photos would really help us help you :)

Yeah-- we likes PICHERS!! :-)

Seriously-- go to photobucket.com and sign up for a free account. With every pic you upload to the account, you get what's called an "html line". Click on it to highlight it, and then copy and paste it into the text of your post, and when you submit it, the picture will show up.

Oruboris - You are absolutely right! This was a culmination of home building issues that came to a head last night. Kind of a straw that broke the camels back type of thing. But hey... at least it took over 2 years to get here! Our build has not gone quite as smoothly as yours it appears. I too, would be doing handstands and cartwheels if paint color was the worst problem! Congratulations :)

I like your idea of the darker grout emphasizing the geometry of the layout. Thanks for taking the time to post your thoughts.

Oh, it's not the worst, really-- its just the one I'm not over yet! At the end of this month we will be officially one year over schedule...

Thanks for the photo requests. I must have been posting when you all did.

We are going to take photos later today when we get there. We do not have an occupancy permit yet, so we are not currently on site. I am going to uncover the counters and cabinets so that you can have a better idea of the whole issue. But this photo will show you some of the tile consistency issues until I get back with the additional shots.

I agree with you. The colors are off! Seem to be two different color lots. The darker one looks muddy.

Sorry, I dont have any suggestions. If you replace the backsplash (you said that is not an option), I would choose a totally different color. It is dragging the beautiful cabinets down. You could live with if for now and then replace them at a later date. It is easy to DIY :)

I don't know if this will make you feel any better or not, but another poster here (Lisa) went through a similar thing. In the end she decided she couldn't live with the backsplash. I know you said that's not an option, but like
pharoah said, if you can't do it now, I'd think about doing it somewhere down the line.

Laurie

Here is a link that might be useful: Lisa's backsplash

If you can't take it down, I hear there is tile paint. Don't know much about it but it is there.

What color is your soapstone? Black? It might be a more modern look but could you put in a sheet of black glass against the tiles? It would make your backsplash black and match your counters? The black would also go with your pulls.

You could take it down and again just have the black glass. Black and white kitchens are classic and classy.

The colors are off! Seem to be two different color lots.

Two, hell- I see 4 distinct shades. If they'd been mixed as I bet they're supposed to be, I bet it'd look outstanding. But looking as it does, like a crossword puzzle, I agree-- this should be taken down and redone.

I agree with Bill, mixed color tiles can look beautiful if they are put into a correct pattern. In your case, they put four tiles of the same color in a row, and the two of another, then one, then five more. They should have asked you about the pattern and they need to redo it for you.

I don't usually think a lot of the postings here are as bad as people say, but in your case, sorry, I agree with you. The yellow and then the beigy tiles actually CLASH.

But I can't wait to see the rest of your kitchen. Those cabinets look fabulous!

First off... Thank you. I appreciate your honesty and your thoughtful approach to responding to my post. We went back to the house today with a new attitude. (Maybe the pictures make it worse than it really is? Maybe once we uncover everything it will not be so bad? Maybe...)

Well, trying to stay true to the first photo I posted, here it is with the soapstone lightly oiled. I have to admit, this is the most "off" area in the kitchen. Oh, and just to clarify part of my disappointment is due to the fact that these were not supposed to be a set of mixed color tiles.

Without flash:

With Flash:

So... there is a bit of color change with the flash.

We started off with, "it's not as bad as I thought," but quickly progressed to a big sigh of disappointment. When we added some incandescent and halogen lighting to the room, the tiles took on a greenish tint... and not in a good way.

Tomorrow is a new day and we will look at it again. Taking it down has now become an option... but a slim one.

The good news, albeit personal as it is, is that I am back in a better mood. It is disappointing to not see the kitchen come together as I had hoped, but, in the big scheme of life, Oruboris is right:

"Just keep reminding yourself that a happy, fulfilled life is possible, even with a bad backsplash."

Nevermind the color!! I was so concentrated on the shading of the tile, I didn't even see the sliver at the bottom!! Even if the tile were nice and even with respect to color, that sliver would be enough for me to request a redo. If my stepson EVER did that to a backsplash of mine, he's be ripping it out and redoing it on his OWN time!! That's elementary tile setting!!

Well if this helps, everyone will be ooohing and aaaahing over that beautiful soapstone and probably won't even notice what kind of backsplash you have. The counters are really gorgeous!!!!!!!!!! I am so sorry you have issues with the backsplash. We still haven't put one in because I am so afraid I won't like whatever I select.

First, vwhippiechick is absolutely right: that soapstone is INCREDIBLE! Wow.

Not in a Greene & Greene way but in a handmade way your backsplash made me think craftsman (note the minuscule), so the color variation didn't bother me. I thought it looked hand-crafted.

