Reader question: Is glass tile a trend?

Help! I was watching HGTV today and they showed a kitchen that had been remodeled with a glass tile back splash. Designer Vern Yip said glass tile is a current trend and will be outdated in 4-5 years. This concerns me.

What do you think- are glass tile backsplashes too trendy? Will they be "out of style" in 5 years? What would you do?

Vern's right. Sort of. Glass tile is a current trend. So what? Glass tile's a current trend, travertine floors are a current trend, stainless steel appliances are a current trend, granite counters are a current trend, brushed nickel finishes are a current trend, and so is just about any finish you can pick for a project. Timelessness is a myth and trend avoidance is a fool's errand.

Human beings have been making glass since the Bronze Age. At first they made beads, then tile. Glass blowing started in Syria about 100 BCE and by 100 CE the Romans were making glass windows, vases and cups. Human beings have prized glass for thousands of years and have been covering walls with small pieces of it for just as long.

This is a photo I took in Herculaneum.

That's a glass tile mosaic from the year 50 or thereabouts.

Fast forward a couple thousand years and here's a photo I snapped in the 81st Street Station of the Eighth Avenue line in Manhattan.

That station opened in the 1930s and that glass tile is original.

There is nothing trendy about glass as a material, it's as old as civilization itself. In a thousand years, people will still be using glass tile. Tell that to Vern.

Now, just because something's a classic material doesn't mean that every time it's used it will last forever. There's a small window of time during which something looks good to trend followers and spotters. Then it falls from favor and if no one touches it for long enough it may become a classic. But even then it's not timeless.

St. Peter's Basilica in Rome isn't timeless, it's High Baroque. The White House isn't timeless, it late Georgian. The Forbidden City isn't timeless, it's Ming. See my point? Those iconic buildings are locked in time and they come to embody the eras in which they were built. Attempting High Baroque or late Georgian today is absurd because it's not 1500 or 1790.

So what the hell does this have to do with whether or not to install a glass tile back splash? Plenty. You are talking about an expense between $500 and $1,000 for most people. You can spend more than that certainly, but I don't think that's what you have in mind. That's not a judgment, just an observation. So knowing that, and knowing that you like glass tile back splashes, I say get a glass tile back splash. If it looks horrible in five years than get rid of it and replace it with whatever's on trend ten years from now.

Everything you buy for you home, and I mean everything, is subject to the whims of fashion. It is the very nature of living in a consumerist society. It is impossible to predict what will be in style five years from now and it's also impossible to predict what you'll like then.

All you can know is what you know right now. So buy the best things you can afford and enjoy them. Right now.

Glass tile photos from Lightstreams Glass Tile.

Reader question: Is this a terrible, terrible mistake?

Help! We are updating our old kitchen by installing granite counter tops. We love Verde Butterfly, but on some other blogs I have read that this particular granite was '90s granite? I don't want to update to something that is already out of date!

Please pardon my leading headline and thank you for your question. The answer is yes, my bloggery brethren are correct. Updating to Verde Butterfly or any of its Brazilian kin is probably not the best idea.

This is what's called Verde Butterfly.

It's closely related to Verde Peacock.

And that old standby, Ubatuba.

Technically, all three of these stones are charnocktites. Charnocktite is a granite classification. All three of these stones (and a host of others) have a lot of hypersthene in them. Hypersthene is the mineral that gives them their metallic green color. The opaque, whitish blotches are feldspar. The distribution of the feldspar in the stone is what determines if a particular stone is going to be called Butterfly, Peacock, Labrador, Ubatuba or what ever else someone makes up.

There are no standards for granite's common names by the way. One yard's Peacock is another yard's Butterfly. For the most part that doesn't matter. However, I cannot stand not knowing what something is, so I pour over geology books and websites so I can say things like "Oh look! That's a charnocktite!" Indulge me.

There's absolutely nothing wrong with Brazilian charnocktites. They do their job and they don't cost an arm and a leg. And therein lies the rub. In order for a particular granite to be inexpensive, there has to be a lot of it around. I say if you're going to get a granite counter, get one that nobody else has. In order to get a granite counter that nobody else has, you have to spend more money. Behold the tyranny of supply and demand.

These Brazilian charnocktites have been cut into kitchen counters in the US for the last 20 years; and they were some of the earliest, widely available stones out there. 20 years ago they were exotic. They're not any more.

If you want to be on the leading edge, see if you can't get a finish other than a high gloss on your counters. Honed, brushed, leathered, flamed or any other specialty finishes transform granite's appearance, even pedestrian granites. You might want to look at Caesarstone or any of the other quartz composite brands too.

No matter what you end up with, please be sure you are going to an independent counter fabricator to have this done. Make sure too that you are looking at slabs of stone instead of samples when you're making this choice. Finally, be sure that you're picking the slabs that'll be used for your counters. All stone is a product of nature and no two examples of it are alike. Don't take any chances and good luck!

Reader question: Why is my Ikea butcher block splitting?

Help! Exactly one month ago, my husband and I installed a Numerär oak countertop from Ikea. We brought it home, installed it and then sealed it with Ikea's Behandla wood sealer. I thought we were doing everything right, but last night I noticed a split in the wood on the end. Now what? Will it get worse? Should I get a new one?

Oh Lord. I just looked up Numerär on Ikea's website and you paid $89 for that counter. I have to ask, but what were you expecting for $89? Now yes, you spent $89 on a wooden counter and yes it should deliver as promised. But are you really surprised that it didn't? This certainly doesn't get Ikea off the hook. They have a warranty on that counter I'm sure and I would make it my life's work to have them deal with it. After all, $89 is $89. But still, the Numerär costs $89. A similar counter, made from real oak, from Boos will set you back somewhere around $500. Price disparities as wide as that ought to be enough to make anybody look twice.

