I don't have soapstone, but if you plug in "soapstone" at the bottom of the page you will find old threads on discussions about soapstone. Hope that helps.

I made the jump to ss and it's one of my favorite things about my kitchen. I, unlike most; wanted a veiny soapstone...the wilder the better. Most like Santa Rita that had great veining and a butter soft feel were too soft for me. I got samples and put them through some abuse. I know I'm a tornado style cook and that the softer stones wouldn't work for me. I almost gave up on soapstone till I saw, what was for me; a perfect stone that had crazy wild veining, was a bit harder; but still soapstone feeling. Not the soft wonderful talc like feel of other stones; but still not like granite. There is so much I love about this stone (Monsoon Wave). It's glorious looking, I can put anything from the oven right on it, and I can allow the look to change if I'm feeling lazy...which I often am. I'll wax it if company is coming and I love how it makes the sea glass inclusions shine like the northern lights. Then, as it fades; I'll say, "nope, I like it in this state the best". More time and cleaning will go by and the wax fades and then the mica inclusions are more apparent. i love the stone in each of it's states...waxed or natural. Since it is a harder stone, I have no dings or chips. Some minor minor surface scratches if you look real hard where DH might drop/drag his massive key chain, but when waxed/oiled, they are no where to be found. Even when faded, you have to closely look to find then and they are less then minimal. So, don't hesitate at all to jump to soapstone. If you have the right fabricator who knows how to finish the stone properly; you should absolutely love it's look and function.

We went from laminate to soapstone a few months ago.
We have Beleza, which is very hard, gray with blue and green, no white veins. There is no need to oil or wax it and we think it looks better unoiled. We have had no isssues with scratching or chipping. Its working great for us!

Well, hmmm. I'm not sure what kind of "advice" I can give, but in the good old GW spirit of helpfulness, I'll try. There are things I wish we had known about soapstone before we chose ours, but we really didn't know enough to know that we didn't know it. (I didn't know about GW, for instance). We knew early on that we didn't want granite, and kind of migrated to the idea of soapstone. But there was really very little to be seen in our area (eastern WA), and what was here was a darker, greener variety than we wanted. I knew nothing (really) about different hardness levels. We ended up going to Seattle area to look and that is where we got our slabs.
I wish we had known more about different hardness levels, and I wish we had known that there was ss mined closer than Brazil (that's where ours came from). Our fault for not researching more, and also we felt a little rushed, which in retrospect was not necessary. But all that said, we LOVE our ss countertops (3 cm thick which I believe is standard). We would not have been comfortable choosing a slab that we couldn't see in person. But I might have chosen something harder. We don't oil, so that's (so far) a non-issue. We also are just 2 adults, no kids around except the occasional grandchild.
HTH - I'm not quite sure what you were specifically asking . . .

i have had soapstone for a few months now. I agree that researching it on this forum is the best education. Do you have a specific question? I am very happy with it. no regrets, no surprises. We have Original PA. Its one of the harder varieties but it has more of a traditional look. We've had a few minor scratches, but they either blend in with the stone or oil out. We dont baby it, and have small children. Water spots can happen, but they oil out.

I have soapstone from Bucks County Soapstone 1-1/2" in thickness with a custom soapstone sink. I bought the slabs without seeing them, and am very pleased with the fabrication and their whole process. It does have a couple small scratches in it that could be sanded out. There are no chips either on the edges or around the sink

We oil it, it is a more organic, living surface so the sink definitely has "aged" and looks a little different than the countertop in terms of evenness of color and such...and all of that is fine. If you want a completely consistent, unchanging surface that always looks pristine, it may not be for you.

I didn't respond to your initial question because you didn't ask about soapstone -- you asked what you should be asking your fabricator. Sorry that you didn't get any love before; I think you will fare better this time.

One recommendation is to go to the websites of M. Teixeira and/or Dorado soapstone (soapstones.com and doradosoapstone.com, respectively) and spend $25 to get samples shipped to you. They will give you samples of half a dozen or so varieties, which gives you a pretty good idea about color, hardness, etc. Also, Dorado has a number of good and informative videos.

I absolutely love soapstone! Though I would do it again I do find myself obsessing about the seamed sink. Every time I heat the tea kettle I pour some boiling water around the edges of the sink. Part of this is I always liked having a 60/40 sink with the 40 always being clean. Now my soapstone is a single sink. Again, I would still do it again.

