I appreciate your honest opinion. :) I’ll add pictures, but they aren’t great. I can only take screenshots of a quick video I took during another walk through we did.

Oh, gosh, it IS floor tile. I would have them re-do it. Honestly, given your time constraints, I'd just go with a standard subway tile in a neutral color and be done with it. A very light grey or white with matching grout looks like it might work. And make sure they know to make the grout lines as thin as they can, not those half-inch monstrosities like something you see in commercial tile floors.

Why are the outlets so high? I wouldn't want my coffee pot, toaster oven, etc., plugs peeping out from over the top.

They need to redo the tile. The grout spacing should be even and not crooked which means spacers were not used when they installed it. You are paying to have it installed and there was no discussion about a discount to have it installed incorrectly. Get what you paid for.

Mosaic tile from some suppliers is often incorrectly spaced or crooked. If you want the installer to correct all of those tiny little pieces when he sets, his price will go up substantially. Installation prices are based on complexity, and just cutting and setting the strips as they come from the manufacturer is the usual base standard.

Who ordered this tile and inspected it before installation? Because that was a missed opportunity to declare it defective then, before it was installed.

I think the big tiles are fine, and if you like the mosaic, that makes it fine as well.

We really didn't need the arrows! Some of those are waaaaaaay off! I would not be happy with that mosaic installation either. Fixing the really crooked squares would help a LOT.

I think the outlets are high to avoid messing up the backsplash pattern, and I think that is okay.

PS Make sure they align (level in all directions and even gaps between doors) all your cabinet/drawer fronts before you sign off, too. The uppers in both pictures are off.

I think it looks ok from a distance, and, like many small flaws in a space, you actually will become unable to see them (the smaller ones, not the first photo) once you throw in your toaster and cooking tools and all the life and clutter of actually using the space... Maybe in a few years you rip it all out in favor of near-white subway tile, but for now, if they've fixed the most egregious ones, I think I'd take it and move on to all the heart-attacks involved in actually moving in.

Weather we like the tile or not you need to get it redone with the same tile or another.

That would bother me as well.

That is maddening! Why can't they install things straight (regardless of a manufacture error of a slight tilt)? It's best to complain NOW before closing. Makes you wonder how sloppy installers are in other areas of the house. Keep a watchful eye, you ARE the one paying for the house so things should be done correctly.

Thank you all for the input! I agree, the mesh sheets should have been inspected. Unfortunately, like Karen Rose mentioned, I wasn't able to see the tile beforehand because it's a new build. Which also causes an issue with me being able to oversee quality control. ;/

I was only allowed to do a walk through when everything was pretty much done. Otherwise, I would have preferred for the outlets to be lower also.

Aesthetically, I'm going to try to color match the outlet covers to match the tile and paint them by hand so they camouflage into the wall. Because, for the outlets to be lowered would mean completely ripping out EVERYTHING and changing the position behind the actual drywall.. which I don’t think is a realistic option :(

So.. what im thinking of doing is speaking to the sales manager to see if I have the option of choosing a completely different tile that is less likely to have spacing issues. I'm really detail oriented when it comes to things being level/straight.. and I'm not sure I could get used to the mosaic tile the way it is.

I would have to agree that it's a blessing in disguise. Rip it out & put in something much better.

The poor installation could be a blessing in disguise if it means the builder will give you the option to choose a completely different backsplash. That backsplash you show - both the field tile and the pencil-tile mosaic - are quite dated. I am not trying to impose my personal taste here; we haven't see either of those style tiles for 10 years. As has been mentioned above, a standard subway tile (not glass) will go with everything and has been used as backsplashes for a hundred years so it's not going anywhere.

Not a fan of either tile and it is not playing nicely with your countertops. I too think that the outlets were placed that way because of the tile pattern chosen. I'd try to get the builder to replace it with something less busy. Congrats on the new home!

PLEASE see if those outlets can be moved. It's not just the switch plates - all appliances tend to have these big ugly black plugs.