I like that pendant. (I'm looking for something similar to replace my beloved pendants over my peninsula that have some issues so I popped over to the CB website.) Are you OK with the low light output? 25 watts is very low. My two glass pendants have 60 watt bulbs and seem like just enough light. Fewer would not be sufficient. Hope I didn't burst your bubble. It's so hard to find just the right pendant shape, in just the right size, with just the right lumens, at just the right price!

Pugrolls - I don't have that much to share because we have only been using it for a month. I figured I would write to bump up your question. I think I am boring myself with talk about my quartzite - called super white by the distributor and supreme white by the fab shop. It seems very durable. I have had no staining or etching. I babied it for a few weeks, and still am careful (try to wipe up) with red wine, berries & tomatoes, but we (my hubby and two kids under 8) do not keep the most pristine kitchen. It has been our main table since we moved in, as well as used for cooking prep (our dining room table seems to be the staging area for junk we unpack and can't figure out what to do with :) Honed is a great look, though I loved it polished as well at the fabricator. I find with the honed I cannot tell when it is dirty. I have to run my hands along to feel the mess :) For me that is one of the best recommendations... I hope someone with more experience can share more.

I feel your pain. Probably spent 4 months agonizing over quartzite. Eventually went with a couple of very nice slabs of Madre Perola quartzite, which have been absolutely bullet proof after 9 months. No stains and no etches. My husband even used Windex on it!!!...no etches. It took me a long time to track down the info I needed to be comfortable with the decision, but the Gardenweb community came through with the info I needed. I've attached a link to one of my threads with some White Princess info. Good luck. Here is a link that might be useful: Quartzite info

Tl1969- I'm definitely not a stone guru. I don't know much about the durability and wear of soapstone. I will say that I'm so relieved that we have brown pearl granite in our wetbar. At least we have a "safe" area for wine and lemon/limes. We weren't thinking about that when we picked out our granites. The brown pearl is essentially black so it's a good contrast to the white/gray. Our wetbar is around the corner from our kitchen so I wanted it to be a bit different. Good luck making a decision. I know how hard it is! I definitely love my countertops, etches and all. I guess it depends a lot on your personality. My only real annoyance is just that i had different expectations for white fantasy since I had been assured by the fabricator that it wouldn't etch. They obviously weren't very familiar with the stone. I was also warned that polished chrome faucets and cup pulls might bother me because of water spots and finger prints, but I think it's beautiful and sparkly. I guess I just expect some things to look a certain way and don't fuss about it. I keep things clean but definitely not polished. My kitchen gets a workout daily.