Beth, I'm sorry it took so long to reply. I'm using Westminster's Bel Sol "Sea Tones". It's the three colors in the center...light blue, light aqua and a "startlight" white color. The plan is to use these with a travertine listello. Westminster makes a listello where there's blank spaces for these glass tile inserts. I've always loved shades of blue so I'm not worried about committing to the color. I've about decided on a pale aqua blue for the ceiling and a sand color for above the chair rail. I've not picked out either paint colors yet. I'm doing Giallo Ornamental granite (think Santa Cecelia light only LIGHTER and creamier)on the vanity and using an Oceana glass sink in Crystal Reflections (the color). I hope it's as beautiful in reality as it is in my head (lol) Our color scheme sound identical :) mhollie, have you decided on a wainscoting color yet? I may be totally wrong (won't be the first time) but seems like you'd want to use the same color wainscoting as your vanity (since they'll be the same material)?? Monica

Nikkidan, There is also marble, soapstone, and a couple of others that some here on GW have used such as cement, stainless steel, and even copper. Just the large number of choices makes it kind of overwhelming at times, let alone that each one has its own unique qualities. Maybe start with thinking about what you have now and what you don't want. Think about what your budget is and what your might look good with your cabinets. I think many people do granite, which I found to have a lot of earth tones in them. Granite does hold up to many of the kitchen issues like heat, staining, etc.... I found on GW that there were many willing to use soapstone and marble too. One reason I did not look at laminate or corian was because I thought you could not use an undermount sink with them, but I could be wrong there. Maybe find some inspiration photos on line or on GW finished kitchens or think about what you like in your family/friends kitchens. I used quartz, which is somewhat heat sensitive, so no pots right off the heat. I loved marble, but for resale mostly, decided to choose between granite and quartz. Good luck and have fun with the quest for your countertop. Maybe post a pic of some of your other parts of the kitchen such as cabinets and flooring.

Thanks for your response and feedback! I was looking through some books on Green and Green homes and they had subway tiles and ceramic hex floors. To me the hex floor felt busy. I put a marble mosaic in my master. Here's what I did with 12" x 12" tiles around the outside which helped break up the 12" x 12" a bit. And I ran the mosaic in the floor of the shower too. Here's my shower. Mine is mostly enclosed with just a glass door. If you like daisies, this is what I did in my upstairs guest bath although the pattern is a bit earlier than a 1940's bungalow (I was going for an early 1920's feel although as you can see with the above master, I didn't quite keep the look): We do have square tiles in the guest bath. I guess I was trying to do a bit of a riff on the traditional look. Maybe it's not working. Thanks for the dope-slap on the daisy tile. (shoot, now I want to delete the comments on the daisy tiles but it's too late!) No don't feel bad about the daisy tile. Secret? Our house is a brand new built craftsman inspired house. One that several folks thought was an original I renovated so I must have done one or 2 things right. LOL. However, I got seduced by the same tile as you! I love that tile and a few of the other water jet patterns Do you think any of this could work? The 12x12 floor? I think you could get away with the 12" x 12" if you keep the other tile more in tune with an older style. I apologize as I think I was reacting even more to the 4 x 8 and the 12" x 12" tile laid on the diagonal. I thought the 4x8 subway was at least in keeping in the proportion of the older ones. No. That is the one that really is off. If you're going for an older look than 1940's, then stick with a 3" x 6" subway. However if you want to stick to the house era, go with a 4" x 4". To take it from the ordinary, what about playing with them by doing a half offset similar to a subway tile? Is it possible to add a marble accent that would be in keeping w/ the style? The basketweave, wicker weave and spiral mosaic I believe have been around forever. Check out Subway Mosaics too. This is the company I ordered my daisy floor from. They have different sized marble tiles too.

1930s brick home in NYC. I would do tile wainscoting. But the board and batten type you showed would be stunning as well. I have 9 bathrooms in my house. Most are just painted. We did wainscoting in two. One is porcelain tile that looks like marble with a Carrera mosaic boarder on the top. The other is bead board. But we are in an Oceanside town north of Boston. The bead board thing works here.