We also used architectronics tile for our backsplash. It is lovely. We wanted color variation and texture variation, so we went with the handmade. I love everything about it except the lead time was so long!

I love the interesting pattern... Just make sure that it will not be too much going on. I originally wanted something like what you are looking at doing but my designer talked me out of it. Between the size of my backsplash, open concept, and my busy counters, it would have been too much. I wound up doing 4"x4" offset. Now that everything is finished, it is easy to see that it was the right choice. The size/color variation gives it some subtle interest without drawing too much focus. But if I had a different kitchen, I think it would have worked nicely.

Edit: Just saw you did post a picture of your kitchen. It was so nice, I thought it was a stock photo! I do think with your counters an interesting pattern will look great!

Robin Morris - well, now you need to show me a picture of your Waterworks tile! :) And yes, the lead time they quoted me (as worst case) was 16 weeks! We aren't in a hurry, so it's no big deal but dang. Handmade I guess actually means handmade!

My inlaws 1620 home had Flemish Bond brick pattern. That is it!

gthigpen

Here are a few close ups (day and night):

Here is a far away night shot:

It took about 14 weeks. I was just impatient to be done completely with the reno. Btw, our tile is matte pumice. It was worth the wait.

Your kitchen is already so lovely, I'm sure it will be the perfect last touch.

Great. Now y'all have me looking at brick patterns going, "Oooooh, a backsplash WITH THAT!!!" As if I didn't already have enough things that made me weird.

Grrrr.

;-)

That Flemish Bond is a very handsome pattern. Very.

Robin - ooh, so pretty and perfect. Love that Waterworks tile!

ODD - right?! With the positive reinforcement I’ve received here and blessing from my DH, I’m now obsessing over this pattern and others. So many options!

Found this image and fell in love.

Robin Morris -- what is your countertop? It's gorgeous!

Love that Heath tile picture!. none of their tile colors worked as well as the Pumice or we may have gone with them instead of Waterworks. Makes me wish I had more places for tile! Heath has really amazing dinnerware too if you are looking for more things to drool over.

course411, thank you! It is Naica quartzite and so far it is as invincible as it is lovely.

Nice! I have Waterworks Architectonics in my bathroom as well. It's a classic tile, very well made. And the Flemish Bond pattern is an interesting variation on a theme.

BTW, googling "Flemish Blond" gets you a lot about Belgian beer!

Great thread with lots of beautiful visuals. Love the pattern in the pictures.

Do most of you agree as i’ve noticed, that there is a significant amount of contrast (I think) between the tile and the grout in most of these projects?

i hope you do this pattern gthigpen. I really like it. I‘m Kind of having buyers remorse here.

ILR - you should not have buyers remorse! Your tile is so pretty and just right for your kitchen. There is a reason that subway is used in so many kitchens. It’s timeless and classic.

As far as contrast goes, I think the very first image I posted has the smallest amount of contrast which is what I prefer. I like when a grout blends in with the tile. I think there are definitely times when more contrast looks better. The last dark blue image I posted doesn’t have a high amount in my opinion. Probably why I like it so much.

It will look lovely. I think your next dilemma will be "do I tile to the ceiling on the window wall?".

Angel - no dilemma. We will tile to the ceiling.

That's what I was thinking. Please keep us posted.

I'm looking forward to seeing it

It's a Flemish Bond Brick pattern and it's wonderful.

Trust CPArtist to know the name of the pattern!

I like it -- very much -- in some of these pix; examples:

But this one, not so much -- why? I can't put my finger on why I like it in some installations and not others.

I think it looks nicer with subtle variations in the tiles. When its all uniform shiny white like the last shot it just too sterile.

Mrs Pete - completely agree. I don’t care for that all white one. I feel like all I see is ’the pattern’. But when the tiles are warmer with subtle color differences I think the pattern adds to the character and makes it even better.

I like it better when it looks like a basket weave (when it appears that a tile went over another tile and curves out). Have you ruled that out?

I think it looks nicer with subtle variations in the tiles. When its all uniform shiny white like the last shot it just too sterile.

I like it best with tile variation and blended grout, as well. But I like variation in tile, as a general rule, because it seems less "mechanically" produced. Blending the grout, overall, ends up providing a touch of subtle contrast with different parts of the tile, anyway, since you can't blend the grout with every single shade in the tile.

It just looks like home. <3

ljptwt7 - I think the problem with trying to mimic a true basket weave would be trying to achieve a nearly perfect installation. Not sure the installers could get it consistently right throughout the whole install. i agree it looks really cool but knowing my luck, we’d get a completely crappy install or a pretty good one but would still miss in a certain area or something. And that would be the area I would focus on. :)

following

I wondered if those tiles that appeared like they were going over other tiles (the basket weave effect) were made different, thicker in the middle.
If that is just done by the installer, I'm really impressed by their artistry. And I'm sure it would be hard to find someone to do that!
Your kitchen will be beautiful.

The examples are not a basketweave pattern at all. It is the use of two different tile sizes in a horizontal (two tile sizes alternating horizontal) pattern.

