Looking for a quartz refresh?
Quartz countertop colors, textures, and finishes are changing so quickly, it is well worth an update.
When quartz tops were first introduced to the market the trend was to simulate a marble stone look. Marble is easily stained with wine and acids like lemon juice and is much more expensive than quartz, so quartz is a great alternative. Quartz slabs now vary in a range of looks from natural marble to solid colors to natural woods and even metal! As far as textures, selections include polished (intensifies the color, clarity, and shine), matte (unique soft touch that offers high-quality color consistency), suede, and even a rougher finish if you want to simulate concrete or slate.
There are several quartz manufacturers, but Silestone is the hottest, up-and-coming product on the U.S. market. Silestone, a brand within the Cosentino Group, has recently increased its commitment to protecting the planet with its new fully carbon-neutral quartz (so far not available in all colors). They are able to manufacture these products with 99% recycled water and 100% renewable energy. 20% of their materials come from reused glass bottles and windows. These new Silestone slabs are highly resistant to stains, scratches, and common acids found in everyday kitchen use.
Silestone will custom make countertops with integral sinks or wall-hung sinks based on your specifications (or this can be done by a local fabricator).
When interviewed, Amanda Vannini and Julie Reynolds, our regional Silestone executives shared some Central Coast sales data based on recent orders.
- Marble looks (whites) are the best-selling slabs, followed by solid whites.
- In the marble look: ‘Ethereal Glow’, ‘Et Calacatta Gold’ and ‘Et Statuario’ are top sellers.
- Other popular solid colors are blues and greens.
- As for metallics, ‘Copper Mist’ is quite popular.
- The wood look has died down in sales.
- Polished texture still is the top preference.
- The rougher textures are not selling as well.
Seeing your choices come to life is easy with Silestone’s website. Click on the “Visualizers” tab and you can play around with different colors, aesthetics and rooms with their online visualizer, 3D kitchen, or mood board software. For example, pick out a floor color, cabinet colors and then start experimenting with slab colors to give you an idea of the palette you prefer.
If you’d rather see samples in person, you can go to any local dealer that sells Silestone. The dealers will have small samples for you to take home to hold up to your current or new color palettes. If you want to see full slabs and experience all the colors to choose from (sometimes a local dealer’s samples may be out on loan and you might miss a color), I recommend visiting their showroom in Sun Valley which is about 15 minutes north of Burbank. I went there and it was like being a kid in a candy store… I loved each and every slab!
Trudi
