I read in another thread about taping tiles to a piece of cardboard. I think I'll try this over the weekend w/the running bond pattern I'm considering. Another reason I'm unsure is because most running bond seems to be done w/the brick-shaped tiles (subway tiles?) but I selected square tiles. paddytc: I didn't know about the bathroom rule of thumb but it makes sense to me. I feel like the BS and floor will compete visually if the patterns match even though the tiles do not. I want the BS to appear restful, not busy or competitive.

I didn't graduate from ECSU. I quit after my first year which would have been in 1981/82. Gee, when I went there it was actually still called ECSC....LOL. okay, so I am seriously dating myself :) Let's see, my fav pizza places were in New Britain or Southington. I left CT in '91 so I don't even know if they are still around. But see, if you miss a place in RI you just get in the car and you are there in no time! If I drive North for an hour I am still only on the other side of Indianapolis. Man, I remember jumping in the car with a friend just because we felt like walking around in Newport. Never gave it a thought :) Yes, I miss Ethnic foods. Anyone who knows how to cook true ethnic food never seems to move away from the Coasts. But boy do we have a gluttony of steak places around here.... yuk! And the pizza? Try No Greeks in Indiana, period! and no Diners.... and no Italian......well, except for Olive Garden (oh joy!) haha Dang, now I am hungry for things I couldn't get no matter what I was willing to pay! we will be in CT and The Cape this summer and I will eat, eat, eat. :p

I've seen some beautiful creative combinations where both have been used. It would depend on the area. For example, is it just a 18" backsplash between the countertop and bottom of upper cabs or are you also creating a "feature wall" behind a stove or vent hood? Also depends on the feel/look of your particular kitchen. Pics would help!

lmao. what Jan said! Although, I had to help out my guys who did my herringbone wood floor. it's the starting point where everyone gets messed up. after that, it's simple. Look up how to properly start a herringbone layout and read it. you need to use a speed square at the end of your tile in order to get the proper middle starting point. much easier to illustrate than trying to write it out here. This is how I showed my guys how to start it. see the blue tape w/the two lines? you have to start on the middle after you mark your corner. that's the only way you will get perfect even cuts on both ends. this is how most do it, and it's not correct IF you want perfectly symmetrical left/right borders. All he's done is set the corner of the tile on the line. doing it like this will leave you w/one side smaller than the other: see how the sides of the window don't match? this is what you don't want. your tile guy should be doing a dry layout in order to determine where he starts so he doesn't get this look or these tiny triangles. Again,,,see how the ends don't match below? the right has longer tiles than the left edge. that's because of the way he started his first tile. And don't do these vertical tiles for your edging. get proper bullnose tiles, pencil liner or a Schluter edge. This is a layout board of my herringbone for my shower. took a few hours in order to get this almost perfect. since this was an odd size, and the tiles were even at 3x12, it couldn't be perfect. the right bottom corner triangle is the only portion that doesn't match. luckily, it's not readily visible! Even the subway tiles are perfectly matched. this layout took hours to get exact, even around the niche. 2x6your 3x9 will be 1/3 larger. 3x9 is a good size for a backsplash. this is a regular 3x6. again, a 3x9 will give you 1/3 longer.