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kitchen encounters WRITTEN BY Megan Joyce
IT HAS WITHSTOOD THE SPILLED CONTENTS OF baby bottles and the creation of countless peanut-butterand-jelly sandwiches, not to mention the heat of just-baked holiday cookies, the vibrations of the electric Thanksgiving turkey carver, and the repeated clink of wine glasses at parties and family get-togethers. Your kitchen countertop has served as both a literal and a figurative fixture in the lives of you and your family members for years, perhaps even decades. And after all that time, many baby boomers are looking at their countertops with new eyes.
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IceStone, (shown right in Moroccan red), made of recycled glass and concrete, is one of the new “green” certified countertop materials available. The blue quartz kitchen (left), by Caesarstone, is a manmade material that boasts many of the same qualities as granite.
And now that your nest is emptier and your expenses (ideally) a bit less restrictive, you might finally have the money needed to transform your kitchen from the kidfriendly and lovingly used area it’s always been to a sleeker, 21st-century living and cooking space. As you move into your 40s, 50s, and beyond, your kitchen—the “heart” of any home—may need some much-deserved TLC and a chance to reclaim for you some of its original equity. So whether you have a whole-room revamping in mind or the less drastic tweaking of a few decorative aspects, replacing your kitchen’s counter spaces is one of the smartest and most room-altering investments you can make. The National Kitchen & Bath Association says that remodeled kitchens can expect a five-fold return on what was spent when the house is sold. Mark Celebuski, general manager of Pinnacle Cast
especially Brazil. Carmine Pantano, of Frank’s Custom
Concrete, said he sees a lot of boomer-aged customers
Granite & Marble, believes it will be a long-term trend.
inquiring about kitchen upgrades—especially the
Because it’s a natural material, he predicts granite won’t
countertops. “People are staying put with the housing
look “dated” in a decade or two, unlike the way we now
market [being down], so people are spending money in the
crinkle our stylish noses at the Formica countertops popular
homes they already own,” he said. “The kitchen’s one of the
in the 1970s. Granite’s from-nature appeal, its durability,
most redone areas, and it gives you more return for your
and its stain resistance are counted among its pluses.
buck than any other room in the house.” Celebuski noted that rather than upgrading to a newer
Granite is also a low-maintenance material. “A lot of myths out there say you need to seal your granite once a
home, boomers are updating the home they already have.
year; on most granite, that is not true,” explained Pantano.
“When sales of new homes drop, sales of remodeling often
“The sealer only needs to be applied maybe once every 10
pick up,” he added.
years, or even never again, because the sealer technology is
There is a wide range of countertop products available on the market these days, and the trick is determining which
getting a lot better.” When it comes to countertop upgrades, however, take
material best suits your needs, your lifestyle, and your visual
into consideration the age, quality, and wear-and-tear level
preferences. Granite, quartz, and marble, as well as newer
of your existing kitchen cabinets. Jack LeCesa, owner of
“green” materials like concrete and IceStone, present the
Rojahn Custom Cabinets, cautions against putting “a 100-
homeowner with a variety of substances from which to
dollar saddle on a 10-dollar horse. Lots of times, the
choose, each with its own pros and cons.
cabinets break down because the weight of granite it too heavy.”
Granite The craze for granite exploded in the mid-1990s and is still going strong today, being mined from all over the world,
As for its cons, price is counted as one of its few downsides—but cost really comes down to customer preference. “Granite can be the least expensive, but it can
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This kitchen countertop (left), by Caesarstone, is stain-resistant and scratch-resistant. White Carrera marble (right) makes for a beautiful countertop in this kitchen designed by Rojahn Custom Cabinets. also be the most expensive because there
is dropping in price because of the
are many exotic colors with granite,” said
competitive nature of the business,”
and is also heat resistant, but does not
Pantano. “There is a very large variation in
Celebuski said.
withstand heat quite as well as granite
granite price.” LeCesa noted that many fabricators now
And what about the recent concern over potentially harmful levels of radon found in
placed between a pot and a [quartz]
granite? Those in the granite business reject
countertop, even though it can handle a
customers, a computer-generated depiction
that as a fabricated scare tactic concocted
good amount of heat,” Pantano said.
of your countertop and its fixtures. “They
by manufacturers of other countertop
take a slab of granite and then superimpose
materials. Pantano called radon “almost a
places, including Canada, Spain,
your sink area, your island, your pieces of
complete non-issue,” and explained that all
Jerusalem, and some from right here in the
granite left and right of a cooktop, maybe
natural materials harvested from the earth
United States. A quartz countertop is an
even a mantle or hearth, and in a blue tape
will contain negligible amounts of radon.
engineered stone (top manufacturers include
look,” he said. This is especially useful for granite, with
“If you pull a potato out of the ground,
comprised of 93 percent quartz with 7
from the ground technically has some in it.
percent pigments and resin. The end result
As for it being harmful, there’s no case for
looks similar to granite but with a more
variations. “You don’t want that orange
that,” he said.
uniform appearance.
The other two factors that can affect the
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Silestone, Cambria, and Zodiac) that is
its naturally irregular patterns and color
your island,” LeCesa added.