I was going to use a square for my backsplash, but now wondering if the Flemish Bond Brick pattern wouldn't look good with the texture and shine of my tile? Either way, I think it would look great in your space!

As Dragonfly said, they are two different tile patterns.

This is a basketweave:

This is a Flemish Bond:

Look at the 1st pic the OP posted, especially under the cabinet. That looks like the basketweave effect I mentioned.

ljptwt7 - I see what you see also. Knowing that those are Waterworks tiles, it's an installation effect, not differing thickness of tiles. But dragonfly is right, it's not a true basketweave pattern, but just an allusion.

I'm going to do a final measurement tonight of our backsplash area to make sure I've calculated the square footage correctly. Then get a price from Waterworks. I'm sure I'll choke on the number! I'm excited to have finally picked something that both my DH and I like and something that's a bit different. I printed some 'tiles' in the rectangle and squares on paper. I'm going to cut them out and tape them up to try and visualize everything in my space. I hope it looks like I think it will look!

Have your installer do the measurement as he/she should be able to determine the waste, etc. due to cuts required. Also, most tile contractors will receive a trade discount from Waterworks. Often they share at least a portion if they order it for you.

Dragonfly - our final measurement will come from the installer. I'm calling mine 'final' because up until now, I've been 'guesstimating' how many square feet we will need based on our KD layout to get close to calculating what a backsplash will cost. I want to make sure I'm not wildly off base. I'm actually going to see if Waterworks has one they recommend. I liked the guy who did the rest of our house well enough, but our other tile was all manufactured and pretty simple. I'm not sure he could handle this stuff and I don't want to mess it up. That would be great if we could get a trade discount!

I attempted a mock-up of the pattern and tile we’d use. Our printer toner is apparently running low as these came out streaky and with a definite purple tint. And I should have printed more to get a complete board. I’ll try add to it tomorrow if I can find another printer. But it did give me a sense of the pattern in the space. I put the tile up for comparison in the lower left part. Pics were taken at night with and without under cabinet lighting.

I love the pattern, but the colors are off, probably due to the fact that the "tiles" are really paper! But be aware of the difference in lighting during the day and evening when you make your final selection of the actual tile color.

Love the pattern! Wish I had used this pattern in my master bath. It would have been awesome!

Oooooh pretty!

Gthigpen, this is one of the few types of subway tile I actively LIKE. Great find!

Someone may have asked this but just incase..... does your backsplash surround a window? We have a traditional Subway white tile and the pattern right at the edge of the windows ended up in a stacked pattern. It works well, but I imagine that some patterns get tricky around windows. Just something else to ponder. Ignore the temporary blind... window coverings are not as easy as may seem

Chris - yes, our tile will go around and above a window. I agree, this pattern will require careful planning to get right.

I'm excited to do it! To add to my 100+ samples, I ordered a sample of a Heath tile just because I really liked that image I found and I hadn't considered Heath before. From what I could tell, the price for the 3x6 is the same as Waterworks, but the 3x3 I'd need is significantly cheaper than Waterworks. So who knows....the color might not work but I thought it was worth a look.

Just to give an update many months after I posed this question. We finally finished! I ordered the tile in August, it arrived in early October and my DH and I took some time off over the holidays to do the install. We still need to complete the molding above the cabinets and put a small strip of wood under the window.

The tile is Waterworks Architechtonics Dove glossy. We did the Flemish Bond pattern. Some pics from this evening with under cabinet lights on.

Beautiful! I do like the Flemish Bond pattern.

Wow, you did a great job! Love your kitchen--enjoy!

Looks wonderful! Hope you are enjoying the new space.

Thank you for posting a follow up! It looks terrific and I'm impressed that you did the install yourself. Lovely kitchen!

Looks great! And thank you for the inspiration. Our house is all Flemish bond brick on the exterior. If we ever find ourselves redoing our black checkerboard backsplash (which is likely if we ever replace the 1950s cabinets), this would be a great subtle tie to the outside of our house.

Beautiful tile. In retrospect do you wish you’d hired a pro installer?

Love it! Great job!

Thanks everyone! Here are a couple of pics from this morning in the daylight with no lights on.

As far as hiring an installer, I really wanted to. For the sake of time and end result. But we got a few quotes from well reputed installers and their prices were well above what we were able to pay. I’m not saying they were unreasonable now knowing how much work went into this, but it was just a lot right now. So we went in armed with research on how to do handmade tiling and a willingness to be patient. Overall I think we did a good job. There are few spots that we are calling “character”. :) And despite measuring, measuring again, dry layouts, etc. we still ended up with a sliver near the ceiling that’s narrower than I’d like. But we may end up covering it with molding when all said and done. So no I don’t regret doing it ourselves knowing that we saved quite a bit of money and I’m satisfied with the result.

I think you dod a wonderful job and I love the Flemish bond pattern. Well done.

That tile is gorgeous,especially with your island, and I love the pattern. I think your kitchen looks wonderful. Congratulations!

It looks beautiful! I've not seen this pattern in person but it looks great in your kitchen. Great job!