Not every square inch of space between the countertops and the cabinets needs to be filled in with some odd looking piece of tile. Paint the small areas and see how it looks. You probably won't notice it or you might even like it. Talk about over reaction by posters...

Okay - so at one of our houses, there were little cubbies like you showed before custom make by the millwork company. Each cubbie was about 5" x 5" x 5", not as deep as a wine bottle that you could use for spices or coffee cups. You could get that to fill in the lower spaces on either side and keep the middle tall or you could have it go all the way across if you cut the backsplash. I'm pretty sure they would have to remove the splash to cut it.

Or you could have the cabinet company make a shallower 6 1/2" tall cabinet along the bottom with one pull down door all the way across for concealed storage. Depends what that area would be used for.

After your cabinets are up, why couldn't you put a little shelf at the top of each side of the quartite backsplash (the shorter sides)....Just big enough for salt shakers or something around that size. The shelves could be painted the same color as your cabinets and each shelf will have a back that is painted the same color. Too bad there was a mixup but sometimes we just have to come up with the right thing and it will look very good, though maybe not what you wanted in the first place.

I really would recommend against building cubbies or shelves or any other coverup structure unless you really like the idea. I suggest trying to match the quartzite.....keeping in mind that you could get away with a less that perfect match for this space, since it does not adjoin any material in the same plane. (Wherever you have an angle, just as to the countertop, the difference in lighting and viewing direction means even the same material will appear very different....hence two slightly different materials can appear to match.)

Ok, so speaking from the position of being a builder for 21 years, I understand your dilemma and your willingness to get past this mistake but you will never look at the space as you had envisioned it from the beginning. It will always be a mistake. Bite the bullet, pick out another piece of stone and force the fabricator to take care of the problem. Hopefully you haven't paid for the job. Good luck.

Rip down the marble slab and replace it with sheet stainless.

If it's there cock up ..they should replace it !

So to answer questions I got a contractor 10 percent discount on the stone. This is a place where they do not know when or what they will get until its on the truck. So they cant anticipate when or if another of this series will come in. I waited weeks to find these 2 pieces that came in on one of the loads. I just had to go there once a week and take a look at the new inventory. I did use his fabricator. His fabricator did give me a discount for paying in cash. This is who they refer people to. And I did pay him. He did a decent job otherwise (other than my island seam which is a whole other story but in the scheme of things minor) and at the moment I couldnt fathom what I was going to do and I didnt want to not pay him period for the other work. I just cant do that as these guys have families to feed too and I feel bad...

The reason I cant just put a shelf on either side is the new cabinets are each 33 inches wide. The area he made high is 35 inches wide. So I wouldnt be able to have it look right with just a shelf on either side. We wouldnt mind hanging wine rack and I could probably get this custom made but I dont have the time for that.

Any thoughts on my stone? Did I wind up with marble or is there such a thing as a white marble quartzite...I tried cleaning it and I already have etching ;/ so I may have marble after all... but just hard to believe after I was assured it wasn't.

@lareee22225

The marble slab has to come down. It's move on or keep annoying yourself. A raised or recessed PANEL in a cabinetry match makes it appear as a built in bar. There's no way to make this look good without moving on. I would suggest the PANEL for two reasons. It's inexpensive, will kook finished, and you may at some point get lucky with a match to the counter top,. In the meantime, accept the situation and move on. There are more important things, and a panel is not a hack job, I do it quite a lot to achieve a built in look, less utilitarian. It will be fine, and without any major disruption it is easily replaced at a later time..

Failing that, replace the counter top with SOMETHING ELSE and wait until the cabinets are in place to do it, and then match the new top. No "kiddo's" party will be ruined due to any of this, and it's a first world problem.......all other problems possible and considered: )

And sorry to say.....quartzite is not impervious to etching. Quartz is.

Note to others: Be present for the template and make sure an elevated drawing of the kitchen is on hand and dimensioned. Demand to "sign off" on same at the fabricator before the final cut of the solid - whatever it is...........save yourself.

Your stone looks like Super White to me but I'm not a geologist. Super White is neither marble nor quartzite, but dolomite. It will etch. The names vendors give stones are not uniform by any means.

It's marble. And it needs to go.

Indeed, Sophie !!! No matter what it is.lol

Who project managed this? Who provided the design for the fabricator? Who approved the template in the slab? Who mad hemisphere of working with a friend or neighbor? A learning experience on the value of design documentation and maintaining a professional distance between neighbors.

The splash doesn't work at all. Not sure that the counter works. Maybe the right backsplash can tie it together. Maybe sheet glass? Maybe a grey concrete looking tile? A 24"x24" one would leave you with few grout lines.

What is this area used for?

