Aaahhh! My soapstone- it is a true love/hate relationship.
I have Santa Rita. It is beautiful, the veins are perfect, and in some areas there are what I believe to be iron deposits that actually glisten. I have two kids ages 2 and 4 that just love too scrape forks into it. My 2 year old actually climed onto the barstool with a snowglobe and dropped it on it- please son't ask why she had a snowglobe, still can't figure out that one. Anyway, I also have a soapstone prep sink, I have no idea what type of soapstone it is, I bought it at M. Tex in NJ when I picked out my slabs, and it is much harder than the counter. I originally wanted honed granite, DH wanted marble we compromised with soapstone. It complements my 100 year old cottage type home perfectly, and I'm happy with the soapstone, just wish I would have chosen a harder variety.

Ah--I remember that snow globe story! Oh dear. And forks--eek. Sounds exactly like something my boys would do!

The day after my soapstone was installed, my 3 year old was in the kitchen and I heard "clink clink clink clink." My husband asked me what he was doing. I went to look. I told my husband, "oh, just banging a glass up and down on our brand new counter." Yes, he made teeny weeny little white dings (our variety is pretty hard). He also likes to walk spoons around (pretending they are people)-ding, ding, ding.

But oil makes the white go away, so they are basically invisible to the eye. I keep both 400 and 1500 grit sandpaper under my sink. I buff them with wet sandpaper, and they get soooooooooo silky and wonderful. Buffing them is actually kind of addicting (you have to be careful not to smooth them too much or they get "wavy").

So Polly, get some sandpaper and give it a try. I just LOVE being able to sand and work mine. (Though I don't think I'd enjoy having my 3 year old eating at them--fork scrapes would unnerve me! I've got lots of fork scrapes on the table from him.)

I suspect lots of stoners are nervous about taking sandpaper to them. But once you get over the initial "I can't believe I'm about to sand my counters" you quickly learn what makes soapstone so unique and versatile and magical.

Francy

Sorry for the highjack, but what's the news on the replacement counters, Francy?

Hey Francy-
The only reason I haven't bought the sandpaper is: I just keep forgetting to pick it up when I am out. I am not afraid to do it at all. I rarely find myself in HD or Lowes or any other hardware store, and I don't think they sell it in the supermarket or babygap (LOL) Many of the scrapes are still visible to me, even after oiling or beeswax.

So Francy- what is the latest on the replacement? I know Santa Barbara wasn't available, have you found anything else to your liking?

Fern4: I think in retrospect, maybe another material on my island would have been better suited for our lifestyle, and soapstone on the perimeter of the kitchen. But it's done, and it was expensive, and it's not getting changed for a LONG time.

Polly: can you post pix? I'm reeeeeeallly curious about the snow globe ding. I've only had teeny dings so far. A big chip would definitely be a bummer. I'm sure I'll get one. I just hope it isn't on the runnels (the most likely place). For those scratches that stay white after oiling (I've had some), a black sharpie is also good. Babygap probably doesn't have snadpaper, but your basic Walgreens/CVS type store does I think.

My counters? We are not sure. We can do a "patch job" with Santa Barbara remnants. It is all rather depressing. We are also looking into other fabricators, because our original fabricator wants us done and gone. So I haven't posted any updates, because things are in flux. I hope to have a plan of action in a week or so. Thanks for thinking of me...

:-)

Francy

Francy,
I took pics this morning of the snowglobe ding and all the fork dings, and then my card reader for the camera mysteriously has grown feet and walked. I have no idea where it is- when I find it, I will post the pics- just wanted you to know I haven't forgotten about you.

Thanks Polly!

After my follow up last night I realized that I didn't have any 220 grit sandpaper (which I've been wanting) because I would rather have a root canal than take my 3 year old with me to the local hardware store! So, this morning, before my husband went to work, I ran to Walgreens. They do indeed have sandpaper. And I spent a happy morning buffing my counters! I took photos, but don't have time to upload them yet. While sanding, I felt a bit nervous about all the circular marks I was making at the edges of the "sanded area." But after oiling, none of them show. It is kind of addicting, I tell ya!

Oh--regarding your "please don't ask how the child got the snowglobe..." You aren't allowed to sound so hard on yourself! A few days ago I was on the phone, and my 3 year old walked int the room holding a Swiss Army Knife. He asked me, "can I do some cutting with this?" Uh, no. You can't! (And I won't even pretend that such an event is at all rare around my house!)

Francy

Chuckling at the turn this thread has taken...

Francy, at least he asked permission!

francy - my soapstone story is too long to tell right now - one of these days when i have some good pix, i will post the story and the photos....my question: all of my dings and scratches and there are many, stay white even after oiling - oiling in a way makes them stand out more because the counters are darker and the scratch/dings stay white...i am afraid to sand because then i am afraid that the whole area i sand will stay white...what do you think...i have very soft green mountain original (at least that's what they told me...part of long story) thanks

granabelle:
My soapstone dings do stay white UNTIL I sand them; then they disappear. Try to find an unobtrusive place and sand/oil them. They will probably disappear. My island is a mess of scratches by the end of the month, but I only let myself oil once a month.

The only one I can't sand out is over 1/4 inch deep ding from a dropped antique herb crusher (the second day I had the stone-and right next to the sink too). I have heard you can fill deep gouges with epoxy but have not been so inclined to bother yet.

Francy-good luck with the soapstone selection and fabrication.

