Have a left over counter top that you want cut down but don’t want to take it somewhere and pay the extra money to have it cut and finished? Then look no further for this simple technique for cutting and finishing counter and/or vanity tops.

Our tutorial features a granite island counter top that we had left over from our kitchen reno. This is the kitchen island when we first moved into the home. It was in a terrible place, so we took it out and re-purposed a portion of the counter top for our 1st floor vanity and the other portion as counter top for our DIY pull-out trash can. (I kept the the island cabinet as workbench in the garage, in DIY world nothing every goes to waste : )

Items you’ll need for this project:

Circular saw with diamond blade

Grinder

Painters tape

Permanent marker

Garden Hose

Diamond Polishing Pads 4 inch Wet/Dry 8 Piece Set Granite Stone Concrete Marble (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071ZTFYYX/ref=dp_prsubs_3)

Construction Adhesive for securing the tops to the cabinets

Step 1: Place the top you want to cut onto supportive saw horses or something else that is able to support the heavy weight while cutting.

Step 2: Take your measurements and put the painters tape where you plan on cutting. The painters tape helps prevent chipping on the edges

Step 3: Use the permanent marker for the straight cut line.

Step 4: Turn on the garden hose to low water setting and put it in front of the saw. Don’t turn it too high  or set it too close to the saw or you will risk getting water in the circular saw.

Step 5: Cut along the straight line at a slow rate and make sure water is still flowing to minimize chipping and dust. If you have someone around, they can also hold the hose to make the cutting process more smooth. If you want an angled edged on the top then turn your circular saw to the desired angle and repeat the process for the cut. For our vanity we used a set in sink so I cut a square in the middle for the sink to set into it.

Step 6: Use a grinder with the diamond polishing pads to reach the desired finish. Start with lower grit (50) and utilize each one for approximately 5-10 minutes each until you reach the highest grit (typical counter tops are smooth around ~3000 grit

Step 7:  Use the construction adhesive and secure the tops to their locations. The top we had for the vanity was a little short so I centered it and made matching cabinet trim to fill the gaps

Step 8: The top we used for our vanity got knocked over by one of our kids and had a small crack in it. If you have a crack or chip in it then use a hammer to break the left over cut sections into small granite bits, and then use the hammer head to grind the bits into powder. Once complete, use a counter top repair resin mixed with powder and fill in the crack. It worked perfectly for us.

Stay tuned for other tutorials on our bathroom and kitchen DIY renovation tips!