23 May 5 Reasons Porcelain is a Great Choice for Kitchen Countertops | One Room Challenge | Spring 2020 | Week 3

The demo has begun and Week 3 of the One Room Challenge is a wrap!  Thank God, cause this was by far the most challenging week. However, the most rewarding too. It’s so fun to finally dig into the nitty-gritty details of executing the Collier St. Kitchen Makeover for the spring One Room Challenge which is sponsored by Better Homes & Gardens. This week I share all my trials and tribulations and 5 reasons porcelain is a great choice for kitchen countertops.

 

 

 

Community Support Front and Center

First, I want to take a moment to thank you for following along.  Your support and comments have been so helpful. Hopefully you saw my excitement this week of the unveiling of the new BLANCO SILGRANIT^® sink on my Instagram Highlight.  Wait for it!! Thanks to my ORC buddy, and FAVE DIY-er, Michelle of Breaking Down the Box, I finally learned how to edit my videos with her tutorial.  Be sure to follow her Instagram cause her videos are awesome!  #videogoals

This is why I love being a Guest Participant in the One Room Challenge. It is a community of talented and supportive designers on all levels – from beginner to advanced – some licensed interior designers, decorators, and many incredible DIY-ers.

What I love most about the One Room Challenge is that we’re all like-minded souls who love design. 

Together, as a community, we face the daunting challenge of transforming a room in 8 weeks, learning as we go, making mistakes along the way, sharing and commiserating with one another, and even collaborating.  (More on that in a future post.)

Having participated three times, I’ve met so many wonderfully creative people in the process, made new friends, and partnered with several national brands, local businesses, and craftsmen that really help bring my projects to life. This is what the One Room Challenge is truly all about and we have founder Linda Weinstein to thank for it!

If you’ve missed any of the excitement, please see my posts here:

WEEK 1 | WEEK 2 | WEEK 3 |

Also scroll through the rooms of 300+ Guest Participants and 20 Featured Designers for incredible inspiration in a vast variety of rooms, and with many of us hunkered home, there are a lot of outdoor living areas too!

Now let’s go behind the scenes as we work with one of our local partners, Empire Countertops, and, to my good fortune, a damn good, dependable carpenter, Alejandro Gutierrez of Alejandro Gutierrez Remodeling.

The Bar Essentials

This past week my interior designer Patrick Landrum, of PL&D Patrick Landrum Design, and I went to the Empire Countertops NEW showroom to make our final countertop selection in person. (Note: They were going to have a Grand Re-opening Celebration, but then the Pandemic hit, so that’s on hold. But their showroom is open now by appointment.)

But there was a new wrinkle. You see we have a kitchen bar and no real island. Remember from Week 1, we did not want to change the layout of our current kitchen?  My husband and I love the one level islands in other people’s homes, but not in ours. To cut down the bar was going to be far too expensive, and anyway, not by popular demand, we actually prefer a bar.  A raised bar works best in our kitchen because we don’t like everyone seeing our mess, the bar is part home office (especially now), and it works beautifully when we entertain. Cocktail parties in person someday soon, right?

But this presented a major problem. Cause I didn’t want to just have the same old bar with those metal brackets. And I must do something with those bar chairs, like maybe paint and recover? (Let me know what you think on that one.)

Last Minute Change – Austin Modern Home Tour Inspiration

 

 

All of a sudden I remembered a really cool bar counter  (above) in the #AntiFlipHome by ESS Design + Build, a vintage bungalow similar to ours in our neighborhood.  I had walked through this wonderfully remodeled home on the spring Austin Modern Home Tour.  In fact, their kitchen is U-shaped like ours opening up into the living room. I found lots of inspiration in this home and thankfully had a photo (see above).

I emailed Morgan Monroe, Empire Countertops’ customer Guru, the photo immediately so she could see what I was envisioning. Patrick and I spent some time with both Morgan and the showroom Manager, Sol,  to work out the design details. Or rather, Patrick did! (Nervous Nelly me is still standing 6 feet away!)

When it comes to numbers and fractions, and kitchen construction, I’m lost.  It is such a relief to be able to share my idea and have my interior designer and Empire Countertops’ team hash out the design specs.

That is, until it came time to measure it in our home.

