Great Lakes Granite & Marble offers a variety of educational tools to help you choose the best stone options for your home, as well as learn more about our company and process.
Explore our videos and helpful articles or contact our stone specialists with any questions.
Countertop Guides & Articles
The Ultimate Countertop Guide
In this guide, you will learn everything you need to know about choosing the right material for your countertop ranging from appearance, durability, cost, and even health considerations.
Countertop Comparison Guide
Can’t decide which countertop surface is best for you? Well, that is not surprising considering the numerous countertop surfaces available. Great Lakes Granite & Marble takes pride in helping you find a stylish surface that is perfect for your space.
Love the Look of Marble? You may want to consider Quartz.
Marble and quartz are both gorgeous countertop material options that add luxury and elegance to any home. Let’s explore the various traits of both stones to help you determine which is right for you and your lifestyle.
2024 Design and Color Trends
2024 could be your year to embrace updated design and improved functionality, making the heart of your home a place you welcome spending so much time in. Let’s explore the 2024 trends we see for kitchen design, color palettes, countertop styles and materials.
Countertop Estimating Guide
Complete a preliminary measurement of your solid surface and stone countertops and obtain an estimate of your project.
Increase Home Resale Value With Granite
An outdated kitchen or bath can keep your home from reaching the highest market valuation. Something as simple as replacing your countertops with granite or another type of natural stone is an investment that will do more than just enhance the appearance. Granite continues to be the most popular countertop among homebuyers and it can boost your home’s value by up to 25%.
Countertop Finishing Guide
When you are evaluating stones, keep in mind that the appearance of the natural stone can be modified by the finishing process you select.
Countertop Edge Guide
In any kitchen design it is often the details that set it apart, and choosing your countertop edge is not a detail you want to overlook. The edge can complete the style of your dream kitchen. Let’s look at the various options and understand how to complement the style of your kitchen, as well as your budget.
Templating and Seams
Once you have selected your stone, and more specifically your particular slab(s) for a project, you will begin working with your stone supplier on templating your granite, quartz, or marble. This is definitely a process that you want to be involved in as determinations will be made such as where your faucet will be located, how much of an overhang you would like, and the desired corner radius’, among other things.
Countertop Fabrication Process
The polished beautiful granite countertop that you install in your kitchen or bathroom undergoes an extensive process of stone fabrication to achieve the finished product. It is remarkable just how much occurs during this process and how important it is to getting the most from your countertop for years to come.
Furnish Only Jobs
We know many of our customers are handy and have a project they would like to tackle on their own. We’ve created a checklist that will help maximize success in these DIY projects for you to accurately measure and prepare to install your own countertop.
Budget Conscious and Beautiful Countertops
You can still create the look you are going for, have a show stopping kitchen or bath, and not break the bank. Approaching a project with a budget means paying attention to all of the details, and ensuring you don’t have hidden costs or surprises that can turn your budget upside down.
Additional Uses For Natural Stone
The most common uses of natural stone may be in kitchen and bathroom countertop, but let’s get outside the ordinary and look at other uses for natural stone.
Kitchen Planning
A Guide to Kitchen Island Designs & Layouts
Whether it is a remodel to your existing kitchen, a renovation, or you are building your dream kitchen in your dream house one of the major design features to consider is the size, shape, and functionality of your kitchen island. The kitchen island can add an element of style, not to mention provide additional storage, seating, and workspace.
Kitchen Backsplash Guide
In this article we will explore the different material options and help guide you to the perfect backsplash for your kitchen design.
Choosing The Perfect Kitchen Sink
Choosing A Kitchen Sink Can Be Overwhelming. Here We Discuss Which Mount, Material, & Style Will Be Perfect For You & Your Kitchen.
Inspiring Outdoor Kitchen Ideas
As soon as it warms up, we all want to be outside as much as possible. We’ve got some some great ideas to inspire the outdoor kitchen of your dreams. From grilling, to entertaining, to relaxing around a fire we leave no stone unturned in planning the perfect outdoor oasis.
Bathroom Planning
Uses For Natural Stone In A Bathroom
Let’s take a look at the pros & cons of using natural stone in a bathroom, and the various ways you can use granite, marble, and other natural stone in a bathroom.
Care & Maintenance
Countertop Etching, Can it Be Repaired?
There are a variety of options out there when it comes to kitchen countertops, many with unique attributes, one thing they all have in common though is that they will show signs of wear and tear over time. If there is one downfall to the practicality and functionality of the various stones used for countertops, it is the inevitable etching, chips, and cracks that go along with such a high-use area.
Repairing Countertop Chips
Let’s explore the ways you can repair a chip if you happen to find one, and how to protect your counters from future damage.
Repairing Countertop Cracks
Most countertops are durable but over time they still may experience some wear & tear, including cracks. Learn how to address such issues to keep your countertops looking beautiful.
An Experiment in Staining
In this article, we will explore the durability of countertop stone as it relates specifically to food stains. We will focus primarily on granite, with one marble surface included in our experiment for comparison.
Additional Education
Countertop Geology: Where Your Natural Stone Countertops Come From
Natural Stone materials have been utilized for construction and decorative purposes for a long period of time. However, man’s use of natural stones is microscopic when compared to the amount of time and energy that Mother Nature has put into these wondrous resources.
From The Quarry To The Kitchen: How Natural Stone is Quarried
Learn how natural stones like Granite, Marble, & Quartzite are quarried from the earth and make their way to a fabricator and end up in your kitchen or bath.
