Marble Countertops What I've Learned

After four years of saving I recently got to purchase my dream countertops! But let’s first take a look back at where we started.

A little over four years ago we moved into our home with a kitchen that was too dark and contemporary for my taste.

After several inexpensive DIY projects I was able to get our kitchen to a point that felt light, bright, and airy (the way I like it).

One of the first projects in our home was replacing our dark laminate kitchen countertops with some light “faux stone” IKEA countertops. They have held up pretty well with just a couple of small light stains. They were super inexpensive so even though I have only had them for four years they were worth every penny!

But I’ve been in love with the beauty of marble and marble looking countertops for a long time! And since I knew that the kitchen is a place in the home definitely worth investing in I began saving for them soon after we moved in.

For some reason I had it in my mind that marble was just as expensive if not more expensive then granite and stone marble look a-likes so when I contacted The Granite Guy for quotes I just asked about the marble granite/quartzite look a-likes.

Here are the quotes given to me based on the measurements of my kitchen that I provided to The Granite Guy.

Hanstone: Tranquility– $4199 – ($200) cash/check discount = $3999

Stalwart Systems, LLC via Houzz

2. Silestone: Lagoon– $4399 – ($200) cash/check discount = $4199

Brooke Wagner Design via Houzz

3. Princess White Quartzite (Mont) = $7199 – ($200) cash/check discount = $6999

GREEN with Envy: LEED Certified Whole House Renovation

Harry Braswell Inc.via Houzz

4. Super White Quartzite– I didn’t ask for a quote for this one but I saw a beautiful slab of it at their showroom and it was even more expensive then the Princess white quartzite.

Suburban Dream Homes via Houzz

I had only saved $4000 for the countertops so I went into the showroom hoping that I would love the Hanstone Tranquility or Silestone Lagoon.

I was unfortunately very disappointed with the two choices. They were fine but looked nothing like marble to me. The Princess White wasn’t in stock and the Super white was very pretty and “marble-like” but way out of my price range.

They had about 8 slabs of carrara marble and it was exactly what I wanted but I assumed it would be too much money.

After I went home I couldn’t stop thinking about the marble I saw so I emailed them asking for a quote just to see.

I was shocked when the following quote came back!

Carrara Marble– $3499- ($350)Angie’s List discount= $3149 – ($95) cash/check discount= $3054

I was surprised to find out my dream countertops were in fact well within my budget!

My Kitchen Now

Now I know what you may be thinking…But Tamara you have 4 young kids why would you get countertops that stain so easily?

Well a few reasons (other than that I think they are beautiful and were comparatively a great price)–

We have a butcher block kitchen island/ table that we usually do all our food prep on so we weren’t as worried about stains on the countertops from cooking.

The Granite Guy seals it with dryseal before installation which is suppose to protect it for 15 years. Which will not protect it perfectly but at least helps.

I have a few friends with marble countertops and children and they haven’t had any problems with stains. I was sure to have my friends give me the dirt on them and as far as stains go they hadn’t had issues.

Then what are the cons of carrara marble countertops?

1. So I had a friend prepare me for this and in the 1 month that we have had the countertops this has been my only concern–water spots.

Yes, with polished carrara marble water spots will be you’re number one issue. If water is left on the countertops then it dulls the polish and when you look at it in a certain angle if will look a glass that has come out of the dishwasher that has water spots.

In the month we’ve had the countertops we’ve gotten probably 3 or so small-ish spots. They are all in-between the sink and where we keep the paper towels so drops must be falling as we reach for the paper towels and we don’t notice.

I do find myself wiping the area around the sink with a microfiber cloth after I use the sink just in case which for this reason I would say the marble countertops are definitely medium to high maintenance.

Would I do carrara countertops again? Yes! They are beautiful and you can only see the water spots up close at a certain angle. Also the marble counter tops can be repolished for about $750 so if there is ever a time where I feel the countertops need it it’s nice to know it’s a possibility!

If you think the spots would drive you crazy but love the look of carrara marble then I would do honed marble instead of polished marble. With honed you don’t have to worry about the polish being dulled.

In my research I read that honed is the was to go but I just love the reflective quality of polished marble so much that heart won over practicality this time!

If I am ever lucky enough to have a set up in my kitchen where there is a kitchen island with a sink in it I think best case scenario would be to do a different countertop surface on the island with the sink and then polished carrara on the surrounding countertops. This way worrying about water drips wouldn’t really be an issue.

Carolina Classic Builders via Houzz

I hope you found this post helpful especially if you’ve ever considered carrara marble countertops! As always please let me know if you have any questions!! Have a Happy and safe July 4th!!

**Disclosure- I received a small discount on my countertops for mentioning The Granite Guy which I would have done anyway. They were wonderful to work with and highly recommend them if you are in the Central Ohio area.