Okay, so yesterday I stopped at Home Depot (the first post was after a stop at Lowe's). Here are some pics of possibilities for a backsplash to go with our current cabinets and countertops. Don't tell me not to go with the counters--they are already installed and we love them. Wilsonart, not granite. We're on a budget.

Unlike Lowe's, this HD had some displays of the tiles already grouted. Being alone, I couldn't hold up both the cabinet drawer and counter sample to see how they would look together.

Starting with the one I liked the best:

This (below) is how the pieces are sold. So my first thought was: are little bitty tiles like this too busy? (But with the matching grout they don't look as busy as below.)

BUT THEN, looking more closely at the sign, I see that these also come in a 6x6.

So to the nice lady (Cretan64) who suggested yesterday that we keep the shelf over the sink and do something different above it, I was thinking perhaps we could have 6x6 on the diagonal and then these little guys horizontally over the shelf with some kind of rectangular frame (I don't know the lingo).

Here's (half of) the kitchen for anyone new to my "design dilemma":

And how it looked with the shelf and old formica:

Electrician is coming Friday to move outlets and put in undercabinet lighting and get rid of that horrid flourescent light.

Back to tile. The above tile also came in a "Cameo" color:

This does pick up colors in the countertop, but is it too busy? The goldish variations are a bit more noticeable than the bone color.

Then there was a 3rd pile of these, but there was no label for them. I'm not sure if it's the same as the Britton Bone above or a more white version:

I realize now I should have held it up to the Britton pile to see if it was the same thing.

Here was the only other on display that looked like a possibility, but I really do think this is too busy. And I have an aversion to pitted-looking tile. I've never liked buying new things that are supposed to look old and worn.

Not a great picture, but the best I could do with one hand.

In the special order section, I ended up liking what I've liked before: Daltile (although it wasn't labeled Daltile) in the Matte Urban Putty or Matte Almond. I just don't understand why when I bring home an almond tile that LOOKS almond in the store, it looks too white at home.

Guess I've reached my limit for adding photos. I'll see if I can add in a new post.