I'm not sure how dark that granite is. From one picture on the web, it looked kind of medium colored. We have a fairly dark granite backsplash and really like it. Our cabinets are natural cherry so they aren't dark. We really like it and we don't find that it makes the kitchen dark. It is less than 18" of the 8' wall height. We did it partly for easy maintenance (no grout), partly because we really like our granite and this features it more, and partly because we liked the continuity. We also used the granite for the window sill and the pass through shelf outside the kitchen (this picture has the temporary black wallplate, I don't have one taken showing the shelf taken after we put in the granite wallplate covers):

Posted by budgeteer_s (My Page) on Wed, Dec 31, 08 at 18:18 Thanks for all your suggestions. I wanted so much to follow with ci_lantro's suggestion because then I'm done. I'll gladly let you snatch that paint brush out of my hand. ha ha. But at the same time if a little tiling will tie up the project, then I'm game. jodi_socal: I'm a little disappointed when you said fire and ice won't work. I just LOVE that F&I BS. But then agin, I think I know all along it's a little too much for my kitchen. Caryscott & petra: Thanks for the picture petra, it says a thousand words. Is spectralight glass tiles? Prices are pretty reasonable. What about that milk green color? will it work? maybe with some garnet pieces sparingly mixed in. I will take some pictures and post two HD Behr's paint card to aid in the discussion of color. Thanks again ALL! Correction: My tiles were Alfagres: Gema4x4: different from what caryscott posted: I loved what caryscott linked:

If the appliances stay-I'd reconsider painting the cabinets..appliances will look very out of place or so I think. Too heavy next to white(that should be cream or ivory of course, at minimum, with all the other warm surfaces around..or it can be other color, something in warm realm, but one should love it...all this spray painting stuff is very expensive to do right. Or a huge effort to do right.) In short I'm not sure that painting is the best way to go if almost all the finishes stay as they are. There's a reason this kitchen looks maybe dark to you, maybe older-but it makes sense nevertheless. I agree with all the previous posters who suggested plain backsplash(maybe with some interest like subtle variation that one can get with handmade tile, or crackle..but also just the right color, that goes with rest of the finishes (check Daltile..their color selection is pretty good) will brighten the kitchen and make you happier. The tile itself will have somewhat reflective quality too. Meaning: more light. Love the suggestion of couple glass doors..that can be fun. I'd put (maybe) a rug of my liking...accessories/kitchenalia(is there a word like that? lol) that I like to look at while using them..they can be light/bright..they can be shiny..different textures-something polished, something organic, something fabric..all this brightens and softens kitchens, unless you have a very minimalistic style and prefer to have nothing on the counters. But this kitchen doesn't lend itself very well to having absolutely nothing. I'd put a plant there for sure:) It's a nice kitchen. I think small changes, not big overhauls that can open can of worms indeed unless very well thought out, and one's ready to pay for them a lot, will make the biggest difference for now. Do you have good undercabinet lighting? That's an important thing to have. Enjoy your new place! PS I like wooden trims on windows:) To me it's like yay, exciting! Probably because I don't remember seeing it where I lived before, until I moved here.

I have leathered antique brown granite. It is actually black despite the name. I really like it. You could have your perimeter counters installed and then decide after if you want to continue the black on the backsplash. You might find that it is too dark. One unexpected nice thing about the leathered finish is that at night, when the lights are on inside but it's dark outside, little shiny patterns appear when a place on the countertop catches the light just so. It's a nice little surprise. And I do find that it hides fingerprints pretty much 100%. On our island we have polished white macaubus quartzite. I like the contrast, but not everyone likes so many different finishes in a kitchen. Agree about the by-the-hour designer if you can find one that will do that. A few hours here and there from a designer when I was doing the kitchen was really helpful. I think over the course of the whole remodel, I had 3 meetings of about an hour each to choose materials, discuss some wonky things about the cabinets and make a decision, and then near the end to make some final finishing touch decisions.