Definitely need a wider-angle shot. But I will say that the paint looks purpleish on my monitor too (I love purple, but not sure I'd want it in the kitchen).

I love that grey! It makes the top row of tile look awesome.

And yes, many greys have a purple tinge to them.

Here is a wider angle, ya ain't getting any more than that and not see a sink full of dishes and my cra...err...stuff all over the place. Color still isn't quite right, the counters are all washed out and the cupboards a little cool, but I am not in the mood for playing around, so...close enough for government work!

I think you could get by with the tile if you like it with the quartz. The gray marble looks slightly sagey to me. I don't think it's too busy though. Do a sample board with a lighter grout and let's see if that ties it all together. But no on the accent. Too fussy and the color is way off with the marble.

No grout yet, the tile sheet is just taped to the wall. I hate that you cannot tell over the screen, but the accent is, actually, a perfect match for the marble. Frankly, that marble tile will not go up without the accent, lol! It is what I love most about the backsplash! :D I don't tHINK it is sage-y in real life, but I will have to go down and see.

You also can't tell (at least I can't) from this pic but I put another coat of paint over that swatch, and it is better but still purple-y.

I *loved* this backsplash from the moment I first put it together at the store. Then I decided I was going to go the cheaper route and do painted beadboard. Then I took my uber-smart-about-this-stuff sister-in-law to see the tile and she was gaga over it and talked me back into it.

Now I am liking the clean background but still love my tile. The accent reminds me so much of denim.

I feel like the tile would like fine but you would need a warmer gray paint to make it work.

Whoops! I should have mentioned it will be tile OR paint...but not both. Well, paint will meet tile at the end of my stove wall run, but not by much.

The paint color looks like lavender on my monitor. I really like the backsplash tile. It looks great with your beautiful countertop and cabinets, IMO.

I think we need another opinion about the mosaic. LINELLE!!!!!!

;)

I'm not Linelle, but I'm having doubts about the mosaic although I'm usually anti-mosaic until post installation. No doubts that you need the backsplash. Grout makes a world of difference. Your such a talented DIYer that you can whip up a couple of sample boards - lighter grout, maybe silver.
I'll call her again. LINELLE!!!

Hello?

I don't know how I earned any credibility in regard to backsplashes and counters.

I try to be tactful and kind, unless someone says, I don't know, I think I hate this combination, what do you think? I will then try to be honest. I don't want to be that person who mocked someone's kitchen just for laughs if their feelings were hurt and, even worse, they kept the stuff that I mocked.

I've decided that I'm not a real fan of mosaic backsplashes where there's a lot of contrast. I also prefer to err on the side of boring rather than EXCITING! DRAMA!!

I agree that the paint does look a little mauve-y for my taste. I like the backsplash better without the accent. I would like a plain tile even better, but that was not the question. :)

Greenhaven, I love your cabinets, the color, the hardware.

How do I affix the tiles to a sample board in a non permanent way? And how do I grout and still be able to use the tiles for the wall?

FWIW, I really like the tile with mosaic detail. I feel like it pulls together all the colors from your kitchen, and I like the pop of dark.

Now we need Oldbat2be. Luckily I clipped one of her old posts on how to make a sample tile board.

Here is a link that might be useful: How to make a sample tile board

I actually like the backsplash, mosaic and all, but the paint color- NOOOOOO!

It's too cool and clashes and looks purple/lavender. You need something warmer. Do the backsplash and paint the kitchen a warmer gray. The cabs look really nice!

The second coat of Paige's look better than the first, bit still a bit mauve to me. Grays are so difficult! I think it will look better when you have it in the adjacent dining area where it's not so close to the stainless.

I like the tile, but also feel like the accent seems a bit dark. Maybe you could prop up a few more sections so we can get a better idea? I know you love the accent, so I would not tell you to eliminate it. A bigger mock-up might help us see what you are seeing :)

I swear I replied to this thread three times! Now I will probably get a dozen duplicates, lol!

