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Every time someone comes to my house, they always ask me if my marble countertops are a nightmare to deal with. There\u2019s no short answer to that question. Prior to our kitchen remodel, I had dreamed of carrara marble countertops for years. When it came time to get started on the remodel, I started researching them. I had builders, contractors, designers, and friends all say that marble in a family kitchen was a no-no. Having second thoughts, I started looking for materials that looked like marble but could handle the wear and tear of my family of four. For several weeks I pinned every marble dupe you could think of. Who knew there are so many materials that look like marble?! When my husband and I went to pick out our countertops, we asked to see all the quartz and quartzite samples that looked like Carrara marble. \u00a0There really are a lot of products out there now that are made to resemble marble. Before making a decision, my husband wanted to see the real deal. First, we were shown Carrara marble and then we were shown a slab of Calacatta marble. One thing I realized was that most of the marble I had been drooling over in pictures, was probably actually not Carrara but Calacatta marble. <\/span><\/p>\n

Carrara marble is more gray in person with finer veins. Calacatta marble is more white than gray and has thicker veining. Some slabs of Calacatta even have specs of gold in them. Both of us loved the Calacatta slab. We knew it was not the most practical option for our busy kitchen but my husband told me if we were finally redoing our kitchen, we were doing it in marble like I had wanted for years. I’m sure the last thing he wanted was for me to regret not getting my marble. So that was that our decision was made and we were proud owners of 3 beautiful slabs of Calacatta marble.<\/span><\/p>\n

After our kitchen project was complete, of course we loved the final look. The polished marble countertops looked amazing and I was terrified to use them. I seriously followed everyone around for days wiping up behind them and drying up water droplets that had been left behind. We were super careful with red wine, vinegars, acidic foods and anything we thought might stain. And then that dreaded thing happened. I saw the first etch mark. I could not even tell you what it was from. We had been so careful. From that point on, it felt like almost daily I discovered a new mark. I saw water rings and etch marks all over the place! Every time my husband entered the kitchen, it felt like he found a new spot too. It was driving him crazy and him obsessing over it was driving me crazy. I didn\u2019t know what to do. One day I happened to come home while my cleaning ladies were cleaning and saw them using Windex on my countertops! \u00a0Yes, Windex…gasp. One of the biggest no no\u2019s ever on marble.<\/span><\/p>\n

After I had my mini panic attack, I explained to them AGAIN what could and could be not used on my countertops. And then I started wondering about something. Had they been doing this every time? Maybe this is where all the marks had come from. Realistically, I\u2019m sure my family put plenty of those marks on there but it did make me wonder if when they were cleaning with the wrong product, they were stripping the sealer off which was making it easier for everyday staining and etching to occur. From that day forward I decided that I would ask them to no longer clean my countertops at all. At least this way I could clean them and would know the right product was being used on them. We continued to live with the polished marble countertops and I kept waiting for that day to kick in where I grew used to each and every etch mark. I knew that day would never come for my husband. Every single time he stood in our kitchen I could see him eyeing and rubbing his hand across all the places that had etching. Not only did I become more paranoid about further etching but I also started having to strategically place things over large marks that drove him crazy. That meant there was always a large cutting board or tray strategically placed towards the end of our island.<\/span><\/p>\n

A few months ago we visited a tile and counter store for another project in the works. My husband got to talking to one of the sales ladies about how much our countertops drove us crazy. After telling her they were polished marble, the first thing she said was \u201coh yes I\u2019m sure they do look pretty worn. You should have had those honed.\u201d I always knew when selecting marble you could choose to have your slab polished or honed. What I did not know was that you could have them honed after<\/em> they had been polished. She was super helpful and told us all about the process and what she liked to use as a sealer and cleaning product. She also gave us the name of a guy who was supposed to be amazing at refinishing marble countertops. You can bet my husband called him that day.<\/span><\/p>\n

I was a little bit nervous because I had read horror stories of marble refinishing gone wrong. I even remembered seeing a video from a Houston blogger showing how a marble re-finishing company had ruined her countertops by leaving round swirl marks all over the countertops. I cannot even imagine. As nervous as I was to get it done, I figured removing the shiny polished surface would at least lighten the etch marks and make them look less noticeable. The project took 2 1\/2 days to complete and they did an amazing job. We could not believe our countertops were the same countertops. Yes, the shiny polished finish was gone and the honed surface had a completely different look but all the etch marks were gone. It was nothing short of uh-mazing!<\/span><\/p>\n

Now, I will say polished vs honed are two completely different looks. Polished can look very elegant and formal. I can also see it looking great in a modern kitchen with sleek surfaces and elements. Honed counters are softer, more muted and subtle. Polished marble feels smooth to the touch. I\u2019ll be the first to admit that when I first felt the countertops after being honed, they totally gave me the heebie-jeebies. I\u2019m not really sure what to compare that texture to but I do know it made me cringe to touch it. The good news is, that feeling went away. It\u2019s almost like the more we used them the softer they got. They didn\u2019t feel so gritty to me anymore and I LOVED them. After living with both the polished and honed marble, I know honed was a far better choice for us. We absolutely love the end result. Our kitchen feels warmer and more family friendly now for sure! With honed marble, yes it can still etch and it can also still stain. To be fair, we never had staining issues with either finish. That probably had something to do with our countertop police hovering skills. But there\u2019s something about honed marble that makes any etching that occurs almost just fade away into the marble. With a polished surface, you have a very shiny countertop so when etching occurs it dulls that area. This is what makes all those etch marks so visible. When marble is honed, there\u2019s no shine to be dulled from etching.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Do we love our countertops now? Yes absolutely. Should we have honed them to begin with? For sure. Do I wish we had done quartz instead? Let me say this, now that we have honed them, no. I love them. I have the white and gray marble countertops I\u2019ve always wanted. I love the look, the feel and they are no longer super duper high maintenance. Are we still hovering as countertop police? Nothing like we were before. Of course we are careful. We made sure they were properly sealed and we always use cleaning solution with the right ph. But I don\u2019t stress at all like I did before.\u00a0Wow! That really was a long answer but it was definitely a process and I couldn\u2019t be happier with the final result!<\/span><\/p>\n

Until next time,<\/span><\/p>\n

Kelly<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Every time someone comes to my house, they always ask me if my marble countertops are a nightmare to deal with. There\u2019s no short answer to that question. Prior to our kitchen remodel, I had dreamed of carrara marble countertops for years. When it came time to get started on the remodel, I started researching […]<\/p>\nVIEW MORE<\/a>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":4599,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_mi_skip_tracking":false,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[8,6,7],"yoast_head":"\n