The wet look comes from using an enhancing sealer. If you just use an impregnator sealer you should not see any change from what the tiles look like now.

Exactly.

No more follow up is needed...Bill V. is a tile expert, but I'll elaborate from my own experience. I actually bought a quart of enhancing sealer (511 seal and enhance) and regular sealer (511 impregnator) and tested them on my samples. The enhanced ones got darker (kind as if wet) and the regular sealed ones looked identical to how they looked before sealing (once the sealer dried.

- Jim

Thanks so much, I thought someone told me that when the sealer dries it would turn back to original color, but when I said I liked one of the tiles, she wet it and said it needed to be sealed and would look like the wet color after being sealed. You guys are the best. One that I liked was honed and one was tumbled, do you think one is harder to take care of than the other?

Both are about the same. Just make sure you use a normal penetrating sealer. Of of these three would be good:

Aquamix Sealers Choice gold
Miracle 511 Impregnator
Stone Tech Impregnator Pro

Thank you Bill, I wrote them down. I had my tile floor done a few weeks ago. The sample tile was beige with gold hues going through. The lot I got was beige with darker beige colors going through. I didnt see that until it was installed and didn't like it. The gold went so well with my med/dark cherry cabinets. I also picked out a grout called antique white which lightens the tiles even more. Bad decision.They are not ugly but not rich looking. Could I put an enhanser sealer on the grout or the tile to darken them. Would they look like when they are wet? I was so disappointed when I saw it and went back to the tile store and they said it is out of thier control and the tiles were definitely different but the sample could be a year old for all they knew. I just chalked it up to another bad decision. Getting used to that lately. I have not sealed the grout yet as I even thought of painting the grout a darker color. Any info you can give me would be really great!! This backsplash hopefully will bring everything together.

Trying to enhance the grout without enhancing the tile will be next to impossible, epsecially if honed or tumbled. You'll end up seeing "halos" around each tile. If you want to enhance the tile as well, then yes, the ehancer will somewhat darken the grout, as well as bringing out the colors and veining in the stone.

Can anyone suggest the best way to clean the backspash tile?

I am planning to paint on them so need to clean it well.
I did ask this question on a seperate thread but no takers hence my question here.

Thanks advance.

Thanks Bill, I have extra floor tiles and I am going to try the enhancer on it and see how it looks. If I like it I will enhance the grout and tile. I didn't know the difference between the two sealers (enhancer and impregnator). You learn something new everyday on this forum and I am so grateful.

crystalgeorgia-- Oxyclean will do the trick.