Linelle, thanks for your input, it is greatly appreciated. I do not get easily angered or offended when people give honest opinions when I am asking for them. I ask because I really want to hear what people have to say.

Susan, that is exactly what I love about that accent! Another thing you cannot tell from these photos, but every color in the counter is repeated in the backsplash. I think I have pretty much decided it is the marble tiles I do not care for, but there is nothing to do with the accent without the tiles.

So we have pretty much all agreed the color does not work, I will definitely not be using it in the kitchen. The cab color is Whetstone Grey at half-formula, so maybe I should just do a full-formula Whetstone Grey if I decide to paint.

romy, thanks a ton for that link! Google was completely useless in searching for such info. I will not be using any grout at all, though, because the marble has to be treated with a releasing agent so the grout will not immediately stick on application and can be washed off.

romy, the link doesn't work for me. :o(

ETA: nevermind, scrolled through your clippings and found it myself! Thanks!

This post was edited by greenhaven on Fri, Aug 1, 14 at 20:35

Okay, here is a larger sample of the tile and accent. Lighting was tough when I took this, so you will have to take my word for it that the colors work well, lol! The issue will be with style.

Does it make my eclectic kitchen too fussy? Or does the tile give the kitchen just a little bling? Remember, this particular combo is an all-or-nothing deal. I will not use just the marble. And if I do not use this combo I will most likely just paint (after I find the right color, of course.)

I am still torn. When I first put the board up I thought "awesome!" But the more I looked the less sure I was, either way.

I feel it's too many layers of speckles with the counter, marble, and accent. You need a solid. Since it's the accent you love, I'd sell the marble on CL and get an inexpensive white tile to go with it.

Would I be out of my gourd to use the accent as planned but replace the marble wiith beadboard and a small trim to outline/define the mosaic?

I am really a newbie at this-so take it for what is worth-nothing! I think the warm tones in the tumbled marble doesn't fit in with the cool tones of almost everything else in the space. Since you love the accent, I would try it with a cooler tone 2x4.
I just had my LR/Kitchen painted BM Nimbus and it is definitely not purple-maybe too greige for your space. The next paint in that strip is smoke embers-that might work for you. If you decide to go with paint, that is.
Love all your choices-can't wait to see the reveal!

One thing I learnt in the Home decorating forum(you might already know this) is to paint large poster boards with the paint sample. The cool trick is to cover 1/2"-1" of the edges with painters tape before you paint and then remove after the paint dries. The white border helps your eyes kind of disengage from the background and helps you evaluate the paint sample better. Once I started doing it, I found I am not tricked by sample color too much..atleast until I run into paint store errors.

"Would I be out of my gourd to use the accent as planned but replace the marble wiith beadboard and a small trim to outline/define the mosaic?"

IMHO, you wouldn't be out of your gourd, but it wouldn't look good. I am never a fan of accent tile strips, and I do not like it in your kitchen either. Too much fussiness.

Your counter keeps changing color to me in your pics. I like the tile (minus accents) in your pic Friday at 16:01, but the photos today (Saturday) make the counter look very blue. I don't like the tile nearly as much in those photos.

Looking forward to seeimg your whole kitchen!

NICE job with the sample board! Next time :) if possible, make the board just a little smaller so that it can fit plumb against the wall.

The countertop is a little messed up (due to poor removal of sample board reflection) and I'm not sure whether you're planning on continuing the tile over above your range. The upper part of the tile is looking much darker due to shadow than I think it may be.

Still, I think you and SIL are on to something - I like this!! (And I usually don't like accent lines).

romy - glad you remembered that idea!

oldbat2be, THANK you! The photoshopping looks great! I just randomly chose a leftover board from the garage in hopes of it fitting under the cabs. It was so close I did not bother to cut it down, lol!

So now I am more torn than ever. Yes, I apologize, it is VERY hard to get accurate color representation, which is why I am trying to assure you that the colors are not the problem here. The cabinets are much warmer than they photograph, and the counter less blue. The tile is also less saturated and contrast-y.

