Can you post some pictures?

Did you use the recommended mastic and grout as far as type and color?

Some glass tiles do have a matte vs. shiny finish. I've even seen combo mesh sheets of matte and shiny. Maybe yours are supposed to be a matte finish?

I have no idea but wonder if the vinegar could have done it. Maybe you should have just used water.

You likely just need to buff them. Get a clean sponge/rag and start buffing. Maybe some warm water too. I thought we ruined our polished porcelain floor after grouting, but it just needed a good buffing and it was shiny again.

My first question too was if you used unsanded grout.

It could be the tiles themselves. Glass tiles are interesting because the lower end glass tiles achieve their color by being painted on the underside. The higher end tiles are colored glass throughought, and tend to be more shiny.

Also, maybe the lighting isn't bright enough in your kitchen? Would love to see a picture of them!

Justin

Here is a link that might be useful: Kitchen Backsplash Ideas

Thanks for all the responses. Yes we used unsanded grout, recommended by the tile store. i also thought maybe the vinegar did it?!? Is it possible?

I think it is dull because i am comparing the tiles we have left over to the tiles on the wall, the ones on the wall just dont look right. These are mother of pearl glass tiles are supposed to give us the glittery look but i am not really seeing it.

Another question i have is, do you think it looks too white? Somehow it kinda looks too washed, i donno what is wrong....grr....

Here are some pictures, its hard to see what we are seeing in the pictures but here goes:

There will always be some difference before tiling and after.
With opaque or translucent glass, it's a hard-to-predict kind of thing.

Those tiles I see above look nice and shiny, to me.
Yes, I did read that there is a difference from the leftover tiles that did not get installed.
No picture of the two together, though.
Yes, I do know that a picture might not show what you can see.
This is because a camera captures other things than what the eye sees.

Some obvious things to say are : What product (grout name, manufacturer, etc) did you use? Was this An Epoxy Grout? Are you sure the change is On The Surface? Because the thinset or glue underneath will change the look, too.

Hth

The brand of the grout we used was Flextile, nonsanded, non epoxy. Sorry I dont understand the question on whether the change is on the surface.....we did use thinset to mount the tiles, no glue.

I did take a picture of the leftover tiles and the wall side by side but the picture really doesnt show the difference, but here it is anyways:

Thank you for the post....

Have you been able to get the "old" shine back, on any single tile or segment?

You can use a new microfiber cloth or chamois.
You can use a lot of force (elbow grease).
You can use strong products (solvents not abrasives).

Hth

I sure do like those tiles - grout haze can be very difficult to remove if it's not done immediately. But it will eventually wear off. Part of the problem may also be that the unmounted glass have some light bouncing in from the back side.

I think they look very nice. Yes, they do look different mounted and grouted because of the light that no longer comes through the back and sides like the PP said. You may also have a little bit of haze left on them.

Well, I sure love those tiles. Please tell me who made them and what they are called! Are they the really thin tiles, or are they a normal depth?

Did you use the white thinset or the grey? Translucent glass tiles should always use white thinset, because you will get some showthrough from the thinset. If you used grey, that may contribute to your issue.

Thanks everyone for your responses.

The tiles are from glasstilestore. The tiles are pretty thin compared to other tiles i have seen. This is the picture that sold me:

{{!gwi}}

I understand there is more lighting in the picture, but still I just think the tiles really lack shine on our backsplash walls.

We did use white thinset, yes my DH did say it could be the light not showing through because the tiles are now mounted but still, I am disappointed how it came out.

One thing i am still confused... if i run my fingers down the tiles and i dont get any white film on my fingers, is it possible there is still haze on the tiles?

Another thing is the grout color, it sure came out much whiter than the sample stick grrrrrr.....

Thank you, paint panther. I agree that they aren't as shiny, but they should be. After all, the model photo shows mounted and grouted tiles, just like yours. Perhaps your hubby could shine a couple flashlights down just like it shows in the photo, and you could see if it makes a difference. Let us know, because mother of pearl tiles (as an accent) were my first choice until I saw Crossville's Illuminescence Cristal glass tiles. But I LOVE yours.

