Okay, I have to say, you guys are AWESOME! @remodelfla - looks like that eBay seller is the same as the Amazon seller -Oracle, and the same price. Will have to check on whether shipping makes the difference. Just got notice that the sample has shipped so hope to get it this week. Trikeenan is out and Sea Turtles are in - love the glass but had to decide quickly and the turtles spoke to me (the Honu is sort of our family emblem). @fouramblues - that is the post I was looking for, and you got the name of the tile, too - Yay! (somehow "Bell" turned into "Beth" in my mind overnight - no wonder I couldn't find it). I think my flooring is American Olean so that was interesting....will research that tile when I get back on the desktop - search limited on iPad here. And I'm not sure what makes it "rustic" - mostly interested in low color variation (the "camel" looks like far too much) and the tile sizing/pattern - random, and more honed, smooth. But not polished/glossy. And not pitted. Interesting, but not to overpower the turtles. And I should mention, the backsplash on the other side of the kitchen is just under 3" tall and abut 20' long, so we don't want to cut a zillion tiles to fit, so multi-width will certainly make that easier. I was just at Home Depot buying dripper irrigation supplies and saw an interesting one called Bamboo something that I had seen online a few places in my search - it's all 1/4" strips and $15sf, but I get a military discount there and it's in stock. Thank you for all the help! Open to more ideas!

writersblock, I hear what you are saying. I have no problem finding individual pieces that I like, but no confidence in my ability to envision all of the pieces coming together successfully as a whole. In this case, I don't want to end up with subway tile because I chose a granite with movement in it. But it's difficult to envision the end result. Anyway, I saw some large format tiles today and wonder if these would work any better. They are in the middle, to the left of the granite. The main issue with these (aside from possibly clashing with the granite) is that the size of the tiles doesn't lend itself well to backsplash sizes; they are meant to cover entire walls.

Nice! If you can't contact the designer of the kitchen in the photo, you could probably make your own mix. Try Fireclay for the colors (free samples online, but if you're in the bay area, go to a showroom).

Go to Saltillo Imports for tile. South of Yorkdale on Tycos Drive in the design district. So many tiles, so many ideas and lots of items on display. Many of the HGTV designers use this store for their tile. Have a look at their site - worth a visit, even if you think you've found what you want. Olympia is nearby as well - almost overwhelming choices there. The tile you've chosen above...I don't know...for some reason I think bathroom when I see it but maybe I need to see it done and grouted. As is so often the case, it all comes together in the end, but we spend a great deal of time second guessing our choices when in the midst of the project.