But then I saw the sliver at the bottom and, I am sorry to be so negative (not my usual!) but that would drive me bonkers. Nutso! Shouldn't that be up at the top, behind your undercab lighting?

But then when I read that your backsplash is "not supposed to be a set of mixed colored tiles" I thought: hmm, none of this feels right. Then I read that taking it down isn't an option.

So it's true, there is paint for painting atop tiles; I used it in our penultimate kitchen with pretty good success. I only have these pictures where I was covering up a big floral scene -- it's only "pretty good" because I couldn't quite match the white of the surrounding tiles.

But in another area (where I do not have any pictures) where it was just bright orange tiles, I had terrific success! I just painted all of it the white color I'd mixed and it turned out beautiful -- you'd never, ever know they'd been orange. Wish I had pictures for you .... And it certainly cost a whole lot less than hiring one of those refinishers (I guess I'm thinking of Miracle Method) to come out and do it. I know this because I asked them for a quote, and to do just the orange area would have been ~$1700 (seven years ago), but I did it myself for There really is going to be a way to make you happy about your backsplash, and you're in the right spot to find help. I promise.

Shouldn't that be up at the top, behind your undercab lighting?

It shouldn't be there AT ALL, but if for some reason there was no choice, then yes, it should be at the top where it woudn't be quite so noticeable.

What the *heck* is that sliver there? How could that possibly have happened?

All I can say is I have been there done that ..... I told myself it was not an option.....and then hours later we ripped it down.... i couldnt live with the mistake i had made.... i hated the way my tile looked.. i knew that every time i walked into my kitchen i was going to get a sick feeling in my stomach so before the stuff dried to the walls we ripped it down..... an expensive mistake but for me i would rather look at ripped up drywall backsplash than what i had put up..... your kitchen is beautiful and right now your eyes are only looking at the imperfections..which only you will know if u can live with down the road..... i cant give you advice as i am really a bad influence when it comes to living with something you dont like .... im sure you will figure this out..... lisa

What variety of soapstone do you have? I absolutely love it.

I don't completely hate the backsplash tile, esp in the "without flash" version, but the sliver is unacceptable. I'm a DIY tiler (novice, 6 jobs total) and backsplashes aren't very hard...you simply have to plan before you begin. I'm having trouble imagining how he even DID this? Did he work from the top down? Had he/she ever done tile before? Very very weird. It is not acceptable and you should have an out re: not liking the tile itself just because the installation was botched. In a perfect world, whomever is in charge (your GC, hopefully) should be responsible for getting this stuff down, buying new tile, and getting it installed at no extra charge to you, IMO>

Since you refer to an occupancy permit, I'm guessing this is new construction and you have a GC? If so, I'd be on the phone with him or her right now. My GC in my remodel would have that thing pulled out ASAP.

Anita

Oh NOOOOOOOOOOO!

(Tsdiver, isn't yours is my favorite kitchen design ever, with the dumb waiter on the right side? And did you go for the 'cantry' end unit? How can this be hapening to such a wonderful plan?? You worked so hard on every detail....I'm so distressed this has happened.)

I agree with the others that the color distribution and the sliver row at the bottom is bad, bad, bad. And I'm trying to like the color, but it really does go very yellow with incandescent light.

"Pulling them out and starting over is not an option today."

Tomorrow?

I agree that if you're not happy with it there's no sense in pressing on--I'm not a tile expert but I noticed that the color variation looked odd instead of interesting. (Calling it a "crossword" effect was very astute, Bill V.) If it were my decision and I had to keep the backsplash, I'd choose a darker grout. I think it would help draw the eye away from the color variation.

The Good - Thank you for your comments about the soapstone. It is Santa Rita Vennata. We love the look, but as you know, we haven't lived with it yet. We like the veins...so the more the better for us!

The Bad - Well, you all know what that is.

The Ugly - Well.... you know that too!
. .
.

Bill - (sigh) The slivers... I know. (sigh)

Flyleft - I don't know the how's and why's of tile installations, but I can tell you the entire process started with a design behind the range and it grew out from there.

vwhippieckick - Thanks for the comments on the counters. We can't wait to use them. Please do not let my backsplash issue sway you. The vast majority of folks love theirs!

RMkitchen - Thank you for your ideas and for posting those images. You sure did find a great solution. I appreciate the words of encouragement.

Lisa - I read your thread and felt awful for what you had to do. I believe I am going down the same road. Interesting that my tiles are in the same color range as yours were.

Nomorebluekitchen - This is the story. A clean water flood forced us to do a whole home remodel. This is a 1947 Spanish style home. We do have a general contractor, but he was not involved in the tile purchase or design. That was all me. We have spoken about it this weekend. There are several issues involved regarding the backsplash and our final inspection. Thank you taking the time to post. I appreciate it!

