Yes. And it often looks different when installed than it did when purchased, in part because of lighting, and in part because there can be huge variability in the color of travertine as opposed to, say, Thassos marble. The most common complaint with travertine is that it looks pink when installed.

That said, you're about to get twenty posts from GWers who have trav in their kitchens and love it.

It's a matter of personal taste, but I've seen exactly three trav bs that I wouldnt tear out, and two of them were an uncharacteristically light stone.

thought i'd post a pic of the trav we are looking at for reference - we didn't buy it yet so feel free to critique haha! ;)

Yes, very. The more tumbled or chiseled, the more dated it is.

I wouldn't tear it out if it were already installed -- it's not harvest gold Formica by any means-- but I sure wouldn't choose it for a new install.

we put ours in about 2 years ago....
we used 6x6 tiles
they are NOT pink by any means....
i love the look with our granite so for us it works....

i wouldn't use 2x2 or 4x4... love the look of 6x6

we wanted something "rough" to go with our granite and travertine hit the mark....

just go with what u love and what works with your design....

Yup, it's dated, but does it matter to you? Are you selling the house in the next 5 years? In general, I like travertine. I did travertine, which doesn't read pink:

Travertine is one of those things that some like and some don't. If you like it, suit yourself. You can rest assured it's not in the same category as choosing harvest gold laminate for your countertop, or these lovely cabinets from the 70s or so

i think many times what makes something dated is that it clashes with other elements in the design. i don't dislike the backsplash but i dislike it with the granite. imho, granite is already patterned and busy so picking another pattern for bs is overkill to the eye. that being said, the only bs i have seen that i really like with my very dramatic granite is plain subway tile so i may be on the conservative side anyway.

Here's the thing:

1.) Do YOU like it?
2.) Does it fit with your lifestyle?
3.) Are you planning on moving in the next 5 or so years?

If the answers to the 1st two questions are "yes" and the 3rd question is a "no", put in what suits you.

Personally, I don't love travertine backsplashes that I would want to put it in my house. Personally, I think that it looks a bit dated. (But, we're putting in glass tile that is likely to look rather "two thousand-teens era" knowing that it probably *will* wind up looking dated ultimately. Almost everything does.

Go with what you like. And realize that the things you like today may or may not be the things you like 10 years from now. The kitchen style that I would have picked 10 years ago is quite different than the style we put in now.

very good points everyone- I totally agree with you- just don't want to regret my decision- i find that is SO hard when the tile is at one place, cabinets in another and counter in yet another- so hard for me being a VISUAL person!! :) I do appreciate the feedback! :) we are also looking at a quartz cambria canterbury with a more neutral BS- but still keeping this BS in the mix- still deciding on a suiting countertop for it - the copper sink has to play in to the mix so that is another counterpart to all of this to remember ;)

I live in Florida and travertine must be the State stone. Everyone seems to have it or love it so down here it's definitely still popular. But it makes sense because a lot of the houses are Mediterranean style and what else would you use in that style of house?

I still love the ivory tumbled travertine floors in my powder room and laundry room, even if they might look dated to some. I also like the honed, polished travertine floors I used for a recent bathroom remodel. All of my travertine floors are light and have a yellow undertone, which I prefer, but I agree many travertine colors seem to look pinkish, especially next to another surface that has a golden undertone.

If you like it I think you should use it - just be sure the color and texture of the stone complements other elements in your kitchen.

This post was edited by juddgirl2 on Sun, Apr 27, 14 at 0:29

For what it's worth, I was looking for bs tile and found it very interesting as most of the stores I shopped in pushed the travertine for some reason. I think it was a combination of being a good suggestion for those who are indecisive as it is fairly neutral and also easy to pair up with many accent tiles.

I also think two of the stores I went to are overloaded with it as they carry it in stock. I was nervous of the variations and finally chose a glazed tile instead and now glad after reading some of these posts about it being dated and also turning pink.

I have seen some pictures and nice display boards of it though too. So six of one, 1/2 dozen of the other as they say.

I have polished Travertine subway tiles and absolutely love them. They are not pink at all but a lovely cream. There are many things I'd change about my remodel now (done 1.5 years ago), but the Travertine tiles are something I would keep.

thanks everyone! definitely giving me some food for thought- as many of you said it is what I like and i do like them- we REALLY wanted a brick backsplash but decided it just wasn't going to b practical... that's when we found the trav by accident! ;) it has that old rustic farmhouse style we love like in the old Charleston homes!! it's not perfect but it's pretty close ;) we shall see....

Jerzeegirl, I live in Florida also, born and raised. The "State Stone"(lol) used to be Coquina and then Travertine became popular. It pains me to say how many people we know who tore out beautiful conquina walls, fireplaces, etc. and replaced them with Travertine. Don't get me wrong, I love Travertine, it is a beautiful, warm stone. We have Travertine floors throughout our living area, I have Travertine in my shower and until my recent kitchen reno, I had a Travertine backsplash, but I do miss the beautiful coquina.

If you wanted a brick look, did you consider the glazed thin brick at Firecleay tile? it's gorgeous, and I can't see it ever looking dated.

EAM44, is the fireclay brick a real brick of a tile that looks like brick? Asking bc of the cleaning issue- that's why we had to scrap that idea- someone a while back did suggest this to me- I don't want a painted brick bc that would defeat the purpose of getting that rustic appearance. :) but if they are just a tile that has the "look" of brick it's worth checking out .thank u!

EAM44 - those are beautiful!

The fireclay brick tiles are the ones pictured above. They certainly appear to me to be tile with a glazed surface, which would make cleaning much like cleaning any tile. The fireclay website may have more information about the tiles.

You can get up to five fireclay tile samples for free--just go to the fireclay tile website and chose your samples. Mine (not the brick style) arrived very quickly and nicely packaged. I received a follow up email with an offer to mock up tile layouts for me or help in other ways. I also got some extra samples for free when I asked which non-crackle colors would be closest to the crackle samples I had originally requested. Anyway, samples would allow you to see for yourself how they are to clean.

Yes, I like travertine, but it will "look dated", just as in a couple more years today's trendy subway tile will "look dated". If it matches your design and you love it, go ahead . . . but everything will eventually "look dated".

thanks crl_ - I may request a few samples from fireclay !