Imagine the beauty of natural stone, quartz or porcelain in your home.
From the Across the Counter Blog
Committed to a Superior Showroom Experience Trish’s View from West Bridgewater
We’ve talked before about the three things that make Boston Granite Exchange stand out: our customers, our suppliers and our team. That team is the biggest part of what makes us special. To quote John Byrne, VP of Sales, “We don’t call them employees, we consider them...
Four Design Elements to Achieve a Year-Round Cozy Kitchen
Cozy isn’t just for the winter months. A warm cozy feel can be part of your kitchen all year round. Achieving that cozy feel places emphasis on lived-in charm, tactile comfort and warm colors. Kitchen design trends are moving away from sterile, all-white designs, and...
New Colors in our Eterno Printed Series
Last fall we announced the expansion of our private Eterno quartz line with the Eterno Printed Series: a superior quality, digitally-printed quartz that offers the authentic look of natural stones in earthy tones while providing all the practical benefits of quartz....
There’s an Outdoor Kitchen Design for Every Home
The ground still may be covered in snow, but we’re all dreaming of springtime. If you are looking out your window wondering if it’s time for that outdoor kitchen, it’s probably time. If you’re starting to plan improvements to your outdoor space, an outdoor kitchen can...
Hold Please! When to Put Slabs on Hold and What that Means
The typical homeowner does a kitchen renovation once or, occasionally, twice in a lifetime, so we sometimes find ourselves helping homeowners understand what the right timeframe is to choose their countertop stone for their home. Are You Ready to Choose? The usual...
There’s SO MUCH More than White: Four Kitchen Color Trends That Are Redefining Style in 2026
For years, we’ve seen white kitchens rule the design world. White kitchens are crisp, clean and timeless. But just like fashion evolves, so do our homes. Today’s kitchen color trends are bold, soulful, and utterly personal. Interior designers and homeowners are saying...
The Finishing Touch: Seven Options for Your Countertop Edge
As you are designing your new kitchen, one detail that can be overlooked is the countertop edge. Though it seems like a minor detail, the right edge profile enhances the beauty and functionality of your countertops and can turn a beautiful slab into a gorgeous...
Kitchen Design Trends for 2026 – Part 2
The Top Design Trend for 2026 In our last blog, we shared five of the top trends we’re seeing for 2026. Now, we’d like to share the number one trend we’re seeing … drum roll, please … solid slab backsplashes. A solid slab backsplash brings the stone used for the...
Kitchen Design Trends for 2026 – Part 1
Five Kitchen Design Trends for 2026 It’s that time of year, the leaves are falling, there’s a nip in the air and we’re reviewing 2026 kitchen design trends. Here are five kitchen trends we’ve noted for 2026: 1. Dramatic Veining Natural stone countertops are always in...
Renovating Your Vacation Home: Three Key Considerations – Part II
If you’ve been spending time in your vacation home, you may be thinking it’s time for a makeover to update the space and make it fit your current uses. A kitchen remodel in a second home presents different considerations compared to a primary residence. In a recent...
Renovating Your Vacation House: Some Considerations – Part I
It’s your place down the Cape, your camp by the lake, your ski house in the mountains. Wherever it is and whatever you call it, your vacation home that serves as your escape from the day-to-day routine eventually will need improvements. Perhaps it’s been in the family...
Four Reasons a Jumbo Slab Could Be the Best Choice for Your Project
When planning a kitchen renovation or new build, the countertop is often a focal point. It’s not only a functional surface but typically a defining design element. For homeowners looking for both beauty and practicality, jumbo slabs have become an increasingly popular...
Five Myths About Soapstone
Soapstone is a natural stone that’s earned a place in both historic homes and modern kitchens thanks to its understated beauty and practical benefits. However, despite its growing popularity, there are still several misconceptions that can cause hesitation among...
Introducing the Eterno Design Series
We are excited to announce the newest addition to The BGE Quartz Collection: Eterno Design Series, an expansion of our private line of quartz, Eterno. The Eterno Design Series offers inspired looks for homeowners who love the qualities of quartz and the character of...
