yep, stunning. I been drawing something similar for a while and it's awesome to see your ab fab results after your OP. I got interested in some ikea solid timber benchtops, not nearly as nice as yours, and thought I'd combo them with black cabinets, white stone and white walls (just a "what if" design). so I totally love your kitchen. it's great how well the tiles look now compared to when you first posted, they really excite me! and the lightshades against the black wall. and what's that dining area I see? that smoked glass table top with timber trestles and black chairs and that black and white rug? where you get those?! I want to see more! congratulations, it's hard not to gush! big ups to Mldesign too.

I think charcoal would look very modern and would go well with your existing timber bench tops. But, consider taking a sample home with you and seeing how much dust accumulates on a daily basis and how often you need to clean it to avoid it looking dirty as darker surfaces can sometimes show up dust more than lighter colours.

We went for timber benchtops from ikea for our last kitchen reno. Have had them about 18months now and really love them. Everyone who comes into our kitchen admires the benchtops first of all. They have marked: some scorch marks where i accidentally put down a hot saucepan lid, a couple of very light scuffs from where my husband dumped his tools heavily on the counter. But I like that kind of lived in feel. If you like perfect/pristine look I would suggest something other than timber. Even glulam super varnished counters don't stay pristine. But they really do give a lovely warmth and dare I say elegance to the kitchen, and I'm pretty sure we're going to go for the same option in our next kitchen (moving house soon!).

I think concrete makes a fantastic surface in wet areas, and looks even better in high traffic areas. The feel of a raw or honed concrete underfoot is amazing, and the unpretentious look in well designed spaces is earthy and contemporary. There are so many possibilities for colour, finish, inclusions and add ins, heated or non heated etc, that the beauty of concrete almost matches stone. For me, a huge concern is foundation movement, if on a slab, there is bound to be ground settlement and often hair line cracks can shift and become noticeable, patching is obvious and really just highlights a fault joint, basically destroying an entire floor, and leaving you with the option to tile or lay flooring over it anyway. An expensive excercise just to end up where you started. the veneer version can be laid on both pre finished slabs, fc surfaces and even timber, but the flexible movement and expansion that occurs often voids the warranty on its finish, I've investigated this option for myself, and basically th client takes the risk, and hopes for the best. As far as concerns regarding hardness goes, hardness =durability, so plates smashing will occur as it would on every other floor surface! There are large scale porcelain tiles that have a pre finished concrete look, really large as in 3000mm x 1500mm, minimising grout lines, and will be somewhat warmer underfoot. Cost is really high, so it needs to be something on your wish list, and where No compromise can be or will be made. love concrete..time worn and tested.