I got smacked down here a couple of weeks ago for disparaging Ikea's cabinetry. Just ask Becky at Eco-Modernism. Hah! I'll admit, everything Ikea sells isn't automatically crap. So even though it's not crap, it's also not a substitute for the premium products Ikea's imitating either. Wood counters that cost $89 are a case in point.

So the answer your question, you need to look up the warranty on the counter you have and Ikea needs to replace it. They may be a little hesitant to do so if you've attached it to the cabinetry its sitting on, so be prepared to make your case.

If they won't replace it, your crack can be repaired, probably. If it were me, I'd shoot some wood glue into the crack and then get a band clamp and put the squeeze on for a day or so. Then oil that top and keep it oiled. Wood splits when it dries out, so don't let it dry out.

Then I'd think long and hard about what low prices really get you. I love saving a buck as much as anybody, believe me. But you'll end up a happier customer if you start looking for value instead of prices. Sometimes, the value is in a lower-priced product. Sometimes, it's not.

Reader question: can you help me with a small kitchen layout?

Help! Can you help me with a layout design for a small kitchen? It has a lot of challenges and I don't know where to start. I sure could use Candice Olson right now! Behind one wall is the stairs to the basement, the other wall is open to the dining area. The basement wall has a recessed oven and fridge. The width of the kitchen is about nine feet and the length's about the same. There's also a door to the garage on one side. Do you have any suggestions for a layout?

Yeah, hire a kitchen designer. Good advice is never free and free advice is never good. Remember that.

If you need a referral to someone local to you, I will find you someone. If you'd like to hire me to do a layout for you I'll do so gladly but you're going to have to hire me. If you take that route, you'll get my undivided attention and commitment to your project. I will ask you questions you never thought were important but are. We're going to get on the phone and I'm going to teach you how to measure a room so that I can recreate it as it is and as it will be when this project's completed. We're going to work out every detail --we'll position every light, we'll account for every outlet, we're going to find a place to hide everything you want to hide and we'll find a place to show off everything you want to show off. By the time we're done you're going to forget who Candace Olson is.

At the end of this you're going to hold a set of my construction plans and you're going to say to yourself that paying me was the best money you've ever spent. You'll tape one of my perspective drawings to your fridge and you'll be able to see it as a completed project. You'll really see it because you're going to understand the steps it will take to make that perspective drawing come true. You're going to have my enthusiasm as we work out the details and then I'm going to cheer you on as you sail through a process that once scared the bejesus out of you. You're going to get all of that and then some, but it won't be free.

I love corresponding with the people who read this blog. It makes my day like you cannot believe to get to know people from all over who read something here and it made them think, or laugh and a lot of times it just pissed them off. All of that's cool. It's beyond cool actually.

I love it when somebody asks, "Hey Paul, are Sub Zero refrigerators worth it?" or "Should I put a wood or a stone floor in my new house?" Spouting off on topics like that gives my life richness and meaning and I'm only too happy to shoot off quickie answers.

But when it comes to asking me to be creative or to work out specifics, I have to draw the line. I make a living from my ideas and I'd starve if I gave them away. Opinions are easy but ideas take some time. That's why I charge for ideas.

BoConcept offer a great 3D space planning tool, excellent for planning the layout of your room

Reader question: Is this estimate too high?

Help! We got an estimate from a contractor to remodel our kitchen. The quote included gutting it to the studs, however the only appliances that would move would be the dishwasher and the fridge. This includes redoing the ceiling as well, as we have a soffit that needs to be removed to add recessed lights. New floors too. Now, the kitchen is not very big --only 13x11. We haven't decided on finishes, etc., so the quote includes granite and quality cabinets. The quote was $40k. This seemed like a lot to me, but maybe I'm out of touch.

What do you think?

I think you're going about this all wrong, that's what I think. You haven't wasted your time though. After all, you now have an estimate for a $40K kitchen redo. Without knowing anything about your project or your location, I'd say that's in a range that makes me think you're not being taken.

The best thing you can do right now is stop, catch your breath and then change course. It sounds as if you have no idea what's involved in a kitchen renovation. That's OK, most people don't. Well, the best way you can go about spending a lot of money on this renovation is to learn a couple of things about the process and thereby re-cast yourself as an informed customer rather than as a victim. Be the driver of this train, not a passenger.

It is impossible to get comparable bids on a job if all of the players are bidding on different projects. Unless you know how to write a scope of work, every contractor you talk to is going to be bidding on a different job. Far more important than getting comparable bids is to find a contractor you trust.

In the meantime, have a chat with your husband and settle on how much money you are willing to spend on this project. That number is your budget. Everyone has one and you're not showing your cards to have that number in mind and to share it with the professionals you'll need to hire in order to complete this job.

It's a better idea to slow down and talk to a kitchen designer. Ask around and interview a couple of them. When you find someone you can relate to and who demonstrates that he or she will listen to you, work with that designer to come up with a plan.

That plan is what's going to drive this whole project. In the course of designing a plan, your designer is going to be able to get accurate prices for cabinetry, counters, lighting, faucets, sinks, appliances, flooring and everything else that goes into a kitchen renovation. Don't buy anything yet though. But add up the costs of all those things. We call them finishes. Add up the estimated costs of all the finishes and subtract that number from the budget you had in mind from the beginning. The number where you end up is your budget for the contractor.

Meet with several contractors. Ask to see photos of his or her previous work. Ask for the names of previous clients and call those former clients. If he or she has anything under construction right now, tour the job site.

When you find yourself developing a level of trust with a contractor and when he or she proves him/herself to be a good listener, make an appointment to review the scope and budget of your project. Involve the kitchen designer at this point if you're not feeling particularly confident.

At that contractor meeting, show the contractor your drawings and the scope of work for your job. Then look the contractor in the eye and say, "Can you do this for $12,000 dollars?" Use whatever your construction budget number is of course. If the contractor says yes, ask for an itemized estimate. That will take a few days to a week to generate. If the contractor says no, ask why and listen to his response.  If the reasons make sense then maybe you need to adjust your construction budget. If you need to adjust your construction budget then go back to your designer and adjust your finish budget to accommodate the change.

