6 Alternatives to Carrara Marble Worktops

If you’ve considered Carrara marble for your kitchen worktops, you’ll know that the debate about it continues with much gusto. On the one hand you have designers who will use it freely and without limit in kitchen spaces and who, quite rightly, wax lyrical about the aesthetic virtues of this stunning world-famous natural stone product from Carrara, Italy.

However, its strength is also its weakness. A nonfoliated metamorphic rock, marble is generally composed of calcium carbonate or magnesium carbonate, both of which react very badly to acids. In a kitchen environment where you would anticipate using acidic liquids such as lemon and vinegar, the effect of contact with those acids is called “etching” the marble – which is to say, it leaves a dull, whitish mark where the acid has literally eaten away at the surface.

As well as potential etching, Carrara marble is also liable to staining because of its porous nature so things like red wine, tumeric and other spices need to be handled with care. Of course if you’re happy to embrace the etching and stains as part of its charm and character then Carrara marble is perfect.

But if you’re looking for a similar worktop that has better durability and won’t etch or stain, we’ve put together 6 alternatives from Silestone and Caesarstone that create a really similar effect without the stress.

 S I L E S T O N E 

Silestone is composed of 94% natural quartz, and is a non-porous surface that is highly resistant to stains from coffee, wine, lemon juice, olive oil, vinegar, makeup and many other everyday products. Quartz is one of the hardest minerals in the world which means that Silestone is incredible durable, with a high level of resistance to external aggressions such as acids, high impact and scratches.

L Y R A  by Silestone

Possibly the closest match to Carrara marble in terms of what the majority of people would expect to see – a white base with grey veining. It’s a beautiful quartz with none of the maintenance headache of Carrara marble. For more information about Lyra by Silestone, please click here.

A R I E L  by Silestone

Ariel balances its dominant off-white colour with the natural suggestion of the vein. The careful construction of these patterns gives it a classic, pure appearance. For more information about Helix by Silestone, please click here.

L A G O O N  by Silestone

With a softer appearance than Lyra or Ariel, the Lagoon Silestone has a feeling of natural depth to it. For more information about Lagoon by Silestone, please click here.

C A E S A R S T O N E

Caesarstone is a beautiful engineered quartz stone which is composed of 93% natural quartz, and has a hard, non-penetrable surface which makes cleaning and maintenance super simple.

In collaboration with Caesarstone’s designers, the research and development team is continually developing leading-edge colours and designs that influence trends and inspire creative, functional applications. Caesarstone’s quartz surfaces never need sealing and require minimal maintenance to keep them looking like new.

 F R O S T Y  C A R R I N A  by Caesarstone

Frosty Carrina by Caesarstone is a very good match for Carrara Marble as it has longer veining which is more like real marble. It has a real sense of depth and purity to it which also helps to conjure up the essence of Carrara marble. For more information about Frosty Carrina by Caesarstone, please click here.

L O N D O N  G R E Y  by Caesarstone

London Grey (No. 5000) is a beautiful stone from Caesarstone. White with subtle black lines, it is truly marblesque in appearance but much more practical. For more information about London Grey by Caesarstone, please click here.

C A L A C A T T A  N U V O  by Caesarstone

This is Caesarstone’s interpretation of natural Calacatta marble so Calacatta Nuvo™ (No. 5131) has wide, elegant, cascading, grey veins on a white base.  It makes an unforgettable impression and really gives a super-luxe finish to kitchen interiors in particular. Interestingly, Calacatta Nuvo™ incorporates large veins with some small unique natural variation between slabs. For more information about Calacatta, please click here.