There were a couple threads above where people were asking about Julia soapstone. I to was very interested in the Julia soapstone (went with something else) and when i went to Dorado they showed me a piece that was very similar. It was called Ipannema... it beautiful but we decided to go with the traditional black soapstone. Jterrilynn - As far as the red soapstone i saw Copper and Gold flecks in a couple slabs at the Dorado Soapstone in Austin. If you have not already choosen you slabs you might want to give them a call. I have been to their Texas and Colorado locations and impressed by both locations.

Again, thanks all :) Gharborwa -- I'll second what someone else said on this. Meta Marble has (or had, when I was looking a few months ago) some nice soapstone. Crocodile Rocks had a good grey-with-veins soapstone, too, as I recall. Pental had a large selection, too, though I can't remember if any had good veining (they might have some now). I didn't travel to CA to pick out the slabs. I had been looking for so long and collected so many samples I felt pretty confident about what I could expect. Plus the company I bought my slabs from (Soapstone Werks) sent several great photos. Also, I have to admit that working with Wendy at Soapstone Werks increased my confidence that this was, indeed, a special and beautiful stone. After dealing with so many male stone professionals (and don't get me wrong, I'm sure there are men in the business who also have a sense of aesthetics in addition to the business side of things) it was really refreshing to deal with Wendy. Talking with her on the phone about the stone and about what I was looking for just really gave me a lot of confidence that she knew what I wanted and understood my aesthetic concerns. Boxerpups (great name -- now I want to see those boxer pups!) -- Thanks for your comments. It was tough to wait so long for a nice stone to pop up, but I'm glad I did. You hit the nail on the head :) The name of my soapstone is "Green Porto". I bought it from Soapstone Werks who (I think) gets their stone from Dorado. Interestingly, I was also working with the Dorado people to find a nice stone but they didn't send me any pictures of anything like the slabs at Soapstone Werks. I don't know if they just didn't have any more in stock, or if I dealt with a dud of a salesman. In fact, the Dorado guy told me they only had one greenish soapstone in stock and the photos he sent me were so bad you could hardly see what the stone looked like! Not professional, at all. To top it off, after he sent me a couple photos he told me that half of those were of slabs that had been sold a few months ago. How helpful is THAT? *not* Regarding fabricators -- I went with Venetian Stoneworks out of Woodinville. I chose them because they have state-of-the-art equipment for templating and cutting stone (laser templating so every odd angle and corner would be EXACT, and a computer-guided water-jet cutting machine that cut the stone to the exact dimensions of the template). The other thing I liked about them that made a difference in the aesthetics of the installed stone -- they took high-res photos of my slabs. These were loaded into a computer program and I got to see EXACTLY how the stones could be cut and how the veining would line up. It was really cool. There on the computer screen were my actual slabs and I could watch how the pieces would lay out as they tried different configurations for how the various pieces could be cut from the stone. I had final say on how the slabs would be ultimately be cut. That was important to me. All this being said, though (and I can't stress this enough) I DID MY HOMEWORK! I did not sit back and rely on this fabricator's mostly-granite experience. I knew how I wanted my stone to be finished, I made a big fuss over how I did *not* want any sealer, over what grit I wanted the final finish to be, over how I wanted the seams done and what kind of glue I wanted them to use. Honestly, I think I was a real pain-in-the-a$$ in a lot of ways (though always with a smile on my face!). In fact, I know I was. But I wanted to make sure this stone was done RIGHT. In the end, they learned a lot about working with soapstone (I think my project was only the second soapstone they'd ever done, and the first one they did they had finished like a regular granite project, with sealer and all). But yes, Venetian Stoneworks was great. They listened to my concerns (and fussing). They were professional through it all. They very definitely fabricated the stone according to my preferences. After it was all said and done we were both very pleased with the project and thankful it worked out like it did. Brescianlute -- What's going on behind the cooktop? Well, I still haven't put up the backsplash yet. My plan is to do some sort of artsy mosaic with glass tile (nothing gawdy, but more subtle-design oriented). But in the photos here all you're seeing is the studs of the half wall. Give me a few more months and I'll post pics of the backsplash :)

Wow, came home from work and found all these thoughtful replies. Thanks - gives me food for thought! Well, I should say first I'm a gardener and spend lots of time in our large lot plotting out garden beds and tending my hens. I love my older home and our lifestyle is on the casual side with gardening and animals. I appreciate "high-end" but am realistic to know what works for our family. I prefer classic over trendy. We have two big dogs that charge through the house, hubby clomps through with boots on. The kitchen is a thoroughfare for all. That said I have got to be practical...I just put in commercial VCT in the kitchen to try and keep the floor looking at least decent. We need function that also pleases the eye - and isn't that the challenge of design? OK, so back to counters and cabinets. GreenDesigns, thank you for your excellent description. We inherited the thermofoil from the previous owners who installed it about 1995. Parr Lumber, a company here in the Pacific NW did the design and installation. The boxes themselves have held up extremely well, they are still white, no chips or cracks. The doors have held up too but they have yellowed over the years plus I do not like the design on them. I'd prefer a Shaker or even flat face. I will say the thermofoil has been very easy to clean while my kids were growing up - just a wipe down with soapy sponge. I did stop off at my local flooring/counters/surfaces retailer today (local family run business) and he said laminate is indeed making a comeback, He did say that the boxes could be braced if needed to support a stone counter, if I wanted to pursue that route. Said they do it all the time for people. Snookums2, the domino effect hit me earlier. I take on a couple house or landscape projects a year, pay cash as I go. Did the bathroom last winter, now it's the kitchen and I was just going to do the floor. So, I think I'll make myself one of those design boards with samples: WilsonArt "Oiled Soapstone" laminate, white subway tile back-splash (or mini-brick in white). Then I'll need to get rid of the gosh-awful fluorescent overhead lights. There's that domino effect, lol. Here's a photo with the new floor just in. Appliances not back in at the time but they are stainless steel. You can see the cabinet fronts here.

terrilynn, I am confused about what to do for the island and also the desk/coffee bar/bar area. I'm going back and forth on wood or soapstone for the island. I'm pretty sure I want wood on the desk and soapstone on the bar/coffee area. (just for maintenance purposes). I'm not sure if I do the base colors on the other areas the same as the island or different. We aren't doing any stainless except for the range, but that desk is pretty cool! Lavender, thanks, and I love the idea of red accents. I hadn't really thought that far, but that will be perfect and will blend with the rest of our house. I guess I need to figure out if I can really do the painted island and how much maintenance that will be. Here are my options, in case anyone else is as confused as I am: 1. Wood colored island with soapstone top 2. Sage/light green island with soapstone top 3. Sage/light green island with wood top Desk: something with a wood top....I'm thinking base should match the island, unless of course the island base is wood tone, and then it would either match the yellow cabinets or the coffee bar area. Coffee bar/bar: definitely soapstone top- either yellow cabinets like the rest of the kitchen, green, or wood colored. I'm even confusing myself, so if anyone is following this, I'm impressed, and thank you for any thoughts!