We recently installed granite counters and had the granite backsplash too. Our configuration does not afford a good beginning/ending for tile backsplash due to window placement, doorways and wall direction change. So the granite tied everything together nicely. We also replaced the window sill above the sink and its apron trim with matching granite.

We tiled only the wall behind the range, but above the granite backsplash - paint elsewhere.

Our walls are not perfectly straight and it was necessary to cut away some of the drywall for the granite/backsplash to fit. Anticipate some wall repair should you experience the same conditions or decide to tile soon after the install.

My kitchen was completed this summer but I also was overwhelmed by all the rapid fire decisions that come with a major building project. I knew I wanted a back splash that was a show stopper so I decided to live in my new kitchen awhile and see what inspired me. It is five months later and my walls are still blank. It really doesn't look bad at all but I'm still no closer to making a decision.I am wondering if any one has some creative but temporary alternatives to a tile back splash they would care to share to those of us who aren't ready to commit to some thing permanent just yet.

I ended up not having a backsplash. My solution won't work for anyone else but I used period kitchen items and pictures.

I like to change things often so this is going to work for me. I will put some of this away and get out other things I have. It gives me the opportunity to display things I've collected.

definitely wait till you find a tile you love and are in a position to do it. Paint looks great.

I never planned on having a backsplash and am still glad I didn't . I wanted to be able to showcase artwork and also the ease of changing the look of my kitchen in the future with a color change involves only paint. Here is how my cooking area looks. It is so easy to scrub, I used BM matte:

And here is an example of the baking area with artwork on the wall:

There are lots of pics in my photobucket food album and finished kitchen pics. Hope this helps you get comfortable with " paint" as a backsplash. c

Thank you for all the suggestions. I had not thought about the problem of uneven walls...hmmm....and Pinch Me, what a creative idea to use the period kitchen items! Trailrunner, that last picture (with the bread) really helps. I was concerned about the granite without the granite backsplash looking unfinished or missing something where it butts up to the wall. Yours looks very nice. The quote from my fabricator includes the granite backsplashes. Surely there won't be a problem removing them since I have not signed the final contract yet...

Glad to help. There is a bead of clear caulk there that my painter made after the soapstone was put in. It is nearly invisible but does make the look complete. I am sure you don't have to pay for backsplash unless they have already started fabrication. Since the final contract isn't signed I would tend to think you are home free. Looking forward to pics. c

I considered a wallpaper backsplash, too, but wallpaper isn't as cheap as it used to be and each sample was $5. I did look through the wallpaper books but by that time I just didn't care any more and since paint is so easy, and like trailrunner said, we'll be able to change the whole look with just a coat of paint. Tile is so permenant. And expensive!

I've been reading the GW for about 10 months and I've seen a lot of threads like this one. There is a lot of commentary on them that will help reinforce your opinion, whatever that might be.

Backsplashes are not a necessity and expensive backsplashes are a luxury that you will live with a long long time. You can be as creative or as generic as you like on your wall treatment, even without tile. Trailrunner's images are very helpful, aren't they? In my humble opinion, there's no need to buy a tile backsplash unless you have a tile in mind that is better in aesthetics and function than what you have already. And also consider what you are losing--in Trailrunner's case, it would be the visual functionality of the kitchen tool rack contrasted against the paint and the gallery quality of the paint backdrop for art pieces.

Have fun stormin' the castle.

Hi cigi_2010,

I asked a very similar, well kinda, question here just last week....or maybe it was the week before.

I got great responses!

We are on a very limited budget so I also got fantastic ideas/options for using something else as a backsplash until the finances improve (after buying Thankgiving Dinner-I expect those finances to improve around the middle of the year 2014...eeek!).

Also, it's not just the finances. Like fnmroberts, we have a difficult situation in the kitchen with no actual stopping point for the backsplash.

Many of the responses I received here were telling me not to bother with a backsplash....at least for now.

I was told there are a lot of kitchens that don't use a backsplash at all with the exception of something to protect the wall at sink and stove area.

So all this to tell you that Thanksgiving Dinner was our kitchen's reveal to the extended family.

Everyone ooooh'd and ahhhh'd and praised our ....ah hum *clears throat*....
'creativity' w/r/t our DIY kitchen up one side and down the other.

During the meal, Mom asked if someone would be so kind as to wipe a little bit behind the stove area where she kinda sorta splattered yams while whipping them (looked more like she threw ladels of mashed yams at the wall, but whatever. lol) The subject of backsplashes came up and I said that I couldn't wait to get something up for a backsplash to avoid having to continually wipe down other areas of the kitchen that only had paint.

So the response to that was *Gasp* "You mean the kitchen isn't done???"

Even without the backsplash of some kind, everyone thought the kitchen was done and looked great just as it was.

Long story a bit shorter (but not by much), live without a backsplash for a bit.....get used to seeing the kitchen without a backsplash.

Then in a few weeks, maybe a month or two, tape some backsplash samples up on the wall, stand back, observe, live with those a week or two.

I'm serious when I say that everyone that has seen my very modest DIY kitchen thinks it's wonderful the way it is.
Not me, of course....I come from the old school and need some type of sumpin-sumpin up there but for now, painted is fine.

I just had a friend come over to look at our in-progress kitchen and some tile and countertop choices. We are having a stainless backsplash behind the stove and adjoining cabinets. The other wall I was going to tile was the sink wall, which has open shelving. I was going to put tile up to the bottom of the top shelf, so there is quite a bit of real estate there (relative to our small kitchen). I found some Walker Zanger tile I thought would be great: understated but special nonetheless, with espresso Caesarstone countertops.

