Barbara Boughton    Medical & Lifestyle Writer

One of the hardest things about adding a new bathroom, say Donna Motluk and Stuart Bewley of Belvedere, was choosing the countertops.

They thought they had made the decision: natural stone. But when they went shopping, they discovered there is a mind-boggling selection of stones in a number of different colors.

Finally, they settled on a roughly textured green limestone countertop for their new bathroom.

``When I saw it, the limestone spoke to me,'' says Motluk, a political fund-raiser. ``It looked weathered and beautiful -- like it really belonged in our house.''

Once upon a time, choosing a countertop was easy: You could go with laminates or Corian or wood or tile.

But in the past few years, choices have multiplied. Today's consumers can select a variety of natural and man-made materials in a wide range of colors and textures.

Though budget-priced plastic laminate remains the most common countertop, natural materials, such as stone, have become increasingly popular. And new man- made materials offer the look of stone without its high price.

Kitchens and bathrooms have never had it so good.

A WEALTH OF MAN-MADE OPTIONS FOR COUNTERS

Stone, of course, is not the only material gracing home countertops in the '90s. Man-made choices range from the relatively new options of concrete and stainless steel to traditional tile and plastic laminate.

Buddy Rhodes, a San Francisco concrete artisan and owner of Buddy Rhodes Studio Inc., estimates that sales of concrete countertops have grown fourfold in the last five years.

``People like these countertops because they're textured, they have warmth, and they can be tinted with great delicacy in a wide variety of colors,'' he says. ``They also look solid. People don't want mass- produced countertops these days.''

After Sheila Langmaid's house was destroyed in the Oakland fire, she and her husband, Steve, decided to rebuild and redo the kitchen in an earthy, colorful style. They selected a pink and green concrete countertop for her kitchen. It's ``very beautiful and very functional,'' says Langmaid, a teacher's aide.

``It's not clean and pristine like Corian, but the countertop has a kind of textured beauty. It's great because I can put anything that's hot on it,'' she says.

So far, stains haven't been a problem because the countertop has a sealant, she says. ``And even if it did stain, it wouldn't be traumatic. With concrete, you expect it to look a little bit used.''

The Langmaids also had concrete countertops done for their children's bathroom -- in purple.

``It's offbeat -- but the color really brightens up the whole room,'' Langmaid says.

Though concrete is often associated with high-tech kitchens, the countertops also can be made in soft colors with smooth finishes to complement a traditional kitchen.

Many people have interesting rocks embedded in their concrete countertops. The rocks -- usually less than a foot long or wide -- add artistry to the counters, says Berkeley architect Fu Tung Cheng of Cheng Design.

The countertops ``can be shaped any way you want,'' says Cheng. ``They flow.'' Concrete resists burns, too, which makes it a good choice for kitchens.

There are some disadvantages. Because they're fairly porous, they stain more readily than plastic counters. A sealant, however, provides some protection.

Concrete countertops can also develop small cracks within six months of installation. This problem can be avoided, Rhodes says, if the fabricator pours the concrete on a perfectly level surface and allows it to slowly dry.

But the cracks don't affect the stability of the countertops, says Cheng, who has a concrete countertop in his own home. ``It's just a visual problem. They weather like old wood. But for me, and for many people, that's part of the attraction. They don't look fake.''

Concrete countertops run about the same price, installed, as granite countertops -- from $55 per square foot to more than $150. The price tag is high because forming and casting concrete countertops is very labor intensive, says Charles Debbas, a Berkeley architect who fabricates concrete countertops.

STAINLESS STEEL

Though stainless steel countertops were once only seen in restaurant kitchens, they're catching on among homeowners who want a high-tech look.

``The steel is usually very high gloss, and it looks attractive,'' says interior designer Cheryl Crane of Berkeley. ``It doesn't look industrial or dull.''

Cooks like these counters because they're difficult to burn. But they do scratch, so you can't clean them with steel wool, says fabricator Fred Mork of Walter Mork Co. Inc. in Berkeley. Scratches can be removed with steel cleaners, available in hardware stores.

Because many stainless steel fabricators don't make countertops, craftspeople can be hard to find. Mork suggests asking a designer for references. Make sure he or she has considerable experience in making countertops.

Stainless steel countertops run about $100 a square foot.

WINNING COMBINATIONS

``People often like to mix materials,'' says Ron Sutton of Sutton Suzuki Architects in Mill Valley, ``because they want to combine a material that looks elegant with one that's very practical.''

A common combination is granite and stainless steel, sometimes with a small marble area for baking. Crane recently designed one such countertop for a couple who were gourmet cooks, entertained often -- but didn't want to spend a lot of time cleaning up.

``Stainless steel is very practical,'' she says. ``It doesn't stain, and it's wonderful to cook on. Granite looks wonderful and marble is great for rolling dough.''

Stone and steel countertops cost about the same as granite.

CERAMIC TILE

Ceramic tile is still used on countertops, but its popularity is waning.

``People simply don't like seeing grout lines in a countertop. They tend to get very dirty,'' says Albert Carey, a kitchen and bath designer with Acorn Kitchens and Baths in Oakland.

Though tile won't stain and rarely burns, it can chip or crack -- and the only solution is to replace the damaged tile, Carey says.

In the past few years, hand- painted tiles have become popular.

Tile countertops, including hand-painted ones, run $20 to $40 per square foot installed.

SOLID-SURFACE MATERIALS

Solid-surface materials, which have been around for more than a decade, are part crushed stone and part acrylic.

Though Corian, made by Dupont, is the best known, other types are also available, including Avonite by Aristech, Surell by Formica, Gibraltar by Wilsonart and Fountainhead by Nevamar.

In the last four years, speckled patterns that look like granite also appeared on the market.

``This year we came out with patterns that have larger dots, and these are proving very popular,'' says Joe Faubion, sales manager for Butler-Johnson, a distributor for Corian in San Jose.

``They're more colorful than in the past, look like stone and have all the advantages of Corian. They're easy to maintain, and you can take scratches out with an abrasive cleanser.''

Like some stone surfaces, solid- surface materials are seamless and can be curved. Many homeowners integrate sinks, made of the same solid-surface material, with their countertops, for an additional $400 to $1,000.

``It provides a smooth, continuous look,'' says Mike Mottola, sales manager of Sullivan Countertops in Oakland.

Solid-surfaces materials can burn when exposed to high heat, such as a frying pan filled with hot oil. A pot of boiling water set on a solid surface countertop, however, won't mar it, Faubion says.

One advantage of the new granite look-alike solid-surface countertops is the price. They generally cost less than most granite slabs. A typical 20-linear-foot kitchen countertop in Corian, Fountainhead or Surell costs from $2,000 to $3,000, or $40 to $60 per square foot, installed. Gibraltar and Avonite cost about 20 percent more.

PLASTIC LAMINATES

People on a tight budget might want to consider the old stand-by -- plastic laminate. Plastic laminate is now available in new colors -- including some with the look of granite. These countertops usually have a white background with small black or gray dots.

Plastic laminate burns and stains easily because the plastic coating is quite thin. But the material is also fairly cheap, running about $8 to $12 per square foot, installed.