Don't forget about me!

Last but not least! Finishing! So many options, so little time.

There are many many MANY different options to finish soapstone with, Danish oil, beeswax, tung oil, linseed oil, shoe polish just to name a few. I am partial to Danish oil and Beeswax, I use the danish oil for most of the green pieces I carve with, and I like the beeswax for the browns, I find most of the browns I work with are very porous and the beeswax takes to it better than the Danish oil. The oiling is the final stage in finishing your soapstone sculpture, the sanding brings out the natural beauty but the finishing step helps frame and protect the sculpture so that you can continue to admire earths natural beauty in the rock itself for FOREVER :).

"Should you shield the canyons from the windstorms you would never see the true beauty of their carvings." -Elisabeth Kübler-Ross