I've just come from a showing where an old timber house was lifted with downstairs built in modern with all polished concrete. They also had a concrete kitchen bench but kept upstairs traditional with VJ board walls and ceiling and carpeted floors. In my opinion is did not work, was a confusing mix of industrial with traditional. It almost felt cheap as if the builder couldn't be bothered to spend more on timber floors or even tile - even though the polished concrete could very well have cost more. I think dark timber is definitely your best option as it will blend better with the cornices and skirtings. Hope that helps.

If Scali doesn't step up then you can camoflauge it with paint. Experiment beforehand with a tube of black, grey and white acrylic paint and a stippling brush. Mix up different blends until you have the right colours and stipple it on. Start with a base coat of grey. Let it dry on an old tile or similar before assessing the colour as correct. The good thing is that you can wipe it straight off with water if you make a mistake or it doesn't match. When we replaced our kitchen there was a patch of raw pine exposed on the floor. I painted it with watered down acrylic paints and painted in some knots with brown paint and no one has ever picked it. Took a few tries to get it perfect. I assure you it won't stand out like it does now. i've even used texta to hide scratches on furniture and polished floors. You might consider that as an option too. Lastly I spilt scented oil on a my dressing table and it created a white film. I put some Brasso on a piece of cloth figuring I had nothing to lose and it's supposed to work on water rings on furniture. It took the white film straight off with no damage. You could try some on a cotton bud to see if it helps. You never know. Good luck.

Hi All, It sounds like tumeric and grease are the worst culprits for staining. We are looking to put the Cloudburst in our kitchen as our island and backsplash, but I'm very nervous. I love to cook and host. I also LOVE the look of this stone and would like to make it work if we can. Are there any bakers on this thread that have experience with these countertops? If you are rolling out dough or baking with greasy dough, how has that experience been? What if you get butter/oil on it? Any tips? Do you cover the counter before doing your baking etc.? I imagine beet juice would also be a nightmare?

. Concrete is fine on pinterest, it's even fine in corporate canteens but it's not a homely feel at all. If however you are sold on the look but want a more removable option I can recommend lino. NOT vinyl but real, Lino. It's a different thing, harder wearing than vinyl and can actually look very chic and more closely match concrete look without creating an unpleasant surface to walk on in bare feet. The worst thing about hard floorings like tile and concrete is they are unpleasant on your feet in winter. I live in a house with lino however and it's much warmer and a better feel on the feet than a hard surface flooring. Easy to care for and importantly easy to remove when you get sick of it. Marmoluem is a true lino, which BTW is actually a very sustainable and organic product. Lino is made from jute, seed flours and linseed oil. It's compostable. But it's unique composition is what also gives it a warm and beeswax like feel underfoot, which is very comfortable. You can get it in a some very nice concrete like shades, patterns and even raised textures. It's a sheet flooring so there are few joins, something tiles cannot offer. Tiles, once stuck to the floor are an absolute b****h to remove without a lot of damage, noise and expense. Lino can simply be lifted like carpet.