On the cover of every magazine, at the focus of many (if not most) dream kitchens of Pinterest, is a white marble kitchen. But how realistic is white marble? The Carrara and Calcatta marble looks nice in a picture, but when a glass of juice spills, when the butcher knife slips, these are kitchen countertops that can end up with lasting scars.
We have an alternative to light marble that is not only as tough as your average granite kitchen, it's even tougher! At Natural Stone Source, our favorite "marble-look" granite is called quartzite. Quartzite is a natural stone that is formed of pure quartz. Said by scientists to be sandstone that melted and fused together completely, this surface is tougher than granite on the Mohr's scale of hardness. It often comes in light colors, although it can be found in dark colors too.
As exampled below, the look of marble (left) next to a slab of quartzite (right) is quite comparable.
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The kitchen is a prime area to take advantage of quartzite's hardiness, since it will be more resistant to stains, won't etch like marble, and isn't soft enough to be scratched with a knife. In fact, granite fabrication shops often use the most aggressive diamond blade to cut quartzite because it will wear down the standard granite blades too fast.
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The following comparison shows another granite-tough surface, called "gneiss", showing shades that rival the warmer tones that marble is traditionally sought out for.
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We carry all of these marble, quartzite, gneiss, and granite colors, and a whole lot more. Visit our extensive slabs page to begin designing the kitchen of your dreams!
Also, please visit our main showroom website at www.nssgranite.com
