BB, let’s see if we get clarification.
This is a peninsula. I think her 3" edge is a decorative lip that drops lower, only makes it look like a 3" slab. Not a 3" slab (imagine the weight) over plywood with a raw edge showing where the stools pull up.
We just replaced our countertops, so I learned a lot about quartz countertop fabrication and install. I think she is taking about 3 cm thickness of quartz top versus the standard 2 cm or so thickness. There is no way a 3" drop down edge would work in a kitchen. How would one open the cabinets? The clearance between the top of the drawer or door and the bottom of the countertop is usually less than 1/2". The thicker quarts requires plywood reinforcement, the thinner does not.
Here is a guy with a similar problem. Take a look at the pic where the plywood layer can be seen under the countertop.
https://www.houzz.com/discussions/3716771/quartz-with-ikea-plywood
If there is plywood under the island overhang, there is plywood on top of the entire island, so there could be that edge problem I was talking about. The installers should have used thin metal bars to hold the overhang. Then only the underside of quartz would show. Plywood,
If it is rough and can’t be finished on its own, can be laminated with hardwood wood veneer and stained or painted.
Peninsula.
We don’t know the door or drawer config.
Wanna pm me the pic? If you mean the bullnose, that cabinet is unfinished. Looks like it goes against an appliance.
But also, she said visible from the sofa.
Curious to see how she describes this.
When she asked about a 1" slab, as a contrasting question, thought she meant a simple honed edge. 1" slab, no lip. That could/should use brackets to support the knee space.
- visible from the sofa, presumably a lower line of sight, not when standing or sitting on the stools. Unless she means some nut job DIY mistake, lol.
Right. There is no 3" quartz.
" Quartz comes in ½-inch, ¾-inch and 1½-inch thickness."
3/4 inch is ca 2 cm. 1 1/2 is 3 cm. I have never seen an install with either 1" or 3" overhang. And I looked at close to 50-60 new kitchens earlier this year. Not clear how that plywood would not show around the edges elsewhere and be visible from the point the post describes.
OK, I think I figured what the issue is. The idiot installers talked the homeowner into the “upscale look” which was created by building up the top of the island with plywood, installing a thin layer of quartz over it and fusing 2" or so strip around the edge to make it look like it is 3" thick (ugh, another seam). My advice still stands: sand really well or laminate the underside of the overhang with a nice veneer and paint or stain to match the cabinets. If it was a slab installed without any plywood, then the underside would have looked like unpolished quartz. Which is what I have in my kitchen. There are no low sofas to look at it from because it faces the eating nook, not the living room. Otherwise, we would be looking at unfinished quartz. It is not very pretty. It has a large stamp Cambria Made in the USA to please you know who.
On my island, I have a granite overhang, which is 24" and fits three bar stools (one on either side of the counter and one at the end). We had our contractor put two corbels to support it. No plywood underneath. The corbels are stained to match the cabinets in the island.
VH, on my island, the eating area extends more than 3 feet out and is supported by a metal frame. There are 3 barstools around it. We currently use it as our breakfast nook. In House1, there was an overhang like in your island, and the countertop overhang was supported by 2 very thin, flat metal bars that were powder coated grey to blend into the countertop. The top of the cabinet was notched just slightly to fit the bars so no build up on the top of the cabinet was needed. The fabricators made sure there will be no stamps or marks in that area.
Thanks for all the discussion about my question and I’m sorry that I seem to have described my situation in a confusing way…I’m not a DIY and neither dh or I know all that much about home construction, etc. I’ll try to clarify. Yes, we have plywood underneath our quartzite which is how I am able to have a 3"mitered edge. Our quartzite is gorgeous and and 3" is exactly what we asked for and it looks beautiful. Having said all that, the place we bought our stone provided the fabricator and now, after the fact, I believe the fabricator was not all that good. But, it was installed in April and what’s done is done.
Our overhand is about 18". We replaced granite tile (same footprint) and had these very unattractive L-shaped metal brackets underneath the overhang that I had always disliked and saw when I sat on the couch (great room that adjoins the kitchen). So, when the fabricator came, and I explained that I wanted to go from our current 2" edge to 3", I also mentioned that I really disliked the brackets. They said that with 3" of plywood, the counter would be secure enough that I wouldn’t need brackets. I was thrilled.
