Are you planning to keep the blue walls?

Calcutta Gold marble subway tile. The blues and browns in the room would bring the gold and grey hues right out of the stone. It'd be perfect, IMO. If you REALLY want to get fancy, you could even add Blue Pearl accents.

We are keeping the blue walls. Not sure how thought out those were, but my hubby will not be painting them again any time soon.

Will check out your suggestions now, Bill. Thanks so much!

The blue walls are unfortunate. Really clashing with the rest of the theme in the kitchen. I suspect this is [subconsciously?] impeding your backsplash decision. Hard to get beyond this jarring combination.

Here is my thought: in all the hours you spent looking for the "right" backsplash, you could have spent $30-50 on a gallon of paint, fixed the color issue, and found a complementary backsplash material.

Honestly (ouch, sorry), I can't see any backsplash working well until the wall color is fixed.

This is why I always tell people their is the only right answer. Everyone has different tastes. Personally, I LIKE that paint with the rest of what's there. But mine isn't the right answer, either. It's all about what tlb717 likes, one way or the other.

Blue kitchens are back in, and the cool tone picks up some of the grey and black you have either in the counter or the appliances. A lot of people combine the warmth of wood with the contrasting coolness of blue these days. Actually the robin's egg blue (or sort of has that appearance to me) and the spotty look of the counter make me think of birds' eggs in a good way. :) Another color would probably go *better* for sure, but just find a backsplash that will go with all neutrals as well as brighter colors, like a bone/off-white colored tile? Or a sand-colred tile (not too grey or tan)? I think an off-white would be best, and would look well with the ceiling too. Nothing too busy since the counterop's pretty busy. Just my .02!

It's interesting to note that if you had a white on white kitchen and had asked for backsplash help as zillions of other posters have, you would have had dozens of gushing, enthusiastic replies. None of them would have blamed your wall color for the difficult decision because, after all, the backsplash is so hard to pick out, isn't it.

While this forum can be very helpful with technical advice, some of the "help" tends to be insular and myopic. I suspect there are many lurkers out there who never post after reading the caustic replies that only anonymity can bring.

I think Bill V. had an excellent and productive suggestion. Something in the golds or greys would look great. Good Luck and keep the blue walls!

i love the blue. how about a golden glass tile?

Here is a link that might be useful: golden glass tile

I like how this brings all the colors together. {{!gwi}}
Personally, I like how the blue brightens and brings color to your space.

OH.. it's Malta blend from the glassmosaicoutlet

(I love blue too.)
I think that the one remodelfa posted above might be perfect. At first glance it looked perfect but at second glance it might have a clashing green to it? I guess it would be worth getting a sample and seeing it in real life in your home.

I don't think the blue wall is the issue. A cream colored or tumbled marble tile would blend nicely. I think your floor should be taken into consideration. It's really beautiful but in the picture the individual planks really stood out for me. I'm not a designer so I'm not sure if a subway tile would work with or compete against your floor. I would probably stick with a square tile or 1x1 mosaic. Just my opinion. :)

You might also want to cross-post this question over in the home decorating forum. There's usually a lot of good, helpful ideas over there.

I happen to like your blue walls - it's a very pretty and bright color and it would make me feel happy to see it in the morning! I think since your granite and floors are kinda busy, you should go with a fairly consistent neutral backsplash and let the beautiful granite shine! I think a beige or cream tumbled 4x4 marble tile would look great. Try to have it match the cream in your granite. You could use some pencil railing in the same stone as a border to create some dimension and maybe some glass mosaic with some picture railing over your range. Good luck!

I think that the cabinets, flooring and counter all go well together. However, as a person who loves the color blue, I do not think the wall paint works with the rest of the kitchen. I do think the blue is pretty, my son's bedroom is about that color, and it doesn't speak kitchen or family room to me. When you posted that the color was staying, I think it limits what suggestions you might receive. Love the floors and the wood of your cabinets!

Thanks so much for all the feedback. I'm happy to have so many good ideas for today's trip back to the tile store.
As for the controversial blue, I appreciate the honesty. It may have photographed a bit "bluer" - for lack of a better word - but I think it looks great in our morning room behind the kitchen. Lots of white woodwork and windows. We brought it in to the kitchen to keep continuity, but once the backsplash is up, there won't be much of it in there. So, hopefully, we'll be happy with the finished room.