My granite supplier advised using tile from the granite up (no granite back splash). She could have advised the other way and made a little more money, so I think she advised based on her honest opinion. I also like the "no granite back splash" look better. Just guessing, I'd say the only reason to use the 4" granite back splash would be if you weren't going to use any other back splash at all (a more low-budget option, in my opinion).

suburbanjuls: "It's like Linda Evangelista, only with a tool belt" - LOL! NorCal rates are always higher than SoCal's - we have friends there and they say I'm 'lucky'. (!) lascatx: I think you're correct - especially regarding the ceiling area. sanjuangirl: Your price is in the mid-range of what I was quoted - however, my prices are for tile installation only. The demo and hardie backer are being done by a drywall guy and my tile design is the most basic ( white subway with thin grey grout). Thanks for your good luck wishes - I'm going to need it. I feel so frazzled already and all these price variations for the same apples don't help! linelle: thanks for your input - it helps me to know what others paid.. plus I have a better ( more balanced) perspective of both "sides" , mine and the installer's. dilly_ny: Aw, sorry, I think you have me confused with someone else. I did post a pic of my cooktop area in its pre-demo days but no work has been done yet to the ceiling which used to be white. julesl: Wow! I didn't know prices could be so high in the Twin Cities :-( . Isn't it crazy to pay so much less for the tile than the actual installation? A large part of our kitchen budget has been consumed by labor costs. I know how you feel - I, too, just want it over and done with but it also bothers me that I have no idea of what a "reasonable" price is unless I call in several estimates - and that is such a time-consuming process in itself. We understand that people have to make a decent profit on the work they do and we think we are pretty generous, generally speaking, but when I get hit with such wide price swings, I feel kinda taken advantage of. ( Okay, I ended that sentence with a preposition... sigh).

Posted by budgeteer_s (My Page) on Wed, Dec 31, 08 at 18:18 Thanks for all your suggestions. I wanted so much to follow with ci_lantro's suggestion because then I'm done. I'll gladly let you snatch that paint brush out of my hand. ha ha. But at the same time if a little tiling will tie up the project, then I'm game. jodi_socal: I'm a little disappointed when you said fire and ice won't work. I just LOVE that F&I BS. But then agin, I think I know all along it's a little too much for my kitchen. Caryscott & petra: Thanks for the picture petra, it says a thousand words. Is spectralight glass tiles? Prices are pretty reasonable. What about that milk green color? will it work? maybe with some garnet pieces sparingly mixed in. I will take some pictures and post two HD Behr's paint card to aid in the discussion of color. Thanks again ALL! Correction: My tiles were Alfagres: Gema4x4: different from what caryscott posted: I loved what caryscott linked:

I live in an area that has very high real estate costs, but interestingly, it's still a regular suburban neighborhood with a bunch of mid-century ranch homes and low turnaround (or even remodeling, sigh): no one is going to recognize Fire Clay tile vs. something from HD or Lowe's. :-\ Unfortunately, once we start talking about thousands in cost, that's a huge chunk of my budget - given that, it's hard to see the sense in spending on backsplash. I forgot to mention: there's 36 sq ft needed, including overage.