And welcome to the soapstone club, it's great here!

I question your thought that paint is not the most durable. Against what?

Good quality paint is easy to wipe clean and the side areas rarely see much action.

I chose to go with no backsplash at all, and after 5 years, still pristine.

Love the soapstone!

I wouldn't turn the corner with it and I'd just do a straight height to the base of Windows.

Gorgeous view!

Thank you, all!

There will be floating shelves with under cab lights, that’s why I bumped it up. Yes, the cabinets continue, they just hadn’t been installed when I snapped this pic.

I probably still wouldn't bump it up, even with floating shelves

It may just be the picture quality but that slab does not quite look like soapstone.

I agree with @anj_p, go to window height and do not turn the corner, if you do decide to do one side then do them both.

That view is spectacular!

I've had no backsplash for 20 years and no issue cleaning the paint even behind the stove.

I recently had a customer do a mini splash - only 2" high

She had no wall cabinets

I agree about that view! Amazing

Yep, still don't go up to the shelves because it's such narrow areas of full height, IMO it will look strange

Thanks again. Here is a better pic of one of the slabs, this one was templates for the master bath, I think. I am liking the look (or visualizing it anyhow) of just going under the window. Then if I do decide to make the turn at the ends (definitely will do both the same), there will certainly be some scraps for 6”x25” pieces (I have 10 slabs!).

We bought the property for the amazing views in 270 degrees.

Still does not look quite like soapstone, looks like it may be phyllite

I would take it to the window and use it for the windowsill as well. You will find that having it on the windowsill sill over the sink is very cohesive and convenient

@sm I will inquire about that, but I think I’m stuck at this point.

What about my scullery window, which is just to the right through a pocket door from the kitchen? There will be fridge drawers & a dishwasher…then a small radius shelf to the right of the sink, along with one 36” upper cabinet. Should I just take the splash to under the window?

I also included the laundry room, which will have splash to the window (there will be a desk/shallow drawers, not yet installed). It is adjacent to the scullery.

Hence I’m inclined towards window height, but not sure how that will look under the upper?

Here is a sketch of the scullery with a window height splash….

@ s m I was curious about your remark and I don't know how you could tell simply from a photo if a stone was phyllite or soapstone. I copied the image and asked Google if the image was soapstone. Did it multiple times and got different answers:

• It is highly likely that the material shown in the image is soapstone, or a material with a very similar appearance to soapstone. While a definitive identification without physical inspection (checking for the "soapy" feel or scratch test) is not possible from an image alone, the visual characteristics strongly suggest soapstone or a material designed to mimic its look, such as certain quartz or vinyl flooring products.
• The image appears to show a type of stone that could potentially be a dark-colored phyllite or a dark variety of soapstone, such as Marine Black Phyllite, which is sometimes marketed as a type of soapstone.
• The stone in the image is Negresco Granite, which is a type of granite, not soapstone or phyllite. While some varieties of Negresco Granite may have a visual resemblance to soapstone, they are distinct types of natural stone.

What I truly appreciate is that I believe you were trying to alert the OP that this is a Buyer Beware situation.

I have heard about marble being passed off as quartzite, but was completely unaware of the issue with phyllite being passed off as soapstone with Marine Black often being marketed as Marine Black Soapstone.

I hope that the OP has true soapstone, but it would be better to find out now, before everything is fabricated. Saw stories of people buying what they thought was soapstone, especially when the product name included the word "Soapstone" only to find that it etched or stained or cracked under heat.

" Be wary of stones marketed with names like "Marine Black Soapstone," "Black Moon Soapstone," "Luna Soapstone," "Arabesque Soapstone," "Noire Soapstone," or "White Soapstone," as these are often not genuine soapstone. "

@Jennifer Hogan it is not fully possible to tell by photos if the stone is or is not soapstone, that is why I do not make definite statements either way. There have been a couple of times here that I have seen counters that more clearly look like a knockoff soapstone but were sold as soapstone and one issue is that the owners should know the true characteristics of the stone that they have and how to treat it.

