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| From Natural Built Home |
The beautiful and eco-friendly kitchen countertop in the HGTV 2012 Green Home inspired me to search out other countertops that are attractive as well as easy on the environment. There are a number of intriguing products out there, including the Nuxite countertop pictured above, which is made of a combination of crushed recycled walnut shells and a low-emission resin binder. While probably not as maintenance-free as the more familiar quartz-resin countertops, it would certainly be a lot easier to care for than wood, and I just love the look:
Recycled glass countertops have been around for quite a while now. Both Vetrazzo and Icestone manufacture this type of product in a variety of colors:
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| Vetrazzo Millefiori |
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| Forest Fern Icestone |
These countertops are made with a concrete binder, so the surface must be sealed periodically to protect it from stains, but otherwise the material is extremely durable and low maintenance. Recycled glass countertops made by Minnesota-based Elements are bound with an environmentally friendly resin, which means that it never needs to be sealed and is virtually maintenance free:
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| Elements Recycled Glass Countertop |
This company will custom design your countertop with almost any material added, including seashells or marbles! Another company, Cosentino, produces a line of countertops called ECO from a variety of recycled materials, either post-industrial or post-consumer, also with an eco-friendly resin binder, such as this one made with recycled mirrors:
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| Polar Cap ECO |
Cosentino also makes Silestone, an engineered quartz countertop, which is what we currently have in our kitchen. I absolutely love it -- it truly is maintenance free as well as beautiful -- but after seeing all of these sustainable options that are available, I may just have to look in to using one of them in our next kitchen remodel. And check out this site for a description of even more environmentally responsible countertop choices. It just keeps getting easier and easier to be green!
Wood countertops can add warmth on the kitchen. Although steel and granite tend to be favorite, they will be able to feel cold in addition to rigid. A wooden accentuate counter could bring a genial, homey touch.
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