I'd go back-painted glass for the entire run rather than stainless.
Or maybe a ss tile that's the same size & shape as your tile across the way...

Nolamom, can you resize those pics so they are bigger? From what I can see, though, your kitchen looks beautiful.

I wish I could see your room better, but I think it'd be fine to do stainless just behind the stove, then maybe the same green, gray, and white tiles as the other wall, but in a different assortment or design on the other parts of the stove wall....Connecting the 2 sections, but still giving them their own personalities.

My kitchen isn't contemporary and I decided against stainless backsplash, but I have stainless countertop only by the stove, then have 4x8 slate tiles behind the stove. On the other 'thirds' I have small marble mosaic colors in a random pattern. On my baking wall, which is a different color, I used the same marble tiles in the same colors, but in different amounts, and in an entirely different design.

Obviously, I am not one afraid of using too many materials. It's not for everyone, but I don't think it's too busy.

I second the back-painted glass idea. I was just admiring it on this thread yesterday:

http://ths.gardenweb.com/forums/load/kitchbath/msg0313491815769.html?4

And it seems like it would fit your kitchen pretty well.

rhome, i think your materials work great. i've seen your photos before and never thought for one minute that it was busy. that's why i say i need perspective, and outside opinion. (i can't believe i'm even using the tile i've chosen.) i want to stretch, creatively, that is, and loosen up my style--just enough to learn something new.

i missed that post about glass walls. bwaibel, thanks for attaching the link--just gorgeous! do you really think it will "go?" the tiles on the opposite wall are kind of rough-hewn. i used these sumi-e tiles because i wanted to warm up and soften the strictness of the architectural line. i'm afraid that the glass, being so smooth adn perfect, will not be enough of a contrast to the laminate and ss?

thanks for all your suggestions. it really helps with sorting this out in my head ya'll!!!

better photos:
i'm leaning toward the countertop and backsplash both being fabricated from ss. does anyone have pictures of this scenario? shucks, i'm back at square one.

We had exactly the same decision, with SS countertop, SS behind range & cleanup sink, SS hood over range & cleanup sink. We had originally planned to do backpainted glass backsplash on the remaining areas, but we just couldn't get the color right -- the glass was too green, even with so-called color neutral (expensive) glass. We have a number of materials besides the stainless: wood cabinets, stone on our wall over the cabinets, stone floor, & Kashmir Gold granite on the island. We decided to echo our stone wall, only in a much smaller tile, and found a honey onyx for our backsplash.

gizmonike:
are the tiles different sizes in the pictures (i can't tell)? you decided against a full ss backsplash--do you think it would be just too much ss (my bottom picture)? your countertop is truly gorgeous. what gauge ss, #3 polish? the quote for covering the plywood substrate and forming the backsplash, from the same piece, in 14 gauge, came out to $1, 085. it's almost 8' long. i thought this was a good price, i don't know. my brother, an architect, thinks 14 gauge is overkill. so maybe changing to 16 will save me a bit more.

on the other hand, what do ya'll think of silestone on the backsplash, in the same color as the countertop on the opposite wall?? (as you can tell, my mind on this is everywhere!)

Gizmonike, every time I see your kitchen, I let out a big moan of Eames envy and wish I had 3 kitchens to decorate in all different styles...

I suggest an elegant tile like this one that I put in my place
click for more:

or I have another idea that a client going to do with this tile called "onda acciaio" (stainless steel wave)

and other nice tile you can see at
www.impronta.it

Giacomo always has the coolest stuff!

Nolamom, your kitchen looks great! Can you give us a run-down of all of the components? Who made the cabinets, appliances, etc.

My SS countertop is 14 gauge, definitely not overkill. The first time you drop a pot lid on it and it doesn't dent you'll be glad you went thicker. That's an excellent price -- I'm jealous!

I love the tiles that Giacomo posted. I want the same look in my kitchen, giant glass subways basically.
I think a bigger, elongate monochromatic tile would look great in your contemporary kitchen, with those nice long expanses.

