Well we’ve made it to week 5 of the ORC which means we’re into the home stretch. This week we’re taking you through a few of the details – the little luxuries that will elevate our kitchen from its current basic state to truly realizing the dream we’ve envisioned for the last 5 years. First things first – let’s talk about the sink & faucet.

If you’re joining us for the first time, feel free to go get yourself up to speed with the previous weeks’ updates.

Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4

Now that that’s out of the way, let’s get to the good stuff.

The Sink:

Since we’re upgrading our countertops, it makes sense that we’re also planning to install an under mount sink. But not just any sink – this gorgeous sink from BLANCO Canada.

Precis U Super Single via BLANCO

Let me backtrack a little. If you’ve been following us for a while, you might remember my public declaration of love for BLANCO products after our trip to IDS a few years ago. At the time though, I was not-so-subtly swooning over another sink (which for the record I still love). Here’s the thing though – while stainless steel sinks do offer many benefits, after nearly 3 years of living with one, I’ve noticed a few things that really grind my gears:

1. They scratch. Period. Anyone who has kids who aren’t careful and has experienced broken dishes or even anyone who’s ever tried to clean their sink a little more aggressively than they should & then wanted to punch themselves in the face after realizing what they’ve done to their sink knows this. Not that that’s ever happened to us or anything….
2. Sink grates are gross! Ok so in reference to point 1, you might be thinking a sink grate will protect the beautiful stainless s1teel finish on the bottom of your sink from those pesky & sometimes pointy dishes. Well you’d be right. But if you’ve ever ventured to clean one, turned it over & been horrified by the buildup of gunk that’s collected from a week of dirty & greasy dishes then you know what I’m talking about. Some things you can’t unsee. Shudder…
3. Water spots are a thing. Now I realize that I’m well into “first world problem” territory here but whatever. This is my dream kitchen remember? And I don’t like having to clean water spots. It’s annoying. And I’m lazy. There, I said it.

Now 5 years ago when we were planning our kitchen, a stainless steel sink was really the only option that matched our modern aesthetic (and budget). But a lot’s changed in 5 years…

Enter SILGRANIT^®

When I first heard about the BLANCO SILGRANIT^® sink, I initially dismissed it as just another composite sink. I assumed it was an option for people who wanted a white or taupe coloured sink to match their countertop – definitely not something that would fit into our modern kitchen. A little further investigation, however and I very quickly realized how wrong I was!

BLANCO PRECIS™ U Super Single in Anthracite

This sink checks all the boxes. It’s super easy to clean – needing little more than dish soap & water. It’s heat, impact, acid & most importantly scratch resistant- which means no need for any kind of grate to protect the bottom. If all that wasn’t enough, the natural granite composite material doesn’t show water marks the way stainless steel sinks do! Check. Check. And Check.

What really drew us in though – it’s preeeetty!! We opted for the PRECIS sink which has all the clean modern lines we were looking for. It has sleek, crisp corners and the most beautifully smooth finish. There are 7 available colour options, but when Kes and I took one look at the Anthracite, we knew it would be the perfect compliment to our modern industrial kitchen design. The colour is everything. It’s dark, yet dramatic. It’s rich & moody and if you look closely, it has an ever-so slight silver sparkle.

The Faucet:

This is literally the icing on the cake. We chose the stunning URBENA faucet who’s slim contemporary design & dual chrome/Anthracite finish makes it the perfect companion to the sink.

BLANCO URBENA kitchen faucet in Chrome / Anthracite dual finish

We seriously can’t wait to get these installed in our kitchen!

We’ll be adding a few other accessories that we’re super excited about as well – but you’ll have to wait for the reveal to see those. I am so happy with how it is all going so far, the kitchen is going to look amazing. Remember that each detail of your kitchen matters, so make sure it is to your style! For example, make sure you are getting the best kitchen faucet for your kitchen. Consider things like colour and practicality amongst other things.

Speaking of the reveal, I know you’ve all been patiently waiting for week 6, but this time around, you’ll have to wait just a little bit longer. With all of the natural disasters that have happened throughout the last several weeks, many of the ORC participants – particularly our friends south of the border – have had to deal with some pretty extenuating circumstances & experienced significant delays in getting to the finish line. Since the One Room Challenge has always been about bloggers coming together to support & inspire each other, Calling It Home has decided to extending the deadline to give everyone an extra week.

With that said, we’ll be giving you one final update next week and then revealing our kitchen on Thursday Nov. 16th. Mark your calendars!

Don’t forget to check out the other participants in this season’s One Room Challenge!

Disclosure: This post was brought to you in partnership with BLANCO Canada who is providing the sink, faucet & accessories for our kitchen makeover. As always, opinions are our own.