Recycle that old turntable:
http://www.theanalogdept.com/bushman1.htm
Good Conversation:
http://www.audioasylum.com/audio/vinyl/bbs.html
A project with explaination:
http://www.decdun.fsnet.co.uk/turntables.html
Some other guy’s project:
http://home.earthlink.net/~jeremyepstein/teres.html
As far as stone, I was in Paris once..........this artist set up a shop/exhibit in a park. What he had was a special limestone that was soaking in water for days. You could carve it with simple hand tools into the softend stone. Remember that natural stones are pourous so they will soak up water. Next time you look at a stone carving on an old church, remember not everything must be cut & tooled with a band saw, and put together with motar. I say carve up something beautiful with free flowing lines. If it does not sound all that great, at least it will look good.