Bianco Sardo granite – even a family home can be very stylish

Today we are visiting Linnea at her lovely home. Linnea and her family have been living in this modern house on top of a hill for almost half a year now. The heart of the home is the sleek and harmonious kitchen that combines trendy grey cabinets, a large island, a touch of warm wood, classic design lamps and the beautiful Bianco Sardo granite.

How did you end up choosing the Bianco Sardo granite for your home?

We had two main reasons. One of them was looks. We absolutely wanted the stovetop to be integrated and completely level with the worktop, not the usual few millimetres above the worktop. That kind of solution is not possible with laminate. The second reason was the cost. Originally, we feared that a stone worktop would never fit our budget, and so we were positively surprised when we found Bianco Sardo. It fit both our vision of the kitchen of our dreams and our budget just perfectly! Then we realized that we can even get the sink fixed under the worktop, so that too will be perfectly smooth and level. In a nutshell the decision was made by the looks and the price. And of course, granite is also a very durable material, which was a bonus.

I’ve heard some people claim Bianco Sardo is little boring for a granite. What do you think of that?

I don’t think it’s boring at all! Maybe someone might consider it a little bit dated because grey granite was so popular in the nineties. But we wanted a fresh material with bold personality, and Bianco Sardo fit the bill. Nowadays there are so many kitchens with simply black or white counters. The mottled surface of this granite is quite original. And its colours – black, white, and brown – are exactly the main colours we have used in the rest of our interiors. Bianco Sardo is a different choice, which we like. It’s important to me that interior design shows personality, and that not everyone has the same look in their homes.
When we actually moved in and started using our new kitchen, we also noticed that you can’t really see any crumbles or smudges on the worktop at all, unless the light happens to hit it from just the right angle. The stone hasn’t stained either. All in all, I’d say it’s still just like new!

Bianco Sardo is one of our favourites too!
Was it important to you to choose granite, or did you consider for example a quartz worktop? And what advice would you give to our readers who might be struggling to pick a material for their homes?

I actually don’t know much about stones, but Bianco Sardo was an easy choice once we found it, beautiful and affordable. It was an obvious choice, really.
Everybody knows that stone is a durable material, but for us the opportunities it gives were more important. We dreamed of a very sleek worktop and beautifully integrated stovetop and sink, which wouldn’t be possible with, say, laminate worktop. That’s why we decided we’ll give stone a shot and set on the hunt for a beautiful but affordable enough material. Once we found this granite we just knew, and I didn’t continue the research any further.

Your kitchen truly is very beautiful, and spacious too. You also have quite a large kitchen island here. Did the trends influence this decision, or had you been dreaming of an island for longer?

Well of course the trends do influence us. In our kitchen for example the grey cabinets and the large island are some trendy options we decided to go with. But a lot of people still say that our kitchen has a good balance of both big personality and timeless style.
The island is also very practical. It was important to me to not to have the stove or sink on the island, like is popular now. I wanted a lot of space there so I can set a buffet on the island and use it as a serving table for when we have guests over, which leaves much more space for just eating on the dining table. It’s also pretty handy for when I come home with all the groceries for my big family. I can simply set all the bags on the island, and I can very easily unpack them from there. Kitchen islands are definitely trendy, but we have never had one before, so I think we would’ve planned one for here even if it weren’t in fashion.

You’ve been using your kitchen for almost half a year now. Have you come across any regrets or anything you think should’ve been done differently?

No, nothing at all! This kitchen is like the crown jewel of our home – charmingly original, but stylish. We often just sit here on our sofa and gaze at it in wonder. There’s nothing I would change!

And, talking about the sofa, you also have a very nice coffee table here. It’s terrazzo, right?

Yes, it is, and we also got this piece of terrazzo from Granitop! I don’t know how terrazzo suddenly became such a big hit, or how well is it suited for kitchens for example but having it on coffee table was such a cool idea. It’s basically already a decoration, there’s no need to arrange candles or anything to make it look interesting. It’s also a good option for us since it’s durable, heavy, and won’t budge no matter what kind of race the kids have around it every day.

The table itself is bought from a regular furniture store, and we simply replaced the original tabletop with a slab of terrazzo. I actually think terrazzo could have been an option for our kitchen too, because I really love to constantly clean up around the house, but Bianco Sardo was still a much better fit.

Granite is also more durable. Fluctuating air humidity can cause some changes to the surface of the granite worktop, but you can always order the maintenance set from Granitop if you ever feel like it. If the granite worktop gets a good maintenance treatment annually, or even every couple years, it will last looking just like new even longer.
As our last question I’d like to ask you where do you find the inspiration for your interior design choices?

Mostly I find inspiration from the internet. I like using Instagram and searching for inspiring content. I even have my own account, where I posted about the building of our home, and now that the house is all finished, I post interior design inspiration. I’m always on the lookout for new solutions that you won’t see just about everywhere. Of course we have fashionable things here at home too, but I like to combine them with others with more personality.
Interior design is my hobby and passion project. We have four sons and I spend a lot of time at home with them. The way my home looks like is very important to me. Also, I simply like pretty things. I think about interior design every day. Even if we don’t really need anything new right now, I’m always planning and coming up with novel ideas. For example these stone samples from Granitop – we have even found a practical place for these tiny tiles!

Get inspired by Linnea’s beautiful home and stylish kitchen in Instagram @vihreatalokalliolla, check out Bianco Sardo granite and browse our selection for more beautiful granites.

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