Cornered! Empire Strikes Back

You see, because of the way I wanted to redo the bar and how the countertop cabinet interfaces with it, the porcelain needed some careful consideration. Thankfully Empire Countertops has specialists at the ready!

Thanks to Rand, Empire Countertops’ expert field measurer, and my interior designer Patrick, who both spoke the same language, we were able to resolve the problem corner. Phew!  I was so worried. But with Empire Countertops I felt really taken care of.

Below is Morgan and measure expert Rand discussing the best solution.

Now, you know by now, I do not give away all the details quite yet. But I think you’ll love the kitchen bar when it’s done, which hopefully is next week.

Things always don’t go as planned

When I changed the design that meant that Empire Countertops had to change demo and installation plans too. They also had to re-measure. Boy was I ever happy with Rand, who definitely had the expert skills to tackle this project.

I also totally underestimated all that needed to be prepped before the countertop could be installed. Thankfully Morgan helped me through this part and talked directly to my designer Patrick.  She really stays on top of your project from start to finish through every stage until you’re a satisfied customer.  I felt relieved that I did not have to figure it out, but I could leave it to the experts!

Oh, did I mention all of a sudden I had to act fast and find a great carpenter in 24 hours? These are the subtle nuances of the One Room Challenge.  It’s funny how you think you have all this time, then some things need to have been done yesterday.

Above and below are a couple kitchen photos on demo day.  Our old tiles, granite bar and pass-through were completely removed, and quickly.

I was incredibly lucky to have found a fantastic carpenter, Alejandro Gutierrez, through our Neighborhood App.

I thought, ‘Oh, it’ll take him maybe 2 afternoons’. It took 4 to get the bar and pass-through boards exactly right. Plus he carefully removed all the backsplash tile, the upper cabinet and our “taped together” microwave (How many of you have one of those?) Then he replaced all the sheetrock.

Note to self – When you rip out 20 year old tile, expect to have the sheetrock replaced too.

And I swear, I have NEVER seen a contractor clean up a worksite like Alejandro!  He left our kitchen immaculate every day.

This ALL was a very challenging week. But I’m super excited about the new design and I can’t wait for you to see what we have planned for it.

Did I mention yet that it’s best to have a kitchen remodel “plan”?  Yes, very important!

New Design Motto – Make a Plan but Be Flexible

The steps are really important in remodeling a kitchen because they have to be done in a logical order so that parts of your kitchen do not get damaged in the process.  I have been learning about them as I go. Most interior designers have an exact plan on how to remodel a kitchen.  I, on the other hand, kind of have my own way of doing things and my interior designer Patrick Landrum of PL&D Patrick Landrum Design either tells me “Okay, you can do it that way” or “No, that’s not gonna work”. Then I ask why? And he patiently explains it to me.

Thankfully Patrick is a dear friend and often lets me do things my own way. But that’s not necessarily how it works when you’re dealing with contractors, plumbers, and installations. So don’t ever hire me to design a kitchen (although I love helping homeowners select product!).  Instead, hire a professional like Patrick Landrum of PL&D Patrick Landrum Design.

Here’s my right hand man and dearest friend, Patrick Landrum, of PL&D Patrick Landrum Design, below in the Empire Countertops’ warehouse.

When it comes to construction and technical issues, you really have to know what you’re doing. I had the vision of what I wanted, but it was Patrick and Morgan and the incredible Empire Countertop team that could execute it and communicate the exact dimensions with the carpenter. I loved too how Morgan worked so effortlessly with Patrick directly. That was a great relief to have such smooth communication.

Why Porcelain?

When I think of porcelain I think of fine china, so I was really surprised to learn that it can be used in many applications from bathrooms to kitchen countertops, even outdoors.  After seeing all the gorgeous marble in Italy on our trip in 2015, I fell in love with it.  But marble is very expensive and I knew we could never afford it for our kitchen.

For our Breakfast Nook Makeover in the fall 2019 One Room Challenge, we fell in love with the sleek look of this gold pedestal table with a faux marble top.  Having eaten and played cards on it and used it as our kitchen office, we were hooked at its durability and sleek smooth, easy to clean finish.

 

So when Morgan recommended porcelain for our countertop I was all in!

