I think the marble naysayers have jumped on the bandwagon without really living with the stone. I have statuary in my bathrooms and love it. Most stains can be removed with a simple baking soda and water poultice. Acid etching is harder to deal with since it removes the polished surface, but its part of having a living stone in your home. If it becomes too bad, you can have it repolished. With a darker stone, you won't have as many issues as a white marble. In order to really know if you can live with it, I suggest you get a small sample of the stone and do some tests. Here is an example. http://www.dohiy.com/2013/04/21/marble-countertops-the-post-acid-test/ Please note that she used bleach and oxyclean to clean the stone after her test. Stay away from both since they can etch the stone just as much as an acidic food. Instead, clean with a ph neutral cleaner like isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol), and for heavy stains, the baking soda poultice mentioned above. You have to remember that marble has been used for centuries as flooring, table tops, countertops, etc. throughout the world and most of these installations are still here and aren't stained and etched to the point that it has been ripped out and replaced. Just think about all of he luxury hotels in Europe and how many times they have been exposed to Hangover type guests without any damage.

I had purchased hafele hob 10 months back... I got it serviced 6 times... Now i requested for replacement with new one... Still they have not attended my request...

Tsilanko, I would always recommend professional installation where needed. But what I am doing here is suggesting that WHEN you are planning to build or renovate, to consider how your plans will affect you in 20 or 30 years time. Split levels are very hep when you are young. A kitchen 3 steps down at 30 is rarely a problem, but might be a hazard at 60, or, as Marjie1059 suggested, if you break a leg. ... All my parents' homes were terrible for old people. They were forced to move to a bungalow in extreme old sge because the location and design of their home was more suitable for an active young couple with a large family than for an elderly couple with stroke disabilities. I would not want to move again, so my present home has features built in that make ageing in place simpler. Mostly small changes, like grab rails, and lever handles on doors and faucets. A major disability suddenly suffered requires major changes if permanent. I did look at this because it came up in the discussion, but if you look at the heading, Planning for Disability, it means just that. Plan ahead so you don't have to make expensive changes later on. But thank you for your advice, yes, major changes are not in the DIY domain.

Hello Ms Vijaya Yes, I was referring to the old post wherein you gave the details of your requirement. But it is somehow missing in the feed now. Installing a chimney (T shaped one) shouldn't be an issue even if you have a window. You could ask the carpenter to take a vertical support plank (of 18 mm ply) from the wall just above the window. Just to not let that support plank hanging, the bottom of the plank should be fixed to the grill of the window. In this way, you do not have to compromise on the ventilation from that particular window. Make sure dimensions of the plank are aligned with the hood of the chimney and also the height at which it has to be fixed. Something like below. Backsplash gives a splendid look to the kitchen as well as it is easy to maintain. You can also have digital prints to suit your taste, instead of a plain one. The negative sides of a glass backsplash are that it is relatively expensive and prone to shattering. Few things to bear in mind are before going ahead with glass backsplash - the electrical points and any other fixtures on the dado wall should be decided along with the dimensions as provisions have to be made for that in the glass before toughening it. Stick the glass to a ply panel and do not fix it using studs. Now coming to the overall design keeping in mind the aesthetic appeal, below are my assumptions: 1. West facing flat. 2. Your sink tap is on the East wall, near to the toilet. 3. Provision of pooja unit is not required in the kitchen. 4. Crockery to be placed in a separate unit near dining. 5. Kitchen should have maximum storage capacity. A look of a kitchen is decided by parameters like color combination, lighting, quality and type of the shutter material. In the below edited pic, I have given the possible spots for fridge, sink, breakfast unit, platform. You can have two L shaped plaforms (in red) along all the four walls. The placement of sink is indicated by orange boxes and you can opt for either of the position. It is not suitable on the East platform as it will be very close to the cooking range. Never have the sink at the extreme end of a platform, it will impede your movement near the sink and the space underneath is partially lost. The fridge's position can be either on the West side or South side. If you opt for placement on the West side, place a partition unit made of ACP/MDF fret work to hide the back of the fridge (line in yellow) and also to enhance the look of it when viewed from living area. Breakfast unit is indicated by brown box and take care that the dimensions will not hinder your free walking way to the kitchen. Place pendant lights over the breakfast counter. The space/wall to the left of the breakfast unit can be either used for storage or for placing some decor items/artefacts. Tall unit on the North-West platform has two options - in either of the platform corners. I would suggest to have it on the North side corner (beside the utility door). This tall unit can either house your microwave, oven etc. or just use the entire unit by placing shelves. Please refer to the below link for my suggestions on the color combination https://www.houzz.in/discussions/we-want-our-kitchen-to-be-renovated-dsvw-vd~5386939 Go for high gloss laminates/acrylic/PU finish for the skin of the shutters as per your budget. To further enhance the look: - Use under cabinet lighting, profile doors with spot lights inside, some contrast color open boxes in the cabinets (above the platform) to break the monotony. - Go for simple plain false ceiling and place track lights wherever you want to highlight. - Go for ample LEDs with daylight temperature. - Plan to have a handle less cabinetry (both over and under platform). You have the provision to use corner units, tall unit, rolling shutters, wicker baskets and even an island if you really want it (though I would not recommend). If you need help in designing your kitchen and putting it all together in a 3-D view, contact an interior designer. Srikanth Meticular Interiors