Rectangular mosaics might look dated in 5-10 years. Might. Glass itself won't.

Do you care?

Most of what's trendy right now (and your traditional kitchen's finishes are right on trend), is fairly neutral and simple. It should age well, as will the rectangular glass mosaic.

Your appliances are going to be the first thing that dates your kitchen. By its nature, a kitchen isn't really "timeless". You can have something that isn't faddish however.

One way to make your backsplash less date-able would be to use a single color rather than a mixed palette.

It is funny, but the rustic stone is what I think will be become dated soon. I have seen too much of it in new builds and in renos. It seems almost automatic to use it these days, so the tide will turn against it soon. I see it all the time with medium to dark stained cabs. It may be less dated if your cabs were painted, but tumbled stone/travertine dominates the market now, so will be on its way before you know it.
I see less glass tile in housing in my area in any price points. Maybe it is a regional thing....

I agree that the tumbled rustic stone is on it's way out. I think it looks dated already. I think the faux-stone porcelains are the same way. Or maybe I just hate that whole look and it's clouding my judgement. ;)

I agree that glass mosaics in thin rectangles will also be dated, in a while. Everything will be sooner or later. Don't let them talk you into tile you don't want. Get the glass if that's what you want. You'll enjoy it much more!

I think you have to respond to what you like. I don't think individual elements "date" as much as Combinations of things.

Get what you are attracted to as a good combination, not something that you are responding to as a trend or non-trend.

A backsplash seems like something that's easier to change in 10 years than cabinets or countertops. For that reason, you should do what you like. If it becomes awful, then rip it out.

I think the rustic stone look is already well on its way out, at least in my area (San Francisco). When I look at upscale/youthful kitchen showrooms, the look they're pushing is mostly glass and ceramic and marble (honed, not tumbled) and metal. Larger format tiles seem to be in.

Something to keep in mind is that some of the glass tiles are very busy, and might compete with your counters, and you might weary of them faster.

I think it's true that every element can be "dated" very easily , and that combinations of elements add to the dating analysis to reveal aspects of your own psychological / marketing influences at the time of purchase.

Some salemen like to create an opposition and also act as your advisor at the same time. Ultimately it helps them become the closer of the sale.

Most glass tiles are small, so the pattern could be called a mosaic, whatever that means. Keep it simple. Rectangular shape is normal and average, and has been for decades. (Like subway tiles).

If you tell the salesman that every one of the other options he might suggest will also be dated, he might agree with you. And laugh.

I remember hearing a clothing salesman telling me that people wearing all black was a fad. This was a long time ago, a bit before Steve Jobs founded Apple. Who knew that all black would go more and more mainstream while still appearing a bit, umm, edgy.

Predicting the future is fun. You get to sell more now. And, even if you don't sell, you get to feel good knowing that the customer is hanging on every word you say. What else is the prospect/customer hoping to find out from you? It doesn't matter as long as the prospect/customer keeps on listening to whatever you say.

Tiny glass mosaic tiles were cutting edge modern design in 1960s and 1970s. These have been around for a long time. The glass seems to dull over time. They lose their shine. Not sure why. Maybe they were not as polished (40/50 years ago) as they are today.

I have been to couple high end modern architectural homes from that era with tiny (1x1)glass mosaic tile in baths. They never became prosaic. They just became passe. All of sudden, they are quite mainstream. I don't know why they never caught on before like they do now. Now there is a resurgence of these tiny tiles. Who knows what will happen.

Many high end architectural elements never catch on even though they were used. Other elements become quite popular and mainstream. Glass mosaic is in the arena of the everyday Joe right now. On the other hand, many high-end homes do custom metal work in their homes: metal flooring, metal shelves, metal stairway etc. I don't see these becoming mainstream any time soon.

Don't drive yourself crazy. Everything will look dated in 5-10 years. If you like the glass tiles, then get them. It's your kitchen- do what you want!

The list of things that are going to look dated is endless, and it isn't restricted to kitchens:
Dark espresso stained furniture
Pub height tables
Dark brown with a touch of aqua as a decorating scheme
Dare I say, brushed nickel hardware?

Pretty soon,all of these things will scream 2000's-2010's, and designers will have come up with new "must haves".