Your fabricator is a moron. Quartzite is totally different from Quartz. Quartz is manmade and does not neat to be sealed. . Everything else does (except for absolute black granite,,,which is actually a true granite, all the other granites are other types of stone mixes,,but I digress). Quartzite is similar to marble in hardness (about a 3 on the Mohs hardness scale. it will etch and stain just like marble). It will have to be sealed at least once a year. Drop some water on it. Does it absorb?? if so, use a penetrating sealer.

Please don't let this goofball fabricator just seal it with anything. 511 impregnator is one of the best. Make them buy that for your stone if they don't have it. And make sure he knows how to apply it. Its not something that just sits on. it has to be applied and buffed off within a few minutes. If I were you, I would supervise this part. Otherwise he might ruin the rest of it.

Did you not know what kind of stone you were getting for your kitchen?? This quartzite is basically the same as Carrara marble (as far as staining and etching, etc). Since you say your husband does all of the cooking, make sure he knows that tomato juice, wine, or anything acidic is a no-no on the bare stone. Make sure it gets cleaned with only a cleaner meant for marble. This is why Sophie was telling you to rip it out. If you don't want to be bothered with any type of maintenance, have them take it out and replace it with Quartz (the man made one). if you have to wait a few weeks, then wait. Or if the maintenance and the chopped up backsplash doesn't bother you, then deal with what you have. Everyone has given you sound options. In the end, it's your money and their screw-up. Do what you want.

Gosh I feel like I have started a fire on here... ;) But thank you to everyone who took the time to try to help. Its made a bad weekend easier with helpful thoughts and information.

Not sure where I will land but I will post a pic in a few weeks to show what happens...

And yes... moral is everything in writing. I thought I was dealing with the professionals (even though I know them). I had a 3D layout of the kitchen plan... just never had the fabricator sign it as I never knew we were somehow not on the same page. Good but expensive lesson.

With all the good info I tested my counters. The scratch easily with a steak knife and water left for a minute or two darkens the white to gray. carbon fibers easily flaked off with the knife. So obviously not a 'true quartzite'. I am betting its more of a marble. Obviously should be sealed. Beth you mentioned miracle 511. Is this something I can realistically do myself or do I need to hire a (new) fabricator to come in and do the initial seal? I really don't want him to do it and really don't want to pay someone else to do it if I can ( I am an above average DIYer)

You can have the fabricator cut 2 pieces exactly the right size and using 2-part epoxy they can basically glue the 2 pieces on. If you don't feel comfortable with the fabricator doing it you can call a stone restoration company come out and do it. If they make the color correct the seam will not be noticeable. The picture below is a marble top in pieces. Using the epoxy and making a few different colors I was able to put that table back together and you cant tell that it was ever broken.

You can try this and if it doesn't turn out correct than I would have that company rip it out and do it the right way.

Marble Table Top · More Info

Marble Table Top · More Info

thank you. My hope is to find something to do just that and hide the seam with a floating shelf. My seam on my island is very visible. Maybe again this is fabricator issue. Ill post a pic. If the seams shouldnt be that bad I may not have to use the shelving

wow. laree , I'm so sorry you are going through all of this. Isn't it amazing how one person can so completely mess up something? I agree about that seam joining. Obviously it;s visible, but beyond that, he didn't even try to match the pieces! It's very noticeable. There is an art to fabrication and this guy just isn't experienced. Personally, if it was my kitchen and my money, I would have them remove it and pay to replace it. You will be living with this for the next decade, what's another month??

It very well could be marble. If you thought you were getting quartzite, and were told it's quartzite, and it's not, then that's on the stone place. I would get a refund of my money and go somewhere else. But hey, it's up to you at this point. If you can live with it, then that's fine too.

As for the 511, yes you can do it yourself. You apply. let it penetrate for a few minutes, and buff dry. It's a very high quality sealer. I've been using it on my slate floors for years. When water fails to bead, its time to reapply.

Doing the 511 now- so far so good. I will go talk to the stone seller tomorrow as we had a discussion "no marble" and I they walked me out to these 2 pieces specifically as even though it was labeled marble it was quartzite per them (by sales girl- not my neighbor). I think I will ask for it to be replaced and wait it out. Ill keep the old stuff for now until I find pieces I like so I wont be without a kitchen if it takes a few months. Thanks again for everyones help. Good to know the seam is as bad as I thought... I didnt know if that was just par for course or not as I have not had white with seams before.

laree22225, yes it is a marble, same of Donna Sandra, Shadow Storm, some sellers will name it Super White (not the "original" Super White thou);

Beth, hello, I just have to correct few things (for now, for the good sake of the internet):

When you mention "Everything else does (except for absolute black granite,,,which is actually a true granite", that is not true, Black Absolute from India is a gabbro.

