Chicoryflower, Annie1971, Roguevalley, KitchenKelly, Kmcg85, Walkin_YesIndeed, Mom24boys, Straitlover, and Brutuses: You could never know how helpful youÂve all been! I went to a kitchen store today and brought home some samples of the ones youÂve suggested and also a few others. I sure wish I had your designer eyes -- thank you for lending them to me. Wow, what a difference it made to pull myself away from all the black! IÂve narrowed it down to either Jamocha Granite or Perlato Granite, leaning heavily towards the Jamocha Granite, which surprises me. They look a lot alike here, but the Jamocha Granite has a warm tone, while the Perlato Granite is cooler. The colors in the Jamocha Granite seem to make the cupboards coordinate with the black appliances, pulling it all together -- exactly the way you said it would. I still do wish I could see a Photoshopped version, but just looking at the samples I brought home has made a huge difference. (YouÂd think one of the major countertop companies would set up a website where people could upload photos and "paint" different samples on the pictures.) Anyway, I just want to post my heartfelt "thank you" for all your help. What a warm group of people yÂall are!

It would really help to see a pic of your kitchen or at least the layout. Depending on the size and the space requiring the backsplash, different sizes of field tile could be used. So, lets assume average size. You can do a subway glass tile in an oversized rectangular shape (let's say 4x8). If you want to add mosaics, you can do a single row, then maybe a 3" strip of mosaics, then the rest in the field tile with a broken joint pattern. Here's one suggestion for field color: I like the taupe or buffett gray depending on your slab. Then you can do a mosaic inset of your liking. Another different idea would be to do a "safe" color but in an interesting way. Choose something with somehttp://www.interstyle.ca/img/products/glass/mosaics/icestix/icestixcolors.jpg variation in sheen, texture, color saturation to bring it more interest without competing with the granite. Like this? The rumble color looks kinda nice. Install either horizontally or vertically for even more "funk".

Thank you for the great suggestions. I would love to check out the walker zanger Gramercy park. There are no WZ distributors near us - Madison wi so I'm going to have to travel a ways to find a show room. Ellendi I think your spot on about there not being enough of a contrast between my creamy cabinet color and my danby marble so a basic subway wont wor as it does in Phorbin's beautiful kitchen. I need some type of transition. I know cararra marble is out as it has too much grey and white. I think I really need to introduce the cream shade. I love the glass tile look but I feel as if I'm going for the classic timeless look in my materials so I almost feel a ceramic would fit the bill better. Boy does tile run the gamut in price! I never knew. I also love Bee,s beautiful arabesque tile- not sure of the shade that would be best. I don't really want to introduce any "color" I like the uniformity of whites and creams.

NAN95: Thank you for your suggestion. I too prefer the white subway tile with a lighter grout color, but I'm worried about the upkeep. I use turmeric in cooking frequently and it stains everything yellow :( I had splatters on kitchen wall in my old kitchen (luckily the walls were already painted yellow) so am worried about the staining. I have seen those amazing white on white back-splash tiles on Houzz! They look beautiful! Do you think if I seal the grout, it would be stain-free? Sarina: The kitchen is nearly done now :) We're missing countertops, back splash, hardware on cabinets. I agonized over the counter-top and the back splash the most! I was considering Frosty Carrina, but after seeing a sample of the London Grey I fell in love with it. I hope it will look calm, as you said, especially with dark cabinets! I try to post some pictures tomorrow.