It is hard to tell with the photos of the slabs that @Mdl has if the lighting is what makes the stone look different or if the stone is something other than soapstone. The things that stand out in the photos as possible indicators that it is not soapstone are the movement within the stone, it appears to be more foliated and layered, and the variations in the grays which appear to have more of a sheen than unoiled soapstone. And, harder to tell for sure, are the harsh white spots especially on the edges because phyllite and some other stones passed off as soapstone come apart differently and it can show on the unfinished slab edges.

I appreciate your taking the time to explain what you saw that raised some red flags. I have learned so much from reading Houzz design dilemmas over the years and it is amazing how often these bits and pieces of information come in handy when my friends or family members are contemplating or working on renovations.

I spoke with my stone people and they assured me it is indeed soapstone. Here are some photos before they oiled it.

Any opinions on my backsplash’s in the master bath?

The shiny/black one is freshly sealed in the powder room. And the stonework in our front hall (which will get a soapstone top on the pony wall), just because it finished today😊

If you discover later that it's not actual soapstone, you do have recourse against your "stone people." You should be able to discover if it's not real soapstone fairly quickly.

I'm looking forward to seeing your house when it's finished! I hope that you will post many photos when it's completed!!

https://jewettfarms.com/2019/05/16/soapstone-could-you-spot-a-fake

Thanks, Dani. Before it was sealed, it definitely has the talc-y and soapstone feel. I’m don’t particularly like the sealant, and may opt out and use Milk Paint sealer & cleaner going forward.

Real soapstone doesn’t need sealing. And, actually, it shouldn’t be sealed. It’s impervious to anything and everything. Won’t stain or etch. Period.

Talk to a soapstone expert at a true soapstone dealer, like M.Teixeira, and they’ll tell you that soapstone should never be sealed. Sealing changes the behavior of the stone, and changes the appearance and feel.

@darbuka The wording @Mdl used was both oiled and selaed, they may have meant that it was just oiled. But nonetheless, your statement that "Sealing changes the behavior of the stone, and changes the appearance and feel." is not fully accurate. Enhancing sealants can darken soapstone but they do not change the feel or behavior of the stone. I know this because I have used enhancing sealant on several different soapstones and lived with it for over 15 years total. I also completely sanded down soapstone counters, lived with them unsealed temporally, tried oil, removed it, sealed them with a sealant that did not enhance, sanded it back down and then sealed with enhancing sealant. Using oil made a bigger change in the feel and look than the enhancing sealant due to the sheen and tackyness that the oil added, the sealant left it extremely matte and kept the soapy feel. I have told you some of this in a past post:

and you seemed to understand what I said at the time:

It is important to not help in the spread of misinformation, even little things like the generalization that it is terrible to use sealant on soapstone.

post that the above was from: older ss post

@mdl It is hard to give an opinion on the backsplash in the master. You have a unique vision for your house and know the full context of that. Your choices so far look very nice and probably quite a bit different than what many would pick. Getting opinions from random people who do not understand or share your preferences isn't going to help create a cohesive home. If you post more pics and information of the space and some ideas of your inspiration then the feedback that you get will potentially be more useful. It is nice to see spaces that are a bit less typical come together and people like to help with that but may end up muddling your vision. For example, the powder room backsplash looks too visually heavy to me but I would not have envisioned using such a dark color on the walls as the sample is that is hung. If your preference is for more saturated spaces then the pieces come together differently than the typical pale rooms.

I am not sure if you have made a final decision yet, but as I look more and more at your photos I think this is one of those situations where less is more.

I feel like the photo where the backsplash has not yet been installed is so clean and the soapstone counter is the perfect amount of black.

The powder room doesn't look as good, it feels too heavy and bulky with the floating cabinets. I would keep clean lines and less soapstone on the walls.

I love the example Debbi Washburn shared with the 1" backsplash.

My personal aesthetic tends to go toward the minimalist side.