((
Quartz comes to us from a variety of
there’s radon in that. Anything that comes
streak going right through the middle of
does. “We recommend a hot pad being
create virtual countertops for their
will overlay it to see how it’s going to
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Quartz is comparable in price to granite
“The biggest thing would be for the Quartz
customer to know how much maintenance
Looking for a stain-resistant and
they want and then also what their eyes can
price of granite are the availability of a
scratch-resistant countertop, but aren’t
handle. They have to wake up to this every
particular color and how difficult your
wowed by the natural look of granite?
morning,” said Pantano. “If they like
choice is to work with. Some granite is
Consider quartz, a manmade material that
something wild and exotic, you want to go
hard and dense, where other versions are
boasts many of the same good qualities as
to granite. If you want to be more
fragile and can fall apart if not handled
granite, including requiring almost no
conservative and don’t want to see a lot of
with care. Its very popularity is also helping
maintenance and being able to withstand
movement, then we recommend the
to drive down the cost of granite. “Granite
repeated use.
quartz.”
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Marble Marble’s largest selling point is its beauty … but its pros are quite limited, especially when it comes to functionality. “A lot of people are very disappointed when they put marble in the kitchen,” cautioned Celebuski. Marble will age and lose its sheen with time, and scratches and stains easily. It’s also a very high-maintenance product, revered for its beauty but often impractical because of its soft and porous nature. “It makes for a beautiful counter, but we don’t recommend it in kitchens because it stains and will scratch very quickly,” Pantano said. If you love the look of marble, Pantano suggested using it in the bathroom instead—but even then, any mess made with soap and water must be wiped up immediately to prevent damage from occurring. “All the other countertop products are a lot more forgiving,” he said. Cost is also an issue when it comes to marble countertops. Celebuski said Italian marbles can easily reach $100 per square foot. IceStone As with everything else these days, the building and remodeling industries have hopped on the
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Its main con? Price. “Not everyone wants to spend the money on going green,” said Pantano. “I think it’s only going to attract people looking for that green certification.” IceStone also requires a little more maintenance than other substances in that it needs to be Concrete kitchen island with embedded natural river rock.
“green” bandwagon and now present environmentally friendly options for your kitchen and bathroom countertops. Made of recycled glass and concrete,
surprisingly beautiful appearance.
sealed more often, perhaps once every one to three years. Concrete
“It almost looks like bits of smashed
The price of a concrete-only
glass bottles thrown into a bed of concrete,”
countertop is a bit more tolerable— about the same as mid-range granite, said
IceStone is available in a wide array of
Celebuski, who noted that concrete is
Brooklyn, N.Y., company for the past few
color variations—after all, its color palette
seen as a green material in the building
years. Its biggest selling points are its green
is only limited by the innumerable colors of
industry. Its other main appeal is that
certification as well as its unique and
glass that are now created.
it’s entirely conformable to what the
Kitchen Designed by Marc Goodwin
Pantano explained. “It looks pretty neat.”
IceStone has been manufactured by a
D e d i c a t i o n To Craftsmanship
33 West Maple St. Dallastown, PA 17313
717–246–2693 www.rojahnkitchens.com 38
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Celebuski said concrete is the most
created within 50 to 100 miles of your
doesn’t exist [as a countertop] until you
versatile of all the materials and
home, a plus for those wishing to help
decide how it should exist,” Celebuski
estimated that it will make up 7 percent
stimulate their local economy. Celebuski
said.
of the countertop market within the next
said that sourcing your materials within
Instead of walking through a granite
decade. Also, due to improved sealer
that distance will also cut down on
yard and selecting a nice-looking slab,
technology, concrete counters can now be
transportation costs.
customers interested in a concrete
made stainless, and newer, high-
countertop can have a sink or drain board
performance concrete means the cracking
urged costumers to consider functionality
actually cast into the concrete. They can
issues of the past are no more.
first and foremost when the time is right
add color, texture, or dropped edges. Concrete found its place in the kitchen
Concrete can scratch, however, so it’s
LeCesa, Pantano, and Celebuski all
to update your often-used and well-loved
a better choice for homeowners who are
counter spaces. Though the memories
by creative individuals seeking an artistic
past the life stage of raising little ones.
embedded in the old counters may be
outlet for their home, but it’s now become
“If you have a concrete sink and two kids
hard to relinquish, it may be high time to
more functional. “Now it can actually be
under 5, you’ve got 12 to 15 more years
update and upgrade them—if not to aid
a working part of the kitchen rather than
of telling them not to put that knife in the
in your home’s eventual resale, then
a piece of art,” said Celebuski. “It can
sink,” Celebuski laughed.
just for your own viewing pleasure
still be art, but just working art.”
Concrete countertops can also be
) ) ) kitchen encounters
customer wants. “Its biggest pro is that it
and use. ) ) )
MARBLE & GRANITE CREATIONS Everything in stock only $50 to $65 per sq. ft.
FREE FINANCING FOR ONE YEAR • FREE ESTIMATES • NO DOWN PAYMENT • CHOOSE FROM MANY COLORS Expert Installation • More Than 11 Years Of Experience 21 Leaman Road, Paradise, PA 17562 • 717-687-6875 • Cell: 717-781-4045 • Fax: 717-687-3655
Website: www.jrmarbleandgranite.com • Email: jrmgcreations1@aol.com Hours: Mon.–Fri., 8 am–4 pm • Sat. 10 am to 5 pm • Sun. by appointment winter 2008|
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