May_flowers and Feisty68 I do appreciate your input-be blunt! I need it! I am at design dilemma for sure! So, after the thread I started about the gap areas under hood, I debated two ideas- 1. filling space with stainless or 2. ditching upper stainless and using tile... My only reservation with the stainless is that the riser shelf is not as wide the space. It won't look seamless on the sides. Unless I ditch riser shelf, get custom piece and have a shelf built in. With tile-this was my inspiration: https://www.houzz.com/photos/kitchen-renovation-alexandria-va-traditional-kitchen-dc-metro-phvw-vp~386548-traditional-kitchen-dc-metro Granted it has a 2 inch b/s not a 6 inch. Originally I wanted no tile, hence the 6 inch b/s but it looks unfinished with those gaps... If I do a bigger stainless, do you think seeing that the riser shelf is a separate piece is a big deal, or should I try to make it totally seamless by just starting over with a new big sheet, ditching riser, and having custom shelf?

Thank you both for the suggestions and photos! My floor is not a green as the photos make it appear -- more of an aqua color. Not sure why my phone yellowed the image. It is from the days when turquoise reigned supreme. I did check Congoleum when I first saw your message, Sue, and right away had a display of a great pattern called Teal that I liked. But now I can't find it again! Will have to work on this. And will try to track down the flooring in your center photo, houssaon. I agree with you, a subtle basketweave would be fantastic -- so much more interesting than checkerboard, altho we are working with a small laundry room, about 7x12 feet.

The best DESIGN option = same tile throughout. The sad thing is the tile may no longer be available. Now you are into some weird design elements that no one explained at the time you installed the wood-look tile. In essence you have "wet" areas that are covered in "wood". You are now looking at having to put traditional looking tile or stone in the living areas normally reserved for wood. This is Bass Akwards in the eyes of many (myself included). Personally, being a cork flooring expert, I would replace carpet with cork floating flooring. It is soft and quiet and is NOT wood looking. But I know cork and I know how to live with its eccentricities. I'm 1% of the population. The other 99% can't handle cork. In an ideal world, you would have used a stone look tile in the kitchen areas and a wood-look tile for the rest of the house because that's traditionally where you would put wood. I would check to see if you can find the original wood-look tile. Be aware you will have issues with colour - assuming you can find the same product. Photos of what you are dealing with could help us.

Again, thank you for all the pictures. I have seen several of the tiles in person, many look so tile like, or pictures of brick, and so much grey. My memory of a brick floor is my grandmothers porch which was dry set reclaimed brick, set side by side, with no grout, sand swept over with lots of sand, and then some finish poured and spread on top. It was practically smooth. That was the old time southern way in the 50's and before. Many places that sell this look only have pictures even if I go in person. I am looking for something that can go from the interior out onto the pool deck and is not blazing hot to walk on in the Houston climate.