- 610-436-5436
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- 610-436-5436
- Mon - Fri: 8:30 am - 4:30 pm
Custom Marble Countertops at MacLaren Kitchen and Bath
Marble has long been considered one of the most attractive stones. From ancient sculptures and buildings to modern countertops, walls, and floors, marble stands out wherever it is used with its distinctive veining and grains.
In Philadelphia, West Chester, Downingtown, and nearby areas, marble countertops are appearing in more and more homes. It is a dramatic, and elegant stone with a natural beauty and sheen that immediately draws the eye.
MacLaren Kitchen & Bath is the leading local company for marble countertop design, fabrication, and installation. With a showroom measuring over 40,000 square feet, we have marble slabs from the most sought after quarries as well as more unique options to create a truly unique countertop for any space in your home.
Our design center is staffed by a team of talented designers who provide personalized assistance to help you select the right options for a marble countertop in your kitchen or bathroom.
Call us at 610-436-5436 or send a message through our online form to learn more about marble countertops and all the styles we have available.
Why Design Your Marble Countertop with MacLaren Kitchen & Bath
Our immense showroom at MacLaren Kitchen & Bath means we are the best place to find marble countertops and matching cabinets to fit the most specific of design needs, while being a family owned business ensures that you receive attentive service that is dedicated to your satisfaction.
In addition to service that is licensed, bonded, and insured, we are able to offer:
- The area’s largest selection of marble countertops.
- A knowledgeable design team experienced in working with marble.
- Competitive costs to assist you in making this investment in your home.
Our extensive options and talented countertop builders make it possible for us to design and fabricate marble countertops for nearly any use.
For kitchens, we can custom fabricate:
- Marble Countertops
- Marble Islands
- Marble Bar Tops
We can also make marble backsplashes that use the same marble on the wall behind your countertop. A backsplash can extend several inches above the counter all the way to the hanging cabinets above to bring more of the beauty of marble into your kitchen.
Outside of kitchens, marble countertops make attractive features as:
- Marble Bathroom Vanities – A marble vanity adds elegance to a bathroom, and faces fewer risks, allowing you to truly appreciate the look of marble in the space.
- Marble Tabletops and Workspaces – Marble can make for a luxurious office, living room, entertainment room, and more.
- Outdoor Marble Countertops – While polished marble is not suitable for outdoor use, honed marble can withstand sunlight, rain, and outdoor cooking with the proper precautions.
If you have another design idea for a marble countertop, it is almost guaranteed that we can bring it to life. Our design and fabrication processes are adaptable to projects of all sizes.
What Makes Marble the Right Choice for Your Home
Most homeowners and designers choose marble for its appearance, but it also brings functional advantages so long as you are prepared to complete minimal regular maintenance.
These aesthetic and functional benefits are a result of marble countertops being:
- Material of Luxury – Both in looks and associated status, marble is a high end material. It will impress guests and increase the value of a property while providing your family with a kitchen or bathroom you can enjoy for years.
- Unique – Part of the draw of marble is that no one else will have the same countertop as you. As a natural stone, each slab of marble is different and the patina that a countertop develops as you and your family uses the countertop further individualizes this living stone.
- Long Lasting – As a natural stone, marble is a strong material, and already thousands of years old by the time you install it. With the right care, it will easily last for hundreds more years.
- Ideal for Baking – Marble is naturally cool, so it is often used in baking to help keep doughs and butter cold during handling. For enthusiastic bakers, incorporating a marble countertop into your kitchen can improve your experience.
The beauty and elegance of marble does come at a higher price and require more extensive maintenance than other natural stone countertops. The enhanced home value and appeal of marble will often balance out these factors.
For those who want the elegance of marble but are not prepared for the upkeep of a marble kitchen countertop or are looking for a more cost effective option, it is becoming increasingly popular to incorporate marble in spaces that are not as heavily used as the kitchen or to include marble elements in the kitchen, such as using for an island countertop and an alternative stone for other counters.
At MacLaren Kitchen and Bath, we also have materials that can offer the look of marble. Some quartz, for example, is designed to look like marble.
Our Marble Countertop Services
At MacLaren Kitchen & Bath, we are a full service counter and cabinet maker.
We can work with you at every step in the remodeling process with:
- Marble Countertop Design – Designing with marble can be different than other stone materials. We want to highlight the natural veining and beauty while being sure that we are providing a surface that will fit into your lifestyle. Our experienced designers take the time to understand your needs and vision to render a countertop that will work with your home.
- Marble Countertop Fabrication – Like design, shaping marble into a countertop takes skill. We have an in-house fabrication process that uses your specific measurements and an exacting process to create a perfect marble countertop. Because our services are in-house, we can also complete fabrication quickly to keep your remodel on schedule.
