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.

Falling over myself at Fallingwater

The talented and gracious Pam Rodriguez from Pam Designs posted this video on her Facebook page yesterday and I think I've watched it five times since it first appeared there.



Fallingwater from Cristóbal Vila on Vimeo.

Pam's a kitchen and bath designer who can crank out a photo realistic architectural rendering like nobody I've ever seen, so when she's impressed with someone else's work I pay attention. This depiction of Frank Lloyd Wright's Fallingwater is one of the best virtual walk throughs I've ever seen.

This Fallingwater animation is the handiwork of Cristóbal Vila. Geneva-born Vila is an artist based in Zaragosa in the Aragon region of Spain. Vila's Etérea Studios has an amazing website with a number of examples of his work as an animator. Check it out and thanks again Pam!

Outdoor kitchens by Danver

I have been researching sources for cabinetry and range hoods for an outdoor kitchen I'm working on and recently, I came across an innovative outdoor grill hood from Danver.

The outdoor kitchen in question is going to sit under an overhanging roof and not venting it is definitely not an option. One problem though. Outdoor grills are 30 inches deep and most range hoods are 24 inches deep. The add in the annoying fact that most decent range hoods aren't rated for outdoor use.

Well, my new pals at Danver have come to the rescue with an industry-first 32-inch deep outdoor range hood. That may seem inconsequential, but believe me there is nothing worse than grill smoke backing into your house.

So my hood problem gets me part of the way there. Appliances are easy but where it gets difficult again is finding decent cabinetry I can use outside. I won't do something half way. If I can't be proud of a finished project, I'll resign it before it starts. That's part of the reason I've done so few outdoor kitchens. For a while, there were outdoor cabinets being made with marine-grade plywood. But marine-grade plywood is still not element-proof. It may work in some parts of the country, but in my part of the country marine-grade plywood starts to fall apart after a couple of years.

Well, Danver has a solution for that dilemma too. They make some of the most beautiful, element-proof, stainless steel cabinetry I've ever seen. They have a variety of not just door styles, but finishes too. Wow. I'm glad I found these guys.

An $80 kitchen makeover from our pals at Apartment Therapy

I know, I know, I need to stay away from that website. I log into Apartment Therapy every couple of months, and I swear I have an open mind heading in. I land on their page and I have a genuine curiosity about what the under 30 set is thinking.

Well, after the first handful of posts, it starts to get to me. The pose. The dread Apartment Therapy editorial pose. "We take our shoes off when we come home." "We think that kittens and puppies are cute." "We need to get organized but we're too busy!" And so it goes, ad nauseum. The pictures are pretty, kind of like an online HGTV. But unlike HGTV, I can't hit the mute button.

It's not a total loss though, I got a blog topic out of it. Thanks Apartment Therapy!

So one of their intrepid correspondents found herself in a cheesy apartment with a builder-grade kitchen.

photos from Apartment Therapy

It sure is ugly. So what's an intrepid Apartment Therapy correspondent to do? Why, embark on an $80 makeover of course.

So from what I can see, she removed the cabinet doors, contact papered the cabinet backs and then raided a garage sale to find enough clutter to jam into her newly-opened up kitchen cabinets.

It's still an ugly kitchen, just a different kind of ugly. Meh.

So if you're a renter and you're faced with a similar dilemma, there is a better way to goose your ugly kitchen than this.

Invest in good roller and a really good set of paintbrushes. Then just kiss your security deposit goodbye. Although, if you're clever you'll paint it back to landlord white before you move and no one will be the wiser. So I say  paint, humble paint, is your best bet when it comes to banishing the bad juju out of an uninspired rental. After you're done painting, try purging your counters of clutter. Then keep the magnets and paperwork off the front of your fridge. Clean up after yourself and don't let dishes pile up in the sink. Hang good art. And remember always that cabinets have doors on them for a reason, leave them there.

Be my guest

One of my beautiful nieces and her handsome husband had a baby two weeks ago and in a few weeks I'm off to DC to see the three of them and the rest of my family. I am looking for some guest bloggers to fill in for me while I'm gone. I will be away for five days, from 10th of December through the 14th and I'd like at least one post a day to appear while I'm gone.

I plan to work this the way I always do. I'm going to set up my guest bloggers as contributors and just let them do their thing. I don't want to see in advance what ends up being posted and there are no real restrictions on content other than the usual "be decent."

So if you're interested in borrowing my podium for a day or for all five days let me know. I can't promise you fame or riches, but your name will show up in Google searches and these days, that's all that matters anyhow.