Did I mess up again.....?

11 years ago

First of all thanks to everyone that offered excellent information on removing a glass border. Before I proceed with taking a hammer to it I decided to post a picture and tell my story........

Took me 2 years to finally choose a granite. Some advice....never look for 2 years. I ended up with the first granite I saw. So 6 months ago it was installed. Another piece of advice....feel the surface. Mine looked as shiny as glass when it was up on it's side but in my very bright kitchen you can see all kinds of little pits and dull spots. Not happy but have to live with it. Now it was time to chose my backsplash. When my friend purchased her condo last year I loved her backsplash in her kitchen.

Hers had a lighter glass border and the tile was called "Burlap". When I went online to order samples I ordered the Burlap and another color called "Truffle". Because my doorknobs, cabinet knobs, stair railing and light fixtures are all dark dark brown I went with the darker Truffle and am feeling sick that is stands out too much and is too dark..? I love the 4x12" matte white subway tile but was thinking about trying to remove this dark glass border. I am not sure the picture is very good but it is dark brown not black. My cooktop is back and you can definitely tell the border is brown.

I am wondering if it is just because there was nothing on the wall for 2 years that it seems to jump out at you when you look in the kitchen or it just doesnÃ¯Â¿Â½t match at all.....any suggestions and commnets are appreciated...thank-you all.

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Comments (20)

herbflavor
11 years ago
it looks great-aren't you all done now/ time to enjoy it-it's coordinated nicely and it's a good transitional kitchen-what more could you want?
ellendi
11 years ago
It looks fine. Will you be adding any more accessories to the counter? I think if you do, your eyes will be drawn around the room, not just to the border.
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Even if planted upside down, I bet that any existing shoot would find its way upward toward heat and light. My point was that the non-sprouters might either be slow starters, or not have any eyes to begin with, so you may be waiting on absolutely nothing. That's why I like to watch them before I plant them. It sounds like you got commercially produced pot roots Kat, with lots of (usually) broken 'fingers' hanging off a tight knot of smaller tubers clustered around an old cut off stem. I fell for a few packs of those at a big variety store and 2 of 3 clumps have yet to show any signs of growth. Sometimes you get all good tubers, it's just not very good quality control in those cases, in my opinion. And it's a shame the dahlia eager shopper might not know what to look for which are signs of growth: an eye or shoot already showing on the shelf in the store in either light green, pink or purple showing signs of life from the dull brown tuber. If you really wonder, I would do as Triple B said and unearth them, put them in light and barely damp soil with the crown/stem exposed and see if you do see growth in a few days. If you do, you can replant them with confidence. I have nothing against potroots, but those haggard, dried out, broken masses that are packed in bulk are often a lost cause and you're better off spending your $ on a solid dahlia vendor's tubers or potroots. For what it's worth.
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The second problem is canning in a larger size than given in the instructions. If the largest size is a pint, then you should not have upsized. You can always can in a smaller size, but not a larger. Adding processing time is just a guess that it's enough. If this was my product, I'd pop the tops, put the lids back on, and freeze all of them. Remove some of the product for adequate headspace for the freezer if necessary. Best if they are all wide-mouth, too. Some times a pint isn't enough and a quart is too much for our family, and the 1.5 pint is just right, but unless there are quart instructions given, I don't process the product in the 1.5 pint. Good luck. We all made mistakes when learning to can. I'm still careful, still make boo-boos on occasion or come across something new. I review the canning instructions each time I start processing. I think it's great that you are learning and willing to learn from the advice at this forum. There is a wealth of good information here, and the people with the most knowledge (not me) are not only willing to share it, but give the reasons behind the rules/guidelines. Good luck. Jill
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Bunny
11 years ago
I think it looks okay, but it would bug me, too. In your earlier post I thought it was a border you wanted to remove, not a liner in the middle of the backsplash. Are you planning to replace it with a lighter color?
poohpup
11 years ago
It looks great! I think you're totally right that you've been staring at nothing for two years and now your eye is drawn right to the accent tile because you're not used to seeing it. I vote that you give it some time and allow your whole kitchen to patina (couldn't think of a better word to describe that lived in look! lol). It really does look great. I'd love to see more pictures of it. Especially before you do something drastic like take a hammer to that tile.
EngineerChic
11 years ago
If it was what you loved, I would applaud your choice. But ... I think a lighter color would look nicer. Is there an open edge where you can get a screwdriver under one liner and start popping them off from that side?

If that is possible, I would use a grout saw to remove the grout first (very, very carefully).
deedles
11 years ago
think it looks nice, esp with your dark knobs. Agree with living with it for awhile til you get used to seeing it..
cindee56
Original Author
11 years ago
Couldnt figure out how to upload more than one photo at a time...
go_figure01
11 years ago
I think it looks good too! And when you add in all the other kitchen elements w/pops of color, it will look even better!

