tile over granite backsplash? (floor, stove, stone, installing)

[radman2020]

We have beautiful maple cabinets and a ragged green earthtone walls. We are installing a moderately dark (japarana florence) pink/red granite. Our decorator suggested a tumbled tile backsplash which I like as a transition. It would go to the level of the cabinet bottoms. I really like the idea of a 4" granite backsplash with the tile on top (the rest of the 16 inches). It reminds me of a baseboard at a wall floor transition. No food in the grout between tiles.. the granite is functional as a splashboard... and it transitions to the wall. Our decorator is adamant that this will ruin the scale and look horrible. I hate the irregtrasition where wall meets tile and think the backsplash would smooth that out. Again, like a baseboard.

Is it so horrible. does it really cheat us of all the potential of our otherwise gorgeous large kitchen? is there more than one school of thought on this? Is this just a trend now where the tile comes right to the counter?


thx

[Tesaje]

It is a choice and can look good or horrible depending on how it is done. You might consider a thinner line of the granite 2/3's or so of the way to the cabinet bottoms to tie in the line at the base.

To see how this would look, lay out your tile and granite pieces dry in the design you are considering.

And in the end, remember, it is your kitchen and you can have what you want, regardless of what your designer wants.

[radman2020]

thanks.

The granite would come up 4.5 inches and the tile another 11.5 inches for a total of 16.

I agree I have to do what I want but she is so certain that it is a nicer look....and most people seem to be doing that nowadays... that I didn't want to make a mistake..

thx

[Lindsey_Mcfarren]

I like how it looks to mix granite and tile in fact if you look back into Roman mosiacs and so forth they often mixed media like this.

One of these days I am planning on doing just that in my own kitchen. I think sometimes decorators have a more narrow view, its your house, if you like it then do it.

I agree that laying it out to see how it will look is a good idea.

[Twinkle Toes]

Do what YOU want to do in YOUR kitchen. It's yur house, so you have to love it. The designer should merely be used as a tool or someone to get ideas from and some guidance and direction. Personally, I would probably not go with the baseboard look, but you are the one who has to live with the kitchen. At the end of the day your designer is going to go home to her own house.

[Tesaje]

And you should not put in something that you know you dislike.

[Streamer1212]

There is usually about 14 - 15 inches of wall space to cover between your countertop and the bottom of your cabinets. If you install a 4 - 5 inch stone backsplash, you now have 10" +/- in which your tumbled stone tiles will fit. That is 2 courses of tile plus a cut tile (2 1/2 tiles +/-). In my experience, that small amount of tile will end up looking crammed into that space.

On the other hand, installing a single finish, like tile, in that 14" of vertical face/plane allows the full impact of the tile decor to be appreciated without distraction. I like the clean horizontal/vertical separation of stone countertop / tile backsplash, and it's what I recommend to my clients.

Just my $ .02 worth,

Streamer1212

[Tesaje]

Standard wall cabinet height is 18 inches above the counter, giving 4 tiers of 4" tile plus some cut ones - usually right next to the cabinets where they are less visible. I don't know what her configuration is, but if the cabinets are that low, it would be unusual.

She also does not have to have 4" of the granite, it could be shorter or taller to fit the design better. Laying it all out dry to fit the space is the only real way to tell how good it will look. If done right, it could be very nice and her preference for the smooth line at the wall joint would be met. I would even consider using a narrow line of the granite above the stove to frame a focal point area. There's a lot you can do with tile. Of course, there are also bad choices that look terrible too.

[K'ledgeBldr]

As a general rule of thumb- your tile backsplash starts from the countertop to the bottom of the cabinet. But as others stated, its your house...
I don't generally follow that train of thought- I've have always made it a point to my customers that the more individualized it becomes, the more likely you'll narrow your potential buyers when it comes time to sell. One of my mantras- "It's never your last house" (as much as you want it too be).
Another thing to consider- what type of pattern, with what size tile. Some B/spl's are done with a plain straight pattern, a diagonal pattern, Some use an accent "ribbon", Some are subway, and some use a combination of those.
I have also done the B/spl entirely with granite- in either a matching slab, or matching tiles (usually in a subway pattern).
One word of caution- If you go with the tile off the counter (or off a 4" splash), remember that dis-similar materials move at different rates (you will usually have cracking where the two materials meet) depending on the climate. This can be minimized by using a sanded caulk that matches the grout color. But, if you go with the full granite B/spl a bead of clear silicone caulk at the base will take care of any potential leaks/problems.

[Streamer1212]

Tesaje's dimensions are correct. My starting point was on top of the backsplash material. I wrote it correctly, but I punctuated it wrong. Sorry if I made it confusing. It should have read like this:

"There is usually about 14 - 15 inches of wall space to cover between your countertop and the bottom of your cabinets, if you install a 4 - 5 inch stone backsplash. You now have 12 -14" +/- in which your tumbled stone tiles will fit........."

The two plus tiles I referred to is what is usually visible below the bottom of the cabinets.

Regards,
Streamer1212