lynneblack - Very nice. The mosaics are 2x2's so if I did 3 of them that would be 6". And you read my mind about the niche. I did one like that in our home, and I was thinking about doing that again. Maybe two niches, one higher for those who shower, and one low for those that don't. Would it look odd to do the first strip at the tub ajsmama - No the kitchen floor also is not ceramic. This house if very old and the joists would not be good for ceramic tiles. The large format is on the counter. Eventually in the kitchen there will be trim around the doorway that will meet the tile. The living room will be the last room to be renovated. After seeing rufinorox's pictures on the other thread, I really, really, wish I had more of the larger tiles, but my chances of finding more are slim to none. Here is a link that might be useful: rufinorox's remodel

Yes, the pic on the web looks much less white on my monitor also but the real tile does have a lot of white with more of a pale gray tinge to the white than beige - I know that different batches of tile can look different for the same tile but this seems pretty extreme. As far as slippery, I don't think I would trust it on the floor but then because my balance is poor, I probably am a bit more fearful in this area. The cof of .6 for when it's wet passes the minimum test of acceptance for a floor tile but I wouldn't use it on the floor. I don't think it would be real slippery but I still don't think it would have enough traction for most - any degree of slippery is too much IMO - though they do have that "non skid clear spray" you can coat on - Here on Amazon

I think it looked beautiful in her re-do, and not at all bathroom-y. I have a gas FP, but I would think if the fireplace is constructed correctly, the draw would pull the smoke up the chimney and not stain the surround. I have to say that the first pic above posted my nosoccermom makes my heart beat faster! Just gorgeous in that setting. And peppapoodle's light soapstone is also beautiful.

Thank you all again for your feedback. I think we decided to go with tumbled travertine in a white/beige color for the backsplash instead of the brick. Couple questions: - For a small space would you recommend small brick shaped tiles, brick shape and size tiles, or square tiles? We don't want to do the real thin tiles. -We are thinking about square porcelain floor tiles, placed in a diamond shaped pattern because we understand that will make our small kitchen appear bigger. If we do a square tile backsplash would you place them in a diamond pattern as well to match the floor pattern? -We are thinking of a medium beige color floor...the floors we have are original to the house and have to go! We can't do wood because of the way the kitchen is laid out with the rest of the house where we already have wood. Thanks in advance!