Love comes from within. Be the stone.

remodelfla, I love it when you wax poetic about soapstone :)

Ours is a softer stone (I guess M. Tex. would call it a 2 or 3) with lots of veins. It looks matte in its natural state but is very smooth to the touch ("soapy" even! Whodda thunk that? Heh). In an oiled/waxed state it is shinier, yet not shiny like a polished granite. "Shiny" like honed stone? Dunno. Anyhoo, it's beautiful, it's tough, and it takes heat like a champ.

We went from laminate to SS and marble and wouldn't look back. We have eased edges that have yet to chip (it's been almost a year) and we are tough on our counters. We do everything on our island. Our SS has some scratches but our stone is very busy so they are hard to see if you don't know that they are there.

I encourage you to get some samples of the stone that your fabricator has and abuse the hell out of them. See if you like it after it has been beaten by forks, bowls, pot edges. Open a corked wine bottle directly on the surface. Is it ruined? I didn't think so. So...when you do have it installed (see how positive I am? :D), take lots of pics and awe us with them!

There have been dozens of SS topics and hundreds of thousands of words logged here at GW?/kitchens in the 5 years I've spent here, so allow Google to be your friend.
If you pore over those discussions and still need particular clarifications of specific concerns, most of us stoners will chime in more or less gleefully to help.
Casey

Here is a link that might be useful: google of GW soapstone discussions

I had no advice as to what to ask a fabricator because I didn't hire one.

I bought my stone prefabricated from M.Tex and DH and I installed it ourselves.

That is the main reason we went with Soapstone, the DIY element. I figured natural stone was not going to happen in my kitchen so I'm very happy with soapstone. I have the same type Remodlefla has - Monsoon Wave. Rather wild for soapstone, but DH and I like that.

I also rarely oil mine. It's darkened enough in the year I've had it so it stays rather dark on it's own.

Thanks! Whew - I'm feeling better now! I have read tons of threads on GW (thanks for link sombreuil mongrel), just didn't want to miss anything. Sometimes the very thing you forget to ask, is the one thing you really wish you had.

Leela 4 -thanks for the 3cm. thickness tip.

prospect711 - the first time we visited this guy, we looked at Beleza (atleast that's what he called it). But this slab did have some white veining. I wish we had gotten it then, hope he still has it.

macybaby - I've watched all the videos, which inspired us to DIY. But we've had a hard time finding SS in the Atlanta area. M. Texiera is still a possibility if this doesn't work out tomorrow.

hsw sc - I want a very basic edge, so I'm guessing that's eased right?

Remodelfla - I've seen your beautiful SS, thanks for the encouragement!

I'll update tomorrow afternoon. A little nervous since I haven't seen this guys work. His original quotes were for just the stone, and also with install. It wasn't that much different. I'm gettin' excited!

We love our soapstone counters and sinks. They are a soft soapstone (Barroca) from Bucks County Soapstone. Check out their website for lots of photos and videos.

I have a smaller slab bought as an offcut that is greener, and harder, maybe Julia.

Order samples from Bucks County, M Texeira, Garden State Soapstone, or elsewhere. Oil it and watch. Scratch it. Decide if you like it. It is different from granite and if you like it, that's a very good thing. For others granite or marble or a manmade surface fit their lifestyle better.

If you go with soapstone make sure you buy it from a place that specializes in soapstone. Don't forget, if you go with soapstone make sure you buy it from a place that specializes in soapstone.

If you can go see it person. Touch it, rub your hand on it, and you probably will buy it. Keep reading and researching and you'll learn a lot.

Just don't put soapstone floors in your kitchen...

Billy

as billy_g said, buy it from a place that specializes in soapstone. I have no one in my area that does so I drove 300 miles to New Jersey to look at some and had it shipped to my fabricator. My local fabricator works with it but doesn't stock it and their suppliers have poor selection. I hated every piece I saw locally.
Also figure out some details when you see a good display like edge profile, overhang, and how it will be cut around your sink. Eased edges are common which are essentially square with a slight rounding.

