We are having the same conversation in our house. Looking at rittenhouse architectural grey versus almond. Grey looks elegant now, but we are afraid will not age well and are leaning toward matte almond with dove grey grout. May I ask how much $ you paid for countertops? ~ CiTiMoM

Capegirl, Could you post a picture of your cabinets and granite? I have definitely seen pretty backsplashes with bone or bisquit in magazines and online...not sure about light gray. Gray might be a little too cool. Have you seen the website houzz.com. You can search for subway backsplashes on there and get a lot of great pictures. What is the name of your granite? Also, before you have the backsplash installed I think it's definitely worth the effort to make a sample board with your tile and grout. That will give you a really good picture of what the end result will be.
Jill

Look at Adex USA Artisian series and Florida tile retro clssic flair. Both have a very handmade look. The Adex is crackle while the Floridatile has a terrific transparent gloss glaze. Fla.tile in parchment is lovely. It has a hint is primarily a pale khaki. The biscuit is very classic with less color variation. Do you have pics of your granite? What type is it?

We had the same decision. I went with blanco subway crackle. It is not white, though, actually off white. It was not expensive- also probably not hand made. We used a beige colored grout. Our granite is giallo ornamental and the cabs are creamy white. There was much discussion on this forum when we were doing ours- try a search. You will probably get to see lot of pictures also. Here is ours. the subway tile is also over the sink in the coffee bar area.
HTH
Joan

i have adex hampton bone crackle tile. it looks lighter than i thought and wasnt super expensive - like $15 a sq ft? I also have the adex hampton bone beveled in my butler pantry which looks even better but don't have a picture of it. The small tiles are sonoma tantrum (beautiful blue which doesn't show well here) and they are expensive. The crackle adds a nice sparkle to the backsplash. Make sure it is sealed before and after grouting.

I'd need to see pix of what your other choices look like together to have an informed opinion.
FWIW - we are going with gray subways from Daltile. I had tried to find a certain color, then another, in subways and when I could not find the right shade of either, we settled on the gray. It is a little different than plain white, but is also a neutral. It works with the colors of our kitchen so it was an easy decision between the 2. It was well cheaper than handmade tiles, but it does not look like handmade tiles. We figured we were willing to pay the premium to get exactly what we wanted, but were not willing to pay more for something that is now meant more as background than a feature. I'd have loved to get crackle in the right color or even gray, but could not justify the difference at the time we ordered. By that point in the process, money was tighter. We did pay a bit for the vintage and custom tiles that will make up the feature in the bs....

THanks guys! I forgot to mention that our cabinets are shaker-style and an off-white color. The granite is Santa Cecilia (between light and medium). I would say that Santa Cecilia is similar to the Giallo Ornemental. Yes, I will try to post some pictures soon. Our kitchen is A TOTAL MESS! Electrician's are hanging lights, tile is being cut and installed as we speak, but I can clear the dust enough for a few pics :o)...Thanks for the pictures and the advice!

joan 2121-My granite is a little bit darker than yours...and our wood floor is a Medium Brown...If I can afford a crackle, I would consider it. The tile place I went to this week quoted me $21/sq ft...out of the budget...

dianalo-yes, things are tighter but I still want it to look good. I love the look of GREY subway...very classic! I consider it neutral. I just don't have enough grey in my granite to pull from, I don't think.

Will work on pictures tomorrow...
thanks again!
Capegirl

If you don't have the budget now how about just beadboard. Painted until you pick out the perfect tile. I'd need picks to see if this would look good.