180 FX Marble Counter Top

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 For a long time now I have been wishing 

I had marble counter tops in my kitchen.  

Every time I see a kitchen with white cabinets like this one, I want marble!  

 Our home is a pre-fab that came with the kitchen cabinets

 and the laminate countertops in place. 

I decided to paint the cabinets white~and am ever so glad I did...
I used Chalk Paint® decorative paint by Annie Sloan in Old White.

I painted the lower cabinets with a grey wash using Paris Grey Chalk Paint®.

But the speckled laminate counter tops remained...

with many of my kitchen posts writing about my wish for marble instead.

Since this is not our "forever" house, 

and with plans to leave in the future,

I had a hard time spending $$$ on a counter top 

in a kitchen that had a less than fabulous layout.

Delaying my gratification for 8 years seemed impossible~

so images of beautiful white cabinets and marble tops filled my wish files.

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 I liked the idea of marble with a bead board back splash.

You won't see this combination as much as you will with subway tile

 or even an all marble back splash.

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However I found a few images that had that combination.

But saving pictures of what I wanted just made me work to come up with a solution~

We are going to replace the counter tops 

with this newer product called 180FX by Formica. 

 This sample shown is the Calacutta Marble.  

What is really interesting about this new Formica 

is that the image is reproduced in 8 foot lengths, 

so you don't have the small 8"-12" repeats 

of the old simulated stone patterns.

It will be seamless and has a hefty 1.5" thickness

 vs  the standard .75" thickness.

Everything I have read about 180FX indicates

 it is a crowd pleaser and  pocket book friendly.

We shall soon find out!

Mr. MD and I will install it ourselves after it is delivered in 21 days!  

We have a bit of prep work to do,

 as our pre-fab kitchen came with the counters installed

 and the plaster work was done around them. 

 That means cutting it away from the wall,

 removing the existing counter tops, and repairing the wall.

The other thing we are going to do is slightly change the layout.  

 I suggested to Mr. MD that the fridge should 

be moved to the right, and the cabinets on the end removed 

and added to the end of the run that is currently to the left of the fridge. 

 Mr. MD ordered this house, and since his lot was less wide

 than the full house plan allowed, 

he let them take it out of the kitchen,

 which made for a dysfunctional corner to the left of the fridge.

By this small change, 

we should gain a better work space. 

 That also means the crown molding has

 to be removed and reconfigured.

  So a bit of work ahead to be ready for our counter tops. 

I will finish repainting my lower cabs white too,  

the grey would look nice with the fxmarble,

 but it is just too dark of a space.

 The natural light is all but non-existent. 

This kitchen layout in that corner is very similar

 to what I will have after I move the fridge over 9".

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This is my hearts desire for my small kitchen~

this perfect image showing a bead board and marble combo

 with white cabinets is my inspiration photo.  

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So keep your fingers crossed with me and 

lets hope the new Formica does not disappoint.

 And for all of you who have a marble fetish and a small budget~

stay tuned, this could be a solution for you too!