Whether you’re a waterfall countertop superfan and suppose they flip kitchen islands into lovely pure stone focal factors, otherwise you hate them and really feel they’re the modern kitchen model of the mullet, there’s no denying that we’re seeing waterfall kitchen islands all over the place nowadays. (And even the mullet has arguably come again in model, so go determine.) When it involves zeroing in in your ultimate kitchen countertop design, there’s loads to consider—and loads to cost out—earlier than you pull the set off on any specific rework; there’s stone sort and colour, placement, contrasting paint colours, and a lot extra. So we requested architects and design consultants concerning the ins and outs of waterfall counter tops to find out whether or not you’re the sort of house owner who ought to go for this well-liked kitchen design—which, you’ll discover as you learn on, can cascade tastefully in rooms exterior the guts of the house.
What is a waterfall countertop?
Waterfall counter tops appear like counter tops that forgot to cease on the edge. Instead of ending the place the legs or supporting sides of the countertop are, these seem to cascade down over the facet of the island and onto the ground. This impact of the waterfall countertop design idea is what earns it its identify: The countertop seems to have a steady circulation from its horizontal floor to the vertical sides—creating the “fall” impact of a waterfall. This design aspect works throughout a mess of supplies, whether or not you will have a granite waterfall countertop, a quartz waterfall countertop, a white marble waterfall countertop, and even chrome steel.
“Traditional countertop edges stop where the structure below ends,” says Heather LaBoda, a North Carolina–primarily based inside designer. “The material used for the horizontal surface of a waterfall countertop is also used for the ends, which turn down vertically to meet the floor, creating a seamless and dramatic visual effect.”
What are the professionals of waterfall counter tops?
Believe it or not, there’s a performance argument for the waterfall countertop.
“Generally speaking, a waterfall countertop improves the durability of an island, peninsula, or end of a base cabinet because it usually covers the wood structure with a more resilient material like stone or quartz,” LaBoda says. “Many countertop materials are easy to clean and less likely to be permanently damaged by shoe scuffs, vacuum cleaners, and children playing nearby than a soft wood material.”
But the first motive to include a waterfall countertop is commonly aesthetic, particularly when a home-owner is aiming to craft a comparatively minimalist kitchen function that also elicits oohs and ahs. San Francisco architect Monica Sanga believes the design aspect could make for a extra considerate and complicated look than its basic kitchen island different: “A waterfall edge can create a visual stop to the kitchen area that is more elegant and considered than simply the exposed edge of a cabinet base,” she says. (Though, in fact, some waterfall countertop supplies truly trigger extra points by way of potential harm, which might mockingly be attributable to cleansing—extra on that later.)
What are the cons of waterfall counter tops?
If you’re taking a look at a small kitchen or lavatory, including a waterfall countertop might make it really feel smothering in an space the place each sq. foot counts—particularly in case your plans for the house embrace barstools.