I think that pic shows them shiny due to the 3 lights + camera flash. Have you taken a pic with the flash? Oh, and get some cheap undercab lights. LED strips will have you sparkling in no time :D

Contrary to our believes, with the lights off, i can see the shimmer of the tiles, with the lights on, not at all. That sucks because most times the kitchen lights are on, and dont we all want the tiles to look good at all times? Bummed......

Without light:

With:

honestly i think it looks great.

me too! very pretty!

Have you tried any other rubbing after the vinegar try? Just one or two tiles. It might be that. You haven't said if you tried anything other than vinegar, which is quite weak. And vinegar + water is even weaker!!

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quote "One thing....still confused... fingers down the tiles and i dont get any white film on my fingers, is it possible there is still haze on the tiles?"

This is a cement product, that has been mixed and is now cement. IT's not a powder. There might be a few molecules thickness, called a film or membrane, on your tiles' surface. Call it a haze if you want. There will not be anything you feel on your fingers. Certainly not "if you run your fingers down the tiles". Way more force is required! Way more!

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you need undercabinet lights near the tile wall to create a reflection from the mother of pearl when the top lights are on. Go get any small lamp and place it so that its light washes down the wall, and you will see what I mean.

--

Hth

Thanks again all for the responses.

Besides vinegar/water 50/50, we have also tried cloth, microfiber.. Didnt want to use anything abrasive or acidic because i am not sure whether that will make it worse.

So the haze question, i suppose the answer to my question is there still can be haze on the tiles. We have also bought haze remover but it says to use 10 days after grouting. It has only been 4 so we are still waiting.

About the under cabinet lighting, yes i understand that can make a difference, however i dont like those =(

Thanks so much again guys/gals, really appreciate your responses.

Sorry I'm completely ignorant on tile haze and how to fix it, but I had to post and tell you I think your backsplash is beautiful! It doesn't look like you have undercab lighting in any of the pics. Seems like those would make your gorgeous tiles sparkle.

You could also post your question over in the GW Mosaic/Stained Glass forum. Very nice people and I bet they might be able to suggest a solution for you.

Here is a link that might be useful: Mosaic and Stained Glass forum

Didnt know that forum exists, thanks so much for the link.

I think your tiles look great. I wonder if they are not shining as much due to the angle of lighting? THey seem to be in the shadows under the cabinets when the lights are on. The prior pic shows light fixtures casting light on the tiles at all angles. Would undercabinet lights add anything, I wonder? Regardless, it turned out very nice.

Your kitchen NEEDS undercabinet lighting. Your current lighting is casting shadows on your backsplash and your counter. Put in some inexpensive strip fluorescents and hide them with a thin light rail and it'll look completely different. Your backsplash will sparkle!

Hi Paintpanther, I love this tile you chose, it is similar to what I was thinking about when I was doing the backsplash hunt. Anyway, didn't you do a subway tile? Did I miss something???? I have no clue about your hazy issue, but just wanted to say hi and tell you these look fab. I agree maybe ucb lights might be really nice. (try to get ones on a dimmer, you will want them on to highlight that tile and not just to be used as task lighting). Oh, and are we still loving that BA?

I think that pic shows them shiny due to the 3 lights + camera flash. Have you taken a pic with the flash? Oh, and get some cheap undercab lights. LED strips will have you sparkling in no time :D

Since you have spare tiles, you could reassure yourself in advance by using those spare tiles. Rub something stronger than diluted vinegar onto them. This then tells you that the tile is not damaged by vinegar. It's not to "remove haze" it's just to reassure you. Do this again with another even stronger product later. Continue, repeat, etc.

Of course, you don't want to use "anything abrasive or acidic" if it turns out to make things worse. That is why you use other tiles as guinea pigs, not those set in the wall.

So far "Besides vinegar/water 50/50, we have also tried cloth, microfiber.." is not good enough. Go one or two steps farther.

Vinegar is weak weak acid. As a starting point from here, use it pure, not diluted.

