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Step 4Laying Out And Cutting Slate
For aesthetic reasons I decided to cut the six 12" square tiles into six 10.5" x 9" tiles. This requires a bunch of cuts, which turned out to be somewhat arduous, but in the end i think it was worth it. You can lay your slate out however your want (obviously), perhaps even getting lucky and finding an arrangement of available stone the requires no cuts.
If you do end up needing to cut the slate, here are some options:
1) Have somebody else do it. I'm pretty sure that the big box home stores will cut stone if you ask them to. The downside here is that you have to deal with an employee of a big box home store.
2) Dry cut the stone with a diamond blade in a circular saw, or a bicarbonate blade in a jigsaw, or with a hacksaw. Note that it will be difficult to get a straight cut with a jigsaw or hacksaw. This is probably the least preferable method especially in light of this WARNING: If you dry cut stone you MUST NOT inhale the dust created by cutting (and, by God, there's going to be a lot of dust). Dry cut stone outside with appropriate lung protection.
3) Wet cut the stone. This is the route I chose. I used one of those cheapo table mounted tile saws. I don't recommend that you buy one (I didn't). Instead, find a friend who has done some kitchen or bathroom remodeling and borrow theirs. You might have to ask a friend of a friend, but somebody will have one, because everybody on Earth is separated from a tile saw by at most six degrees of separation. Wet cutting the stone makes a big muddy mess, but there's no airborne dust.
When you're done cutting your stone, wash it thoroughly and give it some time to dry out.
If you do end up needing to cut the slate, here are some options:
1) Have somebody else do it. I'm pretty sure that the big box home stores will cut stone if you ask them to. The downside here is that you have to deal with an employee of a big box home store.
2) Dry cut the stone with a diamond blade in a circular saw, or a bicarbonate blade in a jigsaw, or with a hacksaw. Note that it will be difficult to get a straight cut with a jigsaw or hacksaw. This is probably the least preferable method especially in light of this WARNING: If you dry cut stone you MUST NOT inhale the dust created by cutting (and, by God, there's going to be a lot of dust). Dry cut stone outside with appropriate lung protection.
3) Wet cut the stone. This is the route I chose. I used one of those cheapo table mounted tile saws. I don't recommend that you buy one (I didn't). Instead, find a friend who has done some kitchen or bathroom remodeling and borrow theirs. You might have to ask a friend of a friend, but somebody will have one, because everybody on Earth is separated from a tile saw by at most six degrees of separation. Wet cutting the stone makes a big muddy mess, but there's no airborne dust.
When you're done cutting your stone, wash it thoroughly and give it some time to dry out.
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