HOW SOAPSTONE PANS ARE MADE

To manufacture soapstone cookware the traditional way, a pre-formed block of stone is attached to a horizontal mechanical lathe. The stone is then rotated at a fairly high speed, while the block is hollowed out and shaped on the outside with the help of various iron bars and a lot of patience and skill. A lid made from a preformed disk is then shaped to fit each individual pot perfectly. Each piece of soapstone cookware is therefore a unique piece, which is then fitted with the copper handles by another skilled artisan.

In this video we show the most rudimentary way of making a soapstone pan. Cookstone, on the other hand, uses modern semi-automatic lathes that allow for a faster, more efficient and standardized production with a better finish. But the method is still the same as it has been since the Middle Ages: a process that requires the skills of a master craftsman.