That is beautiful! Are you going to oil it or keep it natural?

Ack! The have STUFF on your COUNTER. Tell them to get it OFF! :) Beautiful. Love the sink.

Looking good! Really like the soapstone sink!

When I first saw my soapstone, it was so beautiful, I was sure I wouldn't want to oil it. But they guys put oil on it, and it was just as pretty!

WOW - beautiful. Which soapstone did you choose, and how did you make your choice?

Yes- I second EAMs' question. It's beautiful - cant wait to see it oiled.

Love it! The sink is gorgeous.

Thanks, everyone! Yes, I plan to oil it - in fact, the guys said they will do the first oiling for me. That's why they were mixing the grout color to match a small spot of oiled counter. (will post pics later today!)
Choice of soapstone - well, that is somewhat funny and somewhat sad. I spent hours reading up on soapstone, got samples from M. Teixiera, tested them, etc etc. Then my builder's fabricator met me at the stoneyard and showed me this beautiful soapstone, called Smoke. They were out, but a new shipment was due in.
Did I get a sample?
Did I test it?
Did I ask any questions?
Nope. It was pretty. I loved it.
Turns out Smoke is very soft, like Barroca.
I've heard it will ding pretty easily.
However.
The stone guys told me they love this stuff. It does ding easily, but that also means it is super easy to work with - I should be able to smooth out any dings with a bit of sandpaper. If anything bad happens, or if in a couple of years I think it looks beat up, they can come fix it up for about an hour's work, if even that much.
Everyone at the fabricator raves about this stone. They all have it in their kitchens, even the guy who made the sink & laid out the pattern for me.
So...slightly dubious about the softness, but definitely happy with the look...I will let you all know how it is to live with!

It is really pretty. Do they all have it in their homes because it is easy to work with or because it is pretty?

marti8a - they said both. They love working with it, you can see it in their faces, and they seem genuine when they say they think it's beautiful.
It's a small stone fabricator, very nice folks, they pump out a lot of stone here.

Here it is OILED! So pretty!
One ding from moving - he sanded it gently & I can't tell.
Seam is a perfect color match, very tight and small.
Happy!

Here is a link that might be useful: Soapstone installation

It's beautiful all right! Wow! What a sink..
Love it.

Sweet! Love it!

Wow, is that ever pretty! Your sink is beautiful and I love the cabinet color, too. Your kitchen is going to be gorgeous! Glad you're happy with your install, gives me hope that someday, I too will be happy with an install (currently 0 for 3).

Did they seam behind your sink or on either side of it, meaning, is the sink surround it's own piece?

Wow-We have smoke as well and you are the only one I have ever heard of on GW who also has it! We didn't even know enough to test the sample we had very much- we just loved it more than anything else we saw. You'll love it even more as time goes on.

Thanks, peonybush and a2gemini!!
Deedles, the sink surround is its own piece - you can see the guy sliding it in on the fourth pic at the top. We have only one seam in the whole kitchen - I asked for it to be right where the dishwasher starts, so the sink surround is both sides of the sink. They were wonderful and got two L-shaped pieces, one extremely long, out of the slab.
Leela4, I have pored over all your posts, anxious about this softer soapstone!! I am sort of scared of it right now, do you plunk down a metal spatula, for example? Or will that ding it?
I'm coming from all-wood counters, so figured "beat-up" wouldn't bother me. But I'm nervous right now looking at this gorgeous thing! I still have the old counters and am thinking of making large cutting boards to lay on top of the soapstone when I'm in full galloping gourmet mode.

That is one gorgeous stone! Congrats!

I wish I could remember when I stopped being so paranoid about every little thing I placed/used/moved on the counters. I still think about it-but I don't stress about it as much anymore. It's not my personality to live like that anyway, and I LOVE these counters.

I can understand you being scared right now-they are brand new. And will be for some time. I'm sure it took me a good year or more before I relaxed to where I am now. (we moved back into the kitchen around Labor Day 2010) And I still cringe sometimes when I do something dumb. But really-I use them. Plunking down metal spatulas won't hurt it. Being afraid of it will hurt you-does that make any sense? Baby it for as long as you need to, but maybe that fear won't last as long as you think. Making boards from your old counters is a good idea; that will help. (sorry for such a long winded reply)
(Also-feel free to email me if you have more specific questions or concerns)
HTH