bungalow that's it - by jove I think she's got it!

I vote bottom of the hood.

Honestly, I'd keep working your backsplash design. I don't think any of them are quite right yet.

Your stone is gorgeous. Which one is it? Does the tile blend? You say a biscuit tile, but it looks quite bright white in the photo. But then, so do the cabs which you said were the same biscuit color as the tile. You don't want any contrast between those two? Are the walls gray?

I'm liking the bottom of the hood-ish designs best, but not quite feelin' the love yet... Are you changing your pattern over the range? Any sort of focal point there? A different layout (small herringbone?) with a small border could be just the thing. No other color -- just tile layout.

I like approximately what Bungalow House did, or some similar line that makes a feature out of the backsplash shape, enhancing the hood. You can probably get a nice edging tile too.

I don't like the idea of top of cabinets because you chose, it seems, not to have the wall-to-wall cabinets look when you chose a freestanding hood and a gap between the cabinets. If you go with a backsplash that matches the cabinet, then you negate the effect of that gap. (assuming you designed the kitchen, which I thought I read at some point)

KarinL

I like to the bottom of the hood more or less like bungalow's mockup.

Also, I think you need to include the area at least up to the hood, for function.

Every time I look at these photos, my eye is drawn to the large, darker tile on the RHS of the board - it just looks like such a great match for the beautiful granite. The other tile just looks too stark against your cabinets on my monitor.

I'd go to the bottom of the hood. We have some cabinet shops in our area & their kitchen designers bring the tile up to the bottom of the hood. We are in the process of doing a kitchen & had some designs drawn up. Very nice kitchen btw.

Bottom of hood, but in a direct line at the bottom of hood - not like either of the mock-ups above.

I would end it with the bottom of the hood or like in Bungalow's photoshop. Beyond that looks odd to me. Just my .02 worth.

I agree with jodi_in_socal - bottomish of hood with tile liner bars to finish off the top

Bungalow House style from photoshop pic above. I was thinking how I might describe it and suddenly, "There it was!"

Lots of people normally put a sheet of stainless or line of tiles up to the bottom of the hood, but the backsplash does NOT extend across from the MIDDLE of the cabinets. It comes over from the cabinet bottoms, THEN goes up.

This is why I love GW!!!! and this is why I hate GW!!! (kidding)

So many good ideas, I am so much more confused. I fabricated a backsplash out of paper tonight. Maybe I'll just go with the paper, except for the possibility of it catching on fire it's nice.

As far as the pattern behind the stove, I did want to do harlequin tiles, same color as field tiles with a small trim piece around it. But then the kitchen forum had me convinced to go simple so as not to steal anything away from the other parts of the kitchen. I have convinced myself to only do the matte subways.

I will say, that the paper tiles look nice--they end at the bottom of the hood. I am also planning on being a rebel and going with a grout to match the tile, yep I'm not going with the silver gray color that is suggested. I just want it to look like a white-ish background.

The granite is Bianco Antico. The paint color is a taupe that looks gray in some light.

We originally were convinced to do a taupe colored tile, Mandala tile, Sinu in Stingray to be exact. It looks great with the granite, but when we painted the room it was a similar color so we painted the backsplash area too, just to get a "feel" for it. Didn't really like it, decided it needed to be brighter.

Well, once again you all have given me more great stuff to think about, I'm tired, my foot is broken (thanks to the ice on Sunday), and I think it's time for bed. I need to program myself to dream about my back splash.

Thanks to all for the images, it really helps. Hopefully this thread won't get lost in cyberspace. I guess I'll do some clipping.

Beeskeeperswife,
I was thinking along the same lines of a combination of Bungalow and you. Here's my rendition of what I'd do though I'm sure you're over the stove area was a bit different it's really hard to work on such a small photo with so very small tiles. I have old eyes and they just can't see quite that well anymore. LOL

{{!gwi}}

I don't know if you can see the slight difference in size and the little line of slightly darker color to the top tiles just under the upper cabinets, but what they are, are a cap type tile, hense the size difference.

Please forgive me. It's almost three thirty in the morning here so that's my excuse for not remembering to tell you what a lovely kitchen you have. The floors, and granite are just gorgeous. May I ask what type of flooring it is?

I think bungalo's idea f/u by beekeepers heading in the right direction.

to the bottom of the cabs except by hood then for the hood a framed out tile work to the bottom of the hood

Otherwise you have too much tile going on & it distracts from other elements
http://www.ikeafans.com/galleries/images/27365/large/1_Subway_20Tile_20with_20Framed_20Deco.jpg

http://media.photobucket.com/image/framed%20subway%20tile%20harlequin%20pattern%20under%20hood/Starlightlady1/Apr1002backsplasha.jpg

http://www.anchorbaytile.com/v/vspfiles/photos/900SST1200-2.jpg

I was all ready to say I like it to the bottom of the hood until I got to justgotabme's picture and I love that. Didn't you say on the kitchen forum that the harlequin tiles weren't the right color? If you can get them in the right color, I would definitely do that.

