Chipped all the paint off with a wallpaper scraper and heat gun, tried various paint on strippers that didn't work. Then, following some research I purchased Bellinzoni Special Preparation paste wax for polishing marble and granite (search name on you tube) spread on thick layer and wrap with cling film for 24 hours, then with gradually finer wire wool polish. well worth the effort!

Not sure, but this place has hundreds of slabs, be prepared to waste an evening looking.... I've done that more than once! http://www.themarbleandgranitecentre.co.uk/home

Just to update the situation. John came today, he seems OK and honest to us. He said he suggested me chasing Kenny. He knows Kenny quite well that I need to get him to finish his job or refund my money. Tomorrow my husband will drop by his warehouse and I told him to tell Kenny if I don't hear from him. I will contact him through the lawyer. I also bought the stuffs you showed me from that site together with oil stain remover. I need Kenny to fix the part at the hob. He needs to remove that out and replace with the one that from the same slab or lighter tone. John also confirmed to me my granite is not sealed at all!!! Not weak seal but not seal and he told me Kenny knows this and it is his job to do.

Cheapest will be laminate. Look for Formica Axiom, Bushboard Omega, Odyssey and Prima, Duropal and Egger to name but a few but those listed are some of the best. You will also have manufacturers own brands some of which are good, some dire and some excellent. All price related. Normally thickness is 40mm but some offer 30mm and the most modern and popular at the moment is 20mm which is restricted in laminate (but available in some brands). You need to work out your lengths because depending on the brand the laminate is available in 3m, 3.6m and 4m. Therefore if you only want to cover 3m there’s no point in paying for a 4m length as you’ll end up with waste of one metre which you’ll be paying for. Then again it depends on whether you like the colour choice in each length. You can’t have an undermount or belfast type sink with a laminate worktop. Wilson Art is what Howdens use. Cheap and nasty. Some of their worktops don’t even have a backing on causing wharping. Look for a local supplier and they can request samples for you. Where are you based? If you want to pay slightly more look at solid timber but bear in mind these need maintaining which some people don’t like doing as it can be a faff. Then you can have Solid Surface which is an alternative to quartz. Look at Pietra, Pietra Gold, Mazan and Mirostone. It’s available in 20mm thickness and as the name says is solid so needs to be fabricated just like quartz and granite by qualified traders (which in turn will bump the cost up). Solid surface, quartz and granite are the most expensive. Hope this helps.