Which Is The Best Kitchen Worktop For Me?

Laminate and Compact Laminate Worktops

The most familiar kitchen worktop, they are made from decorative papers, sealed around a chipboard core. This means it creates choice in terms of colour, and they are lightweight and generally come in 30 and 40mm thicknesses. Whilst one of the cheaper kitchen worktop, they can damage easily with scratches and heat. You also can't have under-mounted sinks such as Belfast Sinks with these workshops.

That said, a new breed of super-thin laminate is coming onto the market. These are decorative papers that sandwich a coloured, solid core. They come in various thicknesses up to 12mm so are great for modern kitchen designs. Because of the solid core, these can have under-mounted sinks but with this modern look, you won't want it with your Belfast sink.

Laminate worktops are a material I used to steer clear of but am now beginning to take a second look at so don’t discount them!

Wooden Worktops

Wood is a great material to warm up your kitchen design with and make it feel homely. It is very tactile so great for kitchen islands and mixing with stone. It does need looking after though, so no leaving your washing up to drip dry on it. Wooden kitchen worktops also need oiling a couple of times a year but are well worth the effort.

Wooden worktops come between 30 & 50mm thick and are made with staves (small pieces glued together) or are planked (more expensive long planks skilfully joined together) but both are a gorgeous addition to any kitchen.

Granite Worktops

Granite is cut straight out of rocks in Spain, Africa and Brazil which makes each piece unique. Because it is a natural material, it is slightly porous so it can stain if acids are left on it such as citrus fruit, red wine and some curries. This just means that you need to house-train your teenagers to keep tidy!

Granite worktops come in 20-30mm thicknesses but can be joined together to make any thickness for larger feature kitchen units.

Quartz Worktops

Quartz is cut from similar rock to granite but is then ground up, mixed with resins to change the colour and stuck back together again. Quartz is naturally antibacterial and with added resins, it is less porous than granite making it very hygienic and harder to stain.

They come in a large variety of colours, including both flat and natural effects. This makes it a very versatile material. This is my favourite go-to worktop for any kitchen design.

Resin Worktops

These are a very interesting option for kitchen worktops, quite pricey but extremely hygienic with non-porous finishes, seamless joints, coved upstands and integrated sinks. This leaves nowhere for viruses and bacteria to hide. It is also nicely warm to the touch which is something quartz and granite are most certainly not. If they get scratched, they are easy to sand back to a good as new, making them a potentially more cost-effective kitchen worktop, as fewer repairs may be needed.

Ceramic Worktops

This indestructible material is made from powders bonded by a high energy laser which creates a completely uniform material, resistant to cracking from thermal shock. In English this means this is the only material you can put your hot pans on without it cracking!

Ceramic kitchen worktops are now being made in a variety of thicknesses and colours. It is worth noting that these are some of the more expensive worktop options. Therefore they may not be the best choice for low-cost, DIY kitchen projects.

Glass & Acrylic Worktops

These are beautiful, modern finishes up to 12mm thick. Both acrylic and glass worktops can be heavy so need proper support built into the cabinets. The acrylic however can be sanded back to remove any scratches, but glass worktops cannot.

There you have it, a quick rundown of kitchen worktop options that can be used within most kitchen designs. For more help on designing and planning your new kitchen, get in touch today!