Admin
Marble is the material clients ask for by name. It is cool to the touch, it takes light beautifully, and no two slabs repeat. It is also porous. Left unsealed, oil and citrus will mark it within the first month, and those marks become part of its character whether you intended them to or not.
Engineered quartz solves the maintenance problem and gives up some of the depth. Terrazzo sits between the two: forgiving underfoot, tolerant of heavy use, and far more interesting than a plain slab once you choose the aggregate carefully.
Where each one earns its place
We tend to zone the material rather than commit the whole room to one choice. A marble splashback or a single vanity top gives you the material at eye level, where it is admired and rarely abused. The counters that take knives, pans and spilled turmeric get quartz.
Choose the surface for the way the room is used, not for the way it photographs on the day of handover.
A short checklist before you sign off
None of this rules marble out. It rules out putting marble somewhere it will be resented. Get the zoning right and the material stays a pleasure for the decade you own it.
