Please help with advice and pictures!

• Positive--where the sink shows/granite is cut slightly larger than sink


• Pros: easier to clean b/c you can see the gunk and can easily wipe it off (it only gets nasty if you leave it there)


• Cons: silicone (caulk?) is visible, but if they use clear you won't see it when it dries
• Negative--where the granite overhangs the sink


• Pros: You cannot see the gunk buildup or silicone


• Cons:


• You cannot see the gunk to clean it.


• Edge underneath is not polished so gunk is more likely to "stick"


• Dirty water/food can splash up & under where you cannot see to clean it. It's difficult to see underneath w/o leaning way over & into the sink.


• Dishes have been known to break b/c when you lift them out near the edge of the sink they dish hits the stone counter & can break (or, if the dish wins, the counter could chip...but I'm not sure how likely that is).
• Flush--where the granite & sink are the same


• Pros:


• easier to clean b/c you can see the gunk


• no platform over or under for the gunk to collect


• Cons:


• more difficult to do perfectly


• silicone is visible, but if they use clear you won't see it when it dries

You will find proponents of all three types of reveals here...but in the end it's what works best for you.

Good luck!

The advantage to positive reveal is that you get an automatic ledge to perch custom cutting boards / drain boards. If you haven't thought through in advance what to router into the edge of your stone, with soapstone you are not stuck, as it is the one stone that can be worked with tools at home in your spare time, and sanded and polished.

Most sink templates seem a bit too big for my taste; I wonder if inside a template-followed flush reveal cut it would be possible to hang a cutting board... To me, a flush reveal still shows a Lot of the sink top's round edge at all times, and a Lot more when you are not looking straight down (which is all the time), so a (minor) negative reveal solves that. That is a quarter inch less than the template, which leaves a little overhang, less than 1/8th, about 1/16th inch.

I am planning a soapstone counter now, with even more negative reveal on one side. I expect I can use Schluter profile 45-degree transition trim strips to give a metal strength to the underside edge instead of letting moving pots hit bare stone when they get pulled out of the sink. Any structure or form can then be made to meld with the shape of the opening. Schluters are available in SS or anodized aluminum. Soapstone is the most easily sanded of countertop stones, so I can make it smooth on the underside too if I want. My proposed large-overhang would be only on one of the four sides, to reduce the psychological fear of bacteria enjoying a free ride underneath. A light can shine in there too, again for psychological support. A big overhang (inches) can then be handled and made to look professional.

HTH -- and no I am not an expert, so if anyone wants to contradict me please go ahead and I may learn something.

David