Finish budgets are flexible, labor budgets aren't.

Repeat this budget back and forth process until all of the players, especially you, are comfortable with the final numbers. That comfort level is far, far, far more important than collecting three bids. A comfort level with a competent contractor is worth much more than the resentment you'll cause by dragging more contractors into this process. You want competence and responsibility and those two things never make it into low ball bids. Never.

The process I described will take a couple of weeks to complete. In the course of those couple of weeks you are going to learn what a quality cabinet is. You're going to learn about the relative price points of your flooring options. You'll learn about the pricing structure of granite counters. You'll learn why some appliances cost more than others. You'll learn a lot about your home too. You'll find out about how your floor and roof trusses are set up. You'll learn about your electrical service. You'll learn about any structural problems your home has. In the course of learning all this stuff, you'll become an educated customer and you'll start to feel pretty empowered. Before you know it, you'll be forming learned opinions about engineered floors and self-closing drawers.

Once your job starts, you'll understand what drives cost overruns and construction delays. More important than anything else though, you'll be in charge of what's being done in your home. You'll be the boss and that always feels good. Right?

So if I were you the first thing I'd do is call a kitchen designer. If you need help with that I'll find you someone. Good luck and let us know how you do. Keep in touch and send me some photos of your job when it's all done. OK? OK!

Reader question: Should I get granite tile counters?

Help! Is granite tile really less expensive than slab granite? I really want to redo my countertops with granite but cannot afford it. Is this a good option?

To answer your first question; yes, granite tile costs less than slab granite. So far as the second question goes, the answer is as resounding a no as I can muster.

Granite tile looks like crap on a counter and there's nothing you can do to make it look good. Worse, there's nothing you can do to perform well. Granite tile counters may look like a good option because they're relatively cheap. But believe me, it's a short term gain.

I don't like to think in terms of resale value and I realize I'm alone in that. So with that said, think about this. Installing them will add nothing to the value of your home and may even detract from it.

Functionally, they stink too. It is impossible to fully seal grout. It will always discolor and it will always harbor the residue of whatever's been prepared on it. Remember too that where there's food residue, there's also bacteria and mold. Ugh. Bacteria and molds are fascinating when they're in a petri dish or on a microscope slide, but I don't want them colonizing my kitchen counters.

Seriously, when an alternative is drastically cheaper than what you really want, think twice before you act. Just as with everything else in life and not just kitchen counters, unusually low prices are a warning sign. Or they should be at any rate. If somebody offered you a new 700-series BMW for $10,000 what would you think?

Not everybody wants to spend a couple thousand dollars on new counters and that's OK. There is nothing wrong with having other priorities for your money. So rather than wasting it on granite tile counters, why not look to laminates?

Laminates are the whipping boy of the counter world and it's unfair. They get maligned by purveyors of such things as solid surface, but I'd put laminate counters in my house before I thought of anything else were I in your position. Laminates are workhorses and they're available in more colors and patterns than you can imagine. When you approach something like laminate, let it look like laminate and don't go for patterns that imitate other materials. Just as granite tile looks cheesy when it's made into a counter, so too do laminates that pretend to be granite. Here are a handful of laminate patterns from Formica, probably the best-known laminate manufacturer out there.

Chin up man, and remember it's not that you can't afford granite. Rather, it's that you'd rather spend your money another way. Semantics? Sure it is, but you create your life every time you open your mouth.

Reader question: Can I install my own quartz counters?

Hi --I am interested in quartz but it is more than I want to spend. There is Riverstone quartz sold at Menard's that you order direct from the manufacturer and install yourself at substantial savings. Have you ever done this or do you have any info about it? I can't seem to find any reviews on it anywhere. Thanks.

No ma'am. I have never been party to a DIY counter, I have no information on it and I cannot believe that someone's actually selling quartz composite counters this way. Please rethink this idea.

Working with stone and quartz composite is a highly skilled trade, a profession, for a reason. It takes a long time to learn how to work with these materials. Setting and seaming counters is as much an art as it is a trade and the men and women who perform this work earn every penny they get.

Quartz composites are tricky materials and they're also very heavy. Suppose you go through with this plan and at some point down the road someone delivers a thousand pounds of counters to your house. Then what? Who's going to pick it up? Who's going to guarantee that your kitchen cabinets can handle the weight? Who's going to guarantee that the counter will sit on a perfectly level surface? I looked over Menard's website and sure enough, they are selling that composite material as a DIY project. I see too that they are cutting sink holes. Now my question is, who attaches the sink and who drills the holes for the faucets? What may look to you as a way to save some money looks to me like a recipe for disaster.

Home centers are built around the fiction that anybody can do it themselves and save big bucks. Well, the truth is most people can't do it themselves. Most people can't diagnose their own illnesses, defend themselves in a lawsuit, tune up their own cars, invest their own money, rewire their homes, replumb their own bathrooms or grow their own food either. Unless you know exactly what you're doing, don't take on a project you can't complete with competence.

A better way to go about this is to assess your total kitchen budget honestly. Figure out what you need and what you want and then assign a reasonable dollar value to each of those things. Add up your wants and needs and notice that it's probably a larger number than the budget you started with. That's OK, because the next step is the most important one. Figure out how to adjust your wants and needs to accommodate your budget. The best way to do that is to talk to actual trade professionals. Go to a counter fabricator and tell him or her, I have three thousand dollars budgeted for counters and I like quartz composite. What can I get for that money? Similarly, go to a kitchen designer and tell him or her, I have $15,000 to spend on cabinetry, what can I get for that? Then do the same thing with an appliance person and a flooring person and a plumbing person. Find out how far your funds will go, and remember that all you're doing at this point is gathering information. Go slowly and be methodical. Get all of your numbers together and your questions answered before you spend a dime.