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the inspirational image we see above has been doctored. photoshopped. altered. This is necessary to even out the extremely strong light coming from the three hanging lights, and the part of the wall that is in shadow. The photoshop person could easily have made the sparkle extend into the shadowed wall area. Reality will be quite different.

-
try the light trick.

Hth

Thank you all for the responses, really appreciate it!!

So this is what we have done, i think one problem we have is the grout color. Again it turned out much whiter than we expected. With the white grout color, it blends in too much with the tiles, giving no dimension no depths to the tiles (** I think **). So we used some aqua mix colorant and changed the grout color to an off white/ivory color. I think it looks better, what do you guys think? We havent finished everything but heres a little sneak peek. Maybe hard to see in the pictures but anyways:

Appreciate all the suggestions about undercabinet lightings, i understand it will make a difference but i know even if we have them there, we wont really turn them on because we already have more than enough lightings in the kitchen. I really just want the tiles to look good without turning on more lights, yeah aint i stubborn ;-P

beekeeperswife!! hows you doing?!?

yeah still loving the BA, and yeah you are right we were going to do subway tiles and we did it until we have to cut tiles, never did finish it (was it like a year ago already?!? haha) because we dont exactly know how to go about cutting those thick ceramics. also i fell in love with the shimmery look and so, here we are, with these mother of pearl tiles hopefully will be the end of our kitchen saga...

how about you? what did you end up doing with your backsplash? any picture to share? please.....

I think your new tiles (and what I can see of the new kitchen) are stunning. The new slightly less white grout really helps the glossy white color of the tiles stand out. As others have mentioned, your inspiration picture shows the tiles where light is directly hitting the tiles causing a shine. Can you show pictures (or layout diagrams) of your plentiful kitchen lighting? When you have the lights off, I imagine the light in the room is coming from some windows that bring light in at counter level. The pictures of the lights on appear to having lighting (maybe recessed lighting?) close to the cabinets, washing down the cabinets. This leaves your under counter backsplash area in shadow (particularly in comparison to your white cabinets). I suspect if you had lighting further from the cabinets, you might be able to cast the light under the cabinets onto the backsplash. Also, if you have lighting that hangs down further (pendants, chandeliers, lower semi-flush mounts) at a distance from the cabinets, it would change the angle of the lighting and again possibly cast more light directly onto the tiles causing a shimmer. Also, removing the plastic from your beautiful granite counters may allow some of the light to reflect off the counters and onto the backsplash. Overall, I can understand your disappointment, but I do think your tiles and installation look stunning. Perhaps you can make some adjustments to your lighting to more closely match your ideal image of your kitchen. Or given time and an uncovered kitchen, you may find that you too can enjoy the stunning beauty of your kitchen as it is.

I think your tiles are lovely! I know you say you don't want undercabinet lighting because you have enough light in your kitchen. But there are different types of lighting used in the kitchen for different purposes. Undercabinet lighting is "task" lighting so you can turn it on when you're doing things at the countertop and your body casts a shadow on your work. What you're doing with your hands will have a shadow cast on it because YOU will be between it and the lights above and behind you. The undercabinet lighting is there so you have optimal lighting to see what you're doing.

That is why I think you may want to rethink your decision on the undercabinet lights. We didn't have them in our previous house. We put them in this house and use them daily. We have ours on dimmers. Even when all the other kitchen lights are off, we have those on dimly and they give the kitchen a nice warm glow seen from the family room and don't use a ton of electricity. I had no idea how functional they were or now much we'd use/need them when we put them in. I also think you'll be much happier with the end result of the look of your kitchen.

Whatever you do, I can't wait to see your kitchen in full. The tiles certainly are beautiful!

paintpanther, you really have been missing for awhile....there was quite a bit of excitement about my backsplash. My kitchen was chosen to 'win' a beveled arabesque tile backsplash in a contest. Here are the pro photos that were taken. I really am happy with my result but it is so nice to see your tiles, I really like mother of pearl. I know you said you don't "need" ucb lights but maybe keep them in mind, you would be amazed at how they will turn a great backsplash into a show stopper. Just keep it in mind.

