Oh my gosh, I'm no help because I LIKE THEM ALL!!!!

I love the BeauMonde! Sorry no help with saving any money :)

I would go with either a tile like in #1 or the ones in #3,4,5. My personal taste makes me stay far from the big floral, way too loud for me. The others are interesting without overpowering the rest of the lovely kitchen. The textured Heath tile clearly wins for me.

HTH, Petra

LOL "poorbat"! I like them all except the busy floral. We can all live vicaiously through you and your non subway tile choices. (This from someone with subway tiles, of course.)

Love the beau monde. Not a fan of the big floral. I do have a question though :) We are trying to finish in the next 5 weeks and backsplash has been urgent. My builder says we can't get a co without it - combustible behind the range top. I see you have gas and because you have bar stools I presume you are living there :) Did the lack of a backsplash hold up the co? Or did you have an easier inspector (ours is a stickler)? Or did you do something temp behind the range for the co?

Your kitchen is beautiful!!

I love the Beaumonde with your kitchen.
Heath would be second but I think too much white - and if the whites don't quite match....

(Make that palette not palate, please.)

Jkoebnick, docmamma, thanks!

ellendi, I do like subway tile and it is in so many of my inspiration pictures. Definitely not eliminated as an option.

Petra, any preference on the Heath 3x9 layout? I think I like the 3rd option but perhaps it's simply because of the lighting?

jessicaml: thanks for the links and the advice. I'd forgotten about the tile shop, will spend some time there. You're right about the textures ... I'm not the most diligent cleaner in the best of circumstances. Fortunately, cooktop is bumped out 6 " from the back wall.

athensmomof3:
We moved the kitchen from the back of the house to the front, bumping out the front 5' in the process. We didn't move out, so no CO required. As to final inspection... that's still a long way off!

PeterH2 posted this on a thread I had, when we were installing the cooktop and breezy asked about failing inspection due to no backsplash:

"If you want to wait a while before finalizing/installing your one true backsplash, a sheet of stainless steel on top of 1/2" cement board could be screwed in place as a temporary measure. It may look bad, but it should be cheap to do. "

Your kitchen is BEAUTIFUL!!!

BEAU MONDE! BEAUMONDE! BEAUMONDE!

Hi oldbat2be, I think you're right, it's the lighting that makes the 3rd pattern stand out. I like this tile in a brick pattern, that would be my first choice, stacked not so much. The block pattern of 3 horizontal/3 vertical is nice, reminds me of the big floral in the second photo, in a very simplified way. HTH, Petra

Happy Easter!

Hi a2gemini, thanks. I would consider the whites carefully. Many pictures I like of grey kitchens have a nice bright white background (and often, off white cabinets). (I'm still pretending I'm aiming for a grey kitchen). How goes your progress these days? Any pics?

annsch -- you're such an enabler and I love it! Please be around when I post kitchen table chandelier choices :)

Thanks Petra, that does help.

Complete this sentence..."Although my kitchen and my house have traditional and modern elements, my goal for the kitchen is to emphasize this end of the spectrum: ____."

Good point Florantha.

I like all tiles that exist in the universe.

For your kitchen I think the white is too sterile. I don't like the heath design for your kitchen; don't know why?

I see why you like the crazy blue patterned European (I think) inspired design, it is lovely in that rustic space.

I like that dark sample you had in your first pictures. I don't know if you are keeping your dark appliances put it picks up that nicely. I like a little fire in the kitchen, so I like the color.

I see the nails on your upholstered chairs and that is an old world look too, I would think. I think of Spain and the Moorish influence of the centuries past.

Love number 1. If that's too pricy, I like the simplicity of #3. Even if it isn't THAT exact one, at least something like it, with texture instead of pattern. I like the fact you can make something on the counter POP, then when you tire of it you can put something else there...your backsplash is just a backdrop.

I never thought about that style until we saw one similar, made from small, thin travertine tiles in a countertop showroom. There was just enough variation in the tiles to give it a subtle but interesting texture. It was a clean warm look that we were drawn to. The nice part was that it was fairly simple to install, making it one of the least expensive routes. We haven't decided on a countertop yet, so I don't know that we'll use it but it's the first thing I have been drawn to that wasn't a huge budget buster.

All that said I LOVE the first pic. LOVE.

I agree that you need some pattern, and a bit of color. But it should be subtle, more tone on tone, like damask.

My favorite because it picks up the amber tones of the pendant and island undertones in a subtle but perfect way. Not as expensive as it sounds either, only $34 a square foot, but you do have to buy whole boxes.

Another favorite, and they can do this in several colors or patterns. Explore the site, and you can probably find a pattern and color combo that speaks to you. I think this works perfectly with your island in the now or potential after version! (I like the island as is, and just think you need some more brown/dark amber in the room, like this tile to make it work better.)

