Nothing wrong with that at all.

One of the functions of splash is to keep water which might be on the countertop away from the sheetrock which is easily damaged by water. If no sink then not an issue.

Well...water will pool at the intersection of the counter and gyp board vertical wall...after a while it may seep through and begin to deteriorate the gyp board. Plus, since painted gyp board is soft, any hard hits by, say, a pot or pan my penetrate the paint finish and leave the white gyp board visible, and vulnerable to water.

A painted gyp board back splash is simply not a good idea for a lasting backsplash.

Have you consided tempered glass? Or stainless steel? Or...?

Do you have anything there right now, like a three inch (or so) piece of your countertop material? If so, that’s your backsplash!

I was definitely picturing the counter top having a piece at the back that goes a couple of inches up the wall, like Sammy described.

Having the counter going straight into the drywall at the corner would be a bad idea like the others said.

Protect the area behind your range, hopefully you have counter top material to add the little back as has been done in this picture.

It will be harder to keep clean and dry, but if that's OK with you, go ahead. If you don't like a traditional tile, you could use a piece of metal, like stainless steel, or get tiles (in ceramic or glass) that are large enough that they don't give you a "tiled backsplash" feeling.

Or...have you considered solid core laminate? As said ^^^ the wall behind your range top will definitely need some sort of protection better than paint on gyp board.

I only have tile behind my range. The rest is BM Aura paint in matte finish. It is completely scrubbable paint as advertised and I don’t have a single issue. i have a window behind my sink so water is not a problem.

My mom has the same thing bit she put a very low (1 or 1.5 inch) piece of her countertop along the back. It looks great and much preferable to the typical 4 inch high ones.

My countertop goes right to the drywall, not even the 4'. I love it that way. I've had it for 4 years now. No problem what so ever. The wall is painted with washable BM. I hope you can see it in the picture. It's a little dark.

My kitchen had BM matte paint in Thyme green on all the walls including behind the cooktop. You can see it is behind the sink as well as a 36" gas cooktop, built in deep fat fryer and the entire baking area and coffee bar. It was still perfect except for one tiny ding in the sheetrock behind the cooktop. We scrubbed that paint for 11 years !! It was amazing and never needed touching up. We had a bead of caulk along the wall between the teak on that part of the kitchen and between the soapstone on the rest. There isn't ever water pooling or any other problems. GO for it !! TIme less and SO much less costly than tile.

http://s63.photobucket.com/user/41455/library/Final%20kitchen%20pictures?sort=3&page=1

Our kitchen has the 4" backsplash. When we (finally) took down the wallpaper and painted, we also painted above the backsplash. 10 years later, I'm noticing a little wear behind the cooktop. Fortunately, I'm thinking about a new color for paint, and I DON'T have to match a tile.

Agreed with above. Until a year ago, I have never had a backsplash. I washed the painted wall when it needed it and painted it when I wanted to change color. Simple

For decades, vinyl coated wallpaper was used above the 4” backsplash. It added visual interest and was easier to keep clean than paint. Tile or stainless was usually used behind stoves or oil-based enamel paint that was very scrubable.

It's not called a backSPLASH for nothing.

Who splashes so violently while prepping for food? A few spots of occasional splash can easily be washed with wet paper towel. If the countertop is leveled properly, water doesn't run to the wall. It stays in place until you wipe it up. I had done three kitchens in my life time. Withe first first two, I reluctantly agreed to a backsplash. The last one, I stood my ground and no regrets so fa. If I don't have regrets for four years, I doubt it will change much. I like the clean/plain look without a backsplash. I did the same in one of the bathrooms. That was six years ago. Again no regrets.

Snowcountry - is that a solid wood countertop? No problems with the edges around the sink? It looks great

" Who splashes so violently while prepping for food? "

It's not the prepping that causes the splashing.......it's the washing (cookware or hands) in the sink, or it's the sputtering of water/oil/sauce and the accumulation of scented steam when you cook. it's just a way to make clean up easier, but for those who are willing to " scrub....[the] paint " then they won't care.

I don't have to scrub. Oil splashes somewhat. My range has a backsplash thingy.

@Gargamel Thank you. Yes, solid walnut, wide plank. Inverted cove molding around the sink. They chalked it. There hasn't been any problem. I wipe it down after use. I wipe water off around the sink anyway.

What finish is on the wood, snowcountry? Your counters are beautiful.

Thank you. It's natural finish with oil. I think it's a mixture of tung oil like substance and wax. Food safe. During the first year, I had to apply the oil once a month to protect the wood. Now they are well seasoned and I do it maybe once a year if that.

Thank you.

Have you ever made a pumpkin pie? My old KA has those pouring/splatter shields, but I still find pinhead-size splatters on my backsplash for days after I make one. Yes, I AM careful to keep the speed low! Splatters happen...

You know, Anglophilia, I've always only had a 4" splash, but I've never yet found anything that a good wipe wouldn't remove from paint. The one time I rented a place where the previous tenants had evidently used a slingshot to splat grease on the walls for years, a quick repaint took care of it. Took about two hours total. One to prime, then another next day to paint.

ETA and I cook a lot with stainy stuff like turmeric, too.

So it sounds like it all comes down to personal preference. Some people feel like a full backsplash is necessary, others don't.

Do whatever suits you and let others do what suits them.

A 3" or 4" tile or other material is a "splash". It's simply not a full height splash.

Take your pick.

My parents' kitchen, which they did in the 90s, only has a lip of granite that goes up a few inches, then normal painted wall. Stove has a full-height granite backing behind it that goes up to the range hood. Kitchen has been the same since and the lack of the all-the-way-to-cabinets backsplash has literally never been a problem.

I'll be redoing the kitchen in my Victorian and looking at historical kitchens and butler pantries, all the backsplash back then was beadboard, so that's what I'll use. It's also cheap as dirt.

I have no backsplash and no short backsplash - just Behr ultra paint...Quick wipe all done and no issues near the sink - going on 11 years now.

Do what makes you happy!

Of course, do what makes you happy. But use some common sense, and make your decisions on how you cook, use your kitchen, and your preferences for maintenance--ongoing and periodic.