Thanks Francois47 and Marita40. I'm starting to think it must have been a N.W. thing. Our upstairs bathroom still has the 2x6 subway tiles and I read somewhere online that old houses (they may have been referring to victorian kitchens though?) had 2x6 tiles only. Just tried to find that link but couldn't. Either way, if you're sure 3x6 is what the old homes originally had on the East coast/midwest, then the 2x6 thing must have been either a West coast thing or a NW thing, I guess! It's pretty interesting, learning about some of this regional stuff. All the 1913 houses of our entire neighborhood have (mostly) the same floors if oak: they're asian white oak and the story goes that they all washed up on the NW coast one year due to some natural disaster of a reason (Earthquake?)...something that happened in Asia (just across the ocean from us). Most of our houses also have incredibly gorgeous old-growth fir (I suppose that would be the same on the East coast?) cause when they used the wood from here at that time there was a major abundance of very old forests. :( Poor forests...

I have not done this, so I do not know the peculiarities of cutting marble, but would it not be possible for you to buy 6x6 pieces of marble tile, rent a stone/tile cutter and slice them into 3 2x6 tiles yourself, at a much smaller cost than having it done? I believe you can rent one at a big box store or specialty tool rental company by the day or a small number of days. It's a messy, messy tool -- it uses a spray of water to keep the dust and friction heat down, so you'd need to use it outside. The rectified corners make it possible to use the pieces interchangeably, unlike a tile with rounded corners, where they would not match. As I recall the backsplash area in your house is not vast, so you would not be cutting forever. I think Circuspeanut cut 6x6 ceramic tiles in half to get subways for her beautiful, buttery kitchen. I don't know if it's any different cutting marble though -- it's a soft stone and the blades are very sharp. It would take some time, you might break/chip a few tiles, so there would be some losses (and some you could hide with grout or use in less noticeable places, like right up under the cabinets). But at least you wouldn't be paying for someone else's labor. I would let the tile setter know that this is what you were planning, and at least get his quote on the work. He or she might decide that they'd rather use tiles they cut themselves and give you a good price on that part of the project, just to make sure they have a good product in their hands. I would not just cut them and spring it on them. Or you might even find out that, once you rent the tools and start breaking tiles and give up your Saturday, that their rate is actually very reasonable. Good luck!

That kitchen has always been one of my favorites. I think it's on the Sub Zero website and I've seen it called "Hot Chocolate". I LOVE the way they did those tiles. Just wondering if some of the effect might be lost if it's just behind the range. I don't know the answer to that, just something to think about. Maybe if you draw out in pencil the 6X12 shape you'll get a better feel. I hope you go for it. I'm considering it for my backsplash!! I love "oversized" elements and my range wall has no upper cabs on it. Just flanked by 2 windows.

The surface of the concrete must be prepared. You have a finish with texture. You are not preparing a "slab" you are removing and then preparing a 'finished' floor (which happens to be concrete). Prepared means: FREE of *contaminants (wax, polyurethane, epoxy, chemical stains, old adhesive, paint, etc). Whatever the "finish" is, it MUST come off (mechanical grinding is favoured over chemical stripping). FLAT= which means any texture that is getting in the way of "flat" must be remedied (mechanical grinding + self leveling are favoured over any other form of "preparation" when it comes to concrete prep). Now that you have fresh, clean, smooth, prepared surface...you are READY to begin the application of EXTRA large format tiles. I would expect a $3-$5/sf prep. Then cost of materials and labor for installing tiles will be extra. This will be a magnificent floor with a magnificent price tag for both prep and install. Extra large format are VERY special. And VERY special needs VERY expensive preparation.