After spending the last hour in my buddy's countertop shop, I am slightly more informed about marble working....

Turns out everyone who voiced concerns about the soft nature of marble were correct: marble cannot be turned. Apparently it's just too soft and will split apart. Supposedly there are special pneumatic tools for marble working, but as one who cuts marble for counters my friend didn't know many details or even knowledge of someone in my area that owned said equipment.

He did suggest I could get some special sandpaper and try to shape a knob (terminology?) by hand. He figured it would be soft enough to shape fairly quickly. Anyways, he had some scrap around and said he'd cut me a block tomorrow to play with, so I might try that out.

Seeing as I'm no Michelangelo, I doubt it will turn out well, but since I'm getting the materials for next to nothing I figure there's no harm in trying...

Has anyone else tried to shape a brush handle manually? Or, is that a terribly futile idea?