kgwlisa, that's exactly what I was worried about - all those cut edges. If Bill V were my tile guy, I wouldn't hesitate, but... Anyway, I think we could afford to use that tile as a field tile, but that's a LOT of green - not sure I want to use that much of such a vibrant color. As for the idea of going modern in the bath, I've thought about it, but the rest of the apartment is definitely pre-war looking and I have no plans to renovate it anytime soon, if ever. There's something I love about period-feeling baths anyway, so I think we're going to stick with that (even if BF doesn't like the English-telephone-looking tub filler/handheld, LOL!). BTW, does anyone know anything about Elements of Design fixtures? They have a ton of really beautiful period fixtures but I'm concerned about buying crap... Here's a snapshot of some tile that I taped to the bathroom wall to try to get an idea of what my original wood-look floor/white subways/glass accent might look like: I know it's a terrible picture, and unfortunately the colors aren't really true, but I really like the blue-green tiles on the right with the faux wood and white (they're much bluer in real life). They look great with chrome fixtures, too. I think I'm going to go ahead with this color combo - I just need to decide whether to use the glass tiles in mini-subway size or 1x1s. I'm also going to browse a bit more this weekend to see if I can find something similar in a ceramic tile. Wish me luck!

So has anyone seen pictures of alternatives besides a entire row of an accent tile? We have a 15 foot run that is very horizontal in nature, and I'm not that fond of having yet another horizontal line. But I REALLY would like an accent of some sort besides what is going over the stovetop in the middle. I was at the tile store today, and 1 of the employees suggested randomly dropping a skinny row of mosiac between the subway tiles. We were looking at a noce 3x6, plus a polished scabos (matches granite well, and I don't like glass) mosiac. Interjecting the mosiac seems to really go against the spirit of doing a subway, but it could give an accent. So is this mission impossible, and I should look at a more conventional tile pattern? Any other ideas?

My preference is for the tile to meet the countertop, with no 4" strip of counter on the wall. For me, the only reason I would have a 4" strip of counter on the wall is if I were not going to have any other backsplash otherwise, and wanted to protect the wall from splatters, etc. The reason why it used to be standard to have a 3-4" strip of countertop dates back to the formica days. Now that we have modern counter fabrication where a counter is cut precisely to meet the wall, with no gap, there isn't a practical reason to have the strip. But if you like the look (i.e. people like the vintagey mid-century appearance of the 4" strip), go for it. In any case, I will list the reasons why I do not like a small strip of counter on the backsplash: - you will spend a lot of effort designing a beautiful tile backsplash; why cut it short by 4". - the additional horizontal line of the 4" strip will visually make the space between your counter and upper cabinets look smaller and more cramped - the 4" backsplash creates a small "ledge" which collects dust. Oy, yet one more thing to clean. - you will be charged for the material and installation for the 4" backsplash; money that you may have preferred to spend elsewhere. This is all MHO. If you simply like the look, get what YOU want.

@nadianyc - Thanks, the kitchen is not done yet, hence no "reveal" thread. The vent hood is by Prestige. It comes highly recommended from the Appliances forum and moves a crazy amount of air. I bought it from AJ Madison - it's an insert. They have two versions - one where the fans are installed on the vent hood and another where they are installed in line with the ducting. The second version is much quieter but I've had bad luck with fans installed in a hot place (attic) so I went with the regular model instead. If you want the cabinets to be completely flat on the front as ours are you need to either bump the uppers outward or make them deeper than normal because the depth of the insert is 14-15 inches if I remember correctly. I bought the tiles at a local distributor (Palmetto Tile Distributors) but they are readily available online, even on Ebay with free shipping.