What everyone above said (only they said it better).

The surest assurance against being left in time-dust has to be loving what you choose now. If the trendy boat pulls out without you, and you love the bilge you're swimming in (so to speak, and to mix a metaphor or two), then you'll be happy regardless.

It's an interesting point that kitchens are inherently dated by their very nature, housing appliances that are by definition time-stamped. So your goal isn't so much to avoid being mired in some obvious period as to authentically enjoy the period when you happened to nail in your kitchen.

Like what you do and accept that all likes are time-dependent anyway. Would you wear your fill-in-blank graduation clothes today?

FWIW, here's my just-answer-the-question: In my opinion, "yes". Which doesn't mean I don't love some of that glass stuff anyway, and feel there's a very good fighting chance that I still will if/when it's no longer trendy.

You?

Yes, I think they are particularly trendy and will time stamp your kitchen.

But I would use them if you love them. Also, tile is relatively easy to switch out, in the scheme of things.

I personally love glass tile and put it in 3 bathrooms. After living with it for a year I love its beauty even more! I don't see it as mainstream at all. I consider materials put in track homes to be mainstream and on the end of a fad. I have yet to see glass tile in any track homes. Will it be dated in 10 years- maybe, but so will the rest of your kitchen.

I spent a lot of time on the bathroom forum during our new home build. Most people on that forum also say glass is a fad. Then I looked at their finished projects and decided my tastes are very different.

People have different tastes. Choose what YOU like. In the end it will still make you smile

IMO the tiny, square, busy-mosaic ones are faddish, but a larger size (like the 3x6 solid color tiles Trinity is looking at on another post) seem more likely to look classic. I agree that it needs to be something you love, though (I'm doing beadboard...something else likely to be a passing trend but I love it).

Backsplash tiles get dated. They just do. White subways might be an exception to that rule, but who is to say they won't be the dreaded "1980s cream 4" x 4" tiles" in 15 years. So it's really a matter of how much it matters to you, and, IMHO, in what context the material is used.

We used a glass mosaic backsplash in an MCM home with slab-front cabinets. It's a contemporary take on retro modern for us, but it is all of a kind. Even then, though, I didn't want the small 1" x 1" tiles. Those tiles were appropriate during the heyday of houses like mine. But mostly in bathrooms, and mostly in ceramics rather than glass. I felt the glass tiles I was seeing were a bit too contrast-y and also becoming a bit dated/common already . . . in 2009. So I went with a 1" x 1/2" vertical tile. I felt it would hold up better over time.

I'm going to say that in your case it will date faster because you are putting it in an otherwise traditional space. With the bulk of the space being quiet and traditional, the choice of a glass mosaic backsplash will speak to the era in which it was chosen. But that doesn't mean it is a bad idea if it is what you really like.

We can't really predict what will or will not date our kitchens in the future. And the tile salesman doesn't have a crystal ball, either.

Will stainless steel appliances be old-fashioned in a few years?
Will granite countertops date our kitchens?
Will subway tile look out-of-date?
Will white kitchen cabinets mark the kitchen as "old"?

Honestly, I think white subway tiles and tumbled stone/travertine might look dated in a few years -- mainly because they are so prevalent now. Anyone remember Harvest Gold refrigerators?

As others have said, do what you like. And what fits best with the overall look of your kitchen.

I am not going to listen to a salesman tell me about what will look dated. He is a salesman not a designer.

If after ten years you don't like it replace it.

White kitchens mark it as old--but they are pretending to be old so it's okay. Retro style subways? Same. Stainless steel? I think it's here to stay since it's been used since the 50s.

Granite countertops? Gack I hope they go out of style! Not only are they environmentally reprehensible, people rarely pick the stuff *I* like! :)

Actually granite might be here to stay because it turns out to not only be pretty, but it's PRACTICAL! But hopefully the brown granites will be allowed to stay in the earth. Cuz they're dated. Twice. OMG I think I need to make twice baked potatoes. Doesn't that sound good?

When we chose our tile, it was the first I'd seen anything like it, so did not think it was a popular choice. If anything, it seemed to have a 60's (70's?) retro-mod look, at least in IMO. :-)

Ours has been in for 4 years this month, and we love it just as much today as we did 4 years ago.