Laurie

Bottom of hood, but with a contrasting paint color above.

I think justgottobeme's idea is perfect!

Came in to suggest justgottabeme's version...or something very like that. My sister did something similar...it's very pretty. Wish I had a picture.

this picture has a range hood like yours and tile up to the hood going all the way across, from cupboard to cupboard.

Here is a link that might be useful: [up to the bottom of the range hood[(https://www.houzz.com/photos/traditional-home-design-ideas-phbr1-bp~s_2107?fi=72)

justgotabeme--This is a very attractive idea. What do you see in the diamond? The harlequin tiles? Or smaller rhomboids, with the crushed glass in the same color as the field tile? The harlequins (3x6) from daltile (the 2x8 field tile manufacturer) don't make one in the right color...however, American Olean (somehow related to daltile) does have the harlequin in the matte biscuit color.

I think the drawings with the tile going up higher really start to "feature" the tile...and since it is just a white subway that I'm not trying to "feature", I think in my mind it confirms not to go high with it. I did dream about it a little last night, and I think it will not go above the bottome of the range hood.

This is good--I'm narrowing things down. You guys are the best....

I'd go to the bottom of the hood and finish off the top edge with some bullnose tiles coming up maybe 2" above the actual edge.
I'd also look to do something subtle in the area over the cooking surface-even if you only used matching materials in different shapes and framed it out. That's a fair bit of expanse over that 36" stove and while I agree that the decorative stuff in that area can get overdone really fast I think there would be a way to break it up that would give it some interest.
Beautiful kitchen BTW-we used subway tile and have a contrasting island too. Right up my alley.

Off topic, but from the title of your post I thought you were asking for an intervention because you were addicted to the Kitchen Forum LOL ;o) Your kitchen is just beautiful.

None of the above! I'd start it 3-4" above the bottom of the hood (where the straight side meets the angle), & continue with tiles cut at the same angle to the point where the tile runs into the cabinets. I'm not sure this is a clear explanation - just start the tile so it looks like it's an extension of the angled hood rather than an unconnected hard, straight line.

Your kitchen is gorgeous and your backsplash placement is all just different degrees of excellence! In my opinion, for this kitchen, to the bottom of the cabinets is too little tile (looks a little skimpy), to the top of the cabinets or to the ceiling is too much tile (although that, of course, looks fabulous in lobotome's kitchen) and to the bottom of the hood looks a little choppy. Which leaves to the bottom of the hood but in from the cabinets for my choice. I also love the idea of adding a contrasting texture or design but NOT color.

Yes to justgota's border defining the square area under the hood!

I would bring the tile behind the stove up to the hood, but on either side of the stove I wouldn't bring the backsplash up to the bottom of the cabinets but rather maybe only 4-5 tiles high.

I also like justgotabeme's design.

I like Antique Silver's idea too; I had originally been picturing some line other than straight across between the hood and the cabinets but couldn't think of one. It might be interesting to mock that up in paper.

Otherwise, it sounds to me as if you are not working with quite the tile you want as you say you got talked into it... but with all white it seems to me that the least you can do for yourself is work with tile you like and give it some visual interest. Something like just a couple of larger square tiles set on the diagonal, or a single large diamond as was shown, some nice edging tile... something other than just the subway tile would, as many people have mentioned above, be a good thing.

KarinL

I also like justgotabeme's design and her design has my vote & is giving me ideas also. Beekeeperswife's kitchen is gorgeous as it is and the backsplash will enhouse it even more and protect the wall.

Bottom of hood is my choice since it'll add depth. Too much of the same going all the way to cabinet tops.

I would run the tile up to the top of the cabinets, finished off with the same crown at the same level as the cabinetry. However, I would do stainless tiiles for the backsplash behind the stove up to the bottom of the hood - but just in line with the stove to hood width. It would fit the industrial look of the range and hood, and hide the pot filler.

Lovely floors! Great kitchen.

I'm glad you all liked it. I could play at making virtuals all day long. Well almost. I'd need a bit of chocolate now and then to keep my energy level up. Ha!

Beekeeperswife. I really have no clue what's out there when it comes to tiles. I've glanced at what Lowes has for flooring with a friend that I'm helping to design her kitchen remodel. We've not even talked about backsplash yet. More just space planning and base cabinets. I wish I could help you more with that part, but I have no clue. Do you have photos of the harlequin tiles you were looking at?