It may turn out that you can't afford a quartz counter. But what I suspect is that if getting a quartz composite counter is priority one, you will find a way to shuffle around the costs of the rest of your project to accommodate it. Find less expensive cabinetry, a less-expensive appliance package and less expensive flooring and before you know it, you'll be able to afford that counter after all. Budgets are made and broken in $100 increments, so keep at it and you'll find a way to make it work.

Or you could just cut to the chase and go directly to a kitchen designer and let her or him put together a plan for the whole thing based on the budget you have. But of course I'll tell you that. Hah! In the meantime, good luck and stay out of Menard's.

All images courtesy of Caesarstone

Reader question: How do I display small objects?

Help! I know that it is better to have a few large items for more impact, but what do we do if we have many small items of interest? Do you have any ideas of how to display such things (ex. teacups, small bottles, pin cushions, button hooks, etc.)?

No. Unless getting rid of it counts as an idea that is.

I am the wrong guy to ask for advice as you contemplate how to clutter up your home. What you're asking me about is room dandruff, but since you asked I'm going to take the opportunity to pontificate about clutter.

Before. Look at the cluttered up home of someone who probably feels overwhelmed by the business of living.

Displays of small objects are clutter, especially when they exist for no reason than to sit there and add "character." Piles of junk don't add character, they add confusion. A couple of objects that tell the story of your life, and that serve as reminders of experiences you've had, are perfectly fine. In fact, I can't encourage you strongly enough to use your living space to recreate the narrative of your life. If these objects have some actual utility, then that's all the better.

After. These folks are about a third of the way through the decluttering they need to do. Happiness will elude them until they get rid of the crap hanging from the ceiling and the rest of the junk on the counters.

I'll use myself as an example. I like to travel. Every time I go somewhere I bring back a rock or a shell or something along those lines. I keep these rocks and shells and sticks and what have you in a jar on top of my dresser. Now if I had those fragments of my memories laying loose and strewn across every horizontal surface I have it would be clutter. In a jar, those rocks and shells and sticks are a display, and they become a single object that encapsulates everywhere on earth I've been in the last 20 years. When I want to remember Rome or Panama or Grenada or San Francisco, I pull out a rock from that place and get wistful for a moment. Ahhhh, that jar's one of my life's great treasures. What makes that jar so useful is that when I put the Colombian pebble or the Costa Rican twig or the Bahamian feather or the tiny Roman bell back in the jar, I'm not held hostage by my own history. I can stay engaged in my life today. Spookily controlled, isn't it? Hah!

I get it that I'm more rigid than most when it comes to these sort of things, but it's what works for me. However, I am convinced that clutter will prevent you from thinking clearly and it serves as a huge distraction from the business of living right now. If you have to display small stuff, put it in a curio cabinet or a jar or a basket so that it takes up less visual space and stays out of the way. Try it some time. Put away all of your small stuff for a couple of weeks and watch how quickly you pay bills and how closely you pay attention to the people in your life. Cleared surfaces will keep you in the now, believe me.

Reader questions: thorny dilemmas on stony subjects

Help! We're getting our new granite on Monday hopefully and I'm sure they will tell us how to clean??....but was wondering how you clean your granite. I sure don't want to damage it.

Thanks in advance.

Hey, thanks for your question and congrats on your new addition. Granite is exceptionally easy to live with, despite the nonsense you may see and hear about it. You don't need any special cleaners for it, really. The easiest way to keep it looking good is to clean it with soap and water, rinse it and then dry it. You don't need to scrub it, treat it, buy special cleaners or give it any kind of kid glove treatment. Your fabricator will sell you on an annual resealing package and that's fine if it will give you peace of mind. However, in ten years of dealing with granite counters, I have never once seen anyone stain it or wear down the seal that's already on it when it's installed. The only way you can damage that counter is if you do it on purpose with a hammer. I'm sure there are anecdotes out there about so-and-so's neighbor's cousin's sister-in-law reading something on the internet about some nightmare stained granite incident, but I've never come across one first hand.

Help! My hairdresser told me yesterday about veneer granite transforming her daughter's kitchen... do you know anything about it? cost? installation?

Those granite and composite veneer overlay counters are generally supplied by an outfit called Granite Transformations. Granite Transformations is an international franchise that employs some of the most heavy-handed and shrill sales tactics I've ever come across. That alone makes me wonder about them. Even if the finished product didn't look cheesy (and this finished product looks cheesy), I question anybody whose marketing message consists of slamming their competitors rather than extolling their own benefits. Their latest tactic seems to be touting their "green" credentials. I may be alone in this, but to me that's another red flag. In a world where polyethylene grocery bags and Mylar juice boxes are somehow green, I'd say that's a meaningless descriptor. Proceed with caution. My advice? Go to a reputable counter fabricator that sells a number of materials and see what they can do with your budget.

Help! I can't pick up a home or kitchen magazine without seeing white marble counters. Yet for our complete kitchen renovation, I've gotten total NO! gasps when I share we want marble on the island. Folks tell me Marble is for those who don't cook.

We want a sophisticated library look -the cabinets are mahogany with Jacobean stain, cabinets to the ceiling with white crown molding and we'd love white marble counters.

Do you have experience with white marble counters? The kitchen is 30x15 so the investment is great and I don't want to buy something that cannot withstand children, entertaining and years.

Have you never read my blog before? White marble counters (honed please) are my all-time favorite material, to hell with its detractors. Click on the word countertops in my glossary to the right and you'll be treated to 45 articles I've written on counters. About half of them are devoted to singing songs of praise to white marble. your kitchen sounds beautiful, send me a photo when it's done.

Marble is not high maintenance, but marble is also impossible to to keep looking pristine. If you have an obsessive personality, marble is not your material. Find a white quartzite instead. It will keep a glossy shine and repel damage almost as well as granite will. But if you like the idea of your life leaving a mark on things, then marble is for you. Trust me, white marble will scratch and stain and get more and more beautiful with each passing year. It's marble's nature and there's nothing you can do to counteract it completely.