I'm sure certain design elements and details will change in the years to come (just look at car shapes over the years). No matter what, there will be certain "tells" that will give all of our kitchens a less-than-current, or less than-to-the-minute stamp.

So choose what YOU like, what will make YOU happy when you walk into the room. Unless you plan to sell within a year or so of completing your kitchen, you aren't going to be selling a house with a brand-spanking new kitchen anyway.

Of course there are elements in every kitchen that will indicate the time in which the kitchen was done. There's no such thing as "timeless," and it would be exhausting to try to change our kitchens with each change in trend. I think the important thing about glass tile, or an other popular element, is not only that you like it, but that it fits with the style and tone of your kitchen. In a 10-year old kitchen, for example, that would be the difference between people saying, "That's a lovely 10-year old kitchen" vs. "Thank goodness THAT trend has passed." When we were looking at houses to purchase, we saw some older kitchens that we felt we wouldn't have to change for years, and some newer, "trendier" ones that we'd need to rip out immediately.

When I think about past trends that fall in the "Thank goodness THAT trend has passed", I think the harvest gold one is a prime example. Harvest gold was huge in the mid-70s, and I can remember people mocking it in the mid-80s. In just 10 short years, it went from being stylish to being horrific.

I think harvest gold was a "bold statement" type of trend. Not only was it a bold statement, but it was the same bold statement that everyone else was making. It seemed dated sooner because it was EVERYWHERE. I think if you're making a bold statement that is also trendy, then you stand a higher risk of ending up with a kitchen that seems dated within 10 years of the big reveal. The difference here is that harvest gold was a bold statement appliance color, so it was harder to undo (since appliances lasted back then). I think you can take more risk on a backsplash if you are comfortable with the idea of ripping it out 10-15 years from now should it become laughably dated.

Many kitchen finishes will look dated in 10 years...otherwise I don't think this forum would be so busy.

That being said, get what you like and enjoy it! You can always change it later, but you may still love it in 10 years :)

What kind of house do you have? For the most part, if you stay true to the age of your house, it will never be out of style. (Except for the 60s/70s harvest gold / ginormous cabinet pulls in the middle of the door thing, that I will never understand.)

Fori, totally agree on the granite thing - I wonder how much environmental impact the granite mining has, especially some of those incredibly unique types. No one ever talks about it. There was some to-do a few years back about the high levels of radon in some types, but I guess people don't care about that if they like the stone. (Of course, I live in a brick house, so I've got my own radiation problems.) To everybody hatin' on white subway tiles, they've been around for 100 years, there's a reason people love them - they're a timeless standard, like Chanel No. 5.

OP, If you are picking your other finishes to be more trend neutral/conservative, the backsplash is a perfect place to go a little crazy. You can always change it quite easily, probably in an afternoon. What tiles are you looking at putting in?

Redhead asked, and I'm going to dare to answer so getting ready with my rotten tomato shield:

Will stainless steel appliances be old-fashioned in a few years?
Will granite countertops date our kitchens?
Will subway tile look out-of-date?
Will white kitchen cabinets mark the kitchen as "old"?

Black appliances with stainless steel panels are very of the moment and will become old-fashioned at some point. All stainless steel has been around for a century at least and only seems to be gaining in popularity. It is a practical surface. Awhile back, when the trend toward stainless was just barely starting, a friend of mine walked into my mother's 1960's kitchen and said, "I like your stainless steel appliances". Big guffaws. :) Stainless will at some point cease to be the must have trend, however, and just become an ordinary finish again.

Yes, a heavy reliance on granite will date current kitchens, but, again, stone slab has been used in kitchens for centuries because it is practical, and will continued to be used as long as it's available. The "granite look", however, or the "look of the granite" will be one of the things that dates kitchens from this design era.

Yes, subway tile will look out of date, just as 4" squares look out of date now. Rectangles have also been around since the first bricks and tiles were made, and true subway tiles are too plain to ever be a point and laugh thing, but they, like every trend, will go through the it's-so-done phase and into the I-remember-that-look phase.