Island Innovation in Your Kitchen
The kitchen island is evolving. It is becoming the multi-purpose hub of the home for food prep, dining, remote work, homework and even entertaining. This trend started during the pandemic but it continues to change and grow. Homeowners and designers are creating even...
Four Myths About Granite
Granite countertops have become a staple in kitchens and bathrooms – admired for their durability, elegance and timeless appeal. However, despite their popularity, there are several myths surrounding granite that should be debunked in order for homeowners to make...
It’s Time to Plan Your Outdoor Kitchen
As you walk around your home and look out the window, you notice it's a beautiful sunny day. The beautiful sky is calling you outdoors. So, you open the door. You are greeted by the paradox of New England: a glorious sunny day combined with snow on the ground and...
Our Ever-changing Showrooms – See for Yourself!
Are you considering or planning a home improvement project? Maybe 2025 is the year for a new kitchen or outdoor kitchen. We are importers and wholesalers of stones from all over the world so, you want to make sure you visit one of our showrooms to help you move your...
Discover the Timeless Beauty of Natural Stone
The beauty of natural stone is unmistakable. The unique look of natural stone starts deep in the earth buried underground or within mountains. As we have traveled the world visiting the many quarries from which we source our natural stones, we’ve had the opportunity...
Six Kitchen Trends For 2025
As the year winds down, we are looking ahead to 2025. This is the time each year when we begin to share emerging design trends. It’s always interesting to see which trends stay with us, which return over time and what is new and different in the world of design. Here...
Do You Want a Stunning Fireplace Makeover?
It’s fall, the leaves are turning beautiful colors and you may have started thinking about curling up by the fireplace. Maybe you’ve already gathered friends or family by a cozy fire. And, perhaps you’ve set a critical eye on the fireplace wondering if it is time to...
We’ve Seen Many Changes over the Years: What’s Next for Your Kitchen?
If you’ve been following our recent blogs, we’ve been spending time chatting with Boston Granite Exchange’s General Manager, Bill Thomas, and VP of Sales, John Byrne, asking them about their 25 years at the helm. We asked them about changes over the years as they...
Quartzite is Having a Moment
We love quartzite. It’s beautiful. Sometimes the granite vs. quartz debate overwhelms the conversation about stones, but we think that quartzite is amazing and our customers think so, too. We have many beautiful quartzite slabs arriving each week at our showrooms, and...
More Ways to Love the Great Outdoors
No doubt, with the warmer weather you’ve been getting outdoors more and perhaps, since it is celebration season, you’ve enjoyed parties and gatherings in backyards of friends and family. Maybe you’ve admired a friend’s outdoor kitchen? Perhaps your own outdoor...
Announcing New Quartz Designs from Compac
The annual KBIS show is a great event to connect with people in the industry whom we have known for years. As we shared previously, Compac again had a large presence at the show and we enjoyed spending time and seeing first hand some of their newest designs that we...
Four Kitchen Upgrades that Are Worth the Money
When homeowners plan their kitchen renovation they often find themselves weighing the cost of various items and the value those items have to them. These decisions are based on personal preference and style. Here are four upgrades that designers say you won’t regret...
What’s New and Trending in Kitchen Design: Our Takeaways from KBIS
Once again this year, Boston Granite Exchange was represented in Las Vegas at the annual Kitchen and Bath Industry Show (KBIS). John Byrne, VP of Sales, and Bill Thomas, General Manager, headed west to connect with suppliers and designers from across the US and around...
Four Bathroom Trends for 2024
During the pandemic, we were finding refuge in our bathrooms. We brightened them up, bringing in spa elements and embracing the bathroom as one of the havens in our homes for peace, quiet and relaxation. If a bathroom refresh is in your plans for 2024, there are some...
The 2024 Kitchen Trend That’s a Runaway Hit
In a recent blog, we shared kitchen design trends for 2024. It seems that one of those trends is becoming a runaway hit with designers and homeowners. According to The Kitchn, statement range hoods are popping up everywhere. Designers are embracing statement...