Just about every horizontal surface in Southern Europe, indoors and out, is made from white marble. Most of it is hundreds of years old. It looks spectacular and is but one of the many ways that the people of Southern Europe get tied to their surroundings. Think about it. If five generations of your family lived in the same home and the matriarch of each generation chopped vegetables in the same spot on the same marble counter, each of those women left a physical mark on that counter. Every time you walked into that kitchen and looked at that counter, you would have an instant reminder of the women who proceeded you to that spot. Wow. Far from detracting from the beauty of the surface, that kind of history and character is the ultimate enhancement. Having white marble in your own home is an opportunity to capture some of that history and character for yourself and for your family.

You keep hearing an emphatic NO! because you haven't spoken with me. I say go for it!

Help! I’m sitting here crying because I’ve looked at so much granite that I want to give up. I’m trying to brighten my kitchen up so I put in Biscotti colored cabinets (already installed 3 weeks ago) to go with a new countertop and flooring (waiting for granite color before picking tile color). I have mainly white appliances. New range top is black and the top section of the dishwasher is black. Other than that it’s all white. My small appliances are black. (Toaster, coffee pot, can opener.) The wall color can be changed to whatever. My dining room table and chairs are light oak.

I’ve run the gamut from light to medium to dark granite and now I’m back to light. I’m ready to give up completely and put the old countertop back in which was wood block.

Hey, chin up. You're fortunate to have a life where you have choices. Having too many choices is a symptom of a life of plenty and certainly nothing to shed tears over. Too many choices can also be intimidating and overwhelming and it sounds like your stuck on overwhelmed. I have no idea what the color "Biscotti" is without knowing who the manufacturer was and I'm not even going to try to make a recommendation. What I do recommend strongly though is that you find the most reputable granite fabricator in your area and give them a call. Please note that this will not be in a big box store. Set an appointment and then take one of your cabinet doors over to the fabricator and look at granite slabs in their yard. You cannot pick a granite counter from small samples. Run away from anyone who tries to tell you otherwise.

I would never turn someone loose with all the options available, it's too much to process. Instead, I do pre-selections for my clients. I talk to them, find out where their interests are and then show them three options rather than 150. If they don't like any of the first set of three, then I show them a second set of three and sometimes a third set.

You need someone to do something similar to that for you in a granite yard. Talk to a salesperson before you go look at slabs. Tell him or her the primary colors you're interested in and then be honest about your budget. Let the salesperson guide you through their slab room. A reputable fabricator will have a good cross section of what's available, so pick something from what you see that day. Just breathe and know that based on your budget and the other colors you're using in your renovation, the right granite will end up picking you. So get out of the way and let it.

Reader question: What color appliances go with a copper sink?

Help! I read your blog all the time but I never wrote to you before. I like that you tell people what's on your mind. I can take it. My partner and I are building a new home and we would LOVE to have a copper sink. What I can't figure out is what color of appliances I should get to coordinate. The cabinets will have a darker maple finish. Please advise.

Well good, I'm glad you been on this site before and I'll do what I can. The easy answer to your question is that you should get the color appliances you like. There's no rule that says metal finishes have to match. In fact I say they look better when they don't.

Everybody you talk to will have a different take on this, but you wrote to me and here's what I say. Working a copper sink into a kitchen design involves more than appliance colors. Don't get me wrong; a well-made copper sink is a lovely, lovely thing. It's just that they're not very subtle --they are a scene stealer so it's best to let it be the focal point of your kitchen.

It sounds like you haven't selected the actual sink yet, so look for an apron front sink like the ones I'm picturing along with this post. Get a natural-looking patina on the sink you buy. There are all sorts of wild patinas you can get on a copper sink, but go basic and classic. Get stainless appliances, stainless steel is a classical finish in a kitchen and it's also a neutral. In going with stainless appliances, you now have two metal finishes in this kitchen, so keep going. Find a third and use it for your fixtures. Most manufacturers' oil-rubbed bronze finishes have a lot of copper color in them, so an oil-rubbed bronze faucet will work perfectly.

When you go to look at knobs and handles you'll now have three metal finishes to choose from, but hardware that comes close to the oil-rubbed bronze finish of the faucet will be the easiest to find. That doesn't mean that you can't use the color of the steel or the color of the copper when it comes time to picking hardware. What's important is that what you're doing make some kind of sense, it should tell a coherent story.

Long story short? Let your copper sink have center stage and get stainless appliances.

Four reader questions with a snappy answer for each

Help! My toilet moves from side-to-side. It's not leaking. Should I be worried?

Yes you should. Call a plumber and get it fixed.

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Help! I am retiling the shower and bathroom floor. Does the tile texture need to be the same? Would a shiny gray and white marble floor go with a gray stone tile in the shower? Should it be stone w/ stone and marble w/ marble? What would be a better choice for resale?

Marble is a stone too and there aren't any rules against mixing stones other than that they look good together. Please don't get a high gloss finish on a bathroom floor. It's a broken neck waiting to happen.

With that said, few things are more glorious in a bathroom than natural stone floors. Since you're confused about patterns and colors, go to a reputable tile or natural stone showroom and look at what's available. Then talk to a designer.

And for the love of God already, enough with the resale concerns. That's so 2007.

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Help! I am buying a new house that needs a total kitchen overhaul. I want to go rustic, maybe rustic - contemporary. I have a clean slate so I need some ideas for cabinets, counter tops, flooring, color palette. I really want to do stainless appliances and I am so clueless that I don't even know what kind of faucet to go with? Should everything be the same element of can I combine stainless with a rustic pendant light. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

thank you,

Thanks for your question. My name is Paul Anater and I'm a kitchen designer. You may have heard of me since I'm the one you sent a question to. Mine is a noble profession and every day kitchen designers just like me take the timid hands of homeowners just like you and we put together renovation plans. You can find someone who can help you by Googling the terms Kitchen Designer plus the name of your town.