White "shaker" cabinets are another trendy thing, even though it started as a designer, retro look. It has become so pervasive that white raised panel cabinets get lumped together with them, and the category becomes "white kitchens". (Though, white slab Euro still seems firmly '80's and white slab partial overlay still seems retro '50's-ish.) White never goes out of style, but the current look, with its origins in the Christopher Peacock Scullery design and similar restoration looks before that, is a trend and it will pass.

It's okay!! Those aren't the avocado green appliances and carpets of the '70's, the reprehensible mauve everything of the '80's, and the if it stands still carve it frou-frou of the '90's.

As Sas95 said, if they say, "That's a lovely 10-year old kitchen," you're doing fine.

There's a difference between dated and ugly. Dated doesn't really matter much to me, although I realize it does to many people. (I love vintage clothes, old china, and antique furniture, too.) But if something is lovely, it just is. We don't think of Old Master oil paintings as "dated," do we? Or sculptures by Praxiteles? And would you turn down an affordable vintage Chanel suit or Chippendale cabinet? I wouldn't. Old cars can be "dated," but the ones that become classics are always beautiful. Of course, these things scream what time period they are from, but so what? Get what you love. If it's beautiful, it is, and it will be. Forever.

Sorry, I got carried away. I'll stop ranting now.

I am a Realtor and a kitchen designer. As other people have already mentioned, your kitchen WILL eventually look dated. After 7 years of selling houses in my area, I can usually look at a house, it's kitchen especially but also other architectural features, and figure out its age. I would say it's the 10-12 year mark where things start to look dated. I had a customer ask me "I don't want to be trendy. I want to put in cabinets that I won't be sick of looking at in 20 years." I had to stop myself from laughing. I thought "I think in 20 years, you will probably be tired of looking at ANYTHING that you've been looking at for 20 years!"

I also think that trends start on the coasts and travel to middle America. So, the glass tile "fad" may be on it's way out the door in New York when it's only a couple of years into its cycle in some small town in the Midwest. If you already see a lot of glass tile backsplashes where you live, maybe you're closer to the end of the cycle. But there could be places in the U.S. that don't have many high-end showrooms, and they're just starting to notice the glass tiles at the big box stores. They might have several more years of the trend left.

Maybe a kitchen love can be equated to a long term relationship. In 20 years you'll be so familiar that sometimes you'll take it for granted, others it'll irritate you, and then there will be the times you look at it and smile cause you see the same warmth and beauty that you did 20 years prior. OR... in 20 years you'll say it's just a stinkin kitchen and want to upgrade it anyway! Have fun now and get what you love. You never know what life will bring. The beauty of getting older is you could care less what others think and it's easier to relax and have fun.

I think the last post hit it directly on the head concisely! BTW - I hope that once the reno is done, I will enjoy my kitchen but go on to living my life without obsessing over it. Years from now, when I take it for granted, I hope it is still a comfortable place and one that does not get on my nerves like the last one (which always did). The size and layout are both so much better, so odds are good it will still work for us then. In our previous house, we had a kitchen from the p.o.s that had a nice layout and was a good sized kitchen. While I did not love its washed oak cabs, it was a pleasant place to cook and entertain from.
In this house, the kitchen we got at first was awful in looks and function (small). We improved the function tremendously (including extending) and chose the look we like, so what is not to love (for us) about it? I hope it is an enduring love ;)

dash3108 wrote: "I had to stop myself from laughing. I thought "I think in 20 years, you will probably be tired of looking at ANYTHING that you've been looking at for 20 years!"

After reading that I looked over at my husband of 25+ years and thought, yeah and it could be worse if he had a graying mullet. (And no, he's never had mullet - just a lifelong generic male haircut!)

I not only agree with Remodelfla and Dinalo, but can share my experience with a remodel that became dated. I proudly proclaim that I "facelifted" my kitchen in the early '90s with washed oak doors, veneer and the 4x4 white tile backsplash. I didn't know it was trendy or a fad, I just wanted something light to replace my very dark drab kitchen. 20 years later, the facelift was looking worn, appliances reaching the end of their life and it was time to do a real full remodel. But, I still liked my old kitchen even though I'm excited to get something new and different. Unlike the kitchen that was forced on me with the house purchase, I had picked out everything in it (agonizing over each detail) and really enjoyed spending time there. With this remodel I again agonized over each item to be sure that things work well together for me. But I know that future style changes won't be an issue that I need to worry about.

