I have tile down to my countertops in most of my kitchen, so no 4 inch backsplash. I sooo want to redoo my countertops and backsplash and hopefully I will soon. The backsplash tiles are the cheap 4x4 white ceramic tiles that you can get at any big box store (builder installed). They have held up pretty well, but the grout is starting to get a bit hard to clean (it looks kind of dingy) and the silicone between the countertop and the end of the tile is cracked across the whole length of my counter. It doesn't look like there's any water damage there yet (especially behind the sink), but I think it's just a matter of time. There is one small corner of my kitchen where the builder did put the 4 inch backsplash, probably as an afterthought as it is a separate piece of laminate attached to the counter. I hate that backsplash! It gets dusty and takes up uneccessary space. I also think the no backsplash look is a much cleaner, neater look.

IMO, the gold ain't working. Also, IMO, a cream or beige shade would be a neutral color that would let your counter top stand out. I would definitely visit the paint stores and pick up some chips (plenty of them) and take them home. FYI, in our similar situation we collected 30-40 paint chips, took them home, laid them out against the granite and counter top samples we had, and were able to immediately eliminate all but 5 or 6 of them and finally settle on a color. Then we took the paint chip we decided on (along with a sample of the granite and cabinet finish) to the granite store that also stocks back splash tiles, and the designer there had us a back splash design laid out in less than an hour...she was GOOD! Hope that helps.

didn't have time to read all the answers. I have no backsplash and have never regretted it...been over 6 yrs. It is painted with BM matte...which has ceramic in it. It is as beautiful now as it was when first painted. I love the fact that I can showcase other things ...art etc in my kitchen and no competition. Also if I ever want to change it is as quick as a paint brush...expense is minimal..paint only ! All in all I think it is serene as you point out . Here is one pick. Since I have a lot of high heat cooking in my kitchen..built in deep fat fryer as well as gas cook top I can definitely speak to the longevity of paint only. c ( more at this album )

So tired of hearing " but that will make it look dated" or "it wouldn't be good for resale" Everything is going to be dated at some point, the kitchen designers, cabinet companies and appliance companies make sure of that. Example: stainless steel appliances were just coming on the market 15 years ago when we gutted our kitchen for a remodel. It was hard for me to find stainless in my area at that time, I live in a small mid western town. So, have you noticed in the past few years appliance companies have been trying to bring out new colors, grayed looking stainless, now ice white etc. they are trying to make people think their stainless appliances are soon going to be "dated". But I have read in several articles that stainless is still the number one choice. I chose a cinnamon stained cherry wood for our new build. I thought about white because that is the trend right now, but I reasoned cherry cabinets will always be in style while the white trend Has just a few more years. I won't be a slave to trends. Just my opinion.