Summer Dreams: Make that Outdoor Kitchen Yours in 2024
Three Trends in Outdoor Kitchens It’s only January, but the crazy New England winter weather has many of us dreaming of summer nights. The backyard, the hammock, the fire pit and a gorgeous outdoor kitchen are in those dreams. Are they in your dreams, too? An outdoor...
2024 Kitchen Trends (Part 2)
In our last blog, we highlighted kitchen trends for 2024 including big islands, many shades of green, some new appliance technology and the resurgence of natural wood tones. Read Part I. If you are planning a new kitchen in 2024, here are some more trends for your...
2024 Kitchen Trends (Part I)
As the year starts its rapid wind to a close, we’re looking ahead to 2024 and the design trends that are heading your way. If you’re planning a kitchen renovation in 2024, there are some beautiful design trends and some excellent innovations for you to consider. Here...
The Slab Backsplash: Three Ways to Have a Standout Look in Your Kitchen
While you are planning your new kitchen, consider a slab backsplash. Using a continuous slab of natural stone, quartz or porcelain can give your kitchen a beautiful and interesting and even dramatic look. As a bonus, with no grouting to worry about, cleaning a slab...
Three Kitchen Island Trends that Will Continue
As you plan a kitchen renovation, you’re likely gathering ideas from websites, home renovation shows or home magazines. Seeing what’s trending can help inspire you and sometimes guide you to design ideas you love. Islands have become a focal point of the kitchen, and...
Porcelain Countertops Will Stand the Test of Time in Your Kitchen
Your kitchen is a multi-purpose space for trying out new recipes, studying, relaxing, working, entertaining and gathering the family together. It is the heart of the home. As you plan your kitchen renovation, it is likely that this is top of mind. You want the...
Make a Statement with Your Fireplace
So many of our New England homes have fireplaces. They offer a cozy respite from the winter wind and cold. As fall begins, take a long look at your fireplace. Is it all it can be? Is it inviting you to curl up next to it with a book or invite friends over for an...
Five Kitchen Design Elements that Won’t Go Out of Style
A kitchen renovation is an investment. According to Remodeling Magazine, the national average cost for a kitchen remodel in 2022 was $28,279, with the range from $13,000- $38,000. Appliances, cabinets, countertops, fixtures and, of course, labor are factored into...
Is a Jumbo Slab Right for Your Kitchen Renovation?
Jumbo slabs, as the name suggests, are larger than the standard sized slabs and thus have a higher yield. A traditional slab is 130”x 64”, a jumbo slab is 130”x 75”. The additional square footage makes jumbo slabs an excellent choice because they allow you to maximize...
Showered With Attention: 2023 Bathroom Design is Celebrating the Shower
Move over, bathtubs, the once utilitarian shower is now embracing luxury and taking center stage! Homeowners continue to bring calming influences into the home, looking for ways to make it a pleasant refuge where time spent is comfortable and relaxing. This trend is...
Bold Choices are Defining 2023’s Latest Kitchen Design Trends
As we take a mid-year look at kitchen design trends, we’re finding that bold choices continue to be a theme in 2023. By incorporating lots of natural stone, contrasting materials and bold colors, 2023 kitchen design is full of beautiful surprises. Here are four trends...
What to Know BEFORE You Begin a Kitchen Renovation
When homeowners visit Boston Granite Exchange they usually are well into the renovation process. However, we know that for some homeowners beginning the process is filled with anxiety and questions. Sometimes getting started is the hardest part. To help you jumpstart...
Discovering Gold: The Other 2023 Color Trend
Prior blogs have focused on how greens and blues are popular trends in kitchen design. With plenty of new colors and designs in natural and manufactured stones, there are many choices to make green and blue part of your new kitchen. Another popular design trend for...
Outdoor Kitchens Have Made a Lasting Impression
Three Beautiful Outdoor Countertop Options During the pandemic, homeowners reevaluated their outdoor spaces as they looked for ways to spread out, visit with close friends and family and make the best of a challenging situation. They expanded their living space into...
The Finishing Touch
Choosing the Right Finish for Your Kitchen Countertop Choosing your kitchen countertop involves several decisions. The first is to choose the type of stone that will best suit your taste, lifestyle and budget. This can be natural stone, such as granite, quartzite,...
