One rule of thumb that I have read (and followed) is that if your floor is "straight" then the backsplash should be diagonal, and vice versa. I have a diagonal floor so installed a straight backsplash.

That is a good rule of thumb. (Did not know this before, and thanks for sharing). Another trend I have noticed is for contemporary/modern cabinets they put straight horizontal tiles whereas for more traditional styles they put diagonal.

This is not a rule of thumb, just observation.

I may have discovered how to post pictures. Here goes.

Yikes! The pictures are huge even though I resized them. Oops.

no, they're actually really small.

i vote for diagonal. although, if you're DIY, you may want to consider how much more difficult laying tiles diagonally is. way more cuts.

One rule of thumb that I have read (and followed) is that if your floor is "straight" then the backsplash should be diagonal, and vice versa. I have a diagonal floor so installed a straight backsplash.

I have no idea why my comment was re-posted...I was not trying to belabor the point! Strange.

Your kitchen is BEAUTIFUL! What a great job! It is hard to tell from the pictures since they are so tiny but I think you could probably go either way. Although since you have the squares on the trim of your cabs and the window inserts, you may want to break it up a bit with the tiles being on the diag. Can't wait to see more pictures and the finished product. You look like you are close to being done. Congrats!

Yes, it's looking very nice! It could go both ways. Straight does tend to look more modern if set directly on top of each other and also rather static that way. They can be offset like brick, though, for a more traditional and less static looks. Diagonal's a bit more expensive or difficult to install, but it adds a subtle liveliness that's often just what's needed.

(Did not know this before, and thanks for sharing)

Neither did I. This is another one of those things, like using a blending or contrasting grout. Just as some would rather use a contrasting grout to bring out the tile pattern, so would some like to have the patterns of the two areas be different so as to accent each other. Likewise, just as others prefer a matching grout to blend everything together, the same goes for matching the patterns of the two areas.

It all depends on personal taste.

I like the diagonal orientation if you think that's something you can tackle.

Your cabs look really nice. You've done an awesome job finding them for a bargain and refinishing them yourself.

Our floor tile is straight and our backsplash is diamond/diagonal patterned 4" travertine with 2" granite pieces that DH cut from the left over granite.

We actually got a roll of brown shipping paper and DH drew out the pattern, along with 2" cutouts inserted and then we taped it up on the backsplash and lived with it for a few days to be sure we liked it....LOL

mrs_tlc:

If you see this, I love your backsplash. Are your travertine tiles sealed, enhanced or both?

Thanks.

llll2008

Hi llll2008,

I'm glad you like it. DH worked really hard on it making all of those cuts for the granite pieces. The travertine is the lightest one it comes in and it is sealed but not enhanced.

I vote for diagonal. Well, I just like diagonal ;-), and in addition, according to all the rules I just learned in this thread, your cabinets are traditional and it looks like your floors are wood (?) and straight.

Nice tiles, btw. And nice job on the cabinets!

As for that rule about not doing diagonal on both the floor and backsplash - wow. That could have implications for me - I'm definitely doing a diagonal floor, and I've been deciding between a diagonal backsplash (4" or 6" tiles), and a mini-brick. I guess the mini-brick would be preferred under the rules...

It's going to be a pretty contemporary kitchen with wide shaker cabinets. I love the mini-brick, but since it's a long, narrow galley kitchen, I don't want to emphasize the horizontal too much - that's why I was thinking diagonal, to make it seem more vertical and like there was more vertical space between the countertop and the cabinets.

Is this really a rule???

I was going to do one like Bill posted above, but I had this thing that the accent tiles had to be on the diagonal, so what I did was the reverse of the above--- the bottom row is diagonal and the rest is straight. I just couldnt decide- I think they all look great. Here is mine before grouting.Scroll to the right.

I vote diagonal. Here are our 4x4 travertine tiles

Hmm.. I have a straight tiled floor and I went straight on my backsplash... but I did that because I went up, inside and around the window and I felt it would be too busy on the eye if I went diagonal. Here is a pic. (The fixture has since been correctly centered over the island and the window on the right has since been tiled as well.) Tumbled marble with glass inserts.

{{!gwi}}

I'm at the point of making my backsplash decision to go with Santa Ceclia Select granite, and I know that I want tiles set on the diagnoal. What great ideas you're giving me -- and more decisions!

mrs_tlc - your granite insets are beautiful and so unique.

sheilaaus122 - I've never seen the diagonal on the bottom with the straight tiles above. Very nice!

nap_in_sd - can you tell me the name of your granite and your tiles? They look great together.

thanks. the granite is giallo ornamentale and the tile is Old Stone travertine in both mocha and beige (2/3 beige and 1/3 mocha). the tile was from home depot expo.
one note about our granite is that it seems to stain very easily. the contractor says they sealed it, but even the dish soap left a stain... we will probably try to reseal it soon.

I think most people are voting for diagonal. Thanks so much for the advice. I am still mulling it over. I think my heart is telling me diagonal, but my mom is an artist (with an artist's eye) and she said definitely straight. My kitchen is tiny, so I don't think I'll mix it up. Meanwhile, my kitchen on a shoestring is turning out very well. I'm getting a pretty high-end look on a VERY low-end budget. It is thrilling. I'll post before and after pictures soon. THANKS AGAIN!

Oh yeah, I almost forgot. The name of the travertine is Durango. Thanks!