I also have a quartzite counter top that I loved, but before I learn about sealing and all, kids already got lemonade on it that left for a hour (during party) and left a mark. We went with http://www.davethemarbleguy.com/ to get it polished and he introduced us to TuffSkin coating - think in terms of window tinting plastic film for your counters. My island is around 6'x10', and i think it costed around 1500 for it. Despite the extra cost to protect it, i have to say if you really love it, you have no regrets. :)

I meant it costed 1500 for the TuffSkin and polishing. :)

I would go with a quartz for more durability.

Did your fabricator seal it before installing it? Or was the TuffSkin the first time you ever sealed it? Hmmm.. I didn't even think about the cost of sealing it. Your slab looks beautiful! Thank you for sharing...

Yes I do have quartz as well (only have natural stone on island), and they are great for cleanup! So if you have a quartz that you love go for it.

Hi Skyylark, my fabricator did seal it, but probably leaving the lemonade on it for so long would still damage it somewhat. I went to see a lot of places/slabs and this one was the only one that I really love, so I was happy to have it in my home. If I were to find something else say a quartz that I love as well I might have opt for it. But I just didn't find one that I love.

We have a formal dining but since the kitchen island is just so convenience we have our meals there everyday and the TuffSkin is certainly great - making clean up very easy and much less stressful.

Hi syechung, how long have you had your quartzite? And other than the lemonade stain, are you noticing anything else? I prefer polished so that's what I'm getting. Like you, this is going on my island. The sink will be in the middle of this island so I do have concerns about that! The perimeter countertops will be quartz so I can beat those up a little more. I still need to find a grey quartz that will work with my colors. I will definitely ask my fabricator about Tuffskin.

We don't drink wine, so I don't know how it would have been, but we don't get water spots either before we had the Tuffskin. The Tuffskin is very polish, so it looks shinier than before.

To me, a hard working kitchen needs worry-free countertops, especially on the island. I too love this stone but chose to put it in my master bath where I have full control of the situation.

Syechung, thx for posting pics. How often will you have to reseal with TuffSkin? I am wondering now why none of the slab yards I visited mentioned TuffSkin. They sell a ton of marble and knew that I loved that look. My fabricator hasn't said anything about it either and I'm not seeing a lot of information on Houzz about this.

Hi Skyylark, TuffSkin doesn't need resealing, it's a plastic film. It took Dave and his team 4 hours to put on to make sure no bubbles and such. They are over at San Jose if you want to call and ask for more info. :) He said it was first developed in Vegas for hotel counters.

Hi skyylark - just following up on this thread as I am going to a stoneyard this weekend to pick out a princess white quartzite slab. Did you make up your mind on the Prince White and get it? If so, how has it held up?

My Princess White came from Nigeria and it is processed in Italy. It does not etch or stain--it is a true quartzite. The white streaks are areas of iridescence and the yellowy areas are where the crystal stone is translucent. We are going to put a cool white paint behind it and then it will appear more white in those areas. This stone has so much crystal that it reflects the colors around it. I'm so happy that I finally found it!

Have you seen Super White quartzite? It looks similar to this one but behaves like granite and is very durable and easy to maintain if sealed well. So if fabricated well, you are safe.

The Super White Quartzite I have seen looks more like a marble and I was told at various slab yards that it was a dolomite.