The Pantry Revival
A Hidden Surprise in Kitchen Design The pantry has been around for centuries. In the Medieval Great Halls, there were several rooms outside of the kitchen which were dedicated to food storage and preparation. Dishes were washed in the scullery and stored in the...
What Happened at KBIS Doesn’t Stay in Vegas; It Might Influence Your Kitchen Renovation
Recently, our VP of Sales, John Byrne, and General Manager, Bill Thomas, travelled to the annual Kitchen and Bath Industry Show (KBIS) held this year in Las Vegas. This annual conference brings the industry together to see what is new, what is trending and what is...
A New Design from a Favorite Old Quarry
The Danby Quarry in Dorset, Vermont, is a quarry we’ve visited often. Not only is it the closest to home quarry for us, but it is also the largest underground quarry in the United States, and it produces some of the most beautiful marble in the world. Many monuments...
The Story Behind the Stone: Quartz
Quartz is a beautiful option for kitchen countertops, vanity tops, fireplace surrounds and more. But, homeowners are sometime unclear as to what quartz is and where it comes from. Natural stone is mined from quarries in huge blocks and then cut into slabs. We all...
Seven Kitchen Design Trends for 2023
It’s a New Year. You’ve got a new calendar. Maybe you’re thinking of a new kitchen. If you’ve been putting it off, 2023 might be the year for your kitchen renovation. If you are starting to plan a new kitchen, here are seven design trends that we like. Colorful...
Homeowner’s Perspective: Getting Creative to Get Your Perfect Kitchen
Taking it from the ‘90s to Now Katie and Carl bought a great house; it is well-built and suits their family, which includes a teenaged son and daughter and a mischievous dog. The house is in the perfect neighborhood, with perfect schools in a great part of town. It...
Your Sink: The Unsung Hero of Your Kitchen
Your sink is probably the most used (and useful) part of your kitchen. So much happens in your kitchen sink. The obvious culinary efforts, of course, happen there, but there are other, non-culinary uses many of us take part in – from bathing the baby to cleaning the...
The Wonderful, Unintended Consequences of a Kitchen Renovation
Image: Mary’s kitchen features a beautiful granite countertop in Mont Blue We love hearing stories from homeowners and seeing pictures of their new kitchens in use. One pattern we’re hearing about is a wonderful and unintended consequence of a kitchen renovation:...
Everywhere We Look We See Gorgeous Colors
And We Aren’t Just Talking About the Leaves There’s color everywhere! It’s a beautiful autumn in New England with vibrant colors everywhere we look – including throughout our showrooms. We’ve added lots of beautiful new colors to our showrooms this fall, and we can...
We’re Singing (about) the Blues
After the long reign of whites and greys, color has reemerged in interior design. And we’re seeing blues making a comeback. Gorgeous blues. From deep sapphire to ocean blue to soft grey blues. So many blues! We’re seeing beautiful blue designs in natural stones like...
Four Reasons to Consider Porcelain for Your New Kitchen
What Laminam Brings to Your Table In recent years, the kitchen has become the most lived-in and best-loved space in the home. It has become a multi-purpose space where we cook, study, relax, entertain and work. In every way, it is the heart of the home. As you plan...
Three Ways to Unclutter Your Kitchen: Using Your Vertical Space
At BGE, we hear many reasons why customers want to renovate their kitchens. The cluttered kitchen is a common complaint. It’s also an interesting dilemma. Many of the things on the counter get used all the time and sit out for convenience. Kitchen designers and...
A Homeowner’s Perspective: The Two-Stage Renovation
A Phased Approach to a Dream Kitchen There are challenges to renovation and sometimes getting it done all at once just isn’t possible. For Maria and her family, a two-stage renovation was what ended up happening. Maria, her husband Dave and their two young children...
The Story Behind the Stone: Soapstone an Ancient Tradition in Nordic Culture
Soapstone is a beautiful natural stone with a warm look and a cool, soft feel. Soapstone often flies under the radar. Homeowners are far more familiar with granite, marble and quartz than they are with soapstone, but once they begin looking around our showroom they...
