Between style and practicality, I am undoubtedly on the more practical side.  While coordinating a painting project at school a couple years ago, I answered the paint store question of “what color do you want?” with the phrase “the color of dirt.”  Not what is most soothing or most energizing, no my preference then was the color that will show dirt the least on the bathroom door. Planning our new kitchen is the closest I’ve ever been to choosing style over practicality.  And what I’ve learned is that Malcolm floor dirt is a shade of tan.  Indeed, the new wood floor which I specifically wanted stained dark walnut shows every piece of Malcolm kitchen dirt.  Consequently, it gets swept more often.

However, I lucked out on the countertop – one of the most painful, permanent decisions I made during the renovation process.  I couldn’t wrap my mind around what material or color.  I’m not a shiny, buffed granite kind of gal, but I needed something hearty that wouldn’t absorb liquids or require constant upkeep.  I found a piece of polished granite, took a picture of it, emailed the picture to Bill in China, got approval from China, ordered the granite, and ordered the shine to be removed.  It was honed to a dull, earthy finish and sealed for life.

Men built like Greek gods installed the 300 pound slabs, and the crumb angels sang.  It is the absolute color of Malcolm countertop dirt.  Take a look… see if you can find the dried pasta sauce, brown sugar, bread & potato chip crumbs, coffee and hot cocoa stains, and grape stems.  Normally, these remnants aren’t here all the time; I just stylized the granite a bit for this shot.  Really it’s ALL there.  Practicality and style harmonizing above the dark walnut floor.