I went from laminate countertops to Belvedere soapstone from M.Tex (Denver) in September. I will never go back! I DIY'd the stone myself after reading every soapstone thread/website I could find. I ordered through M.Tex after not getting great customer service from Dorado, and not being able to find the harder stones locally, as well as not finding anyone locally who didn't treat soapstone like granite. Make sure if you don't DIY it, that you have a fabricator and installer that has experience working with soapstone. I have watched a couple of installations locally where the stone was polished to a high sheen like granite and now they can't get scratches out of it, and I won't tell you the horror story I witnessed about a seam....but that was a granite installer. I'm sure if they worked with soapstone regularly it would have been different.

The stone was shipped to my home via carrier. They shipped it in an a-frame crate very well packed with absolutely no damage to the stone. I templated, and the stone came ready to install. I basically brought it into the house and placed it down, then seamed it. With the right tools it's not difficult. You just have to take your time. I highly recommend canadiansoapstone.com for their videos on installation/cutting/seaming if you go the DIY route. Rule #1, get samples and make sure you abuse them so you can understand how soapstone is.

Differences between laminate and stone is mainly that stone is so easy. No worries about wiping up spills because of staining, hot pots can be set directly on it. Stone is easier to clean. I stopped oiling mine because the movement throughout is so beautiful that I just let it be. I do actually keep things and clutter away from the stone because it's so wonderful! Whereas with the laminate, I covered it constantly! I got runnels in my stone and can't imagine not having them. They are wonderful. I also have a large farm sink with a soapstone bottom that I love. Anything goes in it, clean up is super easy, and I've never broken anything in the sink, since the sink bottom seems to be a softer stone.

I can't say enough good things about soapstone. I too, would have never heard of soapstone without GW, and now a lot of my friends have SS too!

Here's a sneak of my Belevedere:

Here's a tip: Ask if they have large SS tiles. If they do, see if they'll "toss one in." I use a large 18" square SS tile as a baking stone. Not only is it great baking on, but it'll help even out the oven temp and aid in recovery time for when you have to open the oven.

Unfortunately, I can't seem to find anyone around here who specializes in soapstone. Also, we were trying to go the most economical route. That led us to DIYing the project, especially after watching lots of videos. (We've only got about 28 sq. ft. of perimeter, the island is DIY BB.) But then we couldn't find any SS around here. This guy I'm going to see today is mostly granite, I'm pretty sure. But, he quoted us a good price. I'm hoping a granite guy can atleast do a better job than we can. Atleast it will be more convenient than DIY. But we'll see...

oldhousegal - beautiful job you did with your SS. We still may end up going this route. It remains to be seen. (I'll just fly you to Atlanta for a quick install :)

Wait, you didn't indicate that DIY was on the table as a possibility! That is what I am doing. I bought slabs from M. Teixeira; they usually have some slabs on super-duper sale. I got Python at 50% off. This was $15/sq. ft. Shipping added another $9/sq. ft. So I am looking at soapstone for less than $25/sq. ft. Like Macybaby, it was the fact that you CAN install SS yourself that led me to that material, and I also love its properties.

jscout, that's a great idea about the tiles. We use some SS countertop cutouts for this and they work great -- but at 3cm thick they are very heavy and it's a lot of weight on the racks. It would be easier to move the tiles as well. I have 12x12 tiles but the 18x18 would be great, trimmed if necessary.

Billy

Lake Girl,

Check with florida_joshua on another thread here. He is headed north from Florida and might stop in Atlanta to give you a hand and do it right. Or finish a soapstone slab that is cut by your granite guy or perhaps just delivered by your granite guy.

Billy

Angie DIY - I said we would DIY if this current stone fabricator didn't work out. BTW, did you get to see slabs before your purchase from M. Texiera? She told us there wasn't enough python for our project, which is surprising, since we didn't need much. Also, I couldn't tell much from the pictures she sent us of other stones. BUT, we went to see the "guy" today and it turns out he fabricates a lot for Dorado SS in our area. SO he DOES have experience. We ended up putting a hold on a slab of Minas. He was actually called out of the office, so someone else helped us, and it seemlingly is going to work out. They're coming to do a template next Thurs. It was only about $500 more to do everything else (cutout, edge, sink, install). We thought it was worth it??? What do you think????

We DIYed our soapstone counters, too. M. Texiera has 4 different options - slabs, cut to size(rectangles,) cut to fit(exact measurements from a template,) or cut and installed by them. We chose cut to size and did the fabrication. DIYing was a fairly easy process, but having said that, if we had the funds to farm it out to a competent installer, we probably would have.

I think everyone's seen these pics, but here they are again. Fabrication is very, very, dusty.

