I love the yellow. It's perfect (if you like yellow).

Do you NEED a backsplash all over? I would put it just behind the range because everything is so perfectly balanced.

I don’t have a tile recommendation, but just wanted to say your kitchen is beautiful! And don’t let anyone talk stink about your chickens! Too cute!

why don't you put a patterned color tile. kitchen is large enough and the hood will dominate if you don't add some pattern or color around there at eye level. almost any color will work with the yellow and white .it should be easy to find something inspiring that you love and not just white. even just a simple blue and white pattern. can you get to a tile store? just browse around w no preconceived ideas and see what you like. You can put in many different things here. pretty space !!!

@Fori, I hadn't considered just tiling behind the stove. I'll have to think about that as it would definitely be less work! It is 30", the hood is 36" and the space between the windows is bigger than that. Would you tile window to window, just below the hood or just above the range?

@rebunky, thank you for the kind words. I do like my chickens, so they'll not go anywhere until I do. ;)

@herbflavor, I'm not opposed to a patterned color tile, but I don't have a clue as to what might look good. I have a hard time visualizing whether a pretty tile will look good on the wall. In my previous house, I can't even count how many times I brought home a sample of the "perfect tile" only to realize it would look horrible on the walls! (I'm pretty sure I've seen those exact tiles posted on Houzz with a "help, how do I fix this?" title! HA!) I haven't had good luck with the only tile store near me, so I'm left with big box stores and online.

I think I'd take it straight down from the hood. The windows have such pretty trim it would be a shame to impose on it. But DO mess around with taping paper to the walls and see what actually looks better.

I was thinking a calm monochromatic tile would be appropriate but a focal point in a yellow kitchen with chickens can support something more exciting...I can't be the only one thinking majolica-ish...

I feel like a closeup of a chicken is in order.

First of all love your kitchen. It’s rich. It’s classic. It’s timeless. It rlly is beautiful.
Regarding yellow paint. Don’t mean to be rude. It’s not my thing. But, for someone who’s doing a yellow this is a good yellow to work with lol.
Tile is hard. I will say if you keep the yellow. ( assuming you love it and hubby wants it out) stay white. You can do textured. A cool shape. Something fun. Even a bigger subway will look good. I would do it fully. Don’t stop midway. Go to the ceiling with it. If you remove the yellow then! You have an opportunity to go a little less typical

Do both the range wall and sink wall ALL TILE. Just below the cabs on sink wall, paint above cabs. You really have very little wall to cover. Whoever does it, make sure they have A LOT of experience.

@Fori, I wish I had the nerve to try Majolica-ish tiles, but I don't have confidence in my tile selection abilities to do that. The chickens are easy to move if they don't look good, but tile....that is a beast to remove. Up-close photos of the chickens will be posted later today. LOL!

@HU-187528210, actually I'm the one second-guessing the yellow paint. I don't dislike it, I just wasn't' sure if it coordinated with the cabinets. My husband likes it. (Well, I'm not sure if he really likes the color or if he really doesn't want to paint!)

@mamamocha, when we were first building I planned to tile the entire wall. After living with it for almost 2 years I started to rethink that plan. This will be a DIY project, so we don't have a LOT of experience. We are pretty good at tiling though. We can probably do a better job than some of the "professionals" in our area. We are just S...L...O...W! Most of the time is spent planning (and replanning) where to start the tile to minimize slivers, etc.

@Janet Campbell, I have thought of just keeping the paint, but it is getting pretty dirty behind the stove. If I keep the paint, we will need to repaint it since we let the builder talk us into using flat paint everywhere.

I agree with doing tile just behind stove. Your trim is beautiful so you don't want it obscured by tile. Also straight down from hood so again no cutting around trim. Not confident just keep the color palette you have now yellow & white. Then down the road if you tire of the yellow (my favorite color but I did tire of it at the 10 year mark) lots of colors will work.

Very nice kitchen

wonderful

great

I had a friend with a similar problem - she just couldn’t decide on a backsplash. In the end , she put a piece of mirror behind the stove. It reflected the light and was super easy to clean. Plus, easier to install than tile!😊

Lol. I’d redo it than. If your doubting something go with your gut.

Figure out the tile then decide where to put it. Look at Tilebar.com and you can view it in your room before you order samples. I'd start under their Subway tile as they have lots of different options. And if the yellow walls have a chance of being repainted, I would get a tile you love rather if it goes with the yellow or not.

Penny tile would look great with it. I'd recommend doing it as backsplash around your kitchen then up behind your stove, that way it's all tied together.
have fun!😁

very nice. Since everything is solid, you can totally do something w/some design or texture.

I'd like to see the entire wall tile around the stove and windows. Although, w/the gap, I'd have to relook at that option. Is there any way you can do a higher crown of some type of filler to close the gap justabove the cabinets on the left wall and above the fridge?

you see how they have this thick crown/filler to go to the ceiling?

they did a type of nickel gap panel on this country kitchen:

Anyway, as far as tile selection, you could easily do a design like the herringbone, shown above,

or, something like these

the off-set 4x4 in a handmade look tile. These are from Winchester Tiles.

