I like the smoother limestone samples. I've seen quite a few uses of rough and ledge stone back splashes here, for both kitchens and baths, and I have to wonder how those would really function, especially in terms of cleaning (or rubbing up against ledge stone in the shower, oh my!). My only other "concern." as this evolves, is that your kitchen has that sort of retro "quaint" charm and that limestone and granite are less in keeping with that overall style persay.

Your white cabinets look wonderful! We are having new white cabinets installed now in our kitchen, and are getting a quartz countertop which is white with some small gray swirls here and there. However, I do NOT want a full tile backsplash and am getting a 4" backsplash using the same quartz material. I can see from the above comments that everyone has a HORROR of the 4' backsplash! However, here's my reason: Our remodeled kitchen, which included removing some walls to open it up to the family room, will have almost no wall space. With white cabinets, white countertop, and medium brown wood flooring, I want some color in my kitchen! It was painted a really lovely light green, and I plan to repaint what small bits of wall are left in the same color. I can also add a hook or nail to hang something on my walls, like a calendar or a trivet. If I get tired of the green paint at some point, I can easily repaint. But if I have tiled backsplash covering all the walls, I'm stuck with it. And I doubt that kitchen styles will remain the same forever; someday the popular tiled backsplash will look dated to future homeowners. We should all choose what we like, not what someone else prefers!

I had a heck of a time choosing my backsplash. Don’t make the same mistake I did. I wanted subway tile on the perimeter but a wavy interesting tile behind the stove. It didn’t work so I’m having the tiler come back and take out the wavy tile and put the same subway in though I’m not sure if she could get it to match right. $$ Anyway, back to your kitchen. I have Cambria Brittanica and I used a soft gray tile with white grout. I love the combination and I plan to use colorful linens, vases, fruit to bring some color in. We still need to switch to cooler under cabinet lights. We are still in the kitchen Reno stage and painters just started today painting Agreeable Gray! Our kitchen was so dark and I needed some light in my life!!

Based on the specs for a bunch of over-the-range microwave ovens I reviewed, if you leave at least 17" between the top of the backsplash and the bottom of the upper cabinet, there should be enough room for most any oven without its overlapping the new backsplash. Oven dimensions don't vary much because manufacturers know that owners will want to replace busted ovens with new ones in the same opening. -- amateur