I had the chance to remodel my kitchen earlier this year and I wanted to do it in a sustainable way. Our counters were these crappy typical lamenent that was all gnarled up and pretty ugly. They came with the house when we bought it and were in horrible shape. I really wanted to adopt some green building techniques and came upon one of the greenest companies to replace our counters. Yes I was torn with my desire for something new and keeping what I have which works but was in bad shape. And for all those minimalist out there I am sorry but I gave in to vanity. But I did do it with some intent and found a phenomenal LOHAS oriented couner top company. Icestone is a triple bottom line company that blends concrete and various recycled glass to make amazing green countertop materials. According to thier own definition - IceStone is a sustainable durable surface made with 100% recycled glass in a cement matrix. IceStone surfaces are produced in slabs. IceStone is the first and only Gold Cradle to Cradle™ certified surface material in the world and comes in a wide variety of colors. IceStone is not an engineered stone product. 

The definition does not speak enough about the final product at all. However it was not as easy as I originally thought to select it. My wife and I got some sample colors and all were really nice. From white with brown and pearl colored flecs to green with small pieces of glass. We finally decided on a type called Heirloom Grey that has a mix of 3 types of glass - white, clear and brown and also bits of recycled mirror. Once we have it installed it looks totally amazing. The mirror pieces in the counter sparkle like snow in the sun when you walk around it. We are totally thrilled with how it looks. And instead of having it dumped into landfill when it is as hacked as our old counters, which I hope won't happen for a long time unless I convert my kitchen into a heavy tool workshop, it can be sent back to Icestone and repurposed for another counter. Why don't other companies think this way? Duh!

I would highly recommend this product to anyone interested in having a green countertop as an aspect of thier ecological lifestyle. Yes it is a bit pricey - about the same as high quality marble. But I dont have to concern myself with the thoughts of my counter coming from a quarry in China as most are. Plus I dont have to use any nasty toxic sealers too. If there is more demand for green products like this then the price will go down.

Not only is the company providing an excellent product the process that it is made and the way they treat thier employees is totally in line with LOHAS principles.

Check out thier video here.