But what I am taking away from this is that I really do not like the marble tile. I mean, I LOVE it, and when the accent and marble are together and NOT on my wall they are breath-taking. But that photo is not doing it for me, even adjusting it for color in my mind's eye. It is just too...elegant....I think I was hoping that the accent would dress it down, but no.

I think I am just going to go back to beadboard. I did clad my island in panellized beadboard, so the repetition will be fitting, I think.

BUT I am not going to paint or work on this part today, so there is plenty of time, still, for more input. Especially on what the heck to do with that tile, lol! I feel confident I can sell the marble but the accent will be another matter. I sure would like to be able to use it somewhere in the house...maybe my powder room. MAYbe.

"It is just too...elegant....I think I was hoping that the accent would dress it down, but no."

Yes, I was thinking the same thing this morning. What happened to your early vision of casual farmhouse with the hammered pulls? Did you look at too many photos on GW of dressier kitchens? And then your SIL encouraging you....

When you first assured us that the colors matched, I took your word for it. I could handle the patterns in the marble tile and the counter, but when the accent went in and you said no marble without the accent, it didn't seem right to argue! I still think you could do the marble w/o accent. Also keep in mind that your cabs show oak grain, which is another subtle pattern, and grout is a pattern. That's why I suggested a solid tile.

I saw this board and batten photo in a Schuler catalog I believe and felt it was an interesting variation of beadboard. I like that it doesn't introduce another pattern, is more interesting than paint and can hide wall imperfections, and is more casual than beadboard, which sometimes looks quite elegant. There is tile behind the range, with an accent.... ;)

"I'll call her again. LINELLE!!!"

and about 30 min later she answers...

love that!

the BS - I don't like it from the photoshop pic. too much, too fussy for me. but that is 'for me'. there's 'pattern' in the granite, pattern in the tile and pattern in the accent for it.
I think the accent part could work if the tiles were plain white subways.

Not an expert, but someone who has been following your kitchen from the start and willing to add my 2 cents.

I am thinking what may_flowers expressed in her last post. The accent tile combo has you veering in a different direction than the original vision you began with. And that's certainly okay. But I prefer the less is more look with all the finishes and textures you have going on.

Definitely try the BM Nimbus, vice the Whitestone. I have both in my house and the Whitestone (in 3 differnt rooms) can read anywhere from blue to gray to purpley-blue. Nimbus is much more a true neutral soft gray. Love it and wish I had found it sooner.

Thanks, all, I appreciate your support! And I agree. I am not using the backsplash. In addition, I have revisited some of my original inspiration photos and reminded myself of that original vision.

may_flowers, hammered pulls are on the cabinets, lol! I linked to my all-time favorite inspiration kitchen, but will share a couple of others, too.

So, I know beadboard or board and batten or shiplap all have pattern, but none have a lot of movement, which I think contributed to the problem with the marble. Subways are out, I just do not like them for my kitchen.

So, here is another fave inspiration photo, although I am not doing green. Did consider it, originally, but cannot pull it off with my counters, now:

But I also ran across this on my pin board, and thought maybe "shiplap" would be a good compromise between the board and batten (which I really don't care for. Sorry. :o( ) and beadboard. Not opposed to the beadboard, but I am intrigued by the shiplap.

What do you think?

Here is a link that might be useful: All-time Fave Inspiration Kitchen

P.S., MaggieQ and vinudev-liny, I will definitely bring home some more chips this afternoon. I love the Grey Owl on the walls in my favorite inspiration kitchen, but I think it did not work with my cab color.

I will bring home Nimbus, for sure!

Here is a pic of a beadboard backsplash I've admired.

^^ exactly! That is the beadboard panelling I used to clad my island! I really like how they have the sill and no trim around the window. I might do that!

Forgot about your island. I'd do the beadboard then, but what do they do behind the range? I'm not sure I've seen pics.

My sister has a beadboard island painted aqua. The back panel inside her glass cabs and an open cabinet have aqua beadboard. Very pretty with her white cabs and black granite with blue-green flecks.