It seems there is a lot of curiosity out there about Carerra marble countertops. I know I really tried to learn as much about them as possible when we remodeled our kitchen along with the total gut job we did on this place last year.
Carrera marble has the reputation of being ummmmm tempermental, and frankly, it is. It has also been called snobby, and I really think that is going too far.
I have loved marble even before I knew what it was. My mother had antiques, and a few of her pieces had marble tops. As a little girl, I liked the way it looked. As an adult I have designed four kitchens – two in houses that we built, one a major remodel in our last house, and this one in our townhouse. In the first three houses I had children still at home. They were infants in the first one and by the time we got to our third house, they were teenagers. I would never have considered marble countertops in any of those settings, for obvious reasons.
But now we are empty-nesters, and I decided that the two of us could probably deal with what is known as a high-maintenance look.
When we were putting this kitchen together, I let the architect and builder know that I was interested in Carrera marble. At first they both discouraged me, but I knew it was our kitchen – not theirs. I read a lot of blogs and contacted many homeowners by email when I saw marble in the photos of their kitchens. They always responded, and they all said two things: they loved their marble and to make sure we had it sealed when it was installed.
I was also warned about something called “etching”. It isn’t a stain, but it’s a permanent mark on the marble that can only be seen at certain angles. When prepping foods on our peninsula, I always use cutting boards as barriers between the foods and the countertops. We also always use place mats when we are eating breakfast or grabbing a quick lunch at the bar.
The etching adds a patina which I don’t mind. Our marble man is a pure perfectionist, and he used a five-year sealer when he installed the countertops. He also swears that he can buff out any stain and even got out grape stains from a young mother’s counters once.
All of our kitchen cabinets are white except the peninsula which is the exact same grey as the graining in the marble. I chose the grey so it would highlight the veins. We have a very, very light blue ceiling which also blends well with all of it and adds a bit more interest.
Before I made the final decision to go with real marble, I almost went with this Silestone product called Bianco-Carrera. I wanted a honed look, and this has a shine plus its design is somewhat repetitive.
If you are selecting a marble or granite, it is very important to go to the marble yard and hand-pick the slabs you want in your kitchen. You can even tell the cutters which sections of the slabs you want to use. Often times what you see on a little block in a store looks totally different when the huge slab is resting on your cabinets.
I guess the big question is would I do it again. Would we install the same countertops again if we were doing our kitchen today? And the answer, without a doubt, is yes, yes, yes!!! In fact, we had our marble man customize a countertop for our powder room, and we installed honed Carrera marble floors in all of our bathrooms. I decided if Charles De Gaulle airport’s marble floors can handle the foot traffic, then our bathrooms can, too. But, hey, that’s another blog!
Take care.
Silestone photo taken from www.kitchendesigns.com
Michele says
LOVE your kitchen – ands we have finally decided recently when we re-do the master bath to make the countertops, shower and tub surround carrera marble – you think it is ok in baths too? That much of it?
I have been back and forth, so worried, it is such an expense.
Thanks for your wonderful post, you have an awesome blog and truly amazing kitchen!!!!
Janette says
Yes, yes!!! We have the same marble in 12 inch squares in three of our bathrooms on the floors and in the showers. We put tumbled marble on the shower floors in little mosaic sizes, and we love it. I have even used clorox on it to clean it, and that worked fine.
Kim Hites says
Way to go, Janette! I have always loved carrara marble. It is so French!
Janette says
Kim,
My French bestie has carrara in her kitchen, and even her sink is made of it!!!
Mary Alice Patterson says
Your countertops are beautiful! Good tips when I get to change out mine.
Mary Alice
Sherry says
Beautiful Kitchen and I love the marble.
classic•casual•home says
I totally agree with you…we have Carrara too. It stains…but they do fade. I like the light feel…your kitchen is lovely.
Daniela @frugal ain't cheap says
I LOVE Carrara marble…but I am 100% Italian…so I might be just a tad bias on this!
Kelly @ thelilypadcottage says
So jealous! We just built our house and my hubby wouldn’t let me go with marble in the kitchen (we went with silestone instead) we have two young kids so it was probably smart for us. I love yours though beautiful!
Janette says
You probably made the right choice, Kelly!!
Lisa says
I think the Carrara is beautiful and it looks lovely in your kitchen. Very pretty.
CAS says
I think it’s beautiful, Janette. It would never work for us, being a family with chefs and six grandchildren — I’d be a total wreck! I’d best stick with my indestructible granite!
Aimee - It's Overflowing says
Wow Janette!!! It’s GORGEOUS! Awesome pick…your kitchen is beautiful! XO, Aimee