Oh and my guess is the hood is the same width as the stove, but because of perspective it doesn't appear so in the photo. That's why it looks like the framed area above the stove is wider than the stove itself. If I'd have drawn it properly it would have looked as though it were narrower than the hood. But I did that early this morning when I should have been in bed so that didn't even dawn on me then. My bed time has been messed up since I was sick a couple weeks ago and slept day and night for almost a week.

I would end it with the bottom of the hood or like in Bungalow's photoshop. Beyond that looks odd to me. Just my .02 worth.

Justgotabeme--The hood is wider than the range. Range is 36", Hood is 42"!

I have asked a local tile store to get me a sample of American Olean's harlequin (3x6) in matte biscuit. This way I can compare it to the matte bisquit in daltile's 2x8 subways. If it is a match, I can think of something to do with this.

Also, if you look at that board above, in my OP, you will see a small subway tile--(1 3/4 x 3 3/4) bottom right corner. I wonder if I did this inside of the big square under the hood in the matte biscuit without the diamond how it would look.

Here is the photo of the other sample board-Rittenhouse Square collection-showing the harlequin tiles.
{{!gwi}}

{{!gwi}}

beekeeperswife. If the harlequin matches I'd think about using it above the stove if that's what you really want, but I do think the smaller subway tile would look great inside the framed area too. Maybe a combo of both with the harlequin in the large diamond area and the smaller subway tiles in the area around them but still inside the frame.
Something like this. Only straighter. :^D
{{!gwi}}

So many stoves have that stainless steel bar within their backsplash. I am wondering what it is?

Justgotabeme, I love the last picture you posted with the stylish backsplash! That is the one I would choose.

I think behind the stove the backsplash should go up to the hood, but I think you've got too much tile going on if you go up to the cabinetry on each side of the stove (your cabinets seem to be hung fairly high). Why don't you make the rest of the backsplash the height of the backsplash on the wall where the sink is in order not to make the stove wall so tile heavy. If you don't have a backsplash on the sink wall, I'd make it the height of the window sill.

Maybe you could also use the harlequin tile in a contrasting colour, say a taupe colour to match the wall, or maybe better, a shade pulled from the counter so that you would still be free to change the paint. That can allow you to combine tile types that don't actually "match."

We used tile from three separate companies for the inset design on our backsplash, and it works because each type of tile has a different colour and finish - the background tile is a 2x2 matte maroon, with an inset design set on the diagonal made of shiny tiles in navy blue and forest green.

I'm really liking the addition of the harlequin tile; that's a good find. There is somehow just too much of the bars when you do it all in that. I think adding subway tile instead would add to the visual impact of lines, lines, and more lines. The harlequin gives a rest from that, and in doing so, gives the lines a function: leading the eye to the design. I think I might actually be tempted to put in just a quad of contrasting harlequin tiles above the sink as well, if the backsplash is extending along there.

KarinL

More good ideas! Thanks

lynn2006--that stainless steel "bar" you see is actual the vent. It is 3" high.

K9-the cabinets must just look high. They are only 18" above the counter, and once the light rail is added on the bottom, I think they will be appearing only 17".

I'm wondering if I can do harlequins sideways....

Thank you Lynn.
beekeeperswife, I would think it could be done either way.

i like it to the bottom of the hood

Lynn2006: Are you refering to the stainless steel water tap to fill big pots on the stove?

pmartin, sorry that I did not see your post. Yes, that was what I was referring to since I did not know what it was. That is a great idea! No wonder so many new kitchen renovations have that stainless steel water tap above their ranges. Thank you so much for letting me know.

Stunning kitchen and I really like the last idea! Plain subway tile is just not interesting enough for your backsplash against the white cabs. I like the differences in height and definitely the harlequin to jazz it up. I went a bit too plain in other areas of my backsplash and now regret that I didn't add some interest. Your granite is lovely but not screaming for attention, I agree to add a bit more interest to the other areas too. Love the chandelier!

JUSTGOTABME!! IN FROM THE CABINETS AND UP TO THE BOTTOM OF THE HOOD. NOTHING ELSE LOOKS AS NATURAL AS THAT AND, doing a design under the hood. All else just looks odd visually. Cutting it off at cabs is odd and up to ceiling even odder.

JUSTGOTABME!! IN FROM THE CABINETS AND UP TO THE BOTTOM OF THE HOOD. NOTHING ELSE LOOKS AS NATURAL AS THAT AND, doing a design under the hood. All else just looks odd visually. Cutting it off at cabs is odd and up to ceiling even odder.

beekeeperswife - Did you make a decision yet?

Laurie