Celtic - Yes... that's me, and the dumbwaiter is now functional! You are sooo funny remembering the "cantry" idea! LOL. That was a long, long time ago. Unfortunately, the cantry didn't make the design change. This project has been a bit like fitting a square peg in a round hole.

We are going back to the house today and will make a decision as to our next move. There are so many factors involved here.

I started this thread hoping a grout choice could make it all better. Oh well. They are supposed to start grouting tomorrow. It's crunch time folks.

Thank you all for your thoughts, ideas, suggestions, and words of encouragement. It sure is appreciated!

Agree with Bill about the "sliver on the bottom"
It is a bad install
You may want to get some other pro.tile opinions on this

Good luck, the cabinets look great:)

I feel for you- and though I have zero experience YET with having a backsplash installed... your kitchen is gorgeous and I believe that your soapstone and cabients will really be the stars. The backsplash is kind of incidental. I like variance in the backsplash but I agree that the placement was not right(they shouldn't be right next to each other) and the sliver thingy just is wrong... it would be one thing if you did the job as a diy but to have paid someone who is supposed to know what he is doing, that is the troubling part.
In the general scheme of things, if this is the worst thing you have to deal with , you can consider yourself a very lucky person. And if you did the job yourself, it would be fine. If it won't make you too crazy, and you can stand it, you should get correction or some adjustment.
Let me repeat though that your kitchen really looks great and teh backsplash is a minor piece.

tsdiver-- I just answered another thread with reference to your problem, and I want to make sure you see it:

QUESTION This popped into my head while reading about tsdiver's backsplash. The bottom row of the bs is slim tiles rather than full size tiles. A few posters have indicated that this would be unacceptable.

My question is how could this have been prevented without choosing a differently sized tile or grout line? I'm interested b/c I'm going to attempt a DIY bs next weekend. I was thinking that some of the tiles would have to be cut, and that appears to be what happened to tsdiver's bs: the bottom tiles had to be cut to fit.

Is the alternative to cut a little from the tiles on both the top and bottom edges of the bs (and right/left edges, if applicable), thus ensuring that the cut tiles are not excessively small compared to the full size tiles?

Melanie

ANSWER * Posted by bill_vincent (billvincent@hotmail.com) on
Sun, Jun 8, 08 at 18:22

There are a couple of things that could've been done. First, they could've started off with a half tile on the bottom. That way they wouldn't use any more tiles (being that they could get two out of each piece on the bottom) and then cut in what falls at the top. The other (lazy) thing would've been to start with a full tile at the counter and put the sliver up under the upper cabinets where it wouldn't be quite so visible.

One way or the other, as a pro, he should've known exactly what his cuts were going to be all the way around before the first piece of tile was installed, and if the cuts were unacceptable, adjusted his layout accordingly. As a professional installation, that was completely unacceptable, and he wouldn't see a dime from me until he rectified the problems, no matter WHAT that takes.

it's not that often that I make this kind of accusation outright, but this guy's a fly-by-night who gives a damn about nothing but the check.

Thank you for your input Bill. I value your opinion and thank you for taking so much of your time to help us out.

Sheila - Your kind words are appreciated. I wish this was the worst thing, because you are right... I would be counting my lucky stars!

Sunnyd - Thanks for posting. It would be nice to enhance the cabinets with a backsplash, not detract from them!

It's gone.

This was a horrible decision that was not easily made. Since this is a whole home remodel, there were a lot of issues that came in to play in the decision. But when that first tile popped off so easily... well, we just knew we had to take it down. Call me crazy, but even with the wall messed up, it looks better!

Tomorrow list now includes starting from scratch on a backspash. I'll be back to you all with new ideas.

Thank you for all your support!

That's probably the smartest thing you could've done. Now, when you go to start it again, this time start with a 1/2 tile, as I explained to Melanie. You'll have a decent cut at the bottom (1/2 tile, so you get two out of one-- no waste), you'll have a decent cut under the windows, and you'll have a good cut at the top under the cabinets.

It'll be a thing of beauty!! (so long as you mix the tiles up, so you don't see "blocks" of shades!)

I'm late in this thread but that looks so much better than the tile. That sliver would bother me worse than the color! Either way, you now have more info for it to be just right next time. That's beautiful soapstone by the way. I hope you feel better about this already.

