Another vote for Dekton and Sileston Quartz worktops, use them all the time in our projects as so much more forgiving and low maintenance than granite or marble. Agree that Corian is a good option if you have a large island to prevent visible joins, whilst it has other benefits you do need to be very careful when it comes to heat. Vast range of colours and textures in all types nowadays so the type of material shouldn't limit the effect you want to achieve - be that traditional or contemporary. I am always a big advocate that a worktop is an investment, there is no point spending a large sum on a beautiful quality kitchen and then finishing it off with a worktop that won't stand up to time as well as the rest of the room or cheapen the look - I always recommend to go for the best you can afford.

any quartz worktop is usually not considered as a more expensive than granite. If you want cheaper option and don't mind to stick with quartz, go for a different manufacturer. There is Unistone, Cimstone, Technistone, Ceaserstone... Calacatta design become very popular nowadays so a lot of mentioned above might have such an option.

I agree it would depend on the kitchen and other requirements, what 'feel' of the place needs to be achieved. Personally I quite like a little bit of texture in the colour, with subtle inclusions not entirely plain, 'Medium Grey' looks lovely I think.

Hi Jamie, Yes i think that you are right, and would suggest you explore a 'scandi' style of timber floor with these colours, and perhaps look at a washed oak type of finish to stop it ending up looking too cold. Here is one as an example of colour from Kronospan. Good luck :)