I think with the natural cabinets you have to keep it clearer colors, not too bright or grayed. I could see a pale turquoise blue for a fun color (if it would go with the rest of the house) otherwise a simple pale blue or green if they don't want whites. How about white glass? I am specifically thinking of the type that have the green cast to them, rather than the pure white.

Thanks for your input, all. I'll pass your recommendations along. : ) Here is another set of tiles they're looking at, and hopefully they're in a better context for judging the colors.

The kitchen walls are freshly painted gray. The kitchen looks out over the family room. The dining room and school room are through the other doorways. They are in the process of painting all of the spaces surrounding the kitchen Steamed Milk by Sherwin Williams.

I like the darker options - they make the cabinet color "pop"

Here are the actual color names and finishes:

• Wall paint: Grey Cloud from Benjamin Moore.
• Floor: Armstrong Lena stone, Portland slate: armory grey. ( it's LVT ).
• Counter: Wilsonart Alicante black.
• Cabinets: Conestoga maple with Alpine finish.

Keep the suggestions coming. : ) Thanks!

Laughable, no input on tiles, but how do the counters look in real life? They are lovey in your photos and I was thinking about the Black Alicante for my own kitchen. My hubby has a neurological condition and he is sensitive to loud noises, so we need a "quiet" counter top.

Here are the finishes all together. You have to be really careful about choosing a dark backsplash color with a dark counter. It can be depressing even in light filled spaces, which theirs is not.

The last image of pinkish wood is from the conestoga web site. I don't think it accurately reflects their cabinet finish, but the pink undertones are inescapable. If you want to tone them down instead of amping them up, you should consider warmer neutral tones with similar or harmonious pink undertones, otherwise the colors are going to clash.

You can try to counteract the pink effect by choosing something with blue green undertones, but you have to be careful doing so. It's easy to misstep. The grey paint they chose is, I think, a little too cool for the space, and it plays up the pink undertones in the wood. This is very hard to do from online images

I've been wondering about a stone that has whitish, gray and cream tones.Something like this? It's from houzz, $12.99 sq. ft.

Or like this ? houzz $14.49

Try this color experiment. The top image is their BM grey, the middle is their wood. The bottom is F&B Stiffkey Blue. If you look at the top two images together, the wood looks pink. If you look at the bottom two together, it looks beige. All I can say is, for the love of God, don't choose travertine tiles. Not only do they read pink, it'll never be the right pink.

I would go in the gray family.

Those are really pretty cabinets, except I can't get over their pinkness. I'm not sure what color best neutralizes or cancels out the pink, whatever color doesn't make it pop. I wouldn't use cobalt blue there, regardless of the cabinet color.

Doesn't green cancel out pink/red? I only know this because I have a green face corrector cream that is supposed to make my face less ruddy looking LOL!

I agree that a lighter tile would be better than a darker one. The kitchen is north facing, and it doesn't get direct light. I see what eam44 is saying about the color combos warming and cooling down the cabinet color. I'm not sure how to apply it in this case though. Since the kitchen is a darker room in the house already, I'm concerned that painting the walls a deep color could plunge it into darkness. They've worked so hard to make this kitchen a brighter workspace. It would be helpful to keep it in the light and bright zone.

Navy Momma, all these years I've struggled with blushing too easily. Do you think no one will notice now? ; )

In all seriousness, I think you are absolutely right that green can cancel out redness or pinkness, but I'm pretty sure that's when you mix the colors together. ie a can of paint that's too pinky can be toned down by adding a little bit of green paint to it.

Sasandfat, I haven't seen the counters in real life yet. Hopefully I'll get out there someday soon. I sure do like the laminate in pictures though! : ) (We just put granite counters in our master bath and I agree that if your DH has sound sensitivities, it's best to skip granite. Our kitchen laminate is much softer and gentler on the ears when stuff is set down on it.)

What about a marble subway tile? This way there'd be some white and some gray, with possibly a little muted tan here and there. Good or bad idea??

(This is mocked up with a Walker Zanger tile, Rue Pierre Gris, no clue how much it costs. Ack.)

