Countertop Conundrum

Well folks, it's been a good three years since we painted our kitchen cabinets and purchased a new fridge {new stove is just around the corner and new floors are coming next year}. And, because the kitchen is looking better...I've now had my fill with my old green laminate countertops! Something's gotta give, and those babies have got to hit the road.

Before {It's ok to shriek...I did it too when I first laid eyes on our kitchen!}
Oh, and that's my mom on move-in day!

Current State {Better...but could still use some work}

The other day {okay month} when David and I went to the Botanical gardens we exited through a Corian demonstration in mid set-up. The samples were huge and they looked like marble...I kid you not! I felt kinda weird exiting through somewhere we probably shouldn't have been exiting through, so I failed to snap a picture. I know, major mistake, but I was more concerned with getting out of there!

But, when I got home I could not get the images out of my head! They were haunting me. You get it right? Anyhoo, with some handy-dandy googling, I finally came across the gorgeousness that I saw... stay with me, I know you're thinking I'm off my rocker about this Corian. The countertops that I viewed are part of Corian's new-ish "private collection"...fancy, right? They have inspirations from nature and are more veiny and swirly than your average Corian piece.

Now, finding a dealer that knew about this selection was a little bit tricky. It seems as if no one had the samples in the colors I wanted, and even worse, no one was familiar with the collection. I was starting to think it might not even exist. However, I ran across this site, that let me order 10x10 samples for my own viewing pleasure. Because, let me tell you, seeing these countertops in those piddly 4x4 samples just does NOT do them justice. Thank God I was able to see them at the Botanical Gardens, because otherwise, I would never have even given a second glance to the lilliputian samples in the stores.

So as it stands, I am torn between the sandalwood color and the witch hazel color. And, even more so, I don't even know what these bad boys are going to cost us! We did find a place in our little town that would order them and is setting up a bid for us as we speak. Of course, I didn't want to completely limit our options so I did shop the big box stores and a granite distributor, but nothing really compares to the Corian. There was one slab of granite that I liked, Mont Blanc, and we got our quote on it, but I'm still not 100% sold.

I know, you still think I'm on something, right? Hehe. : )

When we got our Corian samples in the mail I took some photos and did some photoshopping for a mock up of them.

Don't laugh, I'm learning my way through photoshop everyday. And, it's a tough journey!

What do you think? Like 'em, hate 'em, love 'em like I do? Do tell, blogger friends.