When I spoke with him today he said it was there when he peeled off the blue film after installing it. He said he noticed it right away. Why he wouldn't have said anything I don't know, b/c the vent hood was then installed over the top edge of it. I REALLY don't think he's right, because when I came home from work the day it was put up I immediately polished up the backsplash, and I would have seen it. I noticed it right off when I got home yesterday. At any rate, not wanting to get into a he said she said argument, I called the place I purchased it from (Newegg.com, great deal) and they will replace it (by some stroke of luck the original box is still in the garage). Hopefully I can cobble together the inside packaging to their satisfaction. When I told the contractor this he hemmed and hawed and said it would be a lot of work to take down and replace, it will require taking down the vent hood and some trim, etc etc....my thought is then why in the heck wouldn't you have asked me about this if you noticed it right away, before putting all that stuff up. I just hope nothing ELSE gets messed up in the process of him replacing it. If so I'll regret not just deciding to live with it. Gosh this is just the most minor kitchen remodel...to think we we were considering building a house. There's no way I have the intestinal fortitude for that.

Your space is looking beautiful, you must be thrilled. You can keep it white, you can do almost anything with glass, including a light grey. You can consider gloss or matte finishes - matte might be best in your space. The reason I didn't recommend glass for your space, even though it's an obvious, reasonable choice, is texture. Your space has very little visual or actual texture. Which is fine. But you have an opportunity to add some in that spot if you would like to. Glass won't do that for you. On the other hand, you'll never have to clean grout! Texture: VS. Or....visual texture... ....in stone, or..... Formica :o)

Are you looking for a monochromatic gray charcoal look with no contrast? That seems to be the direction you're heading. Right now you're kitchen appears to be at war with itself. You've updated some things that are sleek and more modern - stainless farmhouse sink, appliances, updated door and drawer pulls. At the same time the upper chair rail, the wall art, and the light fixture are from another time and style. Definitely paint the cabinets but I think it should be something other than charcoal. When oak is painted, I personally like the texture of the grain showing through. Some people feel you need to fill the grain to get a smooth surface. I don't agree. Letting the texture show through has a BIG added benefit. If you're planning on painting yourself, it masks brush marks beautifully.

Pretty granite. Consider a glazed ceramic tile in a white that matches your cabinets or a gray or blue from your counters. You can look for tiles in a fun shape budget permitting. This is a Daltile herringbone mosaic from Home Depot available in white and a couple of grays that sells for $1.99/sf. I generally prefer less grout, so I would look at their classic subway tile and their 4” square tiles as well. You will not have a lot of choices in glaze colors, so their white will either work for you or not, but Daltile is really inexpensive, good quality manufactured tile that is readily available and worth a look.