Recommendations for Bathroom Vanity Tops (Fairfax: apartment, countertops, condo)

[Azmordean]

So I just put down an offer on a condo here in Fairfax. Assuming it gets accepted, closing will be on SEPT 27. The condo is fully rennovated / spruced up, except for some reason they left these ugly white formica laminate vanity tops from the 80s in the bathroom along with bad apartment style faucets to go with it.

So replacing these will be one of my first tasks and I'm trying to get some ideas. I am not inclined to replace the whole vanity, as in one of the bathrooms the vanity is a large "top of a trapezoid" shape, and the vanities themselves are in good condition - white with new hardware, etc. Thus, I am looking into vanity top replacement.

Based on the size, these will have to be custom. Granite is pretty (I'll have it in the kitchen), but I don't think I really need it in the bathrooms. I'm perfectly happy with a solid surface acrylic or a cultured marble to save some money (NOT white though, I want a dark tan type look).

Out of curiosity, I stopped by home depot - they had some decent solid surface options, for about $47/sqft installed. That struck me as high for solid surface though. I also have a call into "counter intelligence" but have not yet heard back.

So does anyone have any suggestions? The array of choices in this arena is bewildering - corian, lexton, marble, granite, swanstone, etc, and a million different installers. None of whom seem to actually put price per square foot on the web.

Thanks!!

[statecollege]

$47 installed doesn't seem high to me. My opinion is to go with what looks the most pleasing to you with your bathroom decor. Old Formica indeed is ugly in today's criteria, but also realize that laminate countertops have made progress. WilsonArt, for example, has looks and textures that emulate natural stone and can provide decorative edges to get away from the squared Formica-look edges.
View Wilsonart HD Laminate Patterns, Edges and Sinks And Get Ideas For Your Kitchen and Bath
While small countertops in bathrooms are fairly easy to instal for a handy homeowner, I'm assuming this is not your situation. I have granite in my bathrooms, and I prefer the high-end look it provides. If you want to explore granite and save some money, try finding a remnant and bargain hard with the salesperson. Granite places desire to get rid of small pieces left over from big jobs, and some may be the size you need. However, I doubt you'll get a price that matches $47 unless you have a handy friend who will install it for free. While Corian has the advantage of a built in sink for cleaning purposes, I don't like the appearance and prefer an under-mount sink on granite or a vessel sink with off-set faucet. Finally, when I was researching countertops I came across a product--Granite Transformations--that has a stone-like appearance and mounts over the existing countertop. It's thin and made of epoxy and embedded granite fragments. However, it wasn't much cheaper than solid granite.
Granite Transformations (Dulles,VA)

[greatblueheron]

I just renovated a bathrm, one with a very long countertop...have had in the past, tile, corian...and granite in kitchen.

BUT this is what I chose: a new laminate. Dozens and dozens of colors/patterns as well as edging pieces (I chose a rounded edge). They are very reasonable in price- SO much more so than granite etc and easy to care for.....plus with the lower expense, you can change out easily rather than being stuck for many yrs say with a granite color that is no longer in style etc.

To each his/her own. Just another suggestion.