IMHO Saving money isn't about evil corporations or immigration it is about LBYM and thinking long term. ...
Yes, the earlier exchange with
purplesky was getting deep into an area that will get the thread shut down, so I'll bow out now from that.
I laugh at the snooty people as well. They go into a perfectly nice kitchen and "I wanted granite" or "this is a total gut job I hate those light, dark or whatever cabinets..." ...
What's wrong with people wanting a certain look, as long as they can afford it?
I'd bet that our granite counters actually cost
less than having formica put in. We have lots of angles and edges and separate pieces to deal with in our layout. A peninsula with rounded edges, a rounded cabinet profile to match on one piece. There would have been a lot of labor to do that in formica and have it look nice. With granite, the computer cuts and shapes anything you need. Very little labor, and none if it was highly skilled either. Rip out, align and glue down the pieces, some middling skills to fill the two joints and silicone the backsplash.
It was formica after a remodel I did - but my FIL did the formica with us - it was a BIG job, and he had all the tools and experience. Then I did the edge trimming later, which wasn't cheap and
very labor intensive (getting wood edging around all the curves we had). Hiring someone to do all that would have been big $$$.
edit/add: Wait a minute - you were the guy talking about funding a $40,000 wedding, yet granite ( a lifetime investment versus a one day party) is 'snooty'? To each their own, but I don't think that would register with most people.
-ERD50