So, now, I don’t have the ugly brackets (and, for the life of me, I can’t recall what the underside of the old overhang looked like), I now see a bit of the plywood. I’m guessing that painting it would solve my problem. I just wondered if our fabricators didn’t quite finish the project or what others with a similar set up saw when they looked under their overhang. I’m pretty short so, when I sit on the couch, I see things others wouldn’t necessarily see.
The picture below shows an example of thickness and overhang somewhat similar to our home, although we have a peninsula, not an island…and our overhang provides ample room for people to sit on the barstools comfortably.
https://i.pinimg.com/originals/90/e8/6e/90e86ea70df02e84c56d346ecb1575da.jpg
I just reread all the comments and we’re starting a big project, adding a deck to the family room/great room, and will be painting the interior of the house as well. Seems like the easy answer is that I can ask the contractor to make sure they paint the underside of the overhang when they’re painting the rest of the space. Perhaps the fabricator didn’t do anything wrong with regard to the exposed plywood…
As I mentioned, we looked at many new kitchens, and in pretty much all of them the underside of counter height overhangs were not finished at all. Just solid stone with brackets or metal bars like I described. Raised bars get finished with veneer and stain/paint underneath. Check Houzz - there are several discussions on that topic. If the installers used cheap plywood, a veneer or some sort of smoothing compound might be needed. If the plywood is of stain quality, just sand and paint it to match the cabinets.
I have rarely heard the term “peninsula” - here, most call them islands even if they are attached to a wall at the other end or eating bars or eating nook/areas. I guess “peninsula” is too long of a word for contractors to use, lol. 
The kitchen in that photo is definitely not my style; the countertops look artificially too heavy and have sooo many sharp edges and corners that they are a hazard to any little ones running around. The sink looks very weird (try to clean in the nooks and crannies around it!) and why on the planet did they place the stove next to the sink not across from it?! Totally anti-Toyota way. The only thing I really like in that photo is the bar stools. But they are the wrong kind for the kitchen pictured because they are too high to seat comfortably on them (should have used counter height ones). I guess I am all about functionality and safety, not the looks.
And houzz shows a top just like in collage’s case. Does this pic work https://s3-media2.fl.yelpcdn.com/bphoto/r0WpzDQi1rVT5xRs0jduvQ/o.jpg
It’s physics, first. She didn’t want brackets again. What’s odd is if they did build up 3" of plywood. That changes the counter height.
But that’s what this particular look csn take.
Not all cabinets have a full overlay door (or drawer fronts.) Here’s a diagram, showing a shorter lip, if it links.
https://st.hzcdn.com/simgs/8d62f3990075a01d_9-7378/home-design.jpg
BB, look at the left of c1’s link- another sink.
Yes! In multi ways that kitchen looks heavy, the clutter and wacky stools are too high and don’t go with the rest.
But see the height of the top drawer. There’s clearance. I think this one didn’t need a 3" plywood build up. The mitred edge has room to drop down.
And in general, the only way you’d see the plywood base is to crawl under.
I suspect the kitchen in the photo was not a retrofit. They likely used new cabinetry, so no build up was needed, and drawers were designed with the thicker looking countertop in mind.
Still, no sink across the stove. Too much muda.
My guess is new cabinets, mostly the old footprint but a bit of a new space add. The former sink (in a tight kitchen) could have been where the white is. The add where the other sink is, which then allows room for the island. Maybe a wall removed?
But BB, take a good look at that white sink, the left corner. See how the countertop looks like 2cm, then a matching fascia glued above the drawer. It doesn’t even wrap to the sink. Weird.
That white sink is a disaster. i guess they wanted an apron sink but not the farm look. Like 2 people were fighting over the style of that kitchen, and they ended up with a blend.
X_X
Lol, aren’t we good at nitpicking other people’s designs?
lol, yes! Thanks for the thoughtful comments and, BB, it does appear we have different tastes but that’s what makes all of this fun. I would agree, the charcoal countertop does look heavy…ours is white with gray veining and that may help it not look heavy. And we kept all the same cabinets and everything is working just fine. The only very minor glitch, which I’m happy to live with, is that the KA dishwasher that I had/have has the controls on the top of the inside lip and I now have to reach under and press the start button without benefit of being able to see it. Perhaps not ideal but, really, nbd.
@lookingforward, yes, that is similar to the look we have…to my eye, that countertop might even be taller (higher?) than mine but I love that look! I get that it’s not to everyone’s taste.