hollysprings, I've been thinking about your comment since you posted! It makes me nervous. I don't like things extremely traditional or extremely modern. I guess I would lean more toward traditional but do like some transitional elements. I was thinking that the mitered edge or the edge like Romy's (with the eased edge under the ogee) could work. I have seen traditional kitchens with a mitered edge that look fantastic and transitional kitchens with an ogee stacked on an eased edge that also look good. Thoughts? I couldn't tell which one you were advising me to do or not do.

Hi Lisa. Happy fourth. We just had calacatta lux installed five days ago. Love the look. The horror stories on Houzz however are frightening. Water beads as was promised on counter when they sealed but edge near sink discolored from droplets. It did fade away in about an hour. Have you had any problems or did you have any staining? How was it processed? Ours came the day after it was cut and hoping down the road I don’t experience the edge stains. Anything you can add is very helpful. Thank you again. Your kitchen looks fantastic! After reading all this I’d be grateful to hear your experience. Tks!

We purchased two slabs of White Macaubas for our kitchen reno. Counter template guys were at our house Friday and noted that Macaubas jobs were the hardest on their tools because the stone is just SO tough. That's exactly what I wanted to hear given the investment. Counters aren't installed yet, but I'm already thrilled with the choice in terms of durability and aesthetic.

Hey, barncatz: Every word of consolation and support helps. I'm trying not to rush the BS decision, but I know I'll feel much better about the countertop experience once I'm not staring at these sliver add-ons. One of my very early inspirations was Majra's kitchen. She, just like pipdog, used the mosaics for a lovely effect. And this is why I spent so much time last year looking at mosaics. But the mosaics seem a bit too busy (for me) up close. The rest of my kitchen is a work in progress. Lotsa 9-1/2' walls that will need to be painted again (probably a cool white -- the next challenge!), and a ton of natural light coming in. Baseboards, pantry door and trim are all semi-gloss white, and ceiling is white. Kitchen is open to the family room: taupe walls with a white fireplace/mantel -- white trim throughout the entire house. pippiep: Matching grout it is, then! One decision down. :) I've marked out the areas that will require BS tile. As you can see, it's not very expansive, and each one not very large. So, I need to find the correct scale/dimension tile that will look right in these spaces. I think using larger (3x6) tiles in a herringbone pattern will leave me with a bunch of chopped up squares in the bartop and cutout window areas. At least with the newest elongated hex pattern, most of the hexes will be retained.