{{gwi:1782934}}
Chocolate Brown Tatami 12x24 from Luxetile

OldBat - we are making progress - I posted a Backsplash Brainstorm and it has preliminary pictures of our kitchen (sneak preview) - most of the cabinets are in (one is the wrong style, 2 with some damage, and one late addition)
If you have time - please take a peak as I would love your input. I am thinking of backpainting glass if I can find a reasonable way to do it.
Love watching your kitchen progress. I am definitely a GW addict... So I don't allow any login during work time

Thank you for asking that question Florantha. I worry about too many competing elements in the kitchen and the final result suffering.

To complete your sentence, I would like to emphasize the traditional vs. modern.

enduring - black appliances will eventually be replaced. Maybe the white I posted was just the wrong one. I very much like what you picked up, with respect to the old world look. This is something which speaks to me.

janjan212: your tile sounds interesting, please post name if you can.

hollysprings: Thanks so much for the suggestions you posted! These are options which I had not ever considered. I'm not sure about a 'brown' backsplash but really like the damask idea.

Inspiration pix: One of my original, always liked the marble with the pale green tile in the pantry. (Though to look at it, I see little in common with what we have...so far...)

Serene and clean:

[

[modern kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/modern-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2105) by dc metro general contractor NVS Remodeling & Design

[

[traditional kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by minneapolis interior designer Martha O'Hara Interiors

A while ago, I photoshopped a dark backsplash with a light island. I do like the idea of the light island, light stools but with a light backsplash. Hollysprings - one of the silver damask backsplashes might be very nice with this.

Then I would have the wood floor, the lights, and other accessories to warm up/brighten up the space. Serene and clean?

PS - optical illusions -- before you ask, the left leg is plumb and the island front is curved (not bowed).

You know, white on white and shades of white can be very beautiful. Balance, I think, is the key. Matchy-matchy just becomes ... matchy-matchy. IMHO, someone who carefully blends their shades of white can create a very interesting room.

I definitely think wall paper is an option, although tile seems to be the thing these day. My mom always had wall paper, which she had sealed. It really opens a whole 'nother world of ideas.

I love your monochromatic kitchen. It's nice and clean!

Of the original choices you posted, BEAUMONDE!! But that Fogi glass tile is interesting too. The browns and grays would be a nice combination.

Have you settled on the white apliances for sure? Seems like you will be having a mix with your stainless range.

Love the choices that Hollysprings posted. If you want texture, but not too much, you could replicate the Heath 3/3 vertical/horizontal look with a quiet subway tile. That would give you some visual texture, but not too much cleaning intensive physical texture.

I *love* #2... it reminds me of family kitchens in Sicily. Seriously- they have the most gorgeous tile.

That said - I'd be worried about that bold of a pattern being in the narrow strip between cabinets and counters.

I'm not feeling the groove for the 100% white kitchen... and once you get rid of Darth and son, that's what you'll be close too... You need some color in there. Perhaps subway with a darker grout... Or one of the very cool choices that Hollysprings posted.

Lovely kitchen! I like the fogi ix the best followed by heath. Love your counter stools. Would you mind sharing the source?

2 out of 3 of your inspiration pics have a great deal of contrast in the kitchen, which it seems is what you went for when you originally chose the dark island. Only one has the "all white" look, and frankly, it's a little too many shades of the same white rather than varied shades of white to be really successful, IMHO. Your kitchen "works" right now because or the dark island and dark appliances. Changing those elements will GREATLY change the look of the whole kitchen, and then it will need additional contrast at that point.

I'd focus on the elements that add a contrast to the whites, such as keeping the dark island, and for the backsplash that might also include a very dark (as in the chocolate woven texture above) backsplash. You have good under cabinet lighting, right?

i

You have a good sense of what you like and what will look good in your kitchen. My least favorite is #2 though I love cement tiles. There are some examples on this post about cement tiles and a link to Original Mission Tile who has some terrific designs IMO.

Depends on how active you want the splash to be. The more pattern and darker the color the more active.

Active vs passive will affect the serenity level.

My first choice would be the AS and second would be #3 followed closely by the classic Heath ovals.

Don't know if you watch Splash (Mon night at 10 on NBC) but the Deborah Messing character has a brownstone in Brooklyn with a kitchen backsplash that looks great and is very close to your #3. It's on tonight.

Hi Christine, thanks for the support on the white choices! Wallpaper, hmmm... that is an idea to ponder. Definitely more cost effective and quicker to install :)

Speaking of cost, Beaumonde came in at a dreadful $137/sf. Sigh...

outsideplaying - great name! -- thanks but I do not care for the mosaic. (Did this in our master bath, never again....). Hoping to eventually have D/W and fridge, with custom panel fronts.

mabeldingeldine - thanks for the suggestion on the subway pattern.

ucgal - #2 made me smile too, but agree it's not right for my space.

hollysprings - I'm listening! You're spot on with respect to the contrast; I do like this very much. However, I just really dislike the island color (hence other thread a while back about repainting the island). It is tooo RED (not the wonderful warm usual cherry red -- I do have a lot of cherry furniture in the house -- but the island is almost a fake red in the right light). I did get quotes on repainting it and I think it's something we are going to proceed with. So - please consider island as being a DARK, greenish grey. No UCL lighting yet, but all the wiring was done for this and we will have good, dimmable lighting.