{{gwi:1424082}}

{{!gwi}}

{{gwi:1458934}}

@pricklypearcactus: wow you are good, yes we have recessed lights in the kitchen. When the lights are off in the kitchen what you see is light from the living room. Unfortunately we dont have much natural light, the windows are far away from the kitchen =( I can see what you are saying that maybe instead of recessed lights other type of lower hanging lighting may give the tiles a little shine... that makes a lot of sense, thanks for the suggestion.

@babs11: another reason why i am not too fond of the under cabinet light idea is because of wiring, the outlets as you can see are in very visible spots, with the under cabinet lights the cables will be all over, i thought that will be even uglier?!? how do people get around that?

@beekeeperswife: oh you!! now my kitchen looks like crap with your fabulous kitchen eh!!! Just joking, and my bad, i actually have seen your pictures i just forgot, your kitchen is definitely a candidate for the contest, it looks just like one of those kitchens i see on magazine, you sure know how to work with colors, very nice, you SHOULD be very happy!! oh almost forgot... that BA counter top, prettieeee ;-P

we have finished painting the grout, ummm, donno, i think it does look better, but i think the color is a little too yellow, unfortunately aqua mix colorant doesnt come in too many shades of white, this is the lightest next to white white. I am thinking about mixing what i have with white, so i might get a shade in between, will see.... the kitchen saga continues...sigh...

I see what you mean about not sparkling as much. I would be a bit disappointed too because I would want that shine. I'm looking at a similar tile for our backsplash and definitely want the sparkle. Still, I do think your tile looks gorgeous installed even if not as sparkly. I do think the darker grout helps a lot!!! I hope that you are able to get the haze (if that's the case) off with this new product once you reach 10 days.

Been working a lot with tiles i think the reason you lost the shine form your tiles is because of the vinegar. These tiles are not glass but a shell mosaic made form real shell and you can not use strong cleaning products on them. Glass will not become dull if cleaned with vinegar.

I do my tile shopping at Glass Tile Oasis at www.glasstileoasis.com is the way to go for all your tile needs from glass mosaic tiles, to stone and metal tiles and any tile you can think of. I used them and loved everything you can especially the low prices and free shipping over $250

Here is a link that might be useful: Mitch

paintpanther, they are hardwired through the wall to a lightswitch that turns on at the wall. Ours are also on dimmers so we can have ambient light at night. It's really nice. They aren't plugged in to outlets. Since you're already doing stuff in the kitchen, you may want to look into doing this!

You can try to wax them.
Every shell mosaic manufaturer after they polished the mosaic chips and stick in a sheet,they have one step is waxing.
After waxing,the chips will become very shiny.

After construction,there will be having some dirty thing on the surface.That's the reason that is dull.
Hoping this is useful for you.
And the right way for installing that kind of shell mosaic is following:
Construction way of our mother of pearl mosaic and tiles.

We can lay glue or adhesive (We suggest to use tiny granule glue or white grout) on the wall and then put the mosaic on the wall by hand until the gap is filled with glue or grout (the hand pressure should be well-proportioned). After 30 minutes (for tiny granule glue 20 minutes is okay), you can clean the surface of the mosaic by dry soft cloth.

3.Shell Panel Application & Installation
Commonly use to the backing such as MDF, Marble, Ceramic, Calcium Silicate Board, Plasterboard, Acryl and Metal. Using AB adhesive or all-purpose adhesive, apply even coat of adhesive to the panel and wall, and waiting for 5 to 8 minutes, then press it carefully to the wall. Immediately wipe off excess adhesive with a soft wet cloth, and dry with a clean soft cloth afterwards.
4. Protection and Cleaning
1. Please wipe the surface with charpie to reduce the nick;
2. Please clean the surface with neutral detergent;
3. Please wax shell mosaic surface regular time;
Please Attention
1.Do not irradiate the surface with 100W above light.
2. The detergent should be faintly acid,because the content of shell mosaic are CaCO3;
3.Would better use tham soft cloth clean the surface,and wax them regular time for keeping the shiny.
Hoping giving you some help!

Here is a link that might be useful: Solar Shell Decorative Material.,Ltd