Granabelle-I think cleo is right that you need to sand them. I'm no expert, but the white color that you see is from talc. I'm not sure why some scratches stay white. Maybe they are deep enough (deep by milimeters) to hold on to the talc? Do you have any samples to practice on? I find sanding the stone to be really fun and therapeutic (and I need therapy!). It is interesting: you can sand it finer and finer, and it gets glossy. But it also changes in texture and gets "wavy" as the talc is sanded away and the deposits of other materials remains. Anyhoo, you could start with 400 grit. If that isn't enough, go a bit lower in grit.

If you have questions, call one of our experts. Either Joshua, or try the nice folks at Vermont soapstone, Maine Soapstone, or Bucks county soapstone. I've called and emailed all of them with my questions over the past several months. They are all very nice and helpful. Calling is probably easier for them than emailing, b/c they can answer you right away, and not have to type a reply. Just ask them why some scratches stay white, and tell them you are nervous about sanding and making more white scratches. And let me know if my "scratch theory" is correct. (Maybe you can even get samples to practice on, if you don't have any, and you want them.)

Good luck! I think that once you learn to "commune with your soapstone" by sanding, etc. you will be much happier with it! So go girl! Polly too!

:-)

Francy

i do have leftovers to experiment on....another question: we have quite a bit of countertop - oiling is not bad - bees oil is another story...anyone ever use a car waxer to wax their counters? i know there was some talk of it earlier (i will try this on a sample too) thanks

For sandpapering, my fabricator said to definitely wrap the sandpaper around a wood block to ensure the most even sanding. Hope this helps.

Teresa

Folks, reading this thread is making me nervous! I have a slab of Santa Rita on hold at M Tex. With all this talk on scratches and dings and white spots I'm wondering if I should go with something harder? I know soapstone requires some maintenance but you guys make it sound high maintenance! It's just me and my husband at home. No 3 year olds pounding silverware or snow globes. Please put my mind at ease! :)

I want to add my "how did that happen?" parenting story so polly and francy will have a little company. I purchased a vintage solid mahogany dining room set on eBay. I did my homework but still worried about condition and delivery. The set came and all was great. The NEXT day my three year old decided to play office. On the table. With ball point pen. And one sheet of notebook paper.

Seven years later, the top of the table still has an 8 1/2 by 11" area filled with faint, perfectly lined up gibberish writing.

I look at it with affection now. I didn't feel so affectionate back then.

My soapstone just got installed (Black Venata from MTex) and this thread is also freaking me out. Nothing I can now since its already installed but Im ascared.

No kids but Im pretty clumsy :)

Cleo - You mentioned epoxy for deep gouges. When we installed our soapstone there were two small chips out of the edge of one of the pieces. The small chips were on the piece to the right of the seam. You can just barely see them at the back edge and on the front edge where it roles over. Here are a couple of pics. We filled them with epoxy when we seamed the joint. Before we oiled you can see them but after oiling then are not even visible.

vwhippiechick,

Can you tell us a little more about epoxying the chips? Can you feel where the epoxy is? Did you fill it in, wait for it to dry, and then sand it down to be even, or something else?

Also, did I read somewhere that you can take soapstone particles (like the dust that might accumulate from sanding a piece) and mix it with epoxy to fill the dents? Or am I just imagining that? If so, I would think that a sample piece or a small remnant from your soapstone counters would be useful for creating more particles to mix with the epoxy. Or, again, maybe I'm totally mistaken.

sail away We used the epoxy and dye that came with our stone from Maine Soapstone. We mixed the epoxy per the instructions and added the dye. We filled the joint and the chipped areas with epoxy. Waited for it to dry - just a few minutes, used a razor blade to shave the epoxy down close to the stone. We used an orbital sander with 60 grit paper to sand the areas smooth. The small epoxied area does not feel any different that the stone to me. I think I read something on the Canadian soapstone website or in their tutorials about using stone dust to mix with the epoxy???

(in previous post should have been rolls not "roles" sorry.)

I believe Black vanetta and Santa rita are two beautiful stones if you like the softer soapy feeling soapstone. Thus they will scratch and ding easier than others. I am sure I want the black vanetta because I do want one of the softer stones. If I am wrong I sure hope one of pro's will correct this statement.

Dee, your story about the table and ballpoint pen made me smile. My Mom used to have this big wooden stereo she loved. We'd listen to George Harrison and Bob Dylan LPs on it when I was little. One day I did the same thing ad drew a picture of the house I wanted to live in when I grew up. A long winding driveway, a house and a barn on one sheet of paper with a ball point pen. We lived with that picture engraved into the top of the cover until they stopped listening to LPs. LOL

So, ajpl, now that you are grown up, do you have a long winding driveway, a house and a barn?

I have Black Venata and it makes me happy everytime I am in the kitchen. Yes, sometimes there are scratches and nicks, and when I don't oil those it is not pretty, but it is always beautiful. :-)

I'm enjoying all of these stories. I have a couple of slabs of Black Venata waiting for my go ahead when my sink and faucet are here. These threads are making me nervous.

I keep looking for Polly's photos, but I guess she still can't find her card reader. What about the rest of you with your Black Venata? Let's see those pictures of your broke in stone...please??????

My stone is still virginal but I still love to touch it. heehee

Hi mrslimestone,

Are you the same mrslimestone from Brownstoner? If so, welcome to the GW Kitchen forum! Great to see you here! (And, if you're not, welcome anyway!) Love your soapstone. Can I ask where you got it?

I'm bumping this so it doesn't get lost... For people who wrote in...do you still love your soapstone?