Our SS backsplashes behind the cooking area & cleanup sink are very functional and "connect" to the SS hood above; we'd lose this look if we put an SS backsplash everywhere. We also thought we already had plenty of stainless steel, which is why we went with many panelled & integrated appliances. We have a lot of stone & wood in our entire house, so we wanted to echo those natural materials. While I had assumed for years that we'd do the backpainted glass sheets, I now think the onyx adds more character & texture to our combination of materials.

Our honey onyx backsplash has two tile sizes: 1" square alternated with 1" x 2" in rows, and each row is staggered so the vertical grout lines do not line up in a column.

I think our SS countertop is 16 gauge. Everything SS (countertop, backsplash, hood) was fabricated locally to match the finish on our Julien sink, which was welded into the countertop. We can't tell it was ever a separate sink. Inside the range hood are two VentaHood liner units.

Using your silestone as the backsplash could work well. I'd try getting a large sample piece to set in your target area along with a sheet of SS you plan to use, & see if you like how it all looks together. Believe me, colors can change depending on their surroundings & the lighting.

Circuspeanut, I love what you've done with your kitchen.

Rhome410, it's really tough to pull off all your colors & textures, and you've done a fantastic job--it looks great.

Giacomo does have very neat stuff. Those tiles would be fantastic in a very contemporary kitchen.

Thanks so much, Gizmonike...I find yours breathtaking/an absolute masterpiece of a kitchen (very Bauhaus with form following function in an artistic and gorgeous way), and always am green with envy over your cooking setup!

I think I like the idea of using the Silestone, Nolamom. I agree that you should try a good-sized sample placed vertically and in that portion of the kitchen to see if it looks right. It's amazing how different things can look upright instead of lying flat.

I hate this post because it's giving me kitchen envy, LOL.
What beautiful and unique kitchens, rhome, gizmo, and nola!

I'm loving what I see so far Nola. I like what gizmo did - would you consider just doing SS for the section above the range and the sumi-e tiles on either side? The silestone would work, too.

giacomo: you have a beautiful backsplash there. it's very much like the built-in ones that my cabinet company sells. how did you get the BS to hover a bit over the counter (i like this detail!)? does the countertop have a back edge that turns up, with the BS floating over it. how did you hang/secure the BS? have you posted pics of your entire kitchen?--would love to see the tile, esp., in its entirety.

rob: it's kind of a dark picture. i only had 3-25 watt bulbs to put in each of the two ceiling lights, but it can take up to 3-100 watt light bulbs. it'll be on a dimmer. the lights are metropoli lights from design within reach. my very first kitchen purchase a year ago. could've used the money elsewhere and bought copycat ones for much less. laminate and wood cabinets are from henrybuilt, based in seattle. the miele DW and sz mini-fridge are paneled, so hdden in the cabinets. ticor sink. speed oven in foreground, single oven and cooktop are mieles. (knew very little about miele before becoming a GW user. my KD recommended it, too). that's really about it. the floor is original terrazzo. i'll post a better picture later when the tile and counters go in. thank you for your compliment!

erikanh:
i guess what my brother meant was that, since i had a plywood substrate, 16 gauge would be fine. the fabricator said there is little difference in price between 14 and 16 gauge, so i may just go ahead with the 14.

mom2reese:
i considered the tile back there, but thought it was mangling too many elements. (i'm a pretty pared down person--i even dress mostly in monotone, and never in more than two colors!!!) using the sumi-e tiles was a big leap of faith for me, believe me!!! also, i was worried about the darn light swithces being right at the end of the tile. i thought it would look weird, but less weird with a monotone backsplash. i don't know what makes me think the things i do sometimes!!! thanks, though.

of course it's Henrybuilt!!! Who else could make such beautiful, calming, modern cabinets. I love how you've mixed elements in your kitchen. I think it's going to be stunning. I too am trying to have a mixed element kitchen and it is very challenging to come up with the "right mix". Have you seen Mindstorm's kitchen? She has a glass backsplash on one side and rift cut oak on the other. I think it looks stunning.

