You’ve decided that your kitchen and bathrooms are ready to be revitalized. You have an idea of the style and colour for your kitchen or bathroom and now you’re ready to begin your shopping.  What are the key things, that an informed shopper must be prepared with, to make their buying a smooth experience?

1. Determine the right surface material to meet your lifestyle and budgetary needs

 We’re going to presume that you’ve done your homework, surfing the web, and found the right material for your home project, from the low maintenance and inexpensive laminates to the high-end granite, quartz and marble stones.  Let’s assume that you think, quartz, best fits your needs because it looks like natural stone without the deficiencies found in granite or marble. Quartz products are brilliant for busy individuals who do not have time to worry about spills and other messes on the countertop. Unlike its granite counterpart, quartz never needs sealing and almost any household cleaner is appropriate for wiping down stains. Granite is best suited for individuals that consider their countertop a kind of home "show piece". Considered a high maintenance surface, spills must be wiped up right away and a granite cleaner is recommended for daily upkeep. 

 Through research, you’ve become acquainted with well-known brands like Viatera, Caesarstone and Silestone, for quartz countertops, and that prices may vary between $80 and $150 per square foot, depending on the quality and detail work.  The first thing you notice is that prices are based on square footage.  This means you must know the “square footage” of your project in order to get an accurate read of the estimates against your budget.

Formula: Square Footage of a countertop = “length” x “width” of the countertop

In fact, you may want to make sure your linear footage measurements are converted into inches when you shop around for your estimates. A good idea would be to diagram your countertops with the exact dimensions to help eliminate the guess work in getting your estimates done quickly and accurately.

2. Things to keep in mind when seeking estimates

 When shopping around, another good idea would be to bring with you flooring samples, paint chips or cabinet colour to help select a countertop that works with your decor. By narrowing your countertop colour selection, your kitchen and bathroom dealer/designer will be able give a more accurate cost for the job you have in mind. 

Also, consider the material thickness of the countertop design for your home project. Prevailing industry standards had granite and quartz countertops made to be ¾” in thickness. It then follows, to make the ¾” thick countertop edge to be laminated to have a 1 ½” edge profile. Why this size of edge? This size was perfect for framed cabinets since that thickness edge can cover the gap between the top of the cabinet and the cabinet door. Even as cabinets became frameless, the 1 ½” edging is still considered a popular size.

What started as a Rant about how much I love my Granite Countertop appears to be almost a Hatfield and McCoy argument. I personally find it so strange; I even wonder if the stories that put granite in a bad light are propagated by the quartz manufacturers. Trust me I don’t have anything against Quartz, some of it is quite beautiful, but many colors seem to be wannabe Granite colors! With a huge price tag!

I had a stunning Venetian Gold counter top put in my kitchen 10 years ago. I have gazed in wonder at its beauty for all that time. My guests always comment on how incredibly gorgeous it is. The natural beauty created millions of years ago cannot be denied. You want movement, it has swirls, it has speckles, and it moves everywhere. The colors are magnificent, no possible way it could be duplicated with a quartz product.
But if it was beautiful and difficult to maintain I would not be so impressed, but in 10 years I have done nothing except wipe it clean. No sealers, just plain old living with 3 kids. Baking, cooking, arts and crafts, parties with lots of grape juice and wine spills. Nothing has ever been an issue. I love my Granite top, for its incomparable natural beauty and the resilience. I would hate to see someone who loves the look of a particular granite for their countertop deny it to themselves because others talk about the amount of maintenance required, as it truly is not the case. I believe if you ask your supplier which granite requires little maintenance, and many many of them do you will get some good, very appropriate suggestions.

Do not be mis-lead by marketing tools into paying more money than you need to for a stunning looking counter top.
I will continue to gaze at my kitchen countertop and feel so grateful that it graces my home; my guests will continue to comment long after those teenagers have left the nest. So for me, granite is the way to go, quartz may try to come close, but in my mind it is just no cigar!

Just because I think this is such an interesting topic, I am going to ask my friends and report back: Feel free to comment.

Calacatta Marble looks great in a new kitchen.  Unfortuantely, like most marbles, it is a soft material prone to chipping, staining and etching.  Within a year of installtion, most Calacatta Marble kitchens look well used and abused.  As a result, homeowners are advised to avoid Calacatta Marble countertops in their kitchens and this stunning marble has been relegated to bathrooms.

For all you Calacatta Marble lovers, here is a new kitchen design tip!

Diamastone has just introduced a new product, Nature Calacatta that is a stunning replica of Calacatta Marble.  Nature Calacatta is a man made quartz material that resists chipping, staining and etching.  Like all quartz materials it is durable and maintenance free.

Marble is a counter fabricator's nightmare.  Even though we use special diamond marble blades to cut the material and handle the material with extreme care, we inevitably end up with breakage either in the shop, transportation or installation.  When fabrication or installation breakage happens, we are then left trying to match the marble from differnet slabs in the same block or a new block.  It's never a happy story for the designer, the fabricator or the home owner.

