Backsplash – check

June 16, 2010 on 10:53 pm | In Hayden and Laura | No Comments

From the time we moved in, we knew we wanted to get granite countertops and a nice backsplash.  Of course, any time you move in, you have a list a mile long of “things you’d like to get done.”  Over the past few months, we made the backsplash and countertops a reality.  I wish I’d taken some pictures before I started, but I didn’t.  About the only thing I can dig up is some pictures we took of the house when we did a “surprise” walk through before we bought it.  You can see that the countertops were just a laminate.  You may not be able to tell from the pictures, but the backsplash was actually wallpaper when we moved in.

It didn’t take us long to pull down the wallpaper and paint once we moved in, but apparently the countertops and backsplash took us a bit over a year.  The countertops were a piece of cake.  Mainly because it involved two steps.  Picking it out and writing a check.

The backsplash wasn’t quite as easy.  I figured I’d tackle it myself.  We purchased the tile from Flooring Solutions.  I’d highly recommend them.  Jon was fantastic.  We went with a walnut colored tumbled travertine.  We used 4 inch square tiles at the base.  After that, we ran a thin strip of glass tiles and ran 3×6 inch tiles the rest of the way up.  We got a little “fancy” above the sink to break up the monotony a little.  While it did take a little work, it actually wasn’t as much trouble as I thought it would be.  Still, I don’t know that I want to lay backsplashes for a living.

First two pictures are from before we bought the house…last three are after adding the new countertop and backsplash.  I’ll repeat to make it clear (and to satisfy Laura), the first two pictures are from BEFORE we bought the house.  That isn’t our stuff.

Before – Sink Area

Before – Stove Area

After – Sink Area

After – Sink Area

After – Stove Area