Enjoy !!!
cindee56
Original Author
11 years ago
I should add this kitchen has 2 very large windows on either side so there is alot of natural light.
here is another angle. If anyone has ever removed an insert like this please let me know...thanks again:(
camphappy
11 years ago
Hi Cindee, I agree that the tile ties in with your handles and pulls. I would keep it for awhile and see if it grows on you.
You mentioned your granite. I have noticed the same thing with my granite. When I chose it I didn't notice all the "imperfections" in it. It feels smooth to the touch but when seeing it at an angle in bright light it is far from having a mirror finish. The veins in it are not shiny so it has a scratched up look to it. I guess that is part of the beauty of natural stone.
Enjoy your new kitchen. It's beautiful!
blfenton
11 years ago
I like the border and let me tell you why - the counter and cabinets look great together and really seem to blend well. The knobs and pulls along with the ends of the wine bottles, if you didn't have the border, would have my eyes jumping all around flitting from knob to knob to pull to end of wine bottle. The row of border brings that colour together in one spot that flows around the kitchen and acts as a bridge between the knobs/pulls and counters. I would leave it. It makes sense in your space.
User
11 years ago
You didn't say it was a LINER! That's going to be quite a bit harder than something along the edge of the tile field.

And, what are you going to replace it with?
palimpsest
11 years ago
I think it looks fine, because it goes with the dark elements in your kitchen. I agree, there are subtler choices that could have worked, but there is nothing wrong with the way this looks.
desertsteph
11 years ago
'think it looks nice, esp with your dark knobs. Agree with living with it for awhile til you get used to seeing it.'

I agree with this! It does take your eyes (and brain) a time to adjust to the change. I've gone thru the same thing with flooring. I've lived with just the subfloor down for so long that putting floor down in the kitchen and hall was a jolt to me. A good one - I did keep walking around looking at it saying 'wow'. And it wasn't even some awesome flooring - just vinyl planks by Armstrong. Still it was an adjustment.

the liner does match up with your knobs/handles. Did they bother you because they were brown and the stove top was black? A lot of stoves have some black on them but most people don't put black accents in because of it.

maybe add a tall earthenware type vase / container in dark brown (or design on it that is dk brwn) to the far left of the stove top. At least for a time til you adjust to it all. It's new to you and you are doubting yourself - that makes it loom very large to you. It really isn't, it looks very nice!
hlove
11 years ago
I think it looks fine, too and works with the darkness of your hardware and even the wine bottles! Although I know this would be a subtle change, you might try changing your pulls to something more simple and rectangular (in the same finish) to better mimic the pencil liner. You could change a couple out and see if this makes any difference to you.
cindee56
Original Author
11 years ago
Thanks again for all your WONDERFUL advice and comments...I wish I would have discovered this site before I started bulding my home it would have saved us alot of grief and money.

I am wondering if anyone has any suggestions on what would be a better knob and handle choice? I like all your ideas and hlove's suggestion to change the knobs is a far easier fix that replacing this insert that may damage my other tile and walls and maybe my cabinets. The idea of the earthenware vase is a great idea also. As I live in a very small town in Northern BC my access to stores is limited but do have a sister in the states so I would APPRECIATE any suggestions for new knobs, accents etc. If you could provide pictures or links I can order them online. I am OPEN TO ALL SUGGESTONS AND IDEAS PLEASE:) Thanks again everyone.
suzanne_sl
11 years ago
I think the liner looks terrific with your cabinets and counters - it's clean and refreshing. I wouldn't change the knobs and pulls either. You've got a really nice look going; I think you need to just leave it be for a bit and see how you feel about it at the other end of winter. Truly, I think it looks great.

P.S. Just saw a neighbor of yours this morning down here in San Diego. A bright taxi-cab-yellow motorcycle with a Yukon license plate.
tuesday_2008
11 years ago
I like it because it adds "a little something different" to the white subway - like a piece of jewelry. We see white subways every day.

Enjoy it.
hlove
11 years ago
Just doing a quick search I found these (assuming your hardware is ORB and not looking at the lengths, just for style):

http://www.amerock.com/decorative/pull/128mm-pull-bar-pull-for-1-bp40517orb.html

or this:

http://www.amerock.com/decorative/pull/128mm-pull-blackrock-for-1-bp55277orb.html

It certainly won't make a huge difference, and may not make any at all, but maybe it will be enough to look better to your eye or help you realize that it's all just great the way it is. Good luck!
mermanmike
11 years ago
Wow--I think it looks wonderful as is. It's an up to date kitchen that doesn't feel trendy, which I think is so refreshing. I think you made a great decision with the backsplash (and everything else too).

Did I mess up again.....?

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