People often ask me for good backsplash tips. Tough one! Personally, my favorite look is to banish upper cabinets and run a swath of tile all the way to the ceiling, but this is most impractical for the storage challenged. I’ve seen great installations where people continued their backsplash tile above the cabinets–which is great if the wall is visible (i.e. flush with the cabinet doors). Once I even saw a kitchen with no backsplash at all, just a run of tile above the cabinets…the effect was surprisingly effective.
My advice is to keep it simple: one type of tile will do…you don’t have to mess with insets and medallions, which work nicely in a ginormous room but which–to me–or otherwise too distracting. A backsplash doesn’t usually take up a lot of space, so it’s a nice place to splurge on a pricier tile. But consider extending the backsplash beyond the sliver between counter and cabinets, continuing to an adjacent feature wall, for instance. The look really pulls a room together and makes it feel more cohesive.
Also consider an unusual material, like Solistone’s stainless-steel river rocks, above. Shiny metal is not for everyone, but the sinuous lines play nicely off sleeker countertops and appliances.
Here’s some more cool stuff:
from Ann Sacks: an all-over pattern wraps around to the adjacent wall--great idea of you have strange angles or odd slivers of space
from Ann Sacks: bold wallpaper-style patterns lend a more decorated look
from Mosaico+: consider playing with off-beat shapes
also from Mosaico+: you can't go wrong with a juicy shot of color
from Motawi: take advantage of the little sliver of space to do something textured
from Tau: love the wainscoting brought just above counter height and topped with penny tile
from Trend: forget the backsplash and do a feature wall instead!
from Ceramica de Treviso: bring tile down the wall and wrap it over the countertop
from Granada: bracket patterned tile with a solid border
Have any great tips? Weigh in below!
