Hi Bill, I have seen mention of this Mapei on other threads and did a google search and came up with a lot of foreign-language links. Who makes it? Or better yet, can you give me a link to a website? (Also, I sent you an email - did you get it? I noticed another tile installation disaster today. Our Master Bath floor has been covered for protection until today when part of it was exposed while the double vanity was installed. The large 16" square honed Calcutta Gold tiles are not centered on any of the walls, so there are really off grout lines at the center of the vanity. It is really obvious and when I think about it I literally want to cry :( . This is our forever house and everywhere I turn, a tile job is done badly. I could really use a good referal!)

I do like your fixture selections too. If that is the bronze you were looking at, it is not as dark as what I was picturing. My island fixture was called bronze but looking at it, you would think it was black. If you look close enough you can find a few golden highlights. Yours has some of the warmth I was looking to wood to pick up without being harsh. There is still a softness that ties in with your silver and blue-grey. It will also tie in with your floors and island. It also looks like it would be great with that mosaic tile. I do think you can mix your metals if you pay careful attention the lines and style. I have stainless appliances, pewter hardware on my white cabinets and black on my cherry island. Since your island will be a very different finish, you can use a different pull on those cabinets and bring in a finish similar to your lighting. Look at pewter for your white cabinet pulls, or especially if you want them all to be the same. Pewter finishes and the things done with them tend to look older and softer while your nickel can go more modern and slick. With your color palette and seeing those fixtures, I think I'd like the older, slightly more rustic feel of the pewter. The kind of comfortable you get with a favorite pair of jeans. Know what I mean? I see what you were thinking with the tile, but it just doesn't work for me. I tend to like glossy finishes and white or lighter colors for a splash. I want them to reflect light rather than suck it up and let it die under my upper cabinets. I have seen a few dark splashes I like, but they tend to be rich color, the same as the counters and/or pretty contemporary from what I can remember. If you look at a white or light color ceramic or glass, you could use a liner in the other colors you are using or even a metallic liner so you have a bit of color and detail without doing a lot. That's similar to what I did. As for that pony wall, make it the height you want it or need it to be for function and visual balance in the room. Don't worry too much about the tile size. The tile setter can figure out how to fade a cut tile into the top or bottom row and give it all a finished look.

Many of the Juperana granites have that lovely soft type of movement. Juperana Columbo might be similar? Looks lighter with fewer red tones, though it's hard to tell from the picture. Juperana Gold: Have you tried sending your picture to a local stone yard to see what they say?

All of these kitchens are amazing.. Yes now to enhance or not to enhance. It's so hard to make all of these choices! And before my hubbie was going to install but now I think I'm hiring a tile guy to save time (not money) but I picked a complicated design to do so I think my hubbie is a little thankful.. Does $10-$12 for labor per sq foot seem normal for tile setting a backsplash, not including materials.