I also like these embossed types of tiles. You could do the entire space behind the stove, and a matching color in a regular subway elsewhere:

Winchester tiles under Artisan

https://www.winchestertiles.com/details?product=W.CLHA1004

Tilebar has an Arabesque you might like under the Byzantine collection.

take a look over here (you get 5 samples for $5) and see what you like. they have many 9x9 patterned tiles, embossed, handmade look, etc.

https://www.tilebar.com/backsplash-styles

I also think doing a 4x4 Zellige tile would look fantastic. CleTile. I think this one is Rice Paper

I also think you could do a patterned tile. Walker Zanger has this one

and the white is a Zellige, weathered white subway.

or you could choose just to do the stove area and a 2x8 subway tile (in a blue gray or white) everywhere else

you could do a soft blue tile and take it up even w/the crown on your cabinets and window molding. just stop it there.

and it's fine to take the tile up to the ceiling and above the cabinets where that gap is.

I have a sample of this Nabi Jewel in the natural. see if you like this one. I think it would be very pretty and work well in your kitchen

https://www.tilebar.com/nabi-jewel-natural-white-polished-ceramic-tile.html

First, I love your kitchen. If you keep the yellow, you don’t need a backsplash. It might make sense to use a better paint (I.e. not flat) if you ever repaint. But I like the arabesque shape if you think you’d like a tiled wall. It’s interesting but subtle. If you’re not in the mood to pick a tile and install it, just leave your kitchen as is. It’s quite adorable and yellow is a HAPPY color. I had one in my last house.

@Fori, I'm a day late, but as promised, here is an up-close of the chickens. When I placed my cabinet order, I thought they would go to the ceiling. The chickens are there to remind me a) to double-check the details; b) 96" does not equal 9 ft. LOL!

@Janet Woods, the mirror would be much easier than installing tile, but that would rely on a 3rd party to measure/cut the mirror. It has been 2 years since I had my bathroom measured for mirrors and I'm still waiting for an estimate. Ok, I gave up and stopped "waiting", but you get the point. LOL!

@tedbixby, good point. I will not let the paint color dictate the tile. We always paint our own walls, so I think of it as cheap & easy. Not necessarily FUN, but definitely cheap and easy. :)

@Nicole Evans, I looked at penny tile. My main concern with it is whether it is difficult to cut such tiny tiles in a straight line. This will be a DIY tile job, so I'm trying to minimize ways of potential errors!

@RedRyder, thanks for the compliments. I like the arabesque shape. I wonder how challenging they are to cut? I might have to get a sample and try cutting it to know if it is automatically out due to difficulty to work with.

@Beth H. :, thank you so much for the examples! Those are very much the style I like. As for the cabinets, I'd love to add filler/trim to the ceiling. I thought that is what I was ordering, but apparently didn't do a good enough job checking the details! I checked Kraftmaids website 2 years ago when the cabinets were installed and didn't see a solution. However, I checked again last night and see where they sell Large Cove Molding and Traditional Valance which is what I think I'd need. I might check on prices to see if that is an option. That would also give me an opportunity to purchase a trim piece for the bottom of the cabinets to hide the lights. Two questions though: How hard is it to remove the existing crown molding without damaging the cabinets? I'm assuming the crown would likely be too damaged to reuse, but I'd hate to damage new cabinets. Do you think this would be a fairly simple DIY project, or would this require a professional for the install?

I was thinking about buying some removable wallpaper to install for a test run to help determine where I should start/stop the tile. This would give me the opportunity to live with it for a few days while deciding on a tile selection. Has anyone used it before? Does it damage the sheetrock?

Why not get some craft paper and blue tape it on rather than the wallpaper?

becky, removing the crown shouldn't be too difficult. all of mine was removed when I painted mine. they're held down by thin finishing nails.

I kinda like the chickens better than some empty molding. :) I'd rather see a drywall soffit painted yellow. Unless it does bug you of course.

I've used peel and stick wall murals and death stars (and yes, tie fighters and x-wings) and they all peel off just dandy. I think wallpaper would be just as good but I haven't tried it.

I’m with tedbixby- use craft paper and painters tape. Removable wallpaper is more expensive, and you intend to trash it anyway!

I've spent the last week processing all the advice I've been given. As I was starting to order tile samples, I realized not all of the tiles have trim pieces. Does that mean those tiles are a NO-GO if I only tile directly behind the stove or up to cabinet height on that wall? Or, do folks use Schulter edges to trim a backsplash? I've never seen it used that way, but maybe that is common? Also, I noticed a lot of the tile that I like is on the thicker size (3/8"). How would that look next to my window trim especially if I decide to tile the entire wall. The boards used for my window trim are 3/4" boards, which I assume is a nominal dimension and the trim is actually just shy of that.

Shluter edges are very common. No worries on that

When I see your kitchen I think French Country.

Cherry Creek French Country · More Info

Schluter trim is common. That doesn't mean it looks good. It's fine in modern or contemporary spaces where a little industrial vibe works, but I think it would look like **** in a classy traditional kitchen like yours. Please don't do it. I'd rather see a piece of painted wooden molding.

I select tile based on the trim pieces I need. It can be quite limiting. I've used Fireclay and Pratt & Larson because they have a huge catalog of trim pieces available. You don't need that many choices for a backsplash but please don't do tacky Schluter.

Don't bury your window trim in tile, either. :)