Pietra Del Cardoso - A Gorgeous Italian Alternative to Soapstone

Love the look of soapstone, but want something even less common?

So, you have a new or old farmhouse, or a super-elegant yet simple and refined home and you want counters that mirror that elegance?

You know, something lovely, and usual, something almost no one you know has seen, or most likely ever heard of? Something that goes gorgeously with your new white custom cabinets?

How about Pietra Del Cardoso?

Pietra Del Cardoso is an Italian stone, with lovely yet subtle movement and coloration that runs from pale grey to medium grey to blue-grey. This honed (not polished) stone is so elegant and subtle, it almost defies description.

We had the honor of installing some in a very lovely bathroom in Austin a few months ago. The owners wanted something . . . different. Their designer, flown in from Canada, wanted something subtle – something that played nice in the bathroom with the marble backsplash.

We had one small piece left over – the cutout from a giant jacuzzi tub. That piece was snapped up even before we carried it back to the racks to file it with the other remnants. A local high-end construction project manager knew immediately that it was a find, and had us make a small counter for him.

Italian Sandstone in the Kitchen

You may be wondering if this material is suitable for a kitchen counter. It really depends on what kind of a cook and housekeeper you are (or the members of your kitchen staff are!). Pietra Del Cardoso is a highly compressed sandstone, or meta sandstone. It needs to be carefully sealed and re-sealed regularly to reduce the chances of staining. If you are a meticulous cook, clean up every spill and splatter immediately, then this would make a fine counter for your kitchen. It would make more than a fine counter – it would make a fabulously elegant one!