When we bought our current house it cost a bit more than our budget had allowed. So there was not my much money to spend on updating. But I just HATED the kitchen: imitation wood grain cupboards, pink laminate bench tops and a painted wood trim around the edges. Overall, the kitchen was very usable, so a new kitchen seemed not necessary. So we called in a company who took all the cupboard doors and drawer fronts away and spray painted them brilliant white. ( to match the colour of the fridge, which later turned out to be a mistake when I had to buy a new fridge: different white) They also came back to paint the frames the same colour. But what to do about the horrible pink laminate? They used a industrial laboratory finish, spayed on, 5 coats. It is super tough and can be done in several colours and finishes. We chose a beige with speckles of black, gold, brown, silver. Looks suburb and very, very serviceable. The wood trim was also covered and a splash back behind the sink had the same treatment. I was without a kitchen for only 3 days. So for a reasonable cost, I think it was around $2500, I now just love my kitchen. The big expense of course was the oven, warming drawer, gas wok burner, range-hood and induction cook top. Bathrooms and laundry had a complete pink laminate colour scheme. yuk. Then I gloss painted the laundry and bathroom cupboards and had the same industrial spray on finish on the bench tops, but in speckled white. Cost $1900 for 3 benches. Done in 2 days. And 3 weeks of painting!!!!!!

Happy with our choice. I can't comment on how it compares with similar products though as have only lived with timber or laminate bench tops in past. It has withstood several clumsy knocks from pulling pots out of dishwasher (we didn't go with an under mounting sink so can't comment on that). I've noticed one tiny (pin head) sized chip to surface on island but this part of bench gets a lot of use (not sure what caused it). No staining from my messy little artists either.

The Marble Man - would like to share information for your consideration - Manmade, engineered stone is also known as agglomerate, manufactured stones or reconstituted stones. They are made from a combination of approximately 7% resins, cement, and coloured pigments and upwards of 93% natural stone chips such as quartz or marble. These materials are bound together to make a slab. Engineered stones are designed to emulate natural stones such as marble and granite and are an extremely popular alternative to natural stone in building today. Some of the engineered stone brands include Caesarstone, Essastone, Quantum Quartz, Silestone, Technistone, Smarstone and HanStone. These stones are similar in composition, varying only by a few percent in total quartz used. Their differences lie in the colours, patterns and applications offered. Some engineered stones are just made for benchtops whereas, others can be used for tiles. For you the home renovator, builder or owner the preference to choose engineered stone over natural stone is purely a personal one. Natural stone is attractive because of it’s unique inconsistencies in colour, texture and patterns. The Marble Man enjoys the qualities of all natural and manmade stone. When you view engineered stone for consideration for your home, you will see a more consistent colour and patterning in the stone. Take the time to view the full sheet of stone and consider the overall look and effect of the colour you choose for your interior. There are many reasons why engineered stones are being chosen over natural stone: Engineered stones are durable, scratch, stain and heat resistant * They come in a variety of colours and patterns Natural marble is susceptible to etching and staining, however a marble look can be created with the etch and stain resistant properties of granite, making it a good choice for high stress areas such as kitchen benchtops and bathroom vanities The quartz used in the engineered stones is a similar hardness to granite and rates a 7 on the Mohs Scale of Hardness It is easy to clean and will require less long-term maintenance like granite if cared for according to manufacturers instructions. Please be sure to speak with the sales team about your uses of the benchtop, stone, surface and address how you plan to use the surface before finalising your choice. Manmade, reconstituted stone is only ‘resistant’ to scratching, staining and heat and therefore hot pots must not be left on for extended periods, cutting boards should still be used under hot pots, pans or dishes. Spills must be cleaned up immediately as in the case of any natural stone to prevent stains. It comes with a manufacturers seal therefore additional sealing is not usually necessary. * In our experience engineered stone kitchen benchtops and bathroom vanities do chip and scorch, however we have developed processes to repair even large chips making them virtually undetectable, and to restore the factory finish to surfaces damaged by heat. Enjoy your home, enjoy the stone you choose for the benchtops in your home. The Marble Man is happy to assist with stone information, repairs, polishing and sealing all stone surfaces. We service Gold Coast, Brisbane, Sunshine Coast, Toowoomba, Northern NSW, Sydney and Canberra for all stone repairs, polishing and sealing Stone surfaces - simply call 1300 627 626. Learn more on The Marble Man website - www.themarbleman.com.au

We did think of pulling up some tiles from elsewhere, but they are stuck way too well and would certainly break. Everything in this place is built to withstand a massive tornado, or maybe a bomb blast! We think the builder had shares in the company that made Sikaflex! And no, just using contrast on the threshold won't do it, sadly. I do think we'll have to cut out some good tiles to extend the feature somehow so it doesn't look odd.