It's good to have friends whose muscle power can be bought for a case of beer and some ribeyes.

My main prep corner(wow, this pic is old - backsplash tile has been up for 2 yrs.)

Peninsula where I set out buffets.

We have a very active family with 2 stick wielding boys and a few dozen of their stick wielding friends running through the house at all times. The counters have held up beautifully minor scratches oil out, and the couple of dings we've had have repaired easily. That's the beauty of a DIYable stone.

No, I bought them blind. In fact, I STILL haven't seen them, as they are still crated up on my driveway.

Well, $500 doesn't sound bad. I have spent $500 on many more frivolous things during this reno. (OTOH, that is still $18/sq. ft.)

I DIY soapstone, & with DH muscles, we did a fabulous job if I do say so myself. I watched a bunch of Youtube videos that Canada soapstone had out. Lots of great tips, check them out.

I bought my soapstone mail order from Dorado. I hear great things about M. Teixeira Soapstone too. Be very sure of the slab you want because with mail order I wasn't able to double check the layout of the lengths that I ordered. Be sure every bit of the slab is visually acceptable.

More recently I found remnants at a local stone yard and got it for $5/sq ft. Though most of it is 12" wide, it is long. For my purposes I will be great as I need to piece together small pieces for a sink I have planned in my bathroom.

I think it is funny that there are so many people that have done their own lovely first time jobs, yet everyone always cautions people to be careful of locating a fabricator that has experience.

Our layout was such that templating wasn't needed. It ended up being four large rectangles and two narrow peices for the cooktop. Our sink takes up the entire counter(Ikea Domsjo apron front sink) so there was no cutout around that.

We decided to have ours fully fabricated so all we had to do was glue the pieces together.

Being in the middle of South Dakota, there are only about 2-3 granite places in the state, let along someone that has actually done much with soapstone. At least one of the places knew what we were talking about, but tried hard to talk us into doing something else.

We paid about $1800 to get the soapstone delivered to our doorway. Getting it the last 80 miles got to be the hardest as the trucking company had to wait until they had enough of a load to warrant taking the longer truck with the lift gate our direction.

This was taken 1-17-2011 - so I missed my one year anniversary of owning soapstone LOL!!

And DH sanding the seams after install

installed and oiled

And the sink wall.

The cooktop wall was newly built, so we made sure it was perfectly flat, the sink wall was resheetrocked so we shimmed out the studs to make that one as straight as we could get it - it has less than 1/8" difference, which was easy enough to cover with the backsplash tile.

I never saw even a picture of my stone before it showed up, but it's so wild that it wasn't a big deal. Unlike remodelfla, I didn't have a good reason to fly to New Jersey to see it in person.

laxsupermom - I've got a stick wielding daughter, whose season is about to crank up! Your soapstone is beautiful, as are the rest of them above. You people are AWESOME!!

macybaby - if you're still there, how many square ft. did you end up buying? thanks for your help!

ok here's the slab we put on hold. It's Minas. After looking back at pics, I don't think the original slab we saw a couple of months ago was Beleza, but Minas instead. Either way, we like this one, so they're templating next week!

Looks like a beautiful stone! My parents live in the Atlanta area and had been pushing for us to move down there. The housing is so darn affordable, but when I checked out the local school, they didn't have a lacrosse program and DS1 said no way. Is your daughter on a travel team? Maybe we'll cross paths this summer.

Check out the Peachtree City area. All of the high schools there have a team. Also, there are some public and private schools in the Atlanta area with teams. Granted, we may not have the experience level that other parts of the country have, but we're definitely growing. Plus, you should see my electric bill (we're all electric) for this month, not bad :)

My parents show me their electric bill for their home that is 2 1/2 times larger than mine and it's 1/4 of my outrageous bill, and don't get me started on NY property taxes. Peachtree City isn't far from them. They're at Lake Iris in McDonough. I'll have to check it out.

Yep - not far at all, maybe 45 minutes. I meant to say my daughter plays on her high school team mostly. She does rec on the off season and the occasional tournament they pick up.

DS1 plays on his high school team also, but currently is playing on a rec league and going to a skills lab once a week. He plays on an elite travel team summer and fall. The tournament travel schedule is killer. I wouldn't mind a slightly slower lax schedule. DS2 has decided he'd rather play baseball this spring, but that only means that he'll be swinging around a different stick.