For some reason, I am very hesitant to put in a dark backsplash, not sure why. We have wonderful natural lighting so it's not from a fear of darkening the space. Perhaps just something I haven't considered?

rococogurl - Will google the kitchen to see if I can find the picture... missed the show last night. Loved the link to the patterned tiles, thanks!! Isn't this fun? W-Z Sonja La Fleur:

vidyram - thanks. We just received the stools last week and are very pleased. 26" Mitchell counter stools from Carrington Court, with custom stained frames (we sent a paint swatch) and COM material. Extremely comfortable.

Oldbat--you are so on the right path. Go with your gut!!!
I am enjoying watching your progress as it looks like our tastes are very similar. However, you are WAY ahead of me..:(

I put together a moodboard; very helpful in visualizing which colors work better and which don't work at all. Note that the Beau Monde is noticeably absent.

Hollysprings, got to say, the Trend USA brown damask tile and other browns do look gorgeous. I'm having a hard time with the concept though :)

Question -- if I have a dark backsplash, the outlets will be very noticeable, no? I don't want this look:

[

[traditional kitchen design[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-kitchen-ideas-phbr1-bp~t_709~s_2107) by richmond kitchen and bath Becky Seidenberg

I hadn't even thought of wallpapering until this thread, but what a great idea--they can be easily strippable and replaced whenever you feel crafty, or like placing a quick call to the paperer and heading off for a fun morning poring over wallpaper books. Yes, I did note you love all tile, but you asked about the problem of how to hide the outlets. :)

I really like the idea of big floral. I guess I'm in a weird mood, becaused when you first said that I was thinking of giant red poppies or tropical and thought, yeah! I'm assuming my hormones will normalize before I start fantasizing about them in my own kitchen.

In any case, though, my second observation is that you have a lot of stuff, like actual work items, on your work counter. The inspiration kitchens limit this to a few decoratives, at least long enough to take the pictures. That being the case, I'm thinking a small pattern or solid in a harmonizing color to keep the whole from being jangly would be good. Don't forget your pix themselves are taken in a stripped-down version, with you and the actual cooking scenario missing.

I think #1 is too dark. I like #5, #6(in light brown or blue), and #10. Just my 2cents worth.

I assume that wallpaper is combustible, though.

oldbat2be- I have in my files the same tile inspiration pics!

On your moodboard, I most like the green/blue/grey #8 for color. And I love pretty much all the tile Heath makes.

What about wallpaper with tempered glass over top? Tempered glass can be back-painted too.

The big issue is that you are trying to pick one of the most permanent and visible elements of the kitchen while several of the kitchen's other elements are not in their final form. Your vision of the space will be entirely different when the appliances and island are different. I'd just do a plain stainless sheet behind the range and some inexpensive and bold wallpaper (or a damask lincrusta) until you change out the things you are changing. You don't want to commit to using something that's $50 a square foot only to find out that it doesn't work well with your stainless appliances and maybe gray island. And I'm in the group that thinks that getting rid of the black appliances and dark island will make the kitchen NEED something else dark in it to give it balance.

You are putting the cart before the horse.

Live_wire_oak, that's GREAT advice. Thank you. Replacing the fridge any time soon isn't in the plans (I lust after Liebherrs) but the DW is doable and the island repainting should be within a month.

BalTra - I saw #8 in person yesterday at a tile store, really liked it. I just am not crazy about the colors, offered.

drBeanie2000 -- I knew someone would chime in about this! As LWO says, not behind the cooktop area.

annsch -- agree... and thanks!

rosie -- I love the idea of giant red poppies too...in theory... Or fish! But I think you're right about the smaller patterned tile.

This is what we did in our shower; sometimes I toy with the idea of doing this as well, without the borders, no mosaics, just square tiles and the random fish. I still mean to add an eye, smile and some bubbles floating up.

Love that and LOVE the idea for your kitchen. Fish get curious, so you know they'd come by to check what you were doing at the stove. :)

Oldbat---Just another thought about your kitchen...You have a lot of rectangular shapes in your kitchen ie. cabinets, chairs, island, etc. I think you need to go with something circular to balance that out. Maybe that's why the beaumonde looked so good to me.

Maybe this:
{{gwi:1782945}}

I agree with annsch. I love the beaumonde and think that the gray circular pattern would look lovely.

What about the Satillo Sunflower mosaic?

Sarah Richardson used the Ming Green version in her cottage kitchen. I linked the photos below.

Here is a link that might be useful: Pics of the mosic in green