Low maintenance countertops

I’ll be honest: When my now-husband and I were talking about moving in together, his kitchen pretty much sealed the deal. As it had stainless steel appliances, gorgeous black granite countertop and a layout that made workflow easy, I couldn’t understand why the man hadn’t so much as boiled water since he moved in. To me that kitchen was just begging to be cooked in. So when the time came to prepare a meal in what was now our kitchen, I couldn’t have been more excited.

My joy quickly evaporated when I discovered that it took a good 15 minutes of sponging, buffing, polishing and buffing again to get that black countertop to shine. And even then, the shine lasted only until someone set a glass down.

So when we found a fixer-upper and decided to remodel, I was determined to find and install the easiest-cleaning, lowest-maintenance countertop. Granite was instantly out, not only because of my bad experience with a black granite countertop but because I didn’t want to have to reseal it annually, even though it’s a pretty easy process. And while I love the look and durability of marble, my family isn’t always diligent about wiping up stains, and I foresaw a splash of coffee or an errant squirt of lime juice marring its surface. I also considered concrete but quickly crossed it off my list due to its porousness and the risk of cracking — and once again, I didn’t want to have to seal or wax it.

In the end I rounded up several nearly maintenance-free surfaces to consider for my kitchen — including a couple I hadn’t heard of before.