When you mention "Quartzite is similar to marble in hardness (about a 3 on the Mohs hardness scale. it will etch and stain just like marble", that is not true, quartzite is 6.5 to 7 on Moh`s scale. Quartzite will be always a very hard and compact body.

I understand you learned this from the industry/slab supply market; because some companies label Super White, Fantasy Brown/Mascavo, Sequoia Brown, naming few, as quartzites.... thou they are marbles.

Thank you everyone. One more question- I probably should have used the porous plus since whatever this marble is its super soft. After using the 511 I have already noted some chipping in the surface :/ so I am wondering if I can use the porous plus now that I have used the 511 or if I have to strip it off and start again? Also is there anything I can 'coat' the chips in so the dont get worse in the interim of taking to the stone distributer and getting new pieces?

Don't waste your money applying anything to this stone. Sealers are not designed to prevent chipping and are very limited in their ability to prevent etching from acidic solutions. Find your new stone and chalk this up as a learning experience. The old adage "you get what you pay for" can be said to apply to construction practices ten fold. By the way Link's comment above about the hardness of quartzite relative to granite on the mohs scale is exactly correct. The problem arises when you purchase stone from someone that either doesn't know what they are selling or is intentionally selling something under a different name. Good luck.

thank you Daniel, I stand corrected. The point I was trying to make, and not well apparently, was that black granite (considered more granite-like than the others) is so dense, it doesn't take a sealer. Meaning that it is one of the few stone countertops that don't need to be sealed. Ditto for Chinese red granite ( from China) All the other countertops that are marketed as 'granite' are actually a combo of different types or stone and rock, and not a true granite. Perhaps I should have referred to the Absolute Black as a gabbro , but I'm sure I would have had the OP glazing over from lack of interest.

As for the quartzite, I was repeating what someone else had said in the comment above mine who said it was like marble. (you caught my mistake but not his???!) I should have double checked before taking him at his word.

I never claimed to be a geologist but am just passing on what the I've learned over the years from the stone companies and things I've read. I was informed by both sources that absolute black was one of the few actual 'granites' (igneous rocks formed by molten lava combined w/minerals feldspar and quartz, usually). The other 'granite' slabs are often a combo of igneous and metamorphic rocks with percentages of feldspar, quartz, minerals and others and mislabeled as granite. (I'm sure i'm off on my labeling here, but you get the point!) So these are classified by different names based on the type of rock, percentages of feldspar or quartz, size of the grains, etc, so stone yards just clump them all under the heading of 'Granite, or Marble or Quartzite' for the most part.

Most of those need to be sealed because they aren't dense enough. That's really all I meant by the comment. I should have been more specific.

hello Beth, please I am sorry I was so rude; I am just a big fan of natural stone :)

Daniel K,,,no it's fine. I didn't take your comment as rude,,I'm always open to learn something!! I should have phrased my answer to read in reference to the stone density in regard to sealing. Most people think all of those stone countertops are granite and don't need sealants! In reality, most of them aren't true granite and do need sealing!

And I'm a fan too! I just got my first piece of sugalite for a necklace!

Dynamic stone care- do you know anyone in WA state to refer me to?

The update is thankfully the Distributer acknowledged his salesperson error and we are picking new slabs tonight. It was in fact marble. The fabricator has offered to redo job as well with the new slabs. We discussed the seam and have in writing that if I am not satisfied with his work a second fabricator will come out to correct it at his cost. He acknowledged he rushed the job and it was not his best work. We also have the dimensions in writing. Thank you everyone for encouraging us to stand up for ourselves in this. Thankfully it was not a big fight...I think each party knew they really screwed up. Now fingers crossed I can find a decent replacement tonight in the mount blanc granite as I am done with the is it or is it not real quartzite ;)

nice work! Please post a pic when it's finished. I'm dying to see how this turns out.

Yes I will do cabinets first... lessons learned. The go in the 19th. Counters the 21. So barring catastrophe I will still make my party and I will post a pic on the 22nd ;)

I happy the fabricator is taking responsibility for the poor job. Please post finished pictures, especially after he fixes the seam I would like to see how it turns out.

I purchase a 5 cm honed marble fabricator apparently forgot to call me after they were directed to provide me with a lay out . The cost is 12k I called asked for the layout they said it was cut already ... and it’s absolutely not how I envisioned it , fabricator said it’s “beautiful “ but it’s not his kitchen and I don’t think it’s beautiful ! I sent emails asking 3 times for the lay out in which was on my contract !!!!

then cut the Island sink and took all the movement out of the slab !

what’s my recourse any suggestions ?

How much money do you owe them please?

4000 left

That's excellent leverage. They haven't made any money yet. Post pictures and a dimensioned drawing please.

They refuse to call back . I’m out $