Eco friendly countertops
Choose from a range of eco-friendly countertops for your kitchen. Whether you have money to splurge on a new kitchen, or a more conservative budget, there are plenty of countertop styles and materials to choose from.
Bamboo
Solid bamboo countertops are harder than most hardwoods and are the best choice for durable countertop surface that is naturally bacteria-resistant. Bamboo is a good choice for homeowners looking for sustainable materials to use in kitchen renovation. In fact, bamboo is one of the hottest materials in home building and decorating today.
Bamboo counters offer the same warmth and charm as butcher block without the environmental impact. They are laminated and finished with non-toxic and food grade materials to make them not only beautiful but completely safe.
Manufacturers are creating everything from floors to fabric with bamboo. If it is time for you to update your kitchen you may want to consider this beautiful, sustainable material.
Regular maintenance with mineral oil or beeswax is used on bamboo countertops to prevent the material from drying out.
Concrete
Concrete has advanced dramatically in the last decade, and is no longer considered just a surface for walking on. It is being used in diverse places such as fireplace mantles, countertops, sinks and even islands themselves. Its uses are limitless and it is a natural, recyclable material. There is no other application, when added to a space, that has a greater effect than concrete.
The artistic quality that custom concrete countertops bring forth cannot be achieved with any other medium. Its unmatched versatility makes it the material of choice, in its ability to take on any shape, color or special design element. It can work in virtually any environment, from restaurant bar to master bath, from kitchen to patio. It evokes a warmth and beauty, imbuing a space with life.
One of the allures of concrete is that it can be moulded into virtually any shape. Whether it is an island oval or a bar that gently arches away from a cabinet, concrete doesn’t need to have square edges. The artistic quality of concrete is most apparent when the countertop has elements that simply cannot be achieved with granite. Counters can be made into any shape or design, and this insures that you will have a unique piece that you can call your own.
- Colour
Colours range from black, brown, and sand to red, blue, and green and even more whimsical shades. Another option is to use no colour in the mix, which reveals a beautiful gray or white. The limits are endless as numerous shades are possible. Unless otherwise requested, we try to mix the colour with the idea of it being as consistent as possible throughout the span of the countertop. It is possible that some colour variation will occur, but this is generally looked upon as adding to the beauty of a piece rather than detracting from it.
- Inlays/Aggregate
Inlays are objects that are imbedded into the surface of the concrete. They can be either left in the surface, or can be ground away with the surface itself, creating a multitude of effects. Objects that are commonly used can include semi-precious stones, coins, shells, fossils, tiles or particular objects of interest to a client.
The choices are limitless. Inlays can provide an opportunity to either enhance or contrast the subtle changes of color in your countertop. While the smooth, clean surface of a solid color countertop is in itself an object of beauty, another option is to expose the aggregate stone by grinding down the surface. Depending on the size and type of stone used in the mix, numerous effects can be created.
Hardwood
There is an unmistakable, unique beauty to a solid wood surface. It is a blend of warmth, character, and tenderness that no other material, either natural or man-made, can match.
Yes, marble and granite countertops can be quite exquisite, but their beauty is distant and cold. And yes, you can have all those crazy colours of the plastic laminate but let's be honest, don't they just scream artificiality? Wood countertops can be cosy, rustic, austere, or aristocratic, but it is all always honest. Full of character or overwhelmingly intricate, wood is always friendly and undeniably familiar. Like a good, old friend it is always nice to see it and always good to have it around.
While it's true that wood tends to scratch more than stone, scratches on a wood surface are less visible and can be easily removed by sanding the damaged area. By comparison, scratches on a granite counter top, however superficial, are quite noticeable, especially on high-polish stone. And removing these scratches requires special equipment, usually operated by specialised personnel. The same goes for laminate countertops that scratch at the same rate as wood does, but repair by a more painful process. Solid wood is the only surface that can be renewed periodically with no costs or hassle.
Not only does wood maintain and repair easily, but it can be installed as a do-it-yourself project without any special skills or tools. Any person with very basic carpentry skills can cut to templates and install a butcher-block top in just a few hours. No other material, man-made or natural, works, installs, and repairs similarly easy. Even if you make mistakes when cutting or installing, you can usually correct the error easily; wood is incredibly forgiving, hence being the best choice for do-it-yourselfers.
Did you know ...
Natural stone and wood countertops, while natural materials, are not necessary green. The ways these materials are acquired depletes the earth of non-renewable stone, forests, and natural habitat for wild animals. The weight of these natural resources demands additional energy for transportation. And typical installation allows the generation of hazardous substances.
janice anderssen - images - american hardwood assoc