Recently we had the opportunity to make a counter top from Diamastone's Nature Calacatta quartz.  Wow, what a dream material.  Not only was it easy to work with, it was a dead ringer for calacatta marble!

We left a sample of the Diamastone Nature Calacatta on our Calacatta Marble table in our showroom for everyone to see.  Over the course of two weeks we had marble distributors, designers, sales people and home owners all mistaked the sample piece for the same Calacatta Marble material used for our showroom table. (Just for the record, our showroom table has coffee stains, etching, chips and cracks in it but we love it anyways.  If someone from Diamastone is reading this blog, we would love a sample piece so we can replace our table top.)

We are so excited to share that Latitude’s remnant marble vanity countertop was featured on the Marilyn Dennis Show, on CTV today!  The segment illustrated how you can bring stunning designs into your home on a small budget… Like 60% to 75% less on countertops from Latitude, dependent on the options you choose.  

The great team on the Marylin Dennis Show thinks our remnant countertops in granite, marble and quartz is incredible.  You will too!  Really :O)  

Are you tired of looking at your kitchen countertops or bathroom vanity countertop but don’t feel you have the cash to pay for a contractor and new cabinetry? 

Designers have been using Latitude’s remnant program to get beautiful high end Granite, Marble and Quartz countertops for their clients while still keeping within conservative budgets.  We simply use remnant pieces to manufacture your custom made countertops.  Sometimes it is too good to be true.  With our remnant program, it really is true.   All you have to do is find the remnant piece that works for the shape and size of your project and add a fabrication or fabrication and installation quotation to get a full price. 

Not only is our price on the remnant program incredible, we also turn orders around in 8 business days!

Get to Know Latitude

With over 32 years of experience, Latitude is known as the most trusted source for countertops in Ontario.  You have probably already seen our manufacturing and installation expertise on other Television Design shows such as Love it or List it on W Network and on Candice Tells All on HGTV.  We also supply countertops and natural stone design projects to Sarah Richardson on Sarah’s House and Sarah 101.  We can certainly do the same for you whether you choose a remnant granite or marble or if you want to select from one of the 9 major brands of countertop options we carry.   

Wanna Know More    

UPDATE! MARCH 2017!  We have just launched a new, easy to use, online catalogue and webstore for our massive inventory of remnant pieces including; Caesarstone Quartz, Silestone Quartz, Viatera Quartz, Hanstone Quartz, Natural Stones such as Granite, Quartzites and Marbles plus many more brand name engineered quartz.  

On the new Remnant Warehouse, you may see the selection and prices of the vast selection of remnant pieces we have in stock.  We have a multitude of pieces with photos, however, not all photos are uploaded yet... so please feel free to visit us to see these pieces in person.  Prices listed on the Remnant Warehouse are for the remnant pieces only. Remnant pieces are as is and first come, first serve. 

Read more about remnant savings ...
 

Reno on a Budget

If the layout of your cabinetry does not need to change, you can easily give your kitchen or bathroom a brand new look with a stunning granite, marble or quartz countertop facelift.  You don’t have change all the cabinets or demolish walls, simply freshen up your space by painting the cabinets and changing the countertop to granite or quartz. 

So if you’re ready to update your space, extremely discounted rates on “remnant material” is a good place to start.

Remnant Kitchen Photo

Here is an example of a stunning Bianco Carrara marble kitchen countertop, designed by Emmanuel Belliveau of Floro Designs and host of World’s Greenest homes.  The material came from remnant inventory.

Remnants are new and unused pieces of stone that are “leftover” from a previous—normally larger—project.  Because of the high volume of larger kitchen countertop projects that Latitude manufactures, we have an incredibly large selection of sizes and colours in our remnant inventory for you to choose from. 

Remnants come in many different colours, shapes, and sizes

The remnant program allows you to get the superior quality and craftsmanship of Latitude at bargain basement prices.

When you see prices at other places that are too good to be true for your countertop, beware.  They may be using poor quality granite, prefabricated pieces or they may not have the expert equipment to fabricate or install the countertops correctly. Remember, you rarely escape the adage “You get what you pay for”.   At Latitude, we make sure that you always get Latitude’s amazing level of service, expert workmanship and quality products.

Each of these counter tops are made from remnant material

Our remnant program works best for vanities and smaller condominium kitchen layouts as well as galley kitchens and laundry room countertops.

When looking for remnant granite and quartz for your kitchen countertops, we must find pieces that are from the same block and lot or we will have to cut all countertops from the same piece of stone.  Anytime two pieces of countertop sections are seamed together, as in a corner or in a long section, they must come from the same block of stone so that when the pieces meet, the colours match as closely as possible.  Generally, it is more difficult to use remnant pieces for large kitchens.

LEARN MORE

If you’re unsure if you can get your kitchen or bathroom countertop out of a remnant piece or you would like get a quote for your space; contact us by filling in the Contact Form on the top left of this page. 

