I have used terrazzo tiles in a retro style kitchen bench. Looked great, hardwearing, but the grout wasn't great to live with. With so many reconstituted stones, such as the Ceaserstone brand, on the market, which look very similar, why aren't you considering any of those options? Terrazzo is probably the first reconstituted stone product anyway...

Best of luck,

Dr Retro

of Dr Retro House Calls

Hi Catherine...

We were only at a stone business last week to get an idea of what kitchen island bench material we might like... I’m not sure if the information was accurate but they claimed that Essastone, Trendstone & Smartstone are the same material as Caesarstone? Could be worth a visit to your local stone shop (our builder referred us) & have a look at the options? Some of the images you’ve posted looked similar to the stone materials we saw :)

Hmmm I guess they are! Funny I never thought terrazzo when I first looked at engineered quartz, but that was the beginning of my journey quite a while ago, when I probably had no idea what terrazzo was! I’ll go back and have a look

I have ordered a terrazzo slab for my kitchen island (similar to the one with pink tones that you have pictured) which is yet to be installed. The pro is that it is about a third of the cost on the engineered stone products. The con is my kitchen company did not want to work with the product as they at not familiar with it or how the joins an mitres will turn out

Whoa I'm surprised it is cheaper ( I was expecting more expensive !).... May I ask who you are getting it from (if you are in Sydney?). Hope you do find someone else to install it - I'd be interested to hear how it goes (and to see some pics, pretty please).

I am very surprised about Craig's claim that terrazzo is so much cheaper than some of the competitively priced re-constituted stones. Is it being cast in-situ, or off-site then installed? Has your cabinetwork been re-inforced for the additional weight? I imagine it would be like a concrete slab benchtop and probably a lot thicker and heavier than a reconstituted stone. Some concrete slab benches (not the GFRC ones) also require additional re-inforcement of the timber floor structure due to the weight.

I would love to see some photos of the installation and finished work as well,

Regards

Dr Retro

of Dr Retro House Calls

Hi all - the terrazzo slab we purchased was 3050 by 1240mm and 20mm think. It was called Point Leo from DeFazio tiles in Brunswick Melbourne but they have a number of colours. I believe it’s approx the same weight as engineered stone and subject to the same rules for overhang support etc. I believe the slab is cast in Italy and imported. Like other products it needs to be edged and I was told that it can come with chips on the edge so be prepared to lose a few cms when cutting. I think the product may need to be sealed like natural stone products but not 100% sure. I have paid for the slab but not the stonemason so not exactly sure if it will come out cheaper than other products but the stone mason who is installing the rest of our kitchen (in essestone ash concrete) quoted my 300% for the product,cutting and installation and he would not guarantee the result so we are going with the suppliers stone mason who is yet to quote cutting and installation

Hi Dr Retro
We are about 3 or 4 months away from kitchen installation but here is photo of the sample, seems a small photo so I hope hope you can see it

Ooh that looks fantastic - if the price is that good I'm going to look into it further. I think the "bits" in terrazzo are bigger than the engineered stone - it looks a bit more deliberate, I really like it. Nice colour choices!

I love this product and I'm really interested to use it in the kitchen of my new apartment.

Another material I find beautiful is Vetrazzo, ( recycled glass surfaces). It's very unique and the combinations of colours are endless. Unfortunately, it's difficult to find in Australia.

That is really lovely Jen!

We looked for a terrazzo tradesman a few years ago but it seems the old guys are retiring and no younger people want to take it on.

Best Group in Adelaide make terrazzo tiles, they are lovely for a floor but probably not suitable for bench top (re the grout issue mentioned above but also they are very thick and heavy). https://www.bestgroup.com.au/products/terrazzo/terrazzo-honed

This is a photo of a terrazzo slab kitchen built by one of the kitchen cabinetmakers that I regularly work with (not one of my designs). The terrazzo slab was sourced from Signorino Tiles here in Melbourne.

Here is a link to Signorino's terrazzo which looks really good (but doesn't look cheap):

http://www.signorino.com.au/range/terrazzo-slabs/

Dr Retro

of Dr Retro House Calls

Ooh that kitchen is just gorgeous! And so is that terrazzo... you've got some great suppliers in Melbourne.

Craig that looks amazing! You have a lovely kitchen design. Hope your stone mason found it ok to work with.

Craig

Just wondering what the total cost was for the terrazzo slab and installation?

In total it was approx 1,000 for the slab and 2,000 for the cutting and installation so I believe it is comparable to engineered stone. One thing we have noticed it its quite a porous product and even though we have been applying a sealant purchased from the supplier we have already left a mark from were lemon juice came in contact.

@Craig hopefully the colour you have chosen means it's not noticeable! Perhaps some of the stones making up the terrazzo are porous (sometimes they use marble or other stone chips)?