Smart aleckry aside, the country's crawling with good designers in need of clients to help. If you need a referral, just let me know where you are and I'll connect you with someone.

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Help! Is stone-look laminate in a kitchen tacky? I have old tile that would be a real pain to remove and am told I could float a laminate over it? The rest of the house has 100+ year old wood floors so I don't want to put wood laminate down (too obviously fake). What do you think?

Madam, you've already provided me with the answer to your question. Yes, stone-look laminate is tacky tacky tacky. Especially when paired with 100-year-old wood floors. Despite the pain involved, remove the old floor properly and have a new floor installed that matches the quality of the floors throughout your home. The road to hell is not paved with good intentions, it's paved with short cuts.

Are my counters giving me a headache? Part two: radon and granite

Yesterday, I devoted a lot of space to answering a reader question about something she thought she'd heard about granite counters emitting a gas that gave her a headache and could make people sick.

She didn't know the words, but what she was asking about was Radon coming from granite counters. Yesterday's column defined the terms atom, radiation, radioactivity and radon. Now that I've established those terms, I'm going delve back into the topic and write about how Radon gets into granite counters and whether or not it's dangerous.

Uranium is a common atom in soil and rocks worldwide. Uranium is an unstable atom it sheds its extra parts to become Radon. Radon is a gas and it's also an unstable atom. As Radon sheds its extra parts, it forms four daughters. Inhaling these four daughter atoms in high concentrations and over a long period of time can increase the chances that who ever's breathing them may develop lung cancer.

So as I've been saying all along, Uranium, Radon and Radon's four daughters are all naturally occurring, common things. All life on earth is surrounded by these radioactive atoms and for the most part, they are harmless. It's a good thing they are because it is not possible to remove background radiation from the environment. Still with me?

Because Uranium is such a commonly-found material in the surface of the earth, anything that comes from the earth will have some traces of Uranium in it and will therefore be radioactive. Where there's Uranium, Radon and her four daughters are sure to follow.

How much Radon is in the environment naturally is dependent a lot of factors, the first being your location. Some bedrock has more Uranium and therefore Radon, than others. I found this map on the US Environmental Protection Agency's websites that shows the Radon distribution in the US. I know a lot of you who read this don't live in the US. I could not find a similar world map. If you're concerned about the Radon in your area, check with the environment ministry in your country.

In a lot of cases, these Radon hot zones also happen to be parts of the country with granite bedrock, but not always. Radon is a dense gas and it's heavier than air. It tends to pool in low areas and its presence comes and goes, even in a particularly rich Radon hot spot. Just because it's there, doesn't mean it's a problem. Radon is colorless, odorless, and tasteless gas. You cannot see it or sense that it's present. You cannot tell if you're breathing it either. Air movement makes it dissipate and that moving air dilutes it to the point of harmlessness. Radon can only be a problem if it's allowed to pool and in most homes, that can only happen in a basement. If you have Radon pooling in your unventilated basement, the only way to detect it is to have a Radon test performed by a Radon Mitigation Specialist. Radon testing is now mandatory in most parts of the US, and it has to be done every time a house sells. If it turns out that you have high levels of Radon in your home, then you need to have a ventilation system installed that's designed to vent Radon. It is not a big deal but Radon is something you don't want pooling in your basement. It's interesting to note that Radon mitigation systems are designed to dilute Radon, not eliminate it. Eliminating all traces of Radon is impossible. Please remember that.

Exposure to alpha particle radiation (that's the kind of radiation we're talking about) is unavoidable if you breathe air. But radiation exposure, like exposure to anything potentially dangerous, is a question of how much and for how long. Long-term exposure to high concentrations is the problem, not the radiation itself.

Granite comes from bedrock and some granites have Uranium in them. You cannot tell from looking at a slab of granite if it contains Uranium. Some stone yards are offering to send samples from a slab to a laboratory for analysis. If it makes people feel better, then why not? I say that it's unnecessary, but who am I to stop people from wasting their money?

It's not just me and my opinion here either. There is near unanimity in the scientific community when it comes to the safety of granite counters. Two leading authorities on indoor environmental exposures, Dr. John McCarthy, of Environmental Health & Engineering, and Dr. John D. Spengler,of the Harvard School of Public Health, recently concluded: “A considerable amount of research has been published in peer-reviewed scientific literature and all of it comes to the same conclusion: the levels of radon coming off a granite counter are not excessive and not showing any risk for the population in their homes.” Actual, peer-reviewed, real scientific studies show again and again that granite counters pose no risk to consumers. [1]

Now I've seen the YouTube videos of Geiger counters clicking away as they sit on granite counters, but those videos aren't really telling you a whole lot other than that there's radiation present. A Geiger counter can't tell you what kind of radiation it's detecting. When it comes to radiation threats, the kind of radiation means everything and the amount not so much. For kicks, I'd love to see some of these video makers hold a Geiger counter over some other common, radioactive objects. Smoke detectors, bricks, cinder blocks, Sheetrock, well water, spring water, ceramic dishes and other stuff that comes from the earth are also radioactive. Some foods like bananas and Brazil nuts are too. The potassium your body can't function without is radioactive, and so for that matter, are you.

I don't think that granite counters pose any kind of a Radon threat, though I'm sure some of them emit small amounts of Radon. However, there is simply not enough granite in a counter for the counter to cause a Radon problem. The real problem with Radon, if there is a problem, is in the bedrock under your house.

If you're concerned, by all means get some tests done. If there's a problem, by all means get it dealt with. The US EPA has a great website with a page dedicated to Radon testing and mitigation. At the end of the day though, I am confident enough that I will continue to specify granite counters (and bricks, and cinder blocks, and Sheetrock) and I will continue to hang out in stone yards.

Oh! And on a lighter note, there was a time in the not too distant past when Uranium, Radium and Radon were thought to be health foods. Radon was added to water to "fortify" it and Radium was available as a supplement. Most curious of all was that Radium was sold to men as a suppository. This box of Radium suppositories is from 1930.

