Here, get inspired by 12 unique countertop ideas you can install in your kitchen, as well as the pros and cons of bringing each one into your home. Pros: The unique aspect of this counter is how much of an innovative improvement on good old-fashioned laminate countertops it is. Cons: It is still laminate, and prejudices linger among homebuyers when it comes to this material. Thus, it may lead to a lower resale value. Pros: There’s no denying the benefits here: It is stain, rust, and burn resistant, which is a great option if you’re always creating something new in the kitchen. It doesn’t hurt that it will likely impress friends and relatives with its reflective, upscale atmosphere. Cons: Going this route is a good way to cut deep into your budget with this ultra-expensive, hard-to-fabricate material. Pros: It allows for a truly infinite range of design possibilities: color, size, thickness, etc. This is also the only material that will adapt to your kitchen instead of the other way around. Cons: Concrete counters do come at a price—they’re more expensive than you might expect when installed by professionals. Though it’s sturdy, concrete can also crack and scorch if not properly cared for. Pros: Even though modular granite’s installation process is unique, it aims to duplicate the look of a very ordinary material—slab granite. It’s a great choice for those who want to recreate a solid slab counter without the hefty price tag. Cons: Modular granite is one of the newer countertop ideas to hit the market, and it has not really taken off yet. Pros: Reclaimed wood is gorgeous, and it verifies your “green” credentials. Few homes have wood countertops, much less reclaimed ones. Cons: Wood does require a high degree of maintenance that non-organic materials such as solid surface do not need. If you’re dedicated to its additional care, though, it can be worthwhile. Pros: Investing in a glass counter can undoubtedly ensure you have the most unique option in your neighborhood—this isn’t your average kitchen upgrade. Cons: ThinkGlass calls glass a “noble” product, and for $200 to $400 per square foot, it’s typically expensive. Still, this counter material allows for high-end options like embeddable LEDs ranging in color from white to fuchsia. Pros: This countertop is created from a combination of crushed quartz, other stone materials, and polymer binding agents. It looks fantastic and performs better than granite. Cons: It is not cheap: Quartz rivals slab granite’s cost at $50 to $100 per square foot. Pros: If you want something incredibly unique, look no further. Even Ernest Hemingway writes about zinc countertops in the bistros of post-World War I Paris. It’s non-porous and can develop a patina as it ages, which some homeowners appreciate. Cons: Zinc countertops, typically 1/16-inch thick, develop a fine patina of hairline scratches over time. Not in love with those scratches? No problem: Just sand them out. You might already be using paper as your countertop material. Laminate counters are a particleboard base, topped with a laminate sheet that is composed of resin-impregnated paper. Pros: Leading paper countertop manufacturer PaperStone saturates individual sheets of paper with petroleum-free resins and consolidates them under extreme heat and pressure in an industrial press. The result is a solid surface material, meaning the same thing through and through. Solid surface is not just a product description but a category of countertop materials, much like Corian. On top of that, all of the paper is 100 percent post-consumer recycled material, which is a big deal if you’re trying to be eco-friendly. Cons: Post-consumer recycled paper is the most eco-friendly of the green countertop materials, and it’s a popular countertop alternative. However, like other unique materials listed here, it is somewhat difficult to obtain. Pros: It is non-porous on the surface, so no sealing is needed. However, cutting the edges will expose pores, so those must be sealed. If you’re someone who prefers a high-gloss finish, polyester counters won’t let you down. Cons: You’ll pay the price for this conversation piece. Alkemi says that their polyester surfaces cost the same as high-end solid surface materials, which can be pretty expensive. One of the best accounts of this material comes from an intrepid Minneapolis resident Sarah Riedl, who followed through with her dream counters. She wanted to skim existing counters, but none existed. So, she and her husband Chris constructed a top made of a 1- by 2-inch frame, half-inch OSB, and half-inch cement backer board. Then they laid down three coats of Ardex Feather Finish, sanded, and covered it all with carnauba wax. Pros: It’s a great option for DIYers who want the look of concrete without committing to it entirely. Cons: Sarah reported that, four months later, the concrete was beginning to scratch, despite mitigation efforts, like religiously using cutting boards (she says that even dropping keys on the counter will scratch them). But for a total of only $150 in materials, she feels it was worth it. As a surface material, poured epoxy is often found in unconventional locations, occupying both the world of brewpub “penny floors” and world-class biomedical facilities for laboratory tables. Epoxy resin adequately mimics marble, but it really excels with eye-catching solid colors like the pictured bottle green from Countertop Epoxy. Pros: Epoxy can withstand temperatures up to 518 degrees Fahrenheit before distorting. Water absorption basically doesn’t exist, as epoxy resin sips up only 0.008 percent water after 24 hours (by contrast, porcelain tile, which is rated as “impervious,” soaks up 0.5 percent). Cons: While it is a distinctive material, epoxy can also be challenging and time-consuming to apply. You will likely want to look to a professional for this one. Epoxy can also be damaged from a thermal shock (like moving the frozen turkey from the counter and replacing it with a hot pan straight from the oven).