 

5 Reasons Porcelain is a Great Choice for Kitchen Countertops

 

• Porcelain is made of 100% natural, raw, and clay-based materials and is sustainable.
• Porcelain is durable, scratch-proof and heat-proof
• Porcelain is stain-resistant. Liquids do not penetrate porcelain easily as it is not a porous material such as granite and quartzite
• Porcelain is very low maintenance and does not need to be sealed like other countertop materials
• Porcelain is cost-effective, a more affordable option than granite, quartz or marble.

 

Porcelain kitchen countertops are an extremely hard and durable surface.  They rarely chip or crack (although it is possible) and instead stand up to most impacts. The durability of porcelain is second to stone, and basically is unaffected by general day-to-day wear and tear.

As a result, porcelain is one of the best options available. This surface is not only durable but excellent for the environment and the health of your home. In addition, porcelain is far less expensive than granite, marble, or quartz. And the best advantage of all, is that once installed, there is almost zero maintenance. That speaks volumes to me as a homeowner with a messy husband chef in the kitchen!

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Empire Countertops is a Texas Leader

One of the leading solid surface countertop companies in Texas, Empire Countertops has been serving Texas customers for over 30+ years.  With three showrooms in Dallas/Fort Worth, San Antonio, and Austin, their expertise in countertops – from sourcing and importing the highest quality of materials, to fabrication and installation – is highly regarded in both residential and commercial interiors. They work with home builders, contractors, developers, homeowners and interior designers to execute projects with perfection.

Empire Countertops was the ideal local company to partner with for our kitchen makeover. They recently remodeled their Austin showroom into a gorgeous new space and want more interior designers to know about it.

Upon meeting their customer guru Morgan Monroe for the first time, I instantly knew I’d be in great hands. With such a strong presence in Austin, I was able to get excellent first-hand advice and support from Morgan directly.

While I felt I had a strong vision of what direction I was going with my Kitchen Makeover (and Patrick and I had discussed it over the years), Morgan and her team helped add a fresh perspective that brought my vision together.

I thought for sure when I changed my mind about how I’d like the bar installed that they wouldn’t be happy.  But they jumped on board as if I had that vision all along.  I couldn’t be more impressed with their level of professionalism, how well they treat their customers, and the attention to detail they give the customer’s projects.

Empire Countertops has a strong reputation serving large commercial projects. However, as evidenced by their commitment to my Kitchen Makeover, they are an excellent partner in working with homeowners and interior designers on residential projects.

From kitchens, home offices, bathrooms and literally every room in your home Empire Countertops has you covered.  They offer a wide range of high-quality materials including granite, marble, quart, quartzite and porcelain.

From the minute I reached out to Morgan about the One Room Challenge, I  have never been more impressed with the level of customer service and guidance she has provided.

Below is me and Morgan (6 feet apart and masked) at the warehouse. What a vast selection of stone and porcelain they have to choose from!

Being that this day at the showroom was my very first day out in public in 8 weeks, I had to strike a pose with my mask and black gloves!

Empire Countertop Inspiration

Please enjoy a few photos of beautiful kitchens and bathrooms that Empire Countertops has installed over the years.

 

Thank you to Empire Countertops for your excitement to partner with me on our Collier St. Kitchen Makeover for the One Room Challenge. And for sponsoring the fabrication and installation of a beautiful porcelain countertop for our kitchen. I can’t wait to see it installed! I am so grateful for Empire Countertops high-quality porcelain and incredible customer service, with Morgan making sure every detail is taken care of with expert service. Thank you!

I should hear any day now about scheduling, but I imagine our new porcelain countertop will be installed within the next 10-15 days. I’m so excited because I know it’s going to completely transform our kitchen!!

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Please visit Empire Countertops website and their gorgeous NEW Austin Showroom. Call Morgan anytime to schedule an appointment  512-560-2933 and say The Pillow Goddess sent you. I can assure you that your remodeling project will be taken care of from start to finish.

Till next time, please follow me on Instagram where I give daily updates in my feed and Stories. I also have a Kitchen ORC Highlight. All @thepillowgoddess. Also follow Empire Countertops instagram @empirecountertopstx and hashtags #OneRoomChallenge #BHGORC and #thepillowgoddess.

Wishing you a safe and relaxing Memorial Day weekend!   XO, PG

Note: This is a sponsored post by Empire Countertops. All photography is mine except for logos and the Empire inspiration images. Opinions are my own.

THANK YOU TO ALL SPONSORING PARTNERS