Craig, I absolutely love your colour scheme. Is the timber look cupboard done in Polytec Tasmanian Oak as in your first photo? I love it. Re the terazzo, I wonder if it has to be professionally sealed (not sure). I just know that when I researched it as a replacement for the old terrazzo bathroom floor that was ripped up at my place, all of the info said it had to be regularly sealed and to not use any acidic or alkaline cleaners, or it would eat into the sealant/stone. On the old floor, a cleaner leaked on it and I didn't notice it for a while. It did eat into the sealant and terrazzo. Having said that, I have Essastone on my benches and have found it very easy to stain also.

Hello, we are one of the few companies specialised in Terrazzo. Our speciality is iinstalling in situ floors as well as bespoke terrazzo benches. We can custom design based colour and aggregate you desire. We are based in Melbourne and can be contacted via our instagram @instylestone or on www.instylestone.com.au

Ooo i am so glad I came across this thread! Love hearing some actual install info on products that are hard to find/raise tradies for!

Hi All, found this while researching terrazzo and wanted to follow up and Craig and Catherine's comments. How have you both found the product a year after?

This is our engineered stone bench top. Tough as and hides crumbs well!

A USA company makes bench tops from recycled glass which look like terrazzo but the product may not be available in Australia. See their website https://icestoneusa.com/products/icestone/ for available colours.

I had terrazzo benchtops installed in a kitchen a few years ago. I no longer live there so I can’t comment as to the long-term wear and tear but in the four years I had them they were trouble free. I had a beach house and had the slabs made with tiny seashells in the mix which looked absolutely fabulous. There was one small area where a flattish shell had split through the centre after the slab was polished which left a porous spot (about the size of a 5 cent coin) but I sealed it with beeswax and that was the end of the problem. I’ve recently renovated another house and would have had the same benchtops but it wasn’t practical as I live a long way from where I bought them previously, which was in Gosford, NSW. I now have engineered stone and the installation/handling was done identically to the terrazzo.

Tanya, do you have any photos of the bench top with the shells in it? Great idea for a beach house. Did you collect the shells. We have lots of little shells at our beach.

Hi Tanya, I would love to also see pics of you have any but more importantly can you pass on your suppliers details from Gosford? Im struggling to find anyone in Sydney that can supply and install for my kictchen. Or does anyone else have any great suppliers in Sydney they can share? Feeling very lost

In Perth I had Granite Transformations redo me kitchen benches. The off white granite composite had shells through it. For me it was a gem of a bench top, didn’t show marks or crumbs. Only at a certain angle and sunset did I notice that it needed a clean.

@Craig M Are you able to update on your experience with the terrazzo slab benchtop and its durability since installation? Would you recommend? If you are willing to share...the approx costs of slab, stonemason work, sealing etc.

Cheers

Hi all our terrazzo bench has been installed and in use for over 12 months. This bench was poured in Italy and then finished by a stonemason off-site type.
When 1st installed I spilt some lemon juice which created a mark so we are careful not to use acidic items on the bench. I am not sure if this happened before or after we sealed it but I think it’s important to seal any natural stone product and we used the sellers recommended product called “slow drying sure seal” but I won’t vouch for its effectiveness as I can’t compare it to anything. Over all we love the look but I think you need to be a little more careful around natural products than engineered ones so it may depend on your lifestyle

This is a picture of the stain mark left be the lemon juice - pretty hard to see unless the light is shining a particular way

I got my kitchen partially renovated ten years ago and as I was keeping the existing cupboards, chose a benchtop that matched. It was terrazzo, slightly beige with some varying colours - which looked all of a piece. I very much liked it - it worked well for cooking etc, and was easy to clean. Just go for the colour that best suits you. It's a good choice.

PS Mine was not tiles, but slabs, so no grout issues.

Dr Retro, would you be able to advise the brand and colour of the timber grain that you used on the cabinets in your kitchen photo showing the terrazzo.

Craig, sorry I know this is a long time after the fact but we’re looking at getting a terrazzo benchtop and I was wondering if you could advise who you got to do your installation?

Hi - Our kitchen installer did not want to touch the terrazzo so it was cut and installed by the tile company that we purchased the slab from called DeFazio tile and stone in Brunswick Vic

HI - does anyone recommed a stone mason to cut and install terrazzo in Sydney? We want to do a terrazzo island bench. My stone masson was saying it can be soft and crack easily? Does anyone have experience with this? Thank you

Terazzo is cement based so I dont beleive it si soft & can crack easily. I have had terazzo in a kitchen & bathroom for over 20 years & I find it superior to other surfaces I have had in other properties (Granite, Laminate & manufactured stone )

I am keen to get terrazzo but very concerned about the maintenance. Does beeswax seal terrazzo well? Or what is the best way to seal this product. Also stonemasons have told me it is a very soft product. Is this correct? I can't find any engineered stone I like so getting desperate.