She loves the tile but given that our window behind the sink goes all the way down to the counter suggested no backsplash at all. Just a pretty paint that pulls out the brown in the countertops (caramelly, the color that was within the tile I liked) and looks good with the off- white cabs/shelves. Her feeling is that while the tile is pretty, it might be nice to keep it simple with the paint, and the dishes and prints I plan to put on the shelves won't compete with it. I can change the paint, change the items on the shelves to keep my kitchen fresh and up-to-date, and could install tile later if I still wanted it.

Seriously thinking about this....So funny that I logged on minutes after she left and here is this thread!

Reading all of the comments helps so much. I feel better about just leaving it alone for a while. I guess I was just stuck on doing a granite backsplash because the fabricator said most people go on and use the granite unless they are planning to tile right away. The granite backsplashes are so thick, though, and seem to take away from the overall look of the granite in my opinion. I just thought I needed something!

I thought I preferred the look of no backsplash myself, or to put up tile. However, I was in the same boat during our remodel... I just couldn't decide and because we were already about 30% over budget due to our changes, we decided to not do a tile backsplash as we originally thought we would. Instead, we had them put a 3 inch granite backsplash (instead of the typical 4 inch) that is not super glued so that we could remove it later. Now after living with the kitchen for 6 months, we're super happy with our decision. We love it just the way it is...It looks finished and I don't worry if I spill liquid on the counter. Good luck! :)

I love the look of the simple painted backsplash and think you probably can't go wrong waiting - I agree with the other posters that you should love it and not feel hesitant about it.

Caveat: One thing to consider though is whether the (originally proposed) granite backsplash would come from your counter slabs (I am not sure if you are talking about full slab backsplash or not) but regardless just something to think about - for us, we could use "leftovers" from our counter slabs for our backsplash so the backsplash cost was really just labor. Bc we had large slabs we managed to get a full BS for a good price (although not really if I think about the total cost for the counters, but I am not going to do that! :-)

Just another voice stating that it doesn't hurt to paint and wait for awhile. No wonderful money saving alternatives for a temporary BS.

We finished our kitchen (well- granite was installed) nearly three years ago- it's still not quite finished- but the up-side of waiting is that I finally found the perfect BS tiles. They literally were not available three years ago. I must have been ahead of the pack! LOL The color palettes available today go so well with our granite- that I am very glad I waited.

We are noticing a little paint peeling behind the sink, but nothing major, so if we weren't going to be tiling soon, we could just do a tiny patch and touch-up there. If you decide to paint, I'd suggest a couple of extra coats right behind the sink.

I didn't want a complete backsplash above all of the counters, because I didn't like the interruptions caused by the outlets, we have one raised counter for the oven, and also have a triple casement window over the sink. Besides, I'm happy with paint. We did have a granite backsplash 3-1/4" high put all the way around, since that got it to window height (and also would keep the wall from getting too gunky from repeated washings along the line where the granite and wall would have met without the low granite backsplash), and we also had the window sill done out of the granite.

I knew I wanted a backsplash behind the cooktop, because I figured with matte paint, the grease would be absorbed into the drywall over time, and then it might be difficult to get tile to adhere at a later date. Also, I wanted some color and a focal point over the cooktop. We've been 3 years without a backsplash, but I finally made up my mind. It was good to live with it for awhile, since there were so many other decisions to make earlier.

Anne

Wow! It is just amazing how many different tidbits of information that can be picked up by everyone's posts. My cooktop is on my island so splatters on the wall from cooking will not be an issue. The sink is in front of a window so there is more windowsill there than wall. The idea of a 3 inch granite backsplash is interesting - have to think about that one. Thanks everyone! When I started this process, I really thought it would be simple...Silly me!

cigi, in our last house the previous owner installed tumbled marble in a mauvish tone which IMO looked awful with the St Cecilia granite. Even though the tile was expensive, I tore them off and left the 4" granite backsplash, patched and painted the rest of the wall. The sink was the only working area as the cooktop was on the island. No problem with water as I used BM Aura, but Pittsburgh Paint's Manor Hall Timeless is just as good with a more flat look and lifetime warranty.

I'm pondering the issue for my current redo. In various houses I've had paint, wallpaper, white tile with abalone inserts, plain white tile. Right now I'm weighing white tile with a beautiful insert, just paint with no granite backsplash since this area has only a counter but no cooking/wet functions, paint with granite backsplash, or a simple glass tile backsplash with listello over it a la Chinchette. I'm attaching a photo from Chinchette's beautiful kitchen (hope she doesn't mind seeing hers cited as a great example) which shows the last option.

In any event, I echo others' advice to not worry about that decision immediately unless you absolutely love a certain look. Just use good paint.

Here is a link that might be useful:

Here is the link to amity post, she mentioned. There are many additional ideas of different alternatives :)

Here is a link that might be useful: Inexpensive back-splashes...

Thank you, everyone, for your advice. I am checking out all of the links and still trying to decide for sure exactly what I want. I saw a 3 inch granite backsplash on a countertop in a showroom today. I thought that might be a nice compromise...use the 3 inch and then could still tile above that later or just keep it as paint. Does anybody else have a 3 inch granite backsplash? Thoughts????

My kitchen mentioned on the Garden Web? : ) That has to be a first! I'm honoured. And guess what? I still haven't grouted that little tile backsplash. But I really do like it.

Sometimes it just seems that tile is good in photos but I'm liking my lack of splash in real life. Might have to do with the shape of the kitchen, angles in the room, windows, lack of symmetry, and just no good place to start and stop the tile.

Chinchette, that's really pretty! What a great way to use glass tiles. It's very elegant.