Kitchen Renovation, Part III

The last item on our to do list for the much needed kitchen face lift is the backsplash. The old mirror backsplash simply had to go. I didn't mind it much, because it made the kitchen appear larger, and no grout lines meant easy cleanup. But the countertop professionals said they could not do their job with them still attached to the wall.

In a perfect world, I would use glass tiles on our new backsplash. However, they can easily run over $10/sq ft (some even over $20/sq ft), so they are far from budget friendly. Although my eyes are drawn to dreamy glass tiles, I had to stick to reality.

So plan B was subway tiles - they have been around forever, have a classic look and are making a come back. To take it up a notch from the plain white ceramic variety, my husband and I decided to go with white/grey marble. The marble variety we found cost less than glass tiles. Although they are more expensive than ceramic tiles, the cost differential will be minimal since we have less than 20 sq ft of wall that needed to be tiled. Between the granite countertop and marble backsplash, I hope there's no such thing as too much natural stone. Come to think of it, I hope there isn't too much pattern going on between the two to the point where it becomes overwhelming.

Out with the mirror backsplash, and in are the marble subway tiles! Here's a sneak peek at the backsplash that's work in progress.



The look to our backsplash will be classic and clean with the use of white grout. I'm not a fan of white grout as it is not forgiving when it comes to dirt and grease, but that is the only color that will work with the existing kitchen color schemes. I also learned that marble can absorb color, so a colored grout may not be ideal. We're having both the grout and marble sealed, so hopefully they'll still look good years from now.

Stay tuned for the big reveal!