I think the chances of you ripping out your tile are really slim unless it was a bad installation. Less expensive tile may be more difficult to install if it is uneven and not flat but not ALL less expensive tile has those problems. You might hear some talk about how the glazes are thinner on less expensive tile or something like that but honestly I have never seen even the cheapest white 4x4 look bad. If there are water issues (ie problem with installation) then the tile might fall off the wall or something, and of course grout seems to get grungy over time, but I've never seen a problem with the actual tile itself. With that in mind I had no problem going with extremely inexpensive tile from the big box stores. My home depot has a kohler display that has finish samples of their various finishes, including polished nickel. It's not a full faucet, just metal "buttons" to show the different finishes, but maybe yours has this thing too so you can at least see what it looks like. I think you would find that around here the opinion of delta and moen are quite different - they are not the best and in fact if you buy them at the big box stores they may be among the worst (moen in particular I have read has two lines of faucets - one for big box and one for other stores). If you find a faucet you love, post to ask about the brand here and people will tell you what they know.

Thanks everyone! If you look at the unbrushed light you'll see it takes on the yellow hue of my cabinets and wall paint. The original finish was so shiny and mirror like, it reflected everything. NOT what I wanted. The brushed finish is truly silver and lovely. @brickeyee, I did notice that when I brushed the top curved part, after a while it would take on the red color of the abrasive ball. Perhaps the plating was thinner there? It was in an inconspicuous spot. After that I took care to brush a little lighter. @fouramblues and redlover I saw the exact pendants on shades of light ($319 each) and found them much cheaper on Bellacor ($220). They are a few inches smaller though, but the larger ones are too big for island pendants IMO. The cage part on mine are about 11W x 14H, add about 6H for the curved part. Bellacor also carries the larger size for $309. Oh and I saved 10% by using the code CAP10 so they were actually $198 each. If you look at the site they have 4 on clearance for $121.97!!!! That wasn't offered when I bought mine and I would have been all over that!!! It says re clearance items.....Find the biggest mark-downs in Bellacor's Clearance Center. Items have been returned and inspected/verified to be in new condition. Due to the substantial price reduction that is offered through the Bellacor Clearance center, items purchased on clearance are not returnable. Product warranties may apply; contact us for complete details. Worth a look. Here is a link to the pendants.... Here is a link that might be useful: Capital Lighting Fixture Company Midtown Polished Nickel One-Light Lantern Pendant on Bellacor

bumping this up. Anyone out there who's actually done what I'm proposing? My California migrated lighting designer-who's helped me immensely on many kitchen design issues, is a bit more of a purist on finishes. My notes of our early discussion show he suggested hardware in satin or stainless steel for their sheen but not brushed nickel which is more matte. Antique nickel, brass, antique (aged) bronze etc was also high, polished nickel not so much. Also, I recently saw a "what's new in 2013 kitchens" and it said popular hardware are satin, orb, some brass, but not seeing as much polished. If you know of a "bright" satin cabinet hardware maker, please do share. A lot might depend on the base metal in the collection. :/ Thanks again.

I am really sorry that some of you have had issues with quality on Visual Comfort products. I would love to know which retailer you are dealing with. You see, I am the Director of Product Development for Visual Comfort. We do have occasional quality issues which we deal with promptly. Like any company which strives to bring great design at an affordable price to everyone; we are only as good as our quality and know it. I am aware of the issues that have been mentioned here - but the struggle to get satisfaction is not part of how we operate. We stand behind our products FOREVER. Someone mentioned that our prices have gone up 4x in some period of time. This is untrue. We have been operating since 1987 and we have had only two price increases. In fact, we are the most copied designer lighting line and I make sure our originals are priced better than the cheap copies. Shades sometimes fail; glass sometimes breaks; occasionally we ship the wrong item. The world has voted. We are considered the best; and it isn't because we send junk and don't support our customers. If any of you have issues, feel free to send me an email. cneal@visualcomfort.com