that will compromise the quality of the granite. For example, the presence of glittering Schist stones create a lesser quality granite that has a low resistance to scratching and chipping.
3 – How to ensure a quality granite worktop finish
Although it may seem like a small detail, the edges of your granite worktop are an important feature. Edges should be properly polished.
Ensure that your countertop is safely finished with rounded undersides. Flat edge detailing can complement modern kitchen cabinets, whilst bevelled edges can work well on minimalist or traditional cabinet styles.
Once installed your sink should be under mounted at a level consistent with your new countertop. Under mounted means that the sink should be sunk into the countertop instead of being positioned above it. A sink positioned at a higher level than the worktop will result in the creation of an unhygienic area around the sink over time.
Unsightly seams in the middle of your beautiful granite worktop are a complete no-no. Shaping and finishing a granite worktop properly is a skill that only the best granite fabricators can achieve.