New counters

We got new kitchen counters last week. I've been thinking about it since we moved into the house last year and finally followed through. Here are our old counters. They were fine; there is really no reason to get new ones other than they were kind of ugly and the sink was really shallow. I know, cry me a river; and people's children are starving and dying of preventable diseases for lack of a few dollars. I just decided to indulge myself and call it creating a welcoming home environment or something defensible-sounding. It's because I love my children, people.

 

After lots of considering different kinds of counters I decided on soapstone. Why? Hard to say. Soapstone seems... kind of upscale, but not granite. I like that it's not too shiny. I like that it's a natural stone. I like that it will age in an organic kind of way. I like that I can't stain it and don't need to seal it. I like how it goes with the feel of the saltillo tile we put in last year. Also, you can buy it in big slabs and cut and install it yourself so it can be significantly cheaper than granite. We didn't do it all ourselves; we hired our friend Marty to help install it. He's an experienced builder and craftsman, and we like an excuse to have him at our home. He totally nailed the tricky sink cutout.

 

And here's the finished product. I like it! A lot!! The counters are beautiful, and the deep sink is heavenly. There are a few things I should have done differently, but I won't tell you what they are and I really doubt anyone else will ever notice them.

 

 

Here's a closeup of the stone; there is a lot of pretty veining.

 

And here's a shot of the kitchen. I really like how warm the feel is with the stone and the floor together.