I'll try to get a better picture after work. But really, you'd want to go take a look at the tile in person at HD. The overall coloring is white and gray, but there are plenty of other colors in there, as well. Ivory, brown, even some red and blue. About 60% of the marble is split-face, the rest are polished. I'm guessing the max depth variance to be about a 1/16" The overall surface is quite rough, so I would not want it near a stove where it could get spattered with grease. I did manage to splash Au Jus from Italian Beefs all over it without it being sealed. It cleaned right up with a damp kitchen towel. Same thing with some blueberry smoothie. I'm guessing a soft bristled brush would work well for difficult spots and the occasional dusting (as I imagine it will capture a lot of dust).

Thanks again everyone! Yesterday I ran out to Pier 1 and found these ceramic canisters to add some pop to the countertop. I really love them! I got a small and medium one. I don't think I need 3 canisters on the counter. What are your thoughts on the following? I was thinking of getting this serving bowl for the island to put fruit in: Or this one: Using one of the plates from the collection to put the salt/pepper/spices on: or this one: Then possibly in the corner near the toaster put this pitcher with some flowers in it? In the window area, I am still torn between keeping the tall green vase, or putting these small vases (with small flowers in them) there and doing a faux roman shade or valance: I really love this fabric for a possible valance or shade: I don't want too much red b/c the other areas have more green, and I think of Christmas when I see a lot of red and green. And, I think I will re-visit the tile tattoos again and do a row along the bottom of the tile, where the tile meets the countertop. Either green or taupe, only if I do not do the shade or valance (I am generally a neutral girl so this is a big step having all this color in my kitchen!) Am I going overboard now?

I agree that tin tiles is a fun idea. I personally love the look of glass mosaic and think your kitchen would provide a great palette for that. They come in 12x12 sheets and really shouldn't be too dreadful to install; especially with all the great support and info on this forum. I've seen Bill help a number of people and he's always been very specific and DIY user friendly. I've also checked out the John Bridge site and they seem very helpful over there. When I finally get to that exciting point (someday in this lifetime I hope!) I definitely plan to use them I would love to see a couple of different options in there but it was so hard to pick from the susan jablon site that I figured I should send you the site and let you play around. Here is a link that might be useful: endless tile options.

Sorry for the delayed response - I saw online one of our neighbors a few houses down has a small octagon back splash - it is grayish / cream in color like natural stone. Looked pretty nice from what I could see - would something like that work with my current colors? I like the wall color, but i'm always afraid of clashing between the tan granite and the gray walls. I'd also eventually like to rip out the linoleum flooring and either re-finish the hard wood floor underneath or lay down tile - so either way i'm trying to look long-term. Something that will work with the current floor, and future (wood or tile).