I would stick with ceramic with oak. I like a different shape, like the arabesque, but not that for a cottage kitchen. Maybe a 3" hexagon in a hand-glazed tile. I like the pooling on that arabesque tile. Would also steer clear of crackle and mosaics with oak.

Coincidentally, I also have white stained white oak uppers from Medallion. So, I just googled those cabinets to see if there were any backsplash ideas. I found one kitchen on houzz that used those cabinets. Here it is:

I agree the marble looks great, that's the look I posted earlier and I love your choice/mockup! WZ is expensive, I think, but there are a lot of nice marbles out there. The one I posted just as an example was under the $15 budget.

They may not like pennyrounds, and the ones I showed are probably over budget, but if they use multicolor mosaics that include hues like that blue, like the glass pennyrounds, they may find they like the look.

Marble is a bit fancy for oak. I'd avoid anything you'd find in the OTK.

If they like the look of the travertine that barncatz posted but don't want the pink, they can get the same look with ceramic. I think it'd look good in their small kitchen.

This is Ann Sacks in a cottage kitchen, and I believe it's ceramic tile in three or four colors. They might find tiles from a less expensive company that has several neutral shades to choose from. Ideally I'd pull at least one color from the floor tile, but I can't tell how well the cabinets work with that floor. Does the gray bring out the pink in the cabinets?

Ok, this is my first time posting anything. I have been a "persuser" for months, but finally made a login! I am the owner of this kitchen. Yes the cabinets do have a pink undertone. Less than an oak, (they are maple) yet it is there, and I would like to play it down. From what I have read and even by trial, greens are a no-no. Green since it is opposite on the color wheel, will actually contrast and make the pink more visible. So I aiming for classic/ timeless (because changing back splash means demolishing the wall). You have all convinced me stay away from cobalt. I like the tiles above and am going to see if I can come up with a good blend. The tile shop has tons of marble and it still might be a good way to get the right hues.

Mayflowers, I do not think the gray flooring brings out the pink, in fact it seems to blend as it has just a titch of the same color in it. I am going to take your suggestion and see if I can come up with some sort of blend. How many shades do you think I would need?

Eam44 those penny rounds are really pretty, but I am not sure how I will feel about them in 5-10 years. But where are they from??

Thank you so much for everyone's input! Any other thoughts?

I think you need at least three tones, but with a hand-glazed tile in a darker color, you might get enough variation that it acts as a different color. With high variation, you could use one color, but ime those are crackle tiles.

Eam knows better than me about tile companies. She told me about Fireclay's Foundation line, which is eight colors for $15 sq. ft. for hand-made tiles in several different shapes and sizes. I have Tusk and Gardenia samples here, which would be two neutrals that work together. Their colors don't look exact to their website. They offer free design help and will send samples free if you use their designer.

https://www.fireclaytile.com/tile/colors/

I love those floors!!

It's Zumi glass tile from Complete Tile.

Hi May. How's your search going?

I am getting down to the wire and need to order tile this weekend. Someone had mentioned not pairing pink with yellow tones; what if it is a marbke that has both tones in it? In an referring to the tile on the left. I don't like the other tiles on the right. The second photo the marble has gray streaks and pink-red spots, is it too fancy?
Stay tuned, I'm headed back to return these boards, and I'm going to see what I can come up with mixing neutral subway tiles.

I am so not a color expert but I can tell you that I have a wallpaper with pink toned beige background -- I painted the surroundings with Behr's Navajo White (which really is a soft yellow) that completely neutralizes the pink. So, look at yellow tones.

Earlier photos (on my screen) looked like grey would not work at all but these most recent, especially with the floor, seem like a grey would be perfect.

No matter what color, the variation of shade in multiple tiles is a winning idea I think.

raee_gw, that is so interesting! I realized I had absorbed the no yellow/pink undertones rule a couple years ago from a well known "color expert's" blog and a pro who was leading a looong houzz thread where the pro always applied it to choices. So much so that I have been hesitating on a tile because of its pale yellow undertones, even though I loved it with my pink undertoned cabinets! I have some thinkin' to do.

Amy, I don't think the marble is too fancy. The top one kind of reminds me of the Ann Sacks tile mayflowers posted.

