Feb 8, 05: Soapstone - best product, price, service?

Many thanks to Blueginger for saving and forwarding this thread!

Soapstone - best product, price, service?

Posted by edwena (My Page) on Tue, Feb 8, 05 at 0:23
I wish to thank everyone who contributes to this forum. I have learned so much and my remodel will be much better quality because of you all.
I am in the early stages of researching soapstone for my 1911 craftsman bungalow kitchen countertop. I am looking for the lightest (considering oiling), hardest, and strongest for the best price. I would prefer green and veining would be a plus!
Does anyone know if there is a hardness grading system for soapstone?
How does soapstone from India compare to that from Brazil, Finland, or the US. (I am assuming there are some active quaries in the US.)
I called a couple of suppliers today and one said that his soapstone is stronger than some soapstones because it is cut with the grain of the stone.
Has anyone had their soapstone polished so they don't have to oil?
Has anyone done their own fabrication?
Finally, which soapstone and suppliers are best and what is a good price?
I know this is a lot of questions and thanks in advance.

Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Soapstone - best product, price, service?
· Posted by: CLNP (My Page) on Tue, Feb 8, 05 at 10:17 · ·
The best way to determine this is to get samples of soapstone from lots of different places--then you can line them up and test the hardness (we banged on ours with a meat tenderizer), look at color, and compare oiled vs. non-oiled looks (just oil half of the sample).
I feel like saying that your shouldn't polish the soapstone, but I don't know why -- maybe because one of the virtues of soapstone is the lack of upkeep, and polishing would require regular upkeep? It would be a question to ask each company.
There are lots of good companies out there -- M. Tiexiera, Vermont Soapstone, Bucks County Soapstone, Soapstonecounters.com, Green Mountain Soapstone, etc. You may also want to consider slate, especially if you are looking for a green color.
We put soapstone counters in our 1914 Arts & Crafts bungalow last year, and we've loved them -- mostly for the lack of upkeep, but also for the look. We have managed to give the counters a few scratches and dings along the way, but for us, that adds to the authenticity of the look.
I've included a link to our rather messy kitchen -- It doesn't really show the counters close up -- I've got to try to add that someday...
Here is a link that might be useful: Our A&C kitchen

RE: Soapstone - best product, price, service?
· Posted by: Hunzi (My Page) on Tue, Feb 8, 05 at 10:53 · ·
CLNP,
I just had to tell you, that is one gorgeous kitchen! Love those windows. I'd give up all my upper cabinets to have windows like that! (Unfortunately, they wouldn't work with the architectural style of my 1884 vernacular farmhouse. I do have 2 large windows, just not enough.)
It's a lovely kitchen, well executed AC design.
Always ;-)
Hunzi

RE: Soapstone - best product, price, service?
· Posted by: blueginger (My Page) on Tue, Feb 8, 05 at 10:53 · ·
This thread has some more soapstone related info too.
Here is a link that might be useful: other soapstone-related thread

RE: Soapstone - best product, price, service?
· Posted by: Pinecrest (My Page) on Tue, Feb 8, 05 at 12:31 · ·
CLNP,
Great looking kitchen!

RE: Soapstone - best product, price, service?
· Posted by: kkay_MD (My Page) on Tue, Feb 8, 05 at 13:01 · ·
Polished soapstone? I have never heard of that...Can soapstone even hold a polished finish? I suppose one reason you never see it is because it is ineveitable that soapstone--even the "hardest" soapstones--scratch, ding, and chip. Imagine how those imperfections would look with a polished surface! On the typical matte finish of soapstone, such things are easily blended in with oil or fine sandpaper--that's the beauty of it.

RE: Soapstone - best product, price, service?
· Posted by: ctlady (My Page) on Tue, Feb 8, 05 at 13:25 · ·
I'd never heard (or even thought!) of polished soapstone, either, but saw a slab at a stoneyard just yesterday. Looked exactly like a slab of polished marble or granite. Like kk_MD, I can't imagine why one would do that to soapstone, but obviously, some places do! Does anyone out there have polished soapstone and if so, how does it hold up?

RE: Soapstone - best product, price, service?
· Posted by: Lispeth (My Page) on Tue, Feb 8, 05 at 13:49 · ·
I can't answer all of your questions since I, too, am on the soapstone trail. So far I have found that for us, M. Tex has the largest selection and the best prices for 'raw' slabs or cut to length slabs. If we wanted them to do the delivery and install it would be too expensive since they would add on travel time but, since they are only about 2.5 hours from us, we may drive there to get the stone. We'll have someone help us with the fabrication/installation, saving a lot of money. I have received all their stone samples, minus the Cobra, and so far we like the look of the Ipanema Reserve the best. I really love the Rainforest Green, but think it might be 'too much' in my entire kitchen and it looks like we don't have the space for an island where I wanted to use it in combination with a blacker ss. The Ipanema seems 'hard' and scratches disappear with some oiling.
IMO, the beauty of ss is it's natural look and I agree that if you polished it, it would ruin the purpose of having a matte finish. If you want shine, go for granite or a composite material.
Prices in my area (upstate NY) have averaged out around $75-80 per sq. ft for material, fabrication & installation. If you have an undermount sink, that adds on another $300 or so.
I'm not sure as to the comparisions of ss from different regions, though according to literature from M. Tex, it's a myth that ss is still quarried here in the US. Apparently 'Vermont' SS is a misnomer. I believe, though I may be wrong, that most Finnish ss is used for heating, as in stoves, though I did find a supplier of Finnish stone for countertops-Mountain Flame, Inc.
Good luck in your search. Getting our ss countertops is the thing I look forward to the most in our kitchen remodel experience!

RE: Soapstone - best product, price, service?
· Posted by: cpjohnson (My Page) on Tue, Feb 8, 05 at 14:14 · ·
M. tex. is wrong. There is still a soapstone quarry in Schuyler, Virginia, the Alberene Soapstone Comany. I don't know if they are currently quarrying there, since they have been selling stuff that was previously quarried, but the stone they sell is Virginia soapstone. I have their alberene type. It is hard, and fairly uniform in color.

RE: Soapstone - best product, price, service?
· Posted by: solla (My Page) on Tue, Feb 8, 05 at 14:34 · ·
Just want to second cpjohnson's note about Virginia soapstone. We considered stone from Schuyler for our kitchen, but have now decided on Buckingham, VA slate at about 1/3 the price. It is in the black (vs. green) family in color, but shares many traits with soapstone. I saw the Buckingham slate originally in a neighbor's kitchen who had also selected the slate over soapstone and has been happy with the choice. We like the idea of using a local material.

RE: Soapstone - best product, price, service?
· Posted by: pamela1 (My Page) on Tue, Feb 8, 05 at 20:57 · ·
Solla--
Do you have a contact for Buckingham Slate? Might use it in an outdoor kitchen. TIA.
Pamela