- Marble Countertop Installation – A marble countertop consists of one or more solid slabs. Their weight, delicate nature, and the precision needed requires the installation be done by a professional. Our installers have placed hundreds of marble countertops and can install a marble countertop with precision at your home.
We can also fabricate a marble countertop to replace an existing countertop or vanity in your home. Our marble countertop replacement includes the design, fabrication, and installation of the new counter as well as the demolition and removal of your existing countertops. Countertop replacement is ideal if you like your current kitchen layout and cabinets, or if you need to update a counter that has been damaged.
If you are considering marble for a countertop, vanity, or another surface in your home, one of our designers can work with you to determine how marble will coordinate with your lifestyle. Our showroom also offers hundreds of other countertop options, including natural stones like granite and quartz that can provide close visual alternatives to marble but will lower cost and maintenance needs.
Commercial Marble Countertop Services
In commercial uses, marble is not as common as other stone options. The higher cost and needed maintenance can be drawbacks in many commercial settings. Yet when a luxurious atmosphere is desired, few materials will meet that standard as well as marble.
Marble on a commercial property or in a business often works best as a focal point where it can make an impression on customers or building tenants.
The types of properties where a custom commercial marble countertop might be installed include:
- Restaurants, Bars, Cafes, and Coffee Shops
- Hotel or Building Lobbies
- Theatres
- Commercial Bathroom Vanities
As in homes, marble can be used as the sole slab in combination with other countertop materials to create a look that achieves your design style at the right cost. We can create large scale countertops or smaller accent pieces depending on your project’s needs. No matter where marble countertops are installed at your property, they embody a luxe and high end fee that is right for many businesses.
Styles and Design Choices for Marble Countertops
Marble is a quarried stone. This means the individual slabs are cut directly from the earth where they were formed. During fabrication, we cut the slab to the correct dimensions to fit your cabinets, including adding spaces for any drop in sinks or cooktops, and finishing the edges and surface.
Smaller countertops will generally consist of a single slab of marble cut to size, but larger projects may have two slabs that are placed together during installation. By matching the texture on the individual pieces, we can create a seam that is nearly invisible once the countertop installation is complete.
White marble is a classic color and has long been sought after wherever marble is used, but it is far from the only option with marble.
This natural stone also comes in shades of:
- Grey
- Black
- Yellow
- Gold
- Pink
- Green
Clay, silt, and sand are what gives marble its characteristic veining. During the recrystallization process when limestone hardens into marble, these elements are mixed in, causing impurities in the marble. These minerals determine the patterns and colors of the veining with options ranging from subtle movement to bold and vibrant colors.
Because the types of minerals vary depending on the geographic location where the marble is formed, marble is most often identified based on the region it was mined.
Some of the most well known marble styles include:
- Carrara Marble – Named after the region in Italy where it is mined, Carrara marble is the best known and most common marble. It has a white background with fine, light grey veining. Its brightness and lower cost make it a popular choice in homes.
- Calcutta Marble – Well known but rare, Calcutta is another Italian marble that is white with gold or dark grey veining. The veining can range from delicate to thick depending on the slab.
- Statuary Marble – This marble comes from the Carrara region and has a similar look to Carrara marble, but appears slightly translucent. This gives it more gloss and causes the grey veining to stand out.
- Crema Marfil Marble – Crema Marfil marble comes from Spain and has a beige tone with irregular patterns of darker veining. It is a readily available marble and appreciated for its more subtle appearance.
- Emperador Marble – This Spanish marble comes in shades of brown with feathery white or grey veining. The brown can range from dark, which is the most popular brown marble, to a near beige color.
- Nero Marquina Marble – Another Spanish marble, this has a naturally black base with white veins for a bold look. On some slabs, the white veining is intense enough to obscure much of the black.
Many marble quarries rate each marble slab based on the amount of impurities present. In a Carerra marble slab for example, a higher rated piece will be mostly white while a lower rated one will have more grey veining running through it. Each rating level provides a distinctive look at different price points.
Within marble types and ratings, every slab of marble will still be one of a kind.
You can further customize your marble countertop with options for finishing including:
- Polished – A polished marble countertop provides a glossy, highly reflective surface and is among the most popular finishing options.
- Honed – Honed countertops are ground but not polished, giving them a smooth, satin finish. They will have a slight sheen from the marble, yet not reflect all overhead lighting. Homeowners often opt for a honed finish when they want a more natural or rustic look from marble.
