The center one makes kind of a nice lattice pattern:

And to me repetition of one pattern, even a strong pattern, can be less busy than plain with random inserts of pattern.

Palimpsest, that second pattern is gorgeous!! While I like the Simplicity of the first one it doesn't look special or Mexican to me, the second pattern has a definite Mexican flare and the colors are gorgeous!!

Becky, I'd take that design that palimpsest put together in version 2, and run that as a square inset backsplash behind your range. It would be a stunning focal point, while still leaving the rest of the kitchen enough elegant simplicity to let it be the hero. I think if you scatter the tile throughout the backsplash your eye just won't know where to look first. The rest can be a plain cream subway.

If I had any photoshopping skills whatsoever I would mock it up for you but maybe someone else here can?

Inspiration pics/ideas:

NOT this:

honestly there is so little backsplash on the rest of the wall that I'd just do the whole thing:

Pal, can you photoshop it with just a square inset of the pattern behind the range and the rest cream just for basis of comparison?

Ladies this is SOOOOO helpful! Thank you so much! It does make such a difference to see the patterns the tiles make when they connect.

I will try to get some photos of the whole room up this afternoon. I think the dilemma is that there's quite a bit of movement in the wood counters, and the copper hood is so gorgeous that DH isn't sure that we need another focal point. I actually love the lattice of that first pattern, though, and wonder if doing more of it might strike a nice balance. Or, as rebeccamom writes, mostly cream, perhaps with a lattice row and then a large square behind the backsplash.

I think what DH is worried about is that the rest of the room isn't Mexican at all! :)

I'm going to go off your list, and say that I like the one in the top row, 2nd from right. Rust and blue with almost no white. I think it would be striking.

Psssssst, backyardfeast! Palimpsest is a gent.

I agree with pal and I also think pulling in some of the blue will actually make your hood pop. Why? Because the complement of orange or copper is blue so if you use the second tile like pal suggested the blue in the tile will help the hood pop more. If you keep it all monochromatic, the hood will actually blend in more.

Actually I might even consider using one of the blue/white tiles too. Oh and I think using the tile will be stunning!

cpartist, that makes a lot of sense. Now I just have to convince my very understated husband. :) Pal, sorry I included you in the "ladies"!

Here are more photos: the whole room (you can see the craftsman style trim, etc dominates), the movement in the countertops (colour is warmer than it looks on my monitor), and the solid colour tiles we would pull a cream from.

I don't find your counters overly busy in that it will compete with a Mexican tile backsplash. Again the counter color works with the other elements.

I personally would try one of the ones I circled in red since to me their patterns are less busy but pick up more of the blue, but then again it's all personal preference.

It doesn't really matter that the counters have a heavy graining pattern because they are a completely different material, and organic. If you had a granite with an active movement you would not use another hard inorganic material with lots of pattern for the backsplash. But wood vs. tile is not really a problem in my opinion.

I approve of this project.

I'll have to side with your husband and say no. I think it would add something odd that has nothing to do with anything else in the house.

Disclaimer: I have spent the last 7 years removing this type of tile from 5 bathrooms and about 4000 sq.ft. of red saltillo tile from our house and I do have a Spanish style house, but the previous owners had gone a bit too overboard with the "Mexican restaurant" Spanish theme! I've replaced it with higher end materials that are more modern and clean but still have a Spanish/Moorish vibe.

nidnay, we LOVE our wood counters. They are milled from a local western maple that came down in a storm, and a local furniture maker laminated the wood up for us into counters. They are finished in Rubio Monocoat, which is a foodsafe "hard oil" product that has bonded with the maple incredibly well. We definitely don't let water drops sit beside the faucets, and it is a worry for me, but so far, no issues. We had a small bottle early on that sat in a little water for several days before we noticed, and it did leave a small stain. But we only have to do a spot sand and re-oil and it will disappear.

After a full-house gut and re-build, the counters are one of my very favorite elements in the whole place.

Chispa, thanks for your thoughts. The "Mexican restaurant" look is definitely what we want to avoid!

No one else seems to be worried about the look with our more traditional/farmhouse style room, so that gives me hope we can find a balance.

Any photoshop mavens willing to show a mostly cream with just a patterned tile detail at the range? Or any other thoughts about how to use the pattern? DH definitely won't go for the whole space done in pattern...and I think it would be a little bold for *this* space, even though I do love the look.

Talavera tile was used here (Northeast) for "country kitchens" in the 1960s-70s in new builds and in antique (Colonial and Federal) houses and it played well with the exposed brick or beams and flooring in these houses. (They also used delft tiles) So I don't really have the Mexican restaurant connection in my area.