I would have done the same thing. I totally agree with you, that it now looks so much better.
I think you were wise to take it down and go with your instinct. It will be a faded memory one day, but your backsplash will be ever present.
Good luck on the starting over phase, I am sure you are already feeling more peace.

you have now joined my club lol the "made a back splash mistake and ripped it down club" im laughing here looking at your picture.....it looks like my kitchen right now...we have not installed the new tile yet..... just picked it up few days ago....its is a crackle subway tile in bianco..which is a white but not stark....totally different then what i had picked in the first place..... your tile did resemble mine...although mine was gross and glossy to boot.... i bet you sleep well tonight....i did the night i ripped mine out.... lets keep each other posted....we seem to be in the same boat.... again.... welcome to my club lol

I'm back, too. It's funny, as I was scrolling down to catch the new posts I first saw the picture of the tile missing and, no joke, I sat up straighter and smiled -- look at how your gorgeous cabinets and countertop are now the stars, even with the mucked-up backsplash!

You are right, friend, "even with the wall messed up, it looks better!" I am so proud of you for trusting your gut and going with it.

Yea for you!

Living with your lovely kitchen, seeing how the light hits at different times and feeling within yourself what you want for that area will direct you, along with your opinionated friends here on GW!

YAY!!!

tsdiver - you really made the right decision. everything else is so stunning. not sure if you need new inspiration for a new backsplash, but mamadapaige's (99% finished off white kitchen) reminds me of yours, and I thought it would be helpful for you to see her beautiful backsplash.

Here is a link that might be useful: Mama's Kitchen

Oh, I'm so glad you did that. You have such a lovely kitchen and it looks better even with the messed up walls than it did with that backsplash.

I think you made the right choice. Your beautiful cabinets deserve better :)

I am late in this thread, but I too think you made the right decision... never easy to spend money and throw it away, but this is something you'll see everyday - it would have drove you nuts! Better to do it now then later. Can't wait to see the new one!

I'm so glad you decided to take the tile down!

Good luck - it'll be fun to see where you end up going. And, good luck getting whatever resolution you need from your builder! It wasn't clear to me what happened there, but it sounds like any conversation might be difficult.

You're a brave girl! (and a smart one) --

And I totally agree with Beantown about looking to MamaDadaPaige's backsplash for inspiration. Of course, that's the same tile I chose, so maybe that's why I love it? ;-)

A splash that's understated -- elegant, but background is what I'd suggest. Keep the focus on your gorgeous soapstone and fabulous layout.

Whew. (I feel so much better! I have a perverse stake in your kitchen remaining my favorite.)

You did the right thing and you will not regret it.

You all are so kind! Thank you so much! Your words mean more to me than you can ever, ever, know.

I do feel better now that the decision has been made. However, today we went tile shopping and now we are both completely gun shy of color. If it has the slightest hint of yellow in it... it is out!

We are also second guessing the use of Spanish tiles now. Although I only showed you the field tiles, there was also a behind-the-range and an around-the-hood deco tile arrangement. We are now thinking that no colorful tiles at all are on the order for the day.

Now, this is day one mind you, of the new tile search. We spent half of today at it, and haven't seen the answer yet. But I will keep you informed of our progress. We have a few samples on order and we will see what comes of it.

I really can't thank you enough!

If you were thinking Spanish tiles, let me post this link to some tiles that I think are absolutely to die for! This seller has an eBay store, with tons of hand-painted tiles to choose from and very reasonable prices. If you love the look, they might be worth ordering a few samples.

Here is a link that might be useful: Hand-Painted Tunisian tiles (drool)

I am so glad you tore them out. I know it was a hard thing to do. The install was bad. the variation in shading didn't bother me...it looked hand-crafted and I did like that part of it. I actually liked the color too, with the lights off. Once the lights were on though, it changed into a funky bad yellow. I can't wait to see what your new back splash looks like!! Your cabinets and countertops are beautiful.

Sweeby - Thanks for the link. I'll go check them out.

CCoombs - LOL... I can't wait either! I just don't know what I should do with it :)

Thanks for your comments and suggestions! I appreciate it.

Any updates on the backsplash?

Laurie

I would love to know also if you did anything. I think it looked better without too.

Are there more pix of your kitchen? The cabs and soapstone look great. I would like to see the "legs" near the sink.

Bump! I am eager to hear - "the rest of the story"! :)

tsdiver-there are a couple of posts going around asking for a copy of your layout. Do you by any chance have one you can post? One of the threads is titled "Sweeby" and the other is "Help me design my large kitchen". Thanks so much!

If you cannot adjust to the backsplash tile color and ripping it out is not an option.

Maybe this will work; Try to find someone good at reglazing bathtubs, applances, etc. Reglazing comes in all colors. I am told they reglaze ceramic wall tiles and floors.

Don't ever use reglazing for floors. Everybody has to walk on them.
There is very little activity with a backsplash.

Research it before you decide.

What was your method for taking them off?