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huango

How far did you go to get your stone countertop?

huango
11 years ago

How far did you go to get your stone countertop?

Any recommendations for stone suppliers in New England?

ARGH!!!

(I'm venting, but I'm also looking for help.)

My layout requires 2-3 slabs of HONED carrara marble.

Yes, I know my fabricator can hone a polished slab, but I rather buy it honed, instead of paying for the additional honing process.

All the current supply near me, the slabs are pretty small.

~104x67" or so.

That's tiny! Especially when you see them in the warehouse next to the large granite slabs!!!

There's a company that only gets polished carrara marble...don't they know that honed is more in demand right now? Because the other places I've called, all the honed are gone and there's plenty of polished left.

There are plenty of honed 2cm.

How bad is it to use 2cm for kitchen countertop?

I'm using a pencil-edge, so it's not like I can add a piece to the edge to make it look thicker.

Everyone's next batch are coming in around October. I don't want to hold up my kitchen because I haven't purchase my slabs.

I've contacted 6 warehouses near me.

Should I expand further?

Any recommendations for any stone suppliers in New England?

I've called:

- Boston Granite Exchange Haverhill

- CBS Stones Winchester

- Greater Boston Granite Lowell

- Elemar North Lowell

- Leamar Industries Marlboro

- GM Depot Westboro

ARGH.

Thank you so much for any recommendations.

Amanda

Comments (29)

  • beeps
    11 years ago

    No recommendations because I'm in So Cal. But I must admit I bought my slabs here and had them shipped to AZ because selection was much better here. As for 2cm... that's common for kitchens. I was hoping for 3cm but I guess things are moving toward using 2cm - that's most of what my slab yard had. I was told the 2cm has a slightly sleeker/less bulky look. Maybe that was just a sales pitch? :) Anyway, I'm getting 2cm and I think that is very common... at least for granite. Is it different for mable?

  • beeps
    11 years ago

    Well... different for *marble* is, of course, what that should have said! =)

  • angie_diy
    11 years ago

    Anyway, I'm getting 2cm and I think that is very common... at least for granite.

    Common on the West Coast, uncommon on the East Coast and Midwest.

  • marcolo
    11 years ago

    Did you try Garrity?

  • shedthechrysalis
    11 years ago

    I live in Nor Cal and the stone yards I went to don't recommend 2cm for granite or any other stone. They said that there are people who request it but it's because they cost less. They said that 2cm isn't as structurally sound as 3cm or higher. That's why the fabricator has to put plywood under 2cm but not under 3cm. I'm surprised that 2cm is still popular in So Cal because we couldn't find one stone yard up here that would recommend it or kept much in stock. I'm no expert, but that was my experience stone shopping and we now have 3cm granite. As far as the OP's marble... You've waited this long for your kitchen. Don't settle and get something you don't want because you don't want to wait a month. Throw some plywood on the cabinets to substitute for a counter top and try to reserve a few slabs of the honed marble that you want. The wait will be worth it when you have your ideal counters.

  • jscout
    11 years ago

    Try Marble and Granite in Westwood. They're a distributor and have a pretty good selection. Very friendly and helpful. I didn't buy from them, because I was looking for soapstone and they didn't have what I wanted. I did see some gorgeous slabs of both marble and granite, though. You can call and/or visit them. If you don't have a fabricator, they can connect you with one too.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Marble and Granite in Westwood, MA

  • Cloud Swift
    11 years ago

    I'm in Nor Cal, and almost all the slabs were 2 cm. Strength isn't an issue - usually for 2 cm they put a plywood subtop under it. Some fabricators do that for 3 cm too. I'm in the Sacramento area, but at least one of the stone yards we went to has branches in the Bay Area too.

    2 cm is fine. If you want a thicker edge, it's done by laminating another piece on. I don't see why a pencil edge would affect that.

    We bought a quartzite that often is in smaller slabs. The ones Bedrosians had in our area weren't large enough to do our island in one slab. They found a larger group of slabs at another of their yards and transferred them over 100 miles to our local yard so we could view them and select our slabs.

  • numbersjunkie
    11 years ago

    I was prepared to have something shipped in from anywhere on the east cost (live in DC area, because I wanted honed VA mist and couldn't find any slabs I liked. I did find some beautiful polished slabs and found a fabricator who could hone them for me. It turned out to be less than the cost I was quoted for (ugly) honed slabs elsewhere. So don't assume there will be a big additional cost to have the slabs honed.

