New quartz counters!

We have new quartz counters from Home Depot and could not be happier with the whole process and the final result! We selected White Arabesque in quartz (Silestone) because it was the closest we could find to a marble-type pattern and look. Very briefly, Nate considered going through Menards for the quartz, but it's a strickly DIY endeavor there: you do all of the measurements, you transport the material, and you install. With something so expensive (and HEAVY!), the learning curve was just too steep, so we went with the full-service option from HD. (Seriously, quartz counters are HEAVY! Whom would he have enlisted to help with an install, everyone on the block? Yikes!)

When you order counters from HD, they work with a local contractor who takes care of everything. The outfit we worked with, McDermott Top Shop in Sullivan, was amazing from start to finish. Their appointment schedulers are very well informed and organized, none of this "we'll have to get back to you later" stuff while you wait for days and days for a call back, or times when you call the shop and nobody knows anything about your order. Everyone I spoke with always knew what was going on. It was very reassuring.

How did it all work? A guy from McDermott Top Shop came to measure the area with lasers, a process that took about 30 minutes. We were told to have the new sink and faucet on hand so he could make an accurate pattern. We received proofs via email the next day, we confirmed them, and two weeks later the counters were installed.

The night before the installation, we removed the old counters and everything that went with them: sink, garbage disposal, faucet. One of the hardest things was removing the gross old cast-iron sink! It was so heavy--we asked the neighbor for help because it was just too much for me.

I hate these blue counters. And the gross sink, too.

Goodbye, blue laminate!

You'll get a new counter soon, little cabinet!

Nate sawed the old countertop into pieces, which we plan to slowly get rid of in the weekly trash pickup.

Of course, we had the regular "I don't think this will fit" conversation with the contractors on the morning of installation. We KNEW they would, because Nate and I took the old blue laminate counters out ourselves and moved them out of the house without tearing down walls or busting through windows. After we convinced them that the quartz pieces would fit (I believe I said, "If I can take the old ones out, you can surely put the new ones in!"), they were done in about 20 minutes. No joke. (I didn't say, "I told you so," even though they deserved it.)

The contractors also attached the undermount stainless steel sink (a Costco order!) and put the faucet (from Menards) in place, though they didn't connect it.

Beautiful!

I'm Nate and I approve of this countertop!

After waiting the requisite 24 hours, Nate did the plumbing so we have running water and a new garbage disposal. He also hooked up a fancy button for the garbage disposal - no more flipping a switch on the wall!

Cool!

This was an easy step in the kitchen project. I went to HD to get a pre-order in the system, which worked well because we already knew the approximate size of the quartz pieces we'd need. Then, we waited for a sale at HD to place the order and were able to zip in and out thanks to the pre-order. We submitted the receipt to HD to take advantage of their 11% Menards price match program. We ended up getting a sizable HD gift card because of the price match, money that we will spend on other aspects of the kitchen remodel.