Looks like my Mariana soapstone! Enjoy!

Pretty, pretty!

Hoo-ah! Looks awesome!

I'm not a granite fan, but honed granite almost sways me. That's beautiful!

That sure is pretty!

Oooooooohhh, Ahhhhhhhhhh! It's so swishy and purdy! Love your wall color too, BTW!

Really nice. Very subtle and elegant

Oh...I can feel it from here...is it lovely to run your hands over?

Thanks for your kind words. Absolutely no one around here puts in soapstone or honed granite. I didn't want highly polished, lots of dramatic movement, lots of different colors or lots of aggregate. Those stone are gorgeous but I wasn't sure if I could live with them every day. It was so helpful to have this forum reinforce my gut feeling.

Last night my girls laughed when I laid my cheek on the counter and patted it.

I want to see everyone elses pics who had counter installs yesterday!

I love it. I may have to see if we can find it here for our laundry room. If we redo it, I will need a piece of something and won't use the marble from the kitchen and the Cambrian black that is on the island doesn't thrill me in there either. Your Virginnia Mist looks like it could be a marriage of the two. Really lovely -- I think you'll start a trend. : )

deee, countertops are beautiful. I want soapstone look as well. From which supplier did you get your Virginia mist? I see you're midlands SC; I'm in upstate.

I, too, am interested in the supplier.

WmWalker

Sorry for the late reply - I was away this weekend and the post scrolled off the front page.

I actually live in Florence but we used Thompson Stone and Marble in Myrtle Beach They are on Highway 544, almost to 17. The number is 843-236-5051. Thompson has been in business for 20 years and they were extremely professional. (As long as you can overlook the biker look, long hair or facial piercing!)

Let me know if you have any more questions.

Dee

Deee, I am really loving your granite and it will be my choice if the soapstone doesn't work out.

It appears from your photo that your sink is in a peninsula. I know your kitchen isn't finished yet, but was wondering if you could post a picture of the front on view of the sink cabinet/peninsula. Is your dw right of the sink? This is going to be my set up and would like to see how you have done it.

Thanks and congratulations on your beautiful granite!!

Deee, did you seal your counters? Enhance them? Any problems with the darkening that absolute back owners have?

I've said it before, but I can't get over how much your counters look like mine!

WOWWWWW!!!!!

This is beautiful. Are you still loving it now that you've had it a while? Is it holding up as you hoped? How are the fingerprints and dust? And does anyone know where to find this in FL? I have to get on the phone on Monday.

Dawn

I love your honed Virginia Mist and have referred others to your OP. I would like to know, now that you've had the stone for a while, what the fingerprint issue is like? Did you have an enhancer sealer put on the stone after it was fabricated and installed? If so was the color affected to any extent? Lots of questions about an absolutely fantastic countertop. Good Job!

Hi jb,

Sorry I didn't answer your questions sooner. I just saw this post.

After two months, I still love the counters. I used Porous Plus to seal them. I tried the enhancer on a sample but I really didn't see any difference in the look. I have absolutely no finger print or grease issues. I get occasional water marks, but they wipe right off with Barkeepers Friend. Red wine and cranberry juice spills also wipe right off.

I finally got my marble subway back splash installed. I really don't know which I like most, the back splash or the counters. I'll try to post a pic soon.

Dee

Hey deee,

Can you post more pictures of your kitchen? We really like the granite!

Thanks,

Gus and Nicole

Anyone out there know where to source Virginia Mist in SF area? Also, anyone looked at doing this in a Venitian/Lido finish as opposed to honed?

thanks

Do you find that the honed VA Mist scratches? I have a sample and I feel like it's showing little surface scratches when I test it out. A ball of aluminum foil brushed on it really seemed to scratch it up. Any other opinions on how it's holding up for you now that you've had it a while? Are you sealing it a lot? The granite fabricator made it sound like you only have to seal it every 6 months to a year. And it's not water staining?

Thanks in advance.

It's been six months since I put the counters in. I've only sealed them once. On a day to day basis I have noticed no obvious scratches, stains, marks, etc. My husband and my nine year old are the proverbial bulls in a china shop, so the counters are not babied one bit.

Since you asked, I thought I should give the counters a thorough once over. I put on my old lady magnifying reading glasses, waited until daylight, turned on every light in the kitchen and really examined it from every angle. When I got super close (two inches) to the counter and looked at it from one angle, I did notice some faint marks. They resembled eraser marks, not scratches and they were only visible from a certain angle. I also noticed some very mild pitting.

I have no water stains. I recently noticed that the side of the cooktop where I cook the greasy stuff stays slightly darker after I wipe it after cooking. It's been six months so I'm sure it will go away when I seal again. The faint "eraser" marks will probably go away too. But honestly they aren't noticeable and don't bother my one bit. Who goes around their kitchen with a magnifying glass? Who has time?

So, to answer your question. Yes, I am still thrilled wth my counters. When you put your nose to the counter, they do show a tiny bit of wear. They aren't perfect but I still give them an "A". I hope my input helps.

Dee

Your countertops are gorgeous! I am trying to find Virginia Mist here in Northern VA for my kitchen. Thank you so much for posting these pictures. I am new to gardenweb. You have inspired me!! :-)

HI-
This might be an option for me also and from the sound of it your backsplash too. Do you plan on posting some pics of the finished kitchen? Is virginia mist a very dark grey?

Hi there,
Could you tell me if your counters have been treated with a color enhancer or a sealer? I want to have a black rather than grey honed counter top, and and thinking of going with honed Virginia Mist or honed Absolute Black granite.

beautiful! if you have a chance, please post more photos including your backsplash. would love to see them.