    Also, the fabricator told me that because my slabs were once polished, they would be more resistant to stains. I have had zero problems with stains - some people with honed VA mist reported problems with oil stains and that was a concern for me.

    Getting polished slabs and having them honed was a win/win for me - certainly much cheaper than it would have been to ship slabs long distance - plus the concern about not seeing them in person beforehand.

  • huango
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Any fabricator only charge by sqft, meaning I don't have to pay for all 3 slabs?
    Since the available honed slabs are so small, I'll need 3.

    ShedTheChrysalis: "...The wait will be worth it when you have your ideal counters."

    Thank you very much for that reminder.
    Yes, very true. I definitely should not settle on something I don't want. I do have time.

    Marcolo: Do you mean GerrityStone Woburn?
    Oh, yes, they're the ones who gave me the vendor list.
    Been talking to them also.

    jscout: Yes, I also checked w/ Westwood.
    Sadly their honed slabs have been allocated. So all I can do is watch their incoming supply.

    Beeps: like Angie says, it seems that 2cm is not common for East Coast. 2cm are often used in bathroom/vanities, etc. So when someone uses 2cm here in their kitchen, it can be seem as though they're trying to save money.

    Shed: thank you about the 2cm vs 3cm.
    Especially w/ some of the slabs I've seen, there's been a lot of "veining" that actually broke off, and that's w/ the 3cs. I would imagine that 2cm is not as structurally sound.

    Thank you,
    Amanda

  • breezygirl
    11 years ago

    I live in Washington state where I saw more 3cm stones (granite and marble) than 2cm. I ended up with 4cm. ;) 2cm is used often in europe and is seen as a more contemporary with the smaller profile.

    I also say to wait for the right slabs and to not settle on something just to be done. You'll live with these counters for many years to come. They stare up at you every single time you do anything in the kitchen. In my book, its important that you *love* what you see. You've put so much effort into planning to get everything just right.

  • remodelfla
    11 years ago

    Ummmm.... I flew from Florida to New York. Had my boys pick me up and drive me to New Jersey. Picked out my slabs of soapstone and then had them shipped to the west coast of Florida. Had Florida Joshua drive them down and over to S. Florida's east coast on his mobile fabrication truck and template/fabricate/install. And I don't regret spending one penny of that money.

  • gr8daygw
    11 years ago

    I saw that some suppliers ship on e-bay.

  • mmhmmgood
    11 years ago

    Not sure where you can get your slabs, but I think the countertops are important enough to get what you really want.

    I live in Alberta, Canada and got my slabs from New Jersey. I had to search far and wide for a soapstone hard enough, pretty enough and large enough to avoid a seam on my island. Didn't see them in person before I purchased them - just photos and I had a couple of samples to play with. It was a risk but I'm so happy with the result. It's not a risk everyone wants to take and photos might not do justice to the Carrara quite as easily as the soapstone. But I'd stick to your guns and do your best to get some slabs that are just what you want, or as close as you can reasonably get.

    Good luck on your quest!

    mmhmm

  • sayde
    11 years ago

    When I decided I wanted Eureka Danby I looked all over and finally found it online at Marble & Granite in Westwood (I'm upstate NY). I asked a local fabricator to bring the slab here (they actually bought both slabs because this marble is so hard to locate). I had to buy it polished and have it honed here. So yes, you might have to do some unusual things to get just the kind of material you have your heart set on-- and you might have to wait to locate it.

  • bcafe
    11 years ago

    We were vacationing in CO, ran down to Denver, and our soapstone will be shipped to WI.

  • bcafe
    11 years ago

    We were vacationing in CO, ran down to Denver, and our soapstone will be shipped to WI.

  • leela4
    11 years ago

    We also went out of our area for our soapstone. We live in eastern WA and the selection here was meager, so we went and found ours in Seattle area (~300 miles). I agree with all those who say to wait until you find exactly what you want. We felt rushed to make a decision, and while I love our soapstone, in retrospect we "should" have researched it more to perhaps find something harder. Neither one of us would have felt comfortable getting one we hadn't see in person, however.