To the original poster: I'd worry more about whether you think "you" will get tired of it. With exceptions to some period type restorations, when we remodel our kitchens we are really just re-dating them and there's no way to predict how long something will remain popular or what degree of "unpopular" it will become.

Yup. I think they will be dated. They already look dated to me in fact. They were super trendy--too trendy. Almost every tile store I have visited has them on sale. I don't see them used very much anymore in magazines or on TV.

That said, if you really like them, go for it. Just know that they won't stand the test of time. And some people like updating their kitchens every 5-10 years.

Anything for sale currently at Home Depot is a mainstream trend. When it's on the remainder sale in back of a tile store, guess what that means.

Who are you trying to please? If it's yourself, who cares? But if you're feeling that you're already seeing plenty of it and it's going blah, then you need to follow a different drummer.

__

I applaud Kaismom posting above that says beware small square glass mosaics--they can be great but also very very restricting if they have color variation. It will always be like having an eccentric relative at a dinner party--seating arrangement becomes a chore. One party might work out great but another will be overwhelmed by Uncle Fred.

I couldn't agree more w/the posts here. I just wanted to chime in w/viewpoint of one who hopes to live in this house forever:

I'm not worried about resale, which I'm sure can be a huge influence on decisions - I would probably build the most boring kitchen imaginable if I thought I'd need to sell it eventually.

I love what Ginny20 said about the difference between "ugly" and "dated." I'd like to think that had I been in charge of a kitchen reno in the 70s or the 80s, my own personal aesthetic would have chimed in to remind me that I don't like avocado and orange together (alone, they are both fine imho). Or that white lacquer and mauve plush carpeting (like I saw when looking for an affordable home in my home town in 1996) would never work for me - I wouldn't choose either one on its own, much less combine them!

That being said: as I was doing the magazine research for my new kitchen, I asked myself and everyone who would listen if they thought I was being drawn to "expresso Euro cabinets and white countertops" because that's what I kept seeing, or because I truly liked the combination?

After all, only 6 yrs ago I was planning the first version of this "forever" kitchen - I was heavily into FLWright, mixed wood colors, earth tones, clean lines. The result was a kitchen that I adored ... OTHER THAN the tumbled stone w/random inserts of glass&metal mosaics. I still don't know how I let myself get talked into that one - I think I was exhausted by decisions and let someone else make that one.

I believe that kitchen would have aged beautifully, and any TKO visitor would be able to pinpoint its creation to the early 2000s. I believe my new kitchen will age beautifully, and will be very easy to date to the early 2010s. And I'm OK with that, because I believe both kitchens were classic in materials, colors and design. Besides, no matter what, I'm living in a kitchen I LOVE.

I have a point that's on topic, promise: I'm using a glass mosaic for my kitchen backsplash. It's overwhelmingly rectangular. And I think it's absolutely beautiful, both in color and design. I take comfort in the fact that I can't find this particular product installed anywhere w/in 150 miles, so perhaps I'm a little ahead of the curve here. But I honestly wouldn't care: the moment I saw this glass mosaic, I wanted it not only for my kitchen backsplash, but also to cover an entire wall in my master bath.

See what you think - this is Marazzi Catwalk in Sable Slipper w/my River White granite:

It's just backsplash right? Has anyone successfully removed it without tearing up your walls? Is it easy to replace?

That said...I believe that you should please yourself because you have to live with it.

riley605--that backsplash tile is awesome and looks awesome against your granite. 'nuff said!

Thank you so much, catmom ... it's still a huge thrill when I get a compliment from someone on these forums! That's how highly I value the knowledge and opinions found here.

I'm afraid what will look dated LONG before my glass tile backsplash is the pear green cabinets in my laundry room, and the candy cane red glossy cabinetry in the closet I've turned into a "gift wrap room," haha!

To be honest...I like the back splash tile you have chosen, it looks great with your granite and looks like it has some browns in it to pick-up the cabinetry. My guess is the format of the tile might be a smidge trendy but as it is going to look great does it matter? I don't think so - I was just looking at some older kitchen mags with kitchens featuring 1x1 glass mosaics and whle the kitchens might date, many of them are still aesthetically well served by those back splashes (ie they still look great).