Here's an excerpt from its accompanying pamphlet:

Weak Discouraged Men!

Now Bubble Over with Joyous Vitality

Through the Use of

Glands and Radium

". . . properly functioning glands make themselves known in a quick, brisk step, mental alertness and the ability to live and love in the fullest sense of the word . . . A man must be in a bad way indeed to sit back and be satisfied without the pleasures that are his birthright! . . . Try them and see what good results you get!"

Those suppositories are from a website called Radioactive Quack Cures. It's a riot and it ought to help put a new perspective on the Kenoki Foot Pads and Reiki Therapy quack cures of today.

[1] Independent research studies include those cited above, as well as:
• Al-Jarallah MI, et al. 2005. Correlation between radon exhalation and radium content in granite samples used as construction materials in Saudi Arabia. Radiation Measurements, 40, 625-629.
• NCRP Report No. 95. 1987. Radiation exposure of the U.S. population from consumer products and miscellaneous sources. National Council on Radiation Protection and Measurements. Bethesda, MD.

Reader question: Are my counters giving me a headache?

Help! A couple days ago on our local news channel, they was talking about granite counters put off a dangerous gas. Studies showed people was having headaches and a few other symptoms. I forgot the gases that it puts out. I missed most of this, but I get headaches all the time since we moved into our new house. We have granite counters. Do I have radon and is that what's giving me headaches? I read you every day. Thanks.

Oh Lord, this question makes me crazy because I hear it all the time. It's not so much the question that bothers me, it's the freak out that accompanies any discussion of the word radioactive. Radioactive is a hot-button word because we have an educational system geared to making good consumers rather than good thinkers. The result is a world filled with people ignorant of the science that makes it possible.

To answer your question, no, your granite counters cannot give you headaches. The gas sometimes emitted, in tiny quantities, by some granites is called Radon, and Radon can't give you a headache either. Further, to the best of my knowledge, there have been no studies that showed that people were getting sick from their counters.

This Radon/ radiation story is a mountain made of a molehill by a trade organization last summer. The trade organization behind it represents the fabricators of solid surface counters. Solid surface is a synthetic counter material sold under a variety of brand names like Corian, Hi-Macs, Staron and others. Beware any finding or study publicized by a trade organization or entity with a vested interest in a favorable result.

The best way to dispel this rumor that's rapidly turning into an urban myth is to shine a little light of science and reason onto it. So over the next day or so I'm going to do a quick overview of some basic physics and atomic theory. I promise to keep it simple and easy to follow. Stick around please. It's better to understand something so you can make an informed decision than it is to be afraid of something you don't understand. Don't you think? This is by no means a definitive lesson in physics. To make sure I'm not missing anything or misleading you, I've enlisted the help of Chris Forrest, a brilliant physicist from Manchester in the UK. Chris responded to my call for help on this topic via Twitter the other day and I owe him a tremendous debt of gratitude. I know enough about this topic to get about half way there. The section about Radon is all Chris and this post wouldn't have been possible without his wise counsel and atomic know-how. Here goes:

All matter is composed of atoms. Atoms are the building blocks of everything in the known universe. Atoms are like little balls of stuff and if you zoomed in on a beach, some water, your dog or your son; eventually you would see that they are all alike in that they are made from atoms.

There's a dense lump in the center of an atom. The lump in the center is composed of two kinds of smaller particles called protons and neutrons. It's that nucleus that contains most of the stuff in the atom. There are other small bits that whizz around that center the way the earth whizzes around the sun. These whizzing bits are called electrons. For the purposes of a discussion about radiation and radioactivity, we're only going to talk about the component parts of that nucleus, the protons and neutrons.

Different atoms have different numbers of protons in their nuclei, and these differing numbers of protons determine what substance they are. These substances are known as elements. Every element has its own special combination of a certain number of protons and neutrons. Iron, gold, oxygen, copper and uranium are examples of elements. The particles that make up an atom are held together with something called atomic force. Atoms, and therefore elements, are extremely tough and the bonds of atomic force are so strong that chemical reactions can't pull them apart or change what's in them. However, there is a process that can meddle in this atomic world.

OK, so know you know what atoms are all about.

Most atoms are stable, and the protons and neutrons in their nuclei are stuck together very tightly.

Some atoms, if they are a bit too fat for their own good, have unstable nuclei. These atoms shed their extra particles in a process of decay called radiation. It's sort of like going on a diet. Just as you shed pounds until you reach a stable weight, an unstable atom's nucleus will shed extra particles until it reaches a state of stability. Since the name of an atom is determined by the number of protons and neutrons in its nucleus, the act of shedding these parts turns the atom into something else. It is the extra parts and energy that are shed during this decay process that are known as radiation. An atom behaving, decaying, in this way is said to be radioactive.

Radiation and radioactivity are a natural, normal part of the way things are. Life on earth evolved in the presence of radiation and radioactivity, and all life on earth evolved ways to deal with it. We're surrounded by a low level of radiation at every moment and it's completely harmless. The occasional, higher doses we get from having an x-ray or flying in an airplane aren't remotely enough to do us any harm. Most radiation falls into this harmless category. There are some stronger forms of radiation that are harmful, but most radiation is not.

So there's a quickie description of what radiation and radioactivity are. See? Nothing scary and nothing too difficult to grasp. Right? Now, let me wade into what radon is.

Radon starts out as naturally occurring Uranium. Uranium is scattered through out the rocks and soil just about everywhere on earth. This type of Uranium is not the same as they type used for nuclear fuel or weapons, but it's still Uranium and it is an unstable atom.

This Uranium gives out radiation, and changes into a different atom. This lighter atom, however, is still unstable, and so the process of giving out radiation, and getting a bit lighter continues. Eventually, this slow and gradual migration of natural Uranium toward a stable state happens to reach a special type of atom. This atom is called Radon, and it's special, not because it is unstable and radioactive, but because it is a gas that is both of these things. As a gas, it can escape from the ground and get into the air.

