Kitchen & Family Room Redesign - Backsplash

Perhaps the hardest part of a renovation is the demolition. My son summed it up best, returning home from school after I had pulled off the fireplace mantel and a sub had taken down the kitchen blacksplash...drywall and all. "Oh no, that's bad, that's bad!" He's four and has no ability to visualize where this could possibly be going!










So where is it going? I made the decision to replace the multi-colored tile backsplash as it was visually busy paired with the counter tops, and brought out the orange tones in the granite. My goal is for the new backsplash of ivory subway tiles (along with the cabinets that are to be painted a warm cream) to highlight the ivory, grey and brown tones in the granite. After a messy demolition (the tiles did not want to be removed and took the wall with it), even the newly installed drywall gives a glimpse of how the simplified backsplash is going to go a long way in bringing a dose of classic elegance to the kitchen.









The subway tile I chose for this project is pictured above. With it's beveled edges this tile brings a modern edge to a tile classic. The product is from Lanka Tile, called the "Lanka Metro" it can be found at www.tile-shop.com. I looked at several versions of subway tile, but this is the only product I found where a 3x3 "dot" tile is available, along with the 3x6, so a finished edge can be created without a trim piece running around the edge. At $5.00 a square foot it is also priced right.

My idea of a dream kitchen is an updated version of the classic vintage style which would include white cabinets, a subway tile backsplash, dark floors and carrera marble counter tops. After many discussions with the builder and cabinet maker, in which we considered every possible way to correct the issues with the cabinets (the boxes, facings, crowns and door fronts are each a different stain), we agreed the best solution was to paint the cabinets. So, sans carrera marble, I am on my way to creating my dream kitchen. (Now if I could just learn to cook!)

Next time...what was found behind the fireplace mantel and pictures of the backsplash installation, which begins tomorrow!