We will call or write to you within 1 business day.   You can also visit our showroom, call us at 416-638-8586 or email info@latitudeonline.ca. We look forward to assisting you with all of your remodeling projects!  

Over the last few years, many different finishing options have come to market for granite and quartz countertops.  Before these last few years, we had only been able to see Granite and Quartz in polished finishes. Now that the industry has grown and quartz and granite are hugely popular in modern design, we are beginning to see a variety of available finishes for stone countertops. 

Leathered and honed finishes are often related to each other, but do have specific differences between the two.  Honed finishes were first introduced to give stone a softer look compared to that of polished stone.  One of the only problems to consider with using a honed finish is that it can affect the overall performance of the stone when it comes to staining.  Leathered finishes have advanced the honed look to allow for better performance.  Leathering closes the stone pores, which make it much more difficult to stain than a honed finished.  Leathering also retains the natural stone colour while honed finishing tends to cloud out the natural colour of the stone.

Silestone has been offering quartz countertop colours in a leathered finish for a nearly five years.  Coming very soon, Silestone will introduce a new texture to the market that has not yet been approached:  Volcano.  This new Volcano texture is said to give the feel of an orange peel, while continuing to offer the same performance standards as their leathered and polished finishes.  Silestone expects to release this finish, along with a variety of new and exciting colours this summer. Silestone is able to offer their remarkable 15 year warranty with these new finishes as well.

If you are interested in learning more about leathered, honed, or Volcano finishes to your granite or quartz products, please visit Latitude Countertops or speak with one of our knowledgeable and friendly sales team members. 

If the goal in your kitchen is to be as green as possible, Latitude offers the best options for countertops.  Our knowledgeable sales people are always on hand to answer any questions that you have about the green qualities of the countertops that we offer at Latitude.

The new environmental craze that is happening, in regards to granite, is the testing for Radon gases in granite slabs.  Many people have asked us about Radon gases in granite, and what effect it can have on your home.  Granite, and other natural stone products, always contains traces of NORMs (Naturally Occurring Radioactive Materials) that produce measureable amounts of radiation and sometimes Radon gas.

Although all granite is tested for radon, it is possible that small amounts of the radioactive material can still be found in the slab.  Not to worry though, as Radon gas usually becomes insignificant when diluted with the quantity of air in your home.  Most Radon gas that is produced in your home is from the actual soil that your house is built on.  I have included a pie chart that shows the most abundant locations for radon gas in your home.

 Although granite does not usually have enough radon gas in it to be harmful to your family, you may still be cautious of putting granite in your home.   In that case, Latitude offers 5 Natural Quartz Surfaces that are all leading the charge in safer countertop options.   For your information, I have included links to each of these suppliers “Green Qualities” on their websites.

Silestone

Caesarstone

Hanstone

Zodiaq

Eco by Cosentino

If you have any other questions regarding the green qualities of countertops, please visit our showroom, or showroom locator for a Latitude dealer near you!!

Happy Holidays!!

C

Recently, I had the opportunity to attend the monthly chapter meeting for the NKBA, being held at Euro-Line Appliances in Oakville.  It was nice to meet and socialize with the other members of the NKBA, while enjoying a delicious meal and an informative presentation.   The guest speaker at this month’s chapter meeting was Janette Ewen, Décor/Design Expert and Co-Host of “Inside the Box” with Ty Pennington.  Janette has toured Europe visiting many different Design and Decor Shows, gathering new trends that are beginning to be seen amongst their design community. 

The presentation was very interesting, and I was able to take away a few great ideas that are beginning to be seen in the counter top and kitchen design industry.  Janette mentioned that, currently, the common trend in Europe is to choose basic, simple colours such as black, white, and grey, as the main colour theme in the kitchen.  Use these colours as the central point in your kitchen, such as appliances, countertops, and even sinks.  

After designing your kitchen around these basic colours, Janette suggests accenting the kitchen with bright colours, such as blue and green.  These accent colours should be seen in smaller, more exchangeable items in the kitchen, such as dish towels, soap dispensers, and centre pieces.  Using accent colours with these items allows you to change the look of your kitchen as trends continue to change throughout the years.

  This helps keep your kitchen in style, without having to spend too much money.  Quartz counter tops can be a great addition to this package, as they are the most durable counter top that Latitude offers.  We currently offer the following Quartz products: Silestone, Caesarstone, Hanstone, Compac, and ECO by Cosentino.

At Latitude, we offer many different styles of black, white, and grey counter tops.  Caesarstone continues to produce the boldest colours in these shades.  I have included a few pictures of what these colours look like, but the best way to get a view of these colours is to visit our showroom, or one of our many dealers that can be found on our Showroom Locator.  Latitude’s showroom is open Monday to Friday 9am-5pm, and Saturdays from 10am-2pm.  I look forward to discussing these new and upcoming trends in the counter top and kitchen design industry, when you come visit us at Latitude.

Caesarstone-Raven(Above)

Caesarstone- Pure White(Below)