Let’s Take It Outside
Living in New England means that when the weather is good, we spend as much time as we can outside enjoying it. In the past couple of years our backyards have become a refuge. Safe, socially distant and by invitation only, we were able to find ways to be together...
A Homeowner’s Perspective: Think About How You Cook
There are many considerations as you plan your kitchen renovation. One important place to start is how you use your kitchen. Everyone uses their kitchen differently. A person who loves to cook is going to have very specific wishes and will want certain things tailored...
Everything but the Kitchen Sink
There are so many exciting details to think about as you plan for your kitchen renovation: countertops, backsplash, flooring, appliances. You may be looking to reconfigure your kitchen, changing the footprint to make it work better for you. And it’s likely you’re...
The Story Behind the Stone: Fabrication
Before a stone is installed in your home, the slab has been on quite a journey. For a natural stone such as granite and marble, the slab originated in a quarry and took quite a trip to end up in one of our showrooms. This blog focuses on the final part of the journey...
Porcelain Can Be Used for That?
As porcelain grows in popularity, we are often asked by homeowners which applications are best suited for porcelain. The biggest misconception about porcelain is that it is delicate and subject to chipping. This couldn’t be further from the truth. Take a look at this...
4 Things You Should Know About Laminam Porcelain Surfaces
Porcelain is growing in popularity in the US, but many people are unfamiliar with the use of porcelain in the home, particularly as a countertop surface. There are also misconceptions about porcelain that we’d like to dispel. Common misconceptions about porcelain:...
Color Trends for Your 2022 Kitchen Remodel
Airy coastal vibes are sticking around in 2022. Greys, blues and greens are all popular and they all work beautifully in the timeless two-tone kitchen, letting you create interest without overwhelming your space. Here are three really lovely looks we’re seeing in...
A Stunning Olympic Appearance: Laminam Porcelain Chosen for Olympic Village Façades
The Winter Olympics are underway in Beijing, and many of us have our favorites to watch for during the competition. We’ve recently learned that one of our favorites, Laminam porcelain, was used for the façade of the Olympic Village, where athletes from around the...
The Story Behind the Stone: The Journey
We love sharing the Stories Behind the Stones with our readers. As you walk through one of our showrooms, you’ll see such a variety of materials and colors from around the world. They are beautiful and have many interesting stories that we love sharing with you, but...
A Homeowner’s Perspective: Three Things I Learned from My Kitchen Renovation
We learn from homeowners and we value their thoughts. Recently, we sat down with Elisa, a homeowner who lives in the Merrimack Valley with her family. About two years ago, Elisa completed a kitchen renovation on her 25-year-old Colonial style home. The renovation...
Fa La La La Laminam!
The kitchen is the busiest room in the house around holiday time. From baking special family recipes to preparing traditional holiday feasts, the room seems to hum around the clock as the days count down to the holidays. Laminam porcelain is made for a busy...
The Cozy, Casual New England Kitchen
Three Design Elements that Make It Special Sometimes, living in New England, we forget that our unique New England style is sought after by people in other regions of the country. We have a special place in our hearts for the cozy, casual warmth of a New England...
Four 2022 Kitchen Trends We Love
With the Holidays right around the corner, 2021 is winding down. Right now, we’re seeing homeowners begin planning their kitchen renovations for the New Year. There’s a lot to look forward to in 2022, including some fantastic new kitchen design trends. Here are four...
The Story Behind the Stone: Eterno Quartz
As a kitchen countertop surface, quartz became popular in Europe in the 1960s and 1970s. It took some time for the trend to make its way to the US, where it has become increasingly popular from the 1990s to today. To address the demand for quartz surfaces, Boston...
The BGE Quartz Collection: Options for Your Style
Your kitchen remodel project is full of options and decisions. One of them is choosing the material for your countertop. Quartz is a popular choice because of its durability, affordability, beauty and styles and colors to meet every desired design. As you plan your...
Three Ways to Make an Island the Focal Point in Your New Kitchen
The kitchen is the center of our homes. So much of our lives takes place in this one space: from day-to-day family life, to supervising the kids’ homework, to work from home meetings and entertaining family and friends, we’re always in the kitchen. And we like to cook...
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