If you’re considering renovating your kitchen with butcher block countertops, you may be wondering where to find quality butcher block countertops for less.
We’ve been working on renovating our entire house for what seems like forever. So far, we’ve completely renovated our bathroom, three bedrooms, hallway, living room, dining room and kitchen.
Well, we’re still working on our kitchen, but it’s 90% complete. By far, the biggest expense in our kitchen has been our countertops. We fretted and went back and forth for months over how we were going to finish the countertops.
Our Home’s History
Let’s back up a little and let me tell you a little bit about our house. We live in a 3 bedroom and 1 bath brick ranch house that was built in 1957. My husband’s parents bought the house in July of 1972. The house had been involved in a significant fire, so Leonard and Donna were able to buy the house for a great price. Of course, it meant they had a lot of work to do just to get the house in livable condition.
So, they did what most people (including my parents) did back in the 70s when it came time to renovate or remodel a house. They put paneling on the plaster walls, shag carpet on the wood floors and drop panel ceilings with fluorescent lights in every room. Through the years, the paneled walls were wallpapered – many times over and the shag carpeting replaced with textured carpeting.
Don’t get me wrong, they did an amazing job turning this charred house into a warm, loving and inviting home. I’m sure they didn’t even think about things like lead or asbestos or carcinogens. They were simply trying to make ends meet and provide a roof over their heads. I’m sure the cost of the home renovation was pretty significant for the time.
I love the fact that our son’s bedroom used to be my husband’s childhood bedroom. And even though my in-laws have passed away, I still see Nanny everywhere I look. I often wonder what she would think or have to say about the renovations we’ve done to her home. I think she would like the fact that we love her home, but she just might miss the wallpaper.
Butcher Block Countertops
After looking at stone, concrete, tile, laminate and butcher block as options for our countertops, we finally decided on butcher block. Why? Because, well, that’s what I really wanted. We did our research and I knew there would be some maintenance involved, but I was willing to put in the ongoing work to have butcher block countertops.
So then we began looking at where to buy our butcher block countertops. My first thought was IKEA. They used to sell solid wood butcher block countertops, but now they offer a wood countertop that’s only partly wood.
Then, of course, we looked at Lowe’s and The Home Depot and other local home improvement stores. Then, we heard an advertisement on the radio about Floor & Decor, so we took a little road trip to Hilliard, Ohio (the closest store to us). Boy, they have some beautiful tile and flooring in that store!
Better than Builder Grade
After speaking at length with the store manager at Floor & Decor about the countertops, we decided to purchase the upgraded Maple butcher block. What we discovered both by doing research and actually talking to the manager (who knew a lot about countertops) was that the butcher block countertops came in different grades. Just like lumber comes in different grades.
At the low end (and lower priced) is the builder grade. Upon visual inspection of the builder grade butcher block countertop, you can clearly see there are more blemishes and the piece simply isn’t finished as smoothly. So, we opted for the next level up. We took our time and looked at each countertop, checking for cracks, chipped corners and knots.
One thing you’ll discover when looking at butcher block countertops is that there’s definitely a top and a bottom. Although we looked at the bottom for cracks or serious problems, we weren’t too concerned about the dried oozing glue or the fact that it was rougher than the smooth top.
It’s been almost three months since we installed our butcher block countertops and I gotta tell you, I love them! We installed butcher block on the counter by our sink and stove and we also installed it on our 6′ island. I love our countertops.
Floor & Decor
So, if you’re looking for quality wood butcher block countertops at an affordable price, I highly recommend you check out Floor & Decor. They even have a store locator that you can use to determine if there’s a store near you.
The opinions expressed in this post are 100% my own. I’m simply sharing my honest opinion and our experience in selecting to purchase our butcher block countertops from Floor & Decor. Would I recommend them? Definitely! Would I buy from them again? Definitely!
By the way, I also stained my butcher block countertops. If you know anything about Maple, you know that can be quite a challenge. I’ll share more about that soon.
Do you have questions about the butcher block countertops? If so, I’d love to help answer them. Just leave me a comment below and I’ll respond as soon as I can.
Til next time…
