Kitchen refresh: my New DIY matte/glossy backsplash and busy granite
In 2005, my DH and I started building our home ourselves as a weekend retreat. We (and our horses, dogs, kitty) moved here fulltime in 2011. We initially bought appliances at warehouse sales and Craigslist, almond refrigerator, white range and the prize: a black Miele DW. I liked loft/industrial, so had DH use 'Corten steel look' tile for our counters and backsplash. I spray painted the fridge black.
Last winter, our white range died. I may have thought "urban loft" when we started, but the house was pretty clear: "farmhouse." I wanted marble counters. DH didn't, nor Quartz. I had started reading GW kitchen threads and had settled on Lagoinha quartzite. We went to look at it, but DH found a slab of Colonial White and was enamored, so it's ours.
Our kitchen/living share the space so the BS was actually more important to me than the counters. Our DD is a ceramics student so we wanted handmade tile; local, if possible. DD suggested Mercury Mosaics in Mpls. They were wonderful and I love thinking of the young artisans I met who crafted our tile.
It is 60% matte to 40% gloss glaze. It is also three off white colors set in a brick herringbone pattern that we thought suited the square area. We had the artists set the tile on mesh. I laid out the mesh sections on our DR table to get the final BS. We switched just a few tiles from the mesh and filled in with loose tiles. The other side of the kitchen will have a 4" running bond of the three colors backing our range penninsula. Next weekend, DH tells me.
In the house we sold to move here, I had plain white counters and a marble tile baking section. At the time, linear multicolored mosaic BS and dark granites were in, so our realtor let me know our kitchen was out. The pendulum has swung now and my old kitchen would be in. Now, I have the very frowned upon busy BS matched with granite with 'movement'. And then two tone cabinets!
It's really been a labor of love and our little kitchen feels like it fits our little house. Thank you to all the kind GWs who have helped me get here with your insights and knowledge.
BEFORE:
NOW
Comments (17)
barncatz
7 years agolast modified: 7 years agoA few more photos. The darkest tiles are gloss, as are the pure white. The others are a matte called Marshmallow. They really aren't pink. They're just a gorgeous chalk white. We tried to match the kitchen to the pup. Work in progress: we're adding a soffit where that ceiling board is, and a piece of the chestnut oak for the penninsula top.
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Does this backsplash look right in my kitchen?
Comments (42)I'm back again! I think I am close to finally picking out a tile. I should have a asked this in the very beginning - About "Side Splashes" ...when I had the old laminate countertops, there was a 4" laminate strip of "backsplash" running behind the countertop and it extended all the way to the side walls. Now there is an ugly mess on the wall where I removed the strip, and am wondering if the new tile backsplash should extend to the side walls again. I have read a lot that the "side splashes" are not always necessary and sometimes not appealing to the eye. Should I do a "side splash", meaning should I extend the tile where the wall changes direction and make it the same height as the rest of it? Or should I sand and paint those areas? This post was edited by dms11 on Sat, Mar 8, 14 at 9:30...See MoreBacksplash for a busy granite: help me decide please
Comments (47)Sorry, skimchi, for taking so taking so long to answer - it is a Crema Bordeaux. Just thought that I would thank everyone for taking the time to help me in my decision - much, much appreciated! I went to the granite store today and ordered a piece to go behind the stove - picked a piece that has a big splotch of the peachy coloured bit as well as the burgundy waves. I've ordered a custom bevel to match that of my cab doors, on three sides (top near the fan and then the two sides).....and to be able to accomodate the CHOCOLATE coloured matte tiles nicely. Sigh, yes, we went with chocolate. DH really really didn't like the cream, so I tried out the skinner 2 x 12 chocolate tiles behind the sink - interspersed with 2 x 2 of the little glass tiles.....and we love it!!! So I tried to be higher end, changed up the pattern, and gave it a go on the shortest of the L shaped backsplash walls....with a bit less success. The colour of the tile reminds me of hot chocolate. Maybe I'll tire of it by summer, and given the skills of the person who applied the tile (me), we'll be able to simply pop off the tiles and try something else :) I'll post photos in a couple of weeks, once the granite is in and the tiles are on! Again, thanks to everyone for sharing their opinions - it helped us truly explore our likes and dislikes!...See MoreNew Magma Gold granite countertops. - backsplash?
Comments (58)@ raehelen, Thank you, and YES, I am soooo happy that the granite/BS search is behind me!! LOL @ jancy, the cabinet color that I chose was Coffee Clutch. The code for the color is D1-7. I have read of many others using Bittersweet Chocolate by BM and Black Bean by SW. But, the Coffee Clutch looked great to me at Ace, so I chose it. I did have to sand the cabinets to rough them up, and I primed them with a tinted primer first. I think I used Zinser 123. The cabinet and trim paint goes on really nice. I just brushed it on and it went on nice and smooth. Almost smooths itself out. Just use long strokes and plan on 2 coats. It dries hard and shiny. I did not have to poly over it. I painted them over a year ago and they've held up beautifully! The other nice thing was that the wood grain still shows through. It came out really well. Don't be afraid... go for it!! :)...See MoreNone of my busy-ness backsplash tile. Like these?
Comments (21)Ya know, it's amazing what folks here know. I kept reading by some posters, "The eyeballs need a place to rest" (Paraphrasing). They were talking about both busy granite and busy backsplash. I kinda just thought "Umhhmm oh sure" I just kind of "sluffed it off." Looking at your kitchen, I know Exactly what these ladies were talking about, My eyes keep going back to that green color "Old Dog learned another new trick" Anyway good luck with your decision, if you must have a backsplash, I vote for the green tile, like the other poster here, as big a tile as you can find, with the least amount of grout possible! Gary...See Morebarncatz
7 years agolast modified: 7 years agobarncatz
7 years agolast modified: 7 years ago
cat_mom