  • jakuvall
    11 years ago

    European Granite and Marble - westport conn and I believe somewhere in Mass- can be pricey
    Check Marble.com - think they have a yard in mass
    Akdo- in connecticut often has special things like larger- such as larger than typical slabs and cleaner- extremely pricey and it can take a while for a fabricator to arrnge things if they don't already have an account
    How far? - I had one client finally import his own from Italy to get what they wanted :)

  • Rainwood
    11 years ago

    We went about 30 miles away to a stone yard/fabrication place. We went a number of times because we used remnants everywhere except the kitchen. They had good pricing, lots of remnants to choose from and we could find out exactly how much a particular selection would cost because they both sold the stone and fabricated it.

    Oh, and we're in western Washington and most of the slabs in the various places we looked were 3 cm. The 2 cm were usually in really exotic or expensive stones, the quartz, or a few of the Carrara and other popular marbles.

  • secondhalf
    11 years ago

    Huanga- I went to all those stone yards and more ...amd it turned out to be the incredible woman at the fabricator who found what I wanted and had it brought in. I did end up finding s slab I am having honed, but it's not that expensive.

    Can you find a good fabricator who will listen to what you want and go on a search? It took my person three weeks, but she found both my marble and soapstone, and she acted more like a designer than the other fabricators I talked to.

  • sunnylund
    11 years ago

    Hi. We just installed kitchen and bathroom countertop with absolute black granite. I am very happy with Select marble and granite in Everett. You can call Carlos, he's the owner and he will tell you whether he can help you or not. Of course, absolute black is popular so you can find it anywhere but that's the one we like it. Alberto and 2 other crews brought 600-1000lbs granite...less than a week we got counter top! I still feel so humble that those guys're working so hard to accomodate us.

  • mtnrdredux_gw
    11 years ago

    Third base.

    (DH really didn't want the marble.)

  • huango
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    mtnrdredux: truly LOL!!!
    Love it!

    It was my DH who suggested marble, when we couldn't find a quartzite that we love, which surprised the heck out of me.
    He said that I never asked him before...
    :)

    Amanda

  • mtnrdredux_gw
    11 years ago

    : )

    I couldn't resist the headline. When I read it to DH, he said "what do you mean? I told YOU to get marble". I'm like, i know honey, but that's just not funny.

  • rrgg
    11 years ago

    Since someone recommended Marble & Granite, you should also check MSI International. They're on the same street just a few minutes down the road.

  • drbeanie2000
    11 years ago

    We went to Cumar in Everett, MA because they were the only ones who had our exotic stone closer than New Jersey. I didn't look at marble at all there but they were very helpful.

  • KevinMP
    11 years ago

    I know it's a bit of a trek, but see if any of the fabricators in your area have a relationship with Stone Partnership in Cinnaminson, NJ. They specialize in marbles and limestones. It would be about a 5.5 hour drive for you, but they have many slabs (many of the whiter varieties instead of the grayer ones), and they have matching tiles from the same quarries and even from the same lots, which is hard to find. But you can only enter (with a hard hat) if you're there with one of their customers or at one of their customer's directions.

    I had to unsell myself on the bardiglio marble there, which is better than anywhere I found (and really the only place I could find it).

    Here is a link that might be useful: Stone Partnership, Inc. Link

  • huango
    Original Author
    11 years ago

    Everyone has been SO helpful.

    I am SO grateful for this process.
    If I was not caught in a bind, I would not have visited Westwood to stumble on the chance on finding my beloved beloved Mountain White Danby marble.

    Then my fabricator called the suppliers (VT Quarries) and they have slabs in the size I need (so I only need to purchase 2 slabs: yay), and they should arrive w/in 3 weeks!
    I also love the fact that I'm supporting local business (from VT - I've been to this quarry).

    As soon as I saw the Danby, I knew I that I have moved completely away from Carrara. The love for Carrara was gone.

    I really thank the Westwood marble and granite website. If it weren't for their pricing listed, I would have concluded that all Danby were out of my budget.
    So use the website to figure out what you may like...

    With my cabinets and medium stain flooring (but on maple instead):

    Mountain White on Left; Carrara on Right. See how grey the carrara slab is?

  • zelmar
    11 years ago

    I feel fortunate that we were able to stay local with our gray/black schist counters. The quarry, Ashfield Stone, is in our same county in western Mass. The counters were fabricated right at the quarry and were then brought to our house via pick up truck.

    The quarry is literally in the backyard of the owners' house.