Found effective way to distract myself from TTC issues
We're working on a kitchen project!
Oh, it's a little one, so far as these things go: A new countertop and backsplash. But now, instead of comparing IUI to IVF to au naturalle, I compare Silestone to Zodiaq to Marble.
Anyone want to help me out?
We're not replacing the cabinets, nor do I feel like painting them. So I need to go with some sort of very light color - probably white.
I've pretty much ruled out marble, although I LOVE it, because I use so many tomatos and lemons and just generally don't want to baby it.
Anyone have Silestone, Zodiaq or another quartz composite that you can recommend?
And oh yeah - my beta is down to 55ish, so it's looking like this will resolve itself. But really, for right now, I'd rather think about a subway tile backsplash....
Re: Found effective way to distract myself from TTC issues
Kitchen remodels are so much fun! We looked at Silestone vs granite but went with granite because the prices were comparable and we figured why not get the real thing. The Silestone is a great product and I have only heard it highly recommended. We do love our granite though.
My DH put up the backsplash himself. We went with the marble and it is really pretty! He put the clear shiny stuff on top and I LOVE it!
We painted our cabinets white (they were oak which I hate) and got new hardware. Next, we plan to add some glass inserts into several of them. In hindsight, I would have rather resurfaced them. We still may.
No kitchen advice, but that sounds like a great TTC distraction.
I have been distracting myself with planning our vacation. That works too!
We just completed a similar kitchen remodel and I love the idea of the subway tile backsplash. We did granite countertops in Cashmere Gold (it's off-white with brown and a few other colors mixed in....I love it!) I was worried about the staining issue because I ALWAYS make tomato sauce and stainable foods......it is not a problem. We seal it every six months and I use a daily granite cleaner just to keep it clean. DH created a giant stain a few weeks ago and I was able to get it all to come up out of the stone.
It's really pretty durable and I'm so glad I went against everyone's recommendation to not get granite.
We have a pressed tin backsplash that DH picked out and I thought I would hate but it looks very "bistro-y".
Congrats on the dropping betas, that's always a relief when the body takes care of things on it's own!
Ooo! I could talk house porn all day. Your kitchen sounds great! Did you do a solid marble backsplash, or marble tiles? And what colors?
And, how long ago did you paint your cabinets, and how is the paint holding up?
We will be doing the backsplash ourselves, too. We thought about doing a tile or laminate countertop, since we could do that ourselves, but I figure one of the benefits of having a tiny kitchen is that it won't cost that much to put a stone or stone-like material in it.
How has your granite maintenance been? I'm concerned the sealing will drive me bonkers....
oh, we have zodiaq! ours is this blackish/green with gold flecks in it. that sounds horrible, but i promise it's not.
we remodeled our teeny-tiny condo kitchen right before our wedding. it was a condition of me moving into the 'bachelor pad'. oof, that kitchen was previously SNARSTY. anyway...i love the zodiaq...you can't really jack it up -AND-this is the best part...it doesn't get fingerprints on it like i observed with granite. my parents have silestone and it's the exact same thing (i think) - just made by different manufacturers.
did you see that on the dupont/zodiaq website you can play around with virtual kitchens? that's how we picked the our color, we found a similar cabinet color and then looked at what they recommended!
how fun for you and yours! a new kitchen is a treat!
also, great news with the bloodwork! HOW LOW CAN YOU GO??? HOW LOW CAN YOU GO??? HOW LOW CAN YOU GO??? (does really dorky dance...)
OOOO! Vacation! I think that needs to be my next distraction..... When are you going?
That sounds so great! I love pressed tin. I considered it for our backsplash, but I've already got too much stuff going on in my small kitchen, so I think I need to keep everything simple.
Your granite sounds very pretty! But I think you may be more willing to maintain it than I am.
My bod needed a bit of help a couple of weeks ago. I'm just so relieved it doesn't look like I'll need any other procedures. YAY!
Nice to see you, Nova! Thanks for adding the word "SNARSTY" to my vocabulary. I love it!
I was playing with that kitchen tool on the website - I didn't realized they recommended colors though. I'm pretty set on a white or white-ish something with either marble-like swirls or granite-like flecks. And I'm loving what you're telling me about how the quartz products hold up!
Your dorky dance is fabulous. Have you considered Dancing with the Stars?
OK, now this is just getting weird. I feel like we are living parallel lives.
We are actually in the process of building a house and we are at the choosing kitchen design, cabinets, counter tops, backsplash stage. Unfortunately, I don't have much insight for you as there are just so many choices my head is spinning. I can tell you the place we are currently renting has Zodiac and it's pretty durable and stain-resistant. In the new place, I think we are leaning toward granite. What can I say?!? I like shiny things.
Now if you tell me you have a dog named Dewey, your favorite food is Mexican and you drive a Sonata, I will totally freak out.
Que Twilight Zone Music!
Well, Mrs. C, we are going to be building a house in five-ish years, which is why I don't want to do a major kitchen remodel.
My dog is named KitCat (retired racing greyhound, who knew his name, Cat. So yes...I have a dog named Cat).
I drive a Chevy Aveo hatchback.
Favorite food? I do love Mexican. But it's not my favorite. If I had to pick...well, I can't. Indian/Ethiopian/Hungarian. Then Mexican/Thai
So...close enough that we can consult each other frequently!
Give Dewey a kiss on the nose for me. What a cute pooch!
Not quite as freaky but.... I am half Hungarian. Does that count?!? Still....spoooookyyyyyyyy.
A dog named Cat, I LOVE it!
I am soooo jealous of all this fabulous kitchen remodeling! Like Nova, I moved into bachelor pad hell with a kitchen circa 1973. DH says the kitchen cannot be circa 1973 since the townhouse was built in 1989. Whatever. Semantics. Let it be noted that the kitchen is HORRIBLE!
I'm currently in the middle of Operation Living Room, so that is my focus. Not sure if/what $$ we will sink into the kitchen as we hope to be leaving the townhouse behind sooner rather than later.
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I love working on the house! This is an excellent way to keep busy. Sorry, I have no recommendations we went with the granite.
I should mention DH is a chef so we get all kind of stuff everywhere!
We did tumbled marble tiled backsplash with some border accents. They come in a "sheet" and we did a gray grout to match. With the sealer it looks really classy.
The paint on our cabinets is not holding up well so I wouldn't recommend doing that. I have a tendency to slam them which doesn't help!
I think the granite maintenance isn't too bad. We use the Method brand cleaner and it works great. It was a change from just the old wiping up the laminate but our granite is dark which helps too!