Have you considered mosaics with green? I'm not great with photoshop so forgive the tiled plastic bin.

http://tilebar.com/nimbus-gray-blend-squares-marble-glass-tile.html

http://tilebar.com/nimbus-gray-blend-bricks-marble-glass-tile.html

http://tilebar.com/white-carrera-beveled-2x4-marble-tile.html

Katrina, I like the gray one. what is it? marble?

It's marble. Beveled Carrara tiles. (Or is Carrera? I see both spellings.)

Mayflowers, I'm curious. Why no marble with oak? Do you think even honed marble would look too fancy?

Well, it's maple, which laughable corrected later.

I seem to have associations of certain materials with other materials after looking at kitchens for the past five years. I think of oak as being earthy, sturdy, utilitarian, whereas marble is a delicate, "pretty" stone used for show. It also seems like a premium material compared to oak. Marble, white painted cabinets, crystal chandeliers, shiny chrome hardware, sparkling glass cabinet fronts--all seem to go together.

In the background is a window with diamond glass window panes, so it's a traditional home. To me that says no contemporary glass mosaic. But with a small kitchen you would want to have a little fun with color or pattern.

So to clarify further, are you suggesting that ceramic tiles would be most appropriate with this type of kitchen and home, Mayflowers? Trying to wrap my head around this. : )

Yes.

Thanks, Mayflowers, that's helpful. Amy, how did the tile hunt go? Did you find a variety of ceramics that might work?

Yesterday I did not find what I was looking for. (That was 3 tile stores and kids in tow!). I expect my little ones to get up from their naps soon, and we are going to 2 more. So far I have found a white ceramic subway tile with the same undertone as the cabinets. I am aiming to keep that as one and get some others to blend with it. I am praying for successful hunting today. Hopefully I can post a picture of the right pick and you will all like it too!

Amy, look online and order samples. I know your timeline isn't completely flexible, but it's not an unimportant decision...

I think this might be a good option. it's Florida tile, retroclassique. It has some color variation. u think my walls are throwing it off. maybe I need to repaint. (The kitchen was painted before cabinets or flooring was installed). The tiles look nice with the cabinets, and floor. what about the counter?
looking for a set of various shades of ceramics didn't turn up much.

This is on the counter.

What's wrong with that?! : ) It looks great from here. What say the tile gurus?

I'm no tile guru, but I think you found a winner as far as the color on my monitor. It has just a hint of the warm beige pink tone of the cabinets, but not too much pink or anything. It goes perfect with the floor and the countertop.

If you think it works with the cabinets, I'd go for it since that's the hard part. The warmer color appears to be much better than the cool gray of the marble. I don't see an issue with the counters.

Ha! I called in to place my order with a sigh of relief. However, I got a call back only to find out the company is out if stock and won't have anymore until the end of April. I might just wait, but I might keep searching and order some samples online.
I am laughing at this silly "drama."
I am with Mayflower's, much of the marble feels too cool with the pure white.

Whellll...Is there any chance it's in stock where your dad lives? LOL. Trying to help, but maybe that's even more complicated.

Not in Nashville. Also not in Cincinnati. I did find another tile store here close by. They have Walker zanger and some others I have not seen in person. I am hopeful! (The kids are thrilled to go to yet another tile search!)

So it is finished. I wasn't leaning towards marble, but I saw this one and the coloring was perfect. Greys, white and creams!

Thank you all so much for your input!

It looks great! Thanks for sharing your finished back splash. It's always nice to see everything come together.

How are you liking your counter-tops? I am considering those for my own kitchen. They look wonderful in your photos.

I am very happy with the counters. I like that the pattern doesn't make them overwhelmingly black. They are from Wilson Art.

Great choice.

Wow Aim, it looks great! You must be so pleased! When can we come for supper and see it for real? ; )

What color grout did you end up choosing? It looks like a perfect match.

Looks great! Thanks for taking the time to show us your choice. I love it with the cabs and counter.

The tiles are Hampton Carrara and the grout is whisper grey.

It turned out great & I bet it looks perfect with the floors. I also like the black hardware.

That turn out fantastic Amy. I also love the black hardware on your cabinets with the counters. Nice job!