Oh C'mon V Richards...every epoch has its treasures. B4 you make a mad run for it stop a while and consider the period and the reasons for the style...it can be extremely enlightening....unless its not the period you want to escape from but from some of the opinions. I spent many years of my youth outside of Australia living surrounded by old ruins in Europe. I forgot what it was like here. When finally I returned to Australia and found myself living in some of the 60s and 70s places..I found much to admire and wonder about. I may not have fallen in love with much of it but there was a certain mistique and a feel that I can still conjure when talking about certain places. Not saying that it was all romantic and pleasant but it conveyed something of the era and the kind of Aussie from those days.

I have only seen one wooden bench top that has managed, over time, to keep the wet out and avoid that black mouldy creepage where the water splashes behind the taps and around tap inserts. It was built by a carpenter and then the owner applied oil to gain the colour desired before applying several coats of marine epoxy (several = at least 5), sanded back before every new layer. It was burn proof and the colour locked in by epoxy coat with no maintenance required (until a visitor put a burning pot on it and left it there while attending to fire on stove, still... only left a black ring. That said, the owner promptly got out the sander and ground back until black ring was no longer charcoal texture, then reapplied oil and layered epoxy until black ring looked like it belonged (can't do that with any other surface I can think of?). After 15 years there is no sight of the insidious black mould from water penetration so I suppose it is the same recipe as with most thing successful projects in life, research, research, preparation, preparation, preparation and don't falter at the finish line.

Hi all our terrazzo bench has been installed and in use for over 12 months. This bench was poured in Italy and then finished by a stonemason off-site type. When 1st installed I spilt some lemon juice which created a mark so we are careful not to use acidic items on the bench. I am not sure if this happened before or after we sealed it but I think it’s important to seal any natural stone product and we used the sellers recommended product called “slow drying sure seal” but I won’t vouch for its effectiveness as I can’t compare it to anything. Over all we love the look but I think you need to be a little more careful around natural products than engineered ones so it may depend on your lifestyle

Each to their own , but I wouldn't replace the benchtops unless there is an actual reason . I wouldn't even replace the sinks , I'd take a different tack . What I like is the black window , the black stove , the black skirting . I could live with the cupboards , the benchtops , the sink . I'd change the tap to black , all the cupboard handles to black in a modern style , and change the tiles and splashback area . Black gloss tiles , or black gloss subways , would work , but maybe you are getting a bit too B&W -- add some colourful appliances in reds or oranges or citrus or teal jug and mixer and toaster may offest that , and add colour . Personally though , I'd play with bright red tiles , or black tiles but with really slim 25-30mm red or orange or yellow ones along the top . Then whichever colour I chose , I'd do a clock in the same colour too . Even if you don't need a clock -- basically , it's there for the looks . All the other ideas IMO are just playing with the blandness that's already there -- safe , but boring .