I'm assuming we are talking about ceramic tile? If I had your problem, I would consider area rugs or runners for the heavily traveled pathways OR using a steam cleaner in place of the cleaning products. The steamer isn't going to keep the floors cleaner, but it is easier to use, IMO. Actually it might help keep the floor cleaner if the cleaning products you are now using are staying on the tile and are causing dirt to adhere to the tiles. The steamer uses only water, so there's nothing left behind. Get a good steamer, a canister model, not a steam mop. And be prepared to use it repeatedly at first to remove the cleaning product residue. It can take some work before you get the gunk out of the tiny crevices of the tile. I did this recently on a not-smooth tile floor belonging to a friend of mine. I kept going over one small area, changing out the steam cleaner's cloth (I use microfiber). I did an area that was 3 feet by 3 feet and I went through 3 cloths (microfiber) until no more dirt came off.

I have two acrylic units...one tub/shower and the other just a shower. I'd like to take the sledgehammer to both of them. I don't think they are any easier to clean than our enameled cast iron tub in our former house. Soap scum still requires scrubbing. The biggest problem is that they get a pinkish blue haze on them that must be cleaned with lacquer thinner. That is the only thing that cuts it. I have had an AquaGlass rep at my home and they were dumbfounded. We are removing one in a couple years during our master bath redo and I cannot wait to get rid of it. I feel they are very cheap-looking as well (JMHO).

We used epoxy grout and everything wipes right off of it. Latecrete spectralock. I love it!! Some people think its over kill for a kitchen, but I use my kitchen A LOT and I'm so glad we did It. You could prop something up behind your cooktop while cooking.

Your ideas are possibilities, Funkycamper. We talked about doing glass over the beadboard, too, but I do wonder if it would look funny.(?) I also wonder how successfully we could blend "real" beadboard with ceramic beadboard. That's part of why I was considering transitioning to a totally different medium behind the range, so that it wouldn't be real and fake right next to each other. Thanks for your vote of confidence! I revel in all of the possibilities, LOL, it's making a "final" decision that's tough! Thanks for sharing the tile you got, iroll. Since you did the beadboard only behind the range, I'm curious what you did elsewhere. I don't think crackle snaps or pops for DH, unfortunately. I found some gorgeous (or so *I* thought) crackle tile by Enser. DH response was "Oh, yuck! What's wrong with that tile?" So much for that, LOL. Your question of how much the eye "needs" is a good one, Rococogurl. I don't know. I love color, and I like neutrals, too. I'm not sure how much my eye, or the eyes of my family can handle. I also know that I love to change things around, so committing to a color feels a bit constrictive. I get you on the difficult appliance choice. So glad to hear that your final decision is made! You must be relieved. I was talking to a friend whose son works in China. He said, "Mom, life is so much simpler over here!" She visited him and saw that they don't have much kitchen to speak of, they wash their dishes in the bathroom. She questioned his idea of "simplicity", but he then explained how if they need a fridge there are only 2 choices at the store. A big fridge or a little fridge. That's it. There is no agonizing over which thing to choose. I don't care for the medallion/mural in the picture I shared, either. I didn't associate it with a certain era, necessarily (says the girl who just put her 1997 Chevy van to its final rest...) but I think I'd tire of the same picture back there, day in and day out. My daughter and I were talking about how we can't wait to turn the calender to see the new picture each month because we're tired of the old one. So, no stone murals for this household! : ) I don't mean to be a tease! ; ) Let's put it this way, right now I feel like I'll be as surprised how this kitchen looks as you will be, if that's any consolation. I plan to post pictures, no worries! Thanks for sharing the picture of your beadboard tile combo, diymom79. Both my mom and my MIL have the vinyl beadboard in their bathrooms and love it, too. MIL has hers with the wide plank look. It's very pretty. I feel like I'm at a beautiful beach cottage when I'm in there. : ) I picked up some fabric samples today from a local store. They are quilt fabrics, so I don't know if they'd be a good choice for curtains, but they do give me an idea of how the colors work with the cupboards. Fun! I like them both--Oops. One is light colored background with blue flowers, and the other one is a black background with pink and cream flowers with green leaves. Maybe I could make both summer and winter curtains?? I need to go to the city to find decorator fabric, but the weather isn't being very cooperative for that endeavor. So, if I must, I'll stare at the cotton samples for a few days. Here's a picture, so that I'm not teasing, LOL. This post was edited by laughable on Fri, Jan 30, 15 at 23:10