Divastyle ...

Re: "It's just backsplash right? Has anyone successfully removed it without tearing up your walls? Is it easy to replace?"

NOT EASY :( I am in the process now of taking my old BS off ... 1x1 ceramic mosaics (neutral whites) that have been up 32 yrs. And while tedius, it is not difficult, BUT we will have to have someone come in and repair the wall before we can put up a new BS .... I'm thinking that mostly, BS's are a FOREVER thing :)

jody

Ya know riley605, glossy candy apple red cabinetry is still pretty cool in my book! A couple of former forum members had candy apple red glossy cabs and they looked absolutely gorgeous in their modern design kitchens (organic_donna's glossy black cabs with Blue Bahia granite counters was absolutely stunning, too, BTW).

The kitchen we ended up with loos strikingly similar to pics I'd cut out and saved over the years, years ago. Either it's a look or style that has/had "legs" so to speak, or it was already dated when we put it in 4 years ago. Either way, still gives me a thrill every time I walk into it!

Riley, everything looks amazing! I love the bs. Do u love it? If so! Just go for it! If you're not sure yet, keep on looking for something tilu find it. Good luck!

catmom and hellonasty, thanks so much for your kind words! As a matter of fact, so far I do love it. I've been working w/an interior designer this time around, because we need all new furniture and I HATE shopping for furniture. And since all color choices work together, they've chimed in on wall colors, cab paint choices, etc.

I wouldn't budge on my granite, though. The designer, not familiar w/River White, was pushing for something more "common," like Santa Cecilia or something. I knew River White would be amazing w/the deep brown of my cabinetry ... but then she pushed for a different color in the Marazzi Catwalk style glass mosaic. The Pecan Pump is gorgeous, no doubt, but she just wasn't getting the point that my granite was not going to have ANY yellow/gold in it at all. And that's the direction the Pecan Pump leans.

I was already using Sable Slipper for that focal wall in master bath, so I had it in hand and when I held it up to my granite, there was no question - the colors were wonderful, pulling out the best shades in each other. Happily, once she saw the granite IRL she couldn't help but agree.

catmom, the candy cane red cabinets happened on a whim: closet that would go unused, my cabinetmaker and I started spitballing ideas about wall-mounted gift-wrap holders, and pretty soon I had perimeter cabs in a decently-sized closet. Well, in that situation you HAVE to go a little outside your comfort zone, right?

Somehow, this kitchen is coming so much closer to the "ideal" picture I've been carrying in my mind for years, even though the last one was beautiful and very much representative of my taste at that moment. But I'll always believe the one factor that threw off that whole kitchen for me was the backsplash. It was very current, but just not "me" at ALL. This time, the backsplash is all me.

Oh sure, not only am I liking your kitchen so far (from those little teaser pics you posted), but now I have to have closet-lust, too? You are just too cruel for words! Ha!

I used a quartzite and glass mix. I love it. This is by Jeffery Courts. It's called fire & ice. I tried to use black, clear, garnet and amber tiles. Hoping with so many colors I can always change my other surroundings. Granite is Black Pearl and cabinets are Cabernet Rustoleum and I love that product.

Here is a link that might be useful: Rustoleum Cabinet Transformations Cabernet

Well, it's all been said except: I personally am so tired of all that blah stone everywhere, and especially all the cheap mimicry it inspired, but above all the lack of color everywhere. Truly, anything can be overdone, even something as wonderful as stone. (Is it coincidence that our homes turned overwhelmingly tastefully blah as we retrenched politically?) ...Rant over.

By all means, get that lovely glass, KatAdams. Glass IS timeless because it's exquisite. To avoid the dated issue, though, you might consider a different shape if you can find it in your budget. Nice as horizontal lines are, horizontally placed rectangles have also been "in" very, very long now, including of course that horizontal mosaic you're considering. In any case, as glass tile connected to this era is almost all horizontal or square (virtually always set on plane with the counters), plus a few elongated rectangles set vertically, that gives you the opportunity to do glass while avoiding the shelf life of a standard era-linked look.