Radon in and of itself isn't dangerous. However, as an unstable atom it's not the last stop in the chain of Uranium decay. After Radon decays, it turns into four different atoms that scientists affectionately call its "daughters." It is these daughters than can pose a risk to humans in some situations.

These daughters decay very rapidly and when they do they release an alpha particle. This is a type of radiation that is essentially harmless when outside of the body. This alpha particle can be stopped by only a few centimeters of air, or a piece of paper. However, if this type of radiation is produced inside of you (for instance in your lungs) then it becomes the most dangerous type. Because radon is a gas, it can be inhaled and this alpha particle can be released while it's inside some one's lung. The occasional alpha particle is unavoidable, the problem comes from repeated exposure. Repeated, high, internal exposures to these four, alpha-emitting daughters can increase your chance of developing lung cancer.

Radon and its four daughters are everywhere in the soil and in the air. Radon is another inescapable, usually harmless fact of life on earth. It seeps up from the soil and water and dissipates harmlessly in the atmosphere. However, when radon is allowed to collect it can cause a problem. This happens most often in basements. A basement's walls are below the soil level by definition and so the naturally-occurring radon in the soil seeps into the basement where it collects in a colorless, odorless, tasteless cloud. You can only tell it's there with a radon detector kit. However, if you spend enough time breathing in that radon cloud it could, over the long term, slightly increase your chance of developing certain lung cancers.

Remember that this is only possible if the Radon is allowed to accumulate. If you have Radon in your basement, a simple ventilation system is all you need to take care of it. The key is to prevent it from accumulating. Outside of an enclosed basement or the crawl space under a house, it is nearly impossible for Radon to accumulate. The EPA has a great website dedicated to a panic-free discussion of Radon, its risks and its mitigations. Give it a read if you'd like some more information on these topics.

So now I hope you have a basic understanding of an atom, of radiation, radioactivity and of Radon. Tomorrow I'm going to talk about how Radon gets into some granites and what there is to do about it.

Reader Question: How do I get on TV?

Help! How does one get chosen to be on a kitchen remodel show?

I have no idea, but I would like to acknowledge your use of "one" as a substitute pronoun in that sentence. Bravo!

Now, why on earth would anyone want to be the victim of one of those TV shows? The makeover programs you're aspiring to are where we get garbage like this:

Really, is that the sort of thing you want for yourself? Granted, that's a bathroom and you want to be in a kitchen show, but the point remains the same.

Makeover TV shows exist for one reason, to make compelling TV. It may be hard to believe, but they don't exist to make their participants' dreams come true. Everything about them serves the camera, first and foremost. If it makes for compelling television to take your wants and needs into consideration, then they will. If your wants and needs don't jive with the producer's, guess who's going to win. The same thing goes for the finishes. If they decide that hot-gluing corrugated cardboard and hay onto your back splash would look great on camera, you're getting a back splash made from hay hot-glued to corrugated cardboard. If the show's sponsors are providing orange counters that week, what color do you think your counters are going be? The TV camera rules. Period.

The TV cameras and the producers and the sponsors are going to decide for you what your kitchen should be. Then they are going to require that you like what they do. At least while the cameras are rolling. After a week of strangers tracking mud through your living room stinking up your bathroom you'll be ready to flip out. And rest assured, they'll capture that special moment for the world to see when it happens. Screaming mad homeowners make compelling TV, not quiet and content ones.

And if all that weren't enough, you might be asked to pay for your project after all. Or you might be required to do some of the work. Or maybe they'll leave it half done and you'll have to finish what they started. Please remember that if it sounds too good to be true, it is.

Beware anybody who offers you a free lunch, because there's no such thing. Now please stop watching HGTV. All it does is fill your head with crazy ideas.

Save your money and renovate your own kitchen according to your own tastes and on your own timeline. It will mean more to you and it will be yours.

Reader question: Will this work?

Help! I'm still on the hunt for accessories to put in my living room. Will this work?

No.

I followed the link you sent me for that telescope and it's not even a functioning telescope. Why would you put something like that in this room? It would make some kind of sense if you had an interest in astronomy. If that were true though, why not get one that works? Do me a favor and never buy another purposeless accessory. Don't buy cheap junk to add "interest" to a room. Ever. All it does is add to the pile of junk that you will end up throwing away eventually. Until it gets to that point though, it will be one more useless thing to dust.

Your home should look like you. The stuff lying about should relate to your life and have some meaning for you. Buying stuff for the sake of accessorizing is how you decorate for a magazine spread, it's not how you make a house a home. Accessorize with things that reflect your interests, your loves and your passions. Are you a reader? Then put a book case full of the greatest books you've ever read in your room. Are you a photographer? Set an arrangement of antique cameras on that mantle. Have you been to interesting places? Buy a couple of things that remind you of the places you've been. Hang and arrange an assortment of photographs that tell the story of your life and the lives of the people you love. You home is the one chance in life you get to be the star of your own show. Don't share the spotlight with the junk aisle of T.J. Maxx and Marshall's.

In the meantime, I'd suggest you invest in some paint and an area rug. Move that black floor lamp out of the middle of the room. Get some end tables and a coffee table. Set lamps on the end tables. If you're feeling spendy and adventurous, get rid of the sofa and chair set and buy a well-made sofa and a chair or two that coordinate with it but don't match it. Hang some art on your walls.

Is this starting to feel overwhelming? I don't mean it to be, but putting together a living room requires a bit of planning. Just adding a bunch of disparate stuff will lead you nowhere fast. Think it through before you spend a dime and then execute your plan. Remember, no junk!

Still overwhelmed? Hire a designer. In the hands of a good designer, you will spend no more money than you would without one and the whole thing will come together in a matter of weeks. Awww heck, you can even hire me.