- Leathered – A premium finish that is relatively uncommon in marble countertops, leathered finished stone is honed and has a gentle texture similar to natural leather instead of being perfectly smooth. Leathered marble works better for hiding chips and scratches.
During the design process, you will also select edge profiles for your custom counter. The various options include standards such as straight, round, and bullnose, although marble can be shaped into premium edges such as ogee, cove, and waterfall. The edge style that is best for your countertop will depend on your chosen design style and any concerns about sharp corners.
How to Clean and Maintain a Marble Countertop
Marble is a softer stone, meaning that it is more readily susceptible to scratches, chips, cracks, and etching than materials like granite or engineered quartz. It will need the right care both in terms of daily use and maintenance to keep it free from damage for the life of your kitchen or bathroom.
During daily use, especially in kitchens, you should not:
- Set hot pots, pans, curling irons, and other items directly on the marble.
- Use knives without a cutting board or set down sharp objects without a barrier.
- Place acidic foods (like coffee, lemons, or vinegar) on the countertop or let spills sit.
You will also want to use caution when setting down heavy pans or other items since a strong hit can cause a chip.
The finish on marble will also determine what type of damage shows as well. Honed marble is less likely to etch when exposed to acidic liquids while polished marble will better hide smudges from fingerprints. Marble countertops installed in other rooms of your home – an office, for instance – may also be less likely to sustain damage as the wear tends to be lighter.
Wherever you install marble countertops in your home, a few regular maintenance steps will help protect the marble from damage. Daily cleaning can be done with a mild soap or cleaner specially formulated for marble and a damp cloth. Avoid acid-based cleaners or abrasive tools.
To remove stains, common household cleaners like bleach, acetone, or hydrogen peroxide can be used in moderation depending on the type of stain.
Marble countertops will also need to be sealed once or twice a year to prevent water and debris from getting into the natural holes and crevices in the stone. You can do this yourself or hire a professional. Either way, the process involves deep cleaning the counter, spreading a sealant product over the marble, and letting it soak into the surface for about five minutes before removing any excess.
The maintenance and care needed for marble, while not intensive, is an important consideration when deciding if marble is the right choice for your home. Over time, any marble surface that is regularly used will begin to show signs of wear even when resealed on schedule. This collection of nicks, scratches, etchings, and absorbed oils are the marble’s patina and are as unique to your countertop as the marble slab itself.
Many homeowners who install marble appreciate the patina that develops as part of the appeal of natural marble stone, but those that want to avoid this type of look may want to consider faux marble quartz and other materials.
Get Inspired or Start Your Design – Visit Our Showroom
Whether you are considering marble among the options for your new countertop or you are ready to commit to this material, a visit to our showroom is the best way to discover the beauty of a marble countertop. A member of our team can then work with you in our design center to cover all the available styles, textures, colors, and options that a marble countertop can provide.
Schedule your appointment to visit by calling us at 610-436-5436.
Custom Marble Countertops FAQs
How Much Do Countertops Cost?
All countertops have different pricing based on the type of material and the slab. Costs can range considerably based on square footage. . We offer wholesale and competitive pricing, however, so rest assured that our costs are some of the best available, with options that are great for those on a budget as well as those looking for a more luxury approach. We encourage you to visit our showroom for a consultation.
Can You Install My Sink and Appliances?
We do currently install any sinks and appliances if we are remodeling your kitchen or bathroom. That being said we don't provide the hookup for your water or electric. What we can do is schedule our services at a time that makes the most sense for your needs, based on when your plumber, general contractor, or other contractor is ready for us.
I Am Working With Other Contractors. Can You Do JUST Countertops?
Absolutely. We are happy to schedule a time to work with your contractors, and coordinate to measure and install your countertops when it is best for all parties involved.
Can You Fabricate Countertop Slabs From Other Stores
We have a huge selection of countertops, and encourage you to consider from our selection in order for us to offer the best possible service. However, if a project requires us to fabricate countertops from customer-supplied material, we are still able to help.
Why Would I Want A Backsplash Made from Countertop Material?
Countertop backsplashes offer continuation that stands out when compared to alternatives, such as tile backsplash. They're more durable and easier to clean as well, because they do not require grout and can be made of the same high quality, dense material as your counters. However, in general, it is more of a personal preference. Some people really love the look of tile backsplashes as a complement to the counter and cabinets. It's ultimately about the look and design you are going for.
What Designs and Styles Do You Have?
We have countertops that can match essentially any home style. Contemporary, rustic, mid-century modern, chic, luxury - our designers are happy to work with you to determine which type of counter will best match your design and vision, and of course you can walk our showroom and be sure to find the countertop that is perfect for your design's vision.