Would love to see additional pics when you get a chance!

Here is a link that might be useful: Mindstorm

malhgold:

thanks very much. like some folks have expressed, i can only see the flaws at this point. not disappointed, but wish i could've done it better or added elements i'm seeing in other people's kitchens, alas.

anyway, i'm at a halt with choosing materials for the cooktop/oven run (bottom photo). i thought i knew what i wanted, but it's so different when you see the other elements installed. i'm thinking now to use silestone as the counter and forget the ss, and use ss as the cooktop backsplash only. having the white plywood gives me an idea of what the silestone would look if i did use it--it's not enough of a contrast to the light gray cabs, is it? maybe a darker silestone countertop for this run?

Hi Nolamom,
actually the BS is not finished at the moment at the bottom will be a SS trim to cover the gap.
Looks nice but if you will have a reveal will be hard to clean! :-)

this is the all kitchen: (click the picture for more)

Nolamom - beautiful kitchen. I love this thread, so many ideas, I love all the photos posted. I am about four to six months behind you, designing a modern, relatively minimalist kitchen, very, very similar to yours, right down to the appliances.

My recommendation for you - silestone backsplash, although I love those large glass tiles that giocomo posted, beautiful.

Are your cabinets walnut? We almost went walnut, but changed at the last moment to quarter-sawn cherry, but the walnut keeps tempting me. Ah well, too late now. Please keep me posted on your decisions, they may influence mine as your kitchen is officially an inspiration kitchen now!

Currently we are planning for a SS countertop and short SS backsplash on our sink run, white Silestone on our very long 'prep' run but I'm not sure what type of counter on our cooktop run, leaning towards the Silestone, but think that SS would be better around the cooking surface. The cooktop will be on a peninsula, so no backsplash there. Our long run is 14 feet, so I fear there may be too much Silestone. So many decisions. Good luck!

giacomo, you are really stylin'! i LOVE the dark cabinets--what material is that??? i notice that the kitchen wall stops short of the ceiling--are you in a loft (i can almost make out nyc in the reflection on the glass)? i hear what you are saying about the reveal, but it actually ties in with the seams in the tile. thanks for posting!

sochi, thanks for saying those nice things. the wood is plain-sawn walnut. i'm sure you're cherry will look gorgeous. truthfully, i hadn't put much thought into the type of wood, just so long as it wasn't knotty. it's probably one of their less expensive ones, actually. heck, the first architect specified wenge thermafoil and i was fine with that, too. at that point i just wanted NEW cabinets (post-katrina mentality). yes, i'm sure you'll love your cherry cabinets.

my design friends are telling me to do the cooktop counter in silestone (same as the opposite counter) , something about "extending the plane of the floor," it being a galley kitchen and all. i guess that would be function following form? i know silestone is susceptible to thermal shock, but couldn't i just leave a large trivet there on the counter for hot pots? then, i could do the backsplash in ss? but then maybe i'm just not loving a white silestone counter on light gray cabinets? sorry, i keep flip-flopping.

ya'll, i'm going to take a week to think this through. in two weeks, my silestone will be cut on the opposite wall, sink installed. the plywood template is at the fabricator waiting for me to give them the go ahead. i guess i'll be living without a cooktop for a while. gotta order the faucet.

don't want to take up anymore valuable space on the forum with my indecisiveness. i'm taking a breather, look at more magazines and come back to the forum pictures--before i created this thread, i thought that most GW's had traditional kitchens and i wouldn't get any responses! there isn't one kitchen i've seen here that i can't learn something from--thanks for all "ya'lls" help!!!

nolamom the kitchen is laminate gray oak, and yes I'm in a loft West Loop Chicago.

:-)