Honing of natural stone is the use of diamond abrasives of varying grits to abrade and refine the surface. Diamond abrasives are to stone as sandpaper is to wood, for example.

 

Honing is performed to remove etching, scratches and other damage.  If the surface is to be left with a low sheen, diamond work is completed to a specified grit and is then typically followed with special honing powders.  If the surface is to have a polished shine, special polishing compounds are used following completion of diamond work to the specified grit.

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Requests for sheen changes have been gaining popularity over the years on surfaces like marble counters and limestone floors for example. In most cases the polish is honed down to a matte or satin finish. This is popular with people who are having trouble with etching as the low sheen matte finishes help disguise this damage much better than a high gloss polished finish. On the other hand, a low sheen surface can be honed and polished to a high gloss mirror finish.  

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