I now need a backsplash and with our granite and countertops its looking a bit more modern than the transitional look I hoped to convey, so I am thinking of adding classic subway tile. I am drawn to the 2x4 glass ones but open to all suggestions- I would love to see yours!
Thanks again:)

There's another thread going on, a request for wood kitchen images. Yours belongs there, to inspire others. You can join leela4 there!

If you'd like to see more of my kitchen, I have provided a link.

HTH, Petra

Do you have a shot from a little further out so I can see the overall look (and color)?

Also, are you in the US or Canada. And how long ago did you buy them.

LOVE it.

The TEC Pearl color grout has lightened since we took these pictures four months ago. This was taken about two weeks after the grout install in not very good lighting.

I never get tired of seeing subway tiled backsplashsssssss!! So I am REALLY enjoying EVERYONES pictures....Keep 'em coming!

My Crema Marfil Tumbled Marble 2x4 brick mesh

KA:)

sink wall:

baking area wall:

cooktop wall (mosaic tile not from Menard's):

Here's my contribution. 2x4" marble that had been on a mess but I cut them apart to install in the herringbone pattern. I have to say I love it every morning when I make my coffee:)

Shelayne, I really think the 1/2 way up treatment in those trim pieces is beautiful. I love the wall color too.

Fivefootzero, I remember seeing your bunny tray last year and thought that it was the best "behind the stove" design ever. But I forgot who's it was and mistakenly remembered it as Lavender Lass'. I think you chose to best marble tiles, very nice.

Melissaster, love your straight up herringbone very pretty color and inserts too. I am thinking of a floor in that style for my BR remodel to carry the squared look from my kitchen 12X12 running bond into the BR.

Angie, I would think the straight up herringbone would be easier to install, because you are always working at right angles to the counter and walls. The tipped herringbone is a lot of cutting at 45 degrees, but it was very fun to do!

You know, the FKB should be set up by elements like this.

LRY511, I love the subtle details on your BS!! I don't think I have seen your kitchen before.

Nancy

Thank you...
My counter is Delicatus White aka Alaska..

shelayne..They may be "elcheapo" but your backsplash is so pretty..Still wishin' and hoping' to see the entire kitchen...

KA:)

shelayne - deely-pops?, must be a new decorating term.:)

deely bops! ;) :p

KA, I never get tired of pics of your beautiful kitchen--love LOVE that rock! I plan to post pics, soon. DH is doing a seriously ugly patch-job right now that is smack dab in the center of things.

The color always looks a little off in photos with flash. It's actually lighter than the cabinets, and less beige than it appears here.

This is an in progress but you can see the tiles and the wide grout line easier in this picture than far away. I specifically didn't want the tiles to be exactly the same, much like a slab of marble. Each tile has variations in tone from the center to the outside, and then even those have some variation between each other.

I liked it so much I put it in my closet heh heh

IRL the richness of the honey and crackle finish is so lovely. It's a very soft look that really does compliment the types of honey gold you see running through granite.

Your fat grout lines look great and you chose the color wisely. I think the over exaggerated lines do the same thing ultra thin lines do--violate the standard expectations of what something should look like, so it looks intentional and interesting. Quarry tiles of the earlier 20th century were set like that.

Francoise - where did you get your grout, the color looks great. It's shows up nicely, but not extreme contrast. Thanks!

Maybe a better picture would help:


Again, not every manufacturer offers these, but most of the higher-end ones will.

For grout I used TEC in the color Pearl.
Because of the width of my grout lines,
the tile store and my contractor recommended
a blend of 50% sanded and 50& unsanded
to give the grout lines the body they needed to hold,
but not be too sandy.
It has worked well so far -- going on six months.

Personally, I avoided the tile-end question altogether by just tiling the bajeezus outta my kitchen all the way around, and it only ends when it hits the wood of door or window trim, so no bullnosing necessary. That's always another option!

francoise - is pearl the same as Mobe pearl, and what does TEC stand for? And what was your grout width. I love your kitchen, btw! Thanks!

Thanks for the kitchen complements -- you are very sweet!

I am not sure what TEC stands for in TEC brand grout.

Here is a picture of the grout container:

I suspect that "pearl" will be a bit different from one brand to the next.

I think my grout lines are 1/8th. My 2'' by 3'' tiles came as as fix mosaic sheet, not as individual tiles.

~boxerpups

Anyhoo, the honey colored tiles above are from Status Ceramics, a Seattle company. All of their tiles are custom or, hand made, so you get the glaze variations etc. But that's why I loved them. While they are wide set, they are perfect for a super close line as well. I actually debated both options. Our tile guy (a tile snob if you have ever met one LOL) loved the quality and was impressed at the efforts they made on the tile body as well as the glaze so that they were really perfect for any type of application.

They do a bullnose as well as a half tile for applications like mine that end in the open. Because it's a hand painted ceramic, you can't put a cut end out in the open because the finish would not be baked through the tile (so you'd see a raw edge).

My first order with them was before they had a "honey" color which added painfully to the cost, but they ended up producing that color when we did the second order (contractor issues) so the price went down significantly.

I wish I could use status tiles in this house but we are sticking to historically appropriate so I have to look elsewhere. But I would recommend them to anyone!

By the way, for those considering crackle finish, you do have to apply a sealer on those tiles. We have only done it once in 3 years and it's in perfect shape, but it's something I didn't know when I was tile shopping.

Part of the reason I LOVE subway tile is my many years spent riding the NYC subway system; I love both the field tile and the mosaic signage at each station, which, if my memory hasn't failed me, was done in a Navy blue, that was kind of an intense cobalt blue to me. As an artist, this kind of thing always spoke to me. . . goofy,I know. Almost every apartment I lived in had subway tile and mosaic tile in it, usually in the bathroom or kitchen, sometimes entries and hallways, though that was way less common.

You all have lovely kitchens; enjoy them!