Counters and backsplashes

[Anonymous]

Redoing the kitchen. White cabinets, wood floor.

I CANNOT decide on counters and backsplash. I’ve browsed houzz and all of that and nothing really speaks to me. DH likes VERY colorful and busy backsplashes and I know I don’t like those. But I’m struggling to find a compromise with a little bit of color but not too busy.

House is from the early 90s, so I feel like we can’t go too modern. I generally like more classic simple styles.

Please send pics!

[Anonymous]

This is a tough one. I think it's all about making a choice that works with your countertops and cabinets so without knowing those it's hard to advise you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is a tough one. I think it's all about making a choice that works with your countertops and cabinets so without knowing those it's hard to advise you.

Cabinets are white. I haven’t decided the countertop yet - I know the 2 go hand in hand!

[Anonymous]

I love white brick backsplashes. They’re almost timeless and not too busy but not boring.

[Anonymous]

Pick a nice stone and use it for both counter and backsplash.

[Anonymous]

What color wood floors?

For countertops vs backsplash, pick one to be busy. The other should not be.

I’d pick countertop first. So many choices of backsplash.

[Anonymous]

Actually, most designers advise that you install countertops before choosing a backsplash, unless you are using counter material as the backsplash. We did not heed that advice because we wanted to get the kitchen done faster and luckily it worked out well. We chose a quartzite with some movement and depth and a neutral tile. The counters receive direct light while the backsplash does not, so that is why you are advised to wait on the backsplash. Go to some tile shops and look around to see what you like.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Pick a nice stone and use it for both counter and backsplash.

That’s my recommendation when you can’t decide and how I convinced DH to drop his weird ideas about colorful tile backsplashes. There must be a Pinterest for Men somewhere where they get these ideas stuck in their heads.

If you’re brave, choose a more patterned slab for the counters and backsplash that picks up your cabinet colors and has a contrasting color. Run it all the way up to the base of the cabinets. I love @heidicallierdesign and she does this a lot in kitchens.

[Anonymous]

I feel like you get one pattern: counters or backsplash. So if you do a pattern on the counter your backsplash should be more solid and vice versa.

Have you looked at the tiles from Tilebar or Cole? They have several options that are slight variations of the same color, like a blue with lots of green but sort of a different proportion of each color from tile to tile. From pictures it seems like it's cohesive yet more interesting than tiles of a more uniform color.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I feel like you get one pattern: counters or backsplash. So if you do a pattern on the counter your backsplash should be more solid and vice versa.

Have you looked at the tiles from Tilebar or Cole? They have several options that are slight variations of the same color, like a blue with lots of green but sort of a different proportion of each color from tile to tile. From pictures it seems like it's cohesive yet more interesting than tiles of a more uniform color.

We did a beautiful light blue backsplash tile (handmade in California) with a granite counter top. Lots of complements on it.

[Anonymous]

Can you describe your space? It makes a difference. My favorite countertop is black granite, honed. However that wouldn’t have worked as well in our space.

Our kitchen has low ceilings and a skylight and a large double island between the kitchen and large vaulted ceiling family. A dark color like black would have been too heavy for the island..which actually connects to a wall so it couldn’t be a different color. Black would have visually split the vertical space not giving more height illusion.

We went with a white quartz with a thin blue vein fr both counters and backsplash. I was shocked at how much bigger the kitchen looked afterwards. We also mounted our cabinets higher to give more space under them and chose a size that went to the ceiling.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Can you describe your space? It makes a difference. My favorite countertop is black granite, honed. However that wouldn’t have worked as well in our space.

Our kitchen has low ceilings and a skylight and a large double island between the kitchen and large vaulted ceiling family. A dark color like black would have been too heavy for the island..which actually connects to a wall so it couldn’t be a different color. Black would have visually split the vertical space not giving more height illusion.

We went with a white quartz with a thin blue vein fr both counters and backsplash. I was shocked at how much bigger the kitchen looked afterwards. We also mounted our cabinets higher to give more space under them and chose a size that went to the ceiling.

Color is magic, especially black!

We have a mountain house in the west with classic a-frame lines and lots of reflected light from the snow. The kitchen was white and pine, and felt like a vast expanse of space because there was no contrast, and it made it feel cold and unwelcoming.

We put in black honed granite counters and backsplashes and it grounded everything in place and made the room feel bigger and cozier at the same time.

[Anonymous]

We did a large remodel a few years ago. My husband is an architect and he steered me away from the busy backsplashes that would be dated quickly. We have white Shaker style cabinets, a large island with blue cabinets on both sides. The island is 5 x 9 so there is a ton of storage. The countertop on the island is a white quartzite with gray veining. The sink is in the island as is the dishwasher. The countertops for the rest of the kitchen are black honed granite and the backsplash behind the cooktop is a blue subway tile with white grout in a herringbone pattern. The pattern gives visual interest but isn’t so busy.

[Anonymous]

Can you compromise with DH and keep the backsplash neutral but add his color through accessories?

[Anonymous]

We have white cabinets to the ceiling. Porcelain gray tile floor. White Dekton counter top and white Dekton backsplash.