Also the walls will be a light/medium tan color!!

Beautiful kitchen. I like your countertop. I would stick to a simple cream color backsplash so it does not compete with your countertop❣️I think your choice of tan walls is a good idea too. Post a picture when you complete your kitchen❣️

just a creamy white subway. but if you get the vibe of this: a black backsplash would unite w the counter choice and stand up to the hickory species . it would need to be a big enough kitchen
so the dark areas don't create a black hole......some good light, and choose the black tile carefully...but it could work and expand on the themes you've initiated.

basalt.

I suggested this to another posted w/the exact same materials as yours, and she did it! looks great

she has hickory floors and oak cabinets. same granite

she also did black slate outlet covers. (black slate tile is another option but it's more irregular)

basalt comes in a variety of finishes, I like the honed. and you'll seal it and get a darker color to it if you like.

Home Depot carries these by Jeffry Court, OR Jeff Lewis has the basalt tiles there too. I think that's what she used in her kitchen

Or, look at Bedrosians Makoto 2x10 tiles:

or their Cloe in the black

And using a black Zellige tile would be amazing . I love a good black tile

want matte to match your leathered surface? Tilebar has these

I like creamy too. Blacks cool also!

The black looks very heavy to me. I'd stick with cream or very light tan for the back splash tile.

normally I'd say yes (to the white or cream) but there is no cream in that countertop. (there are gold tones) there are no white cabinets, or white/cream anything, except the window trim)

IMO, throwing in a white/cream color would look disjointed and relate to nothing (unless maybe there is a white island or white living room near by???

I see plenty of light in there. She already has black countertops. doing a black tile will continue the same color up the back and give a more coordinated look.

Here. I've photoshopped 3 colors

here's the white.

and here is Cloe in the Cream color. has more yellow tones than the white

it's not horrible, if you can find the perfect cream color tile w/the right amount of gold in it to match the wood and the veining.

and one w/the black basalt.

(don't forget the black outlets)

I think doing the black works great w/the hardware and the granite.

black/gold pendant

Runner

could always bring in a creamy loom chair if there's an island

the black or near black gets my vote. maybe the OP Heidi can bring in some samples of light and dark and see what happens when they are in her space. We can't see the whole kitchen. She has to play w these options a bit. Get used to the dark. Beth's pictures are all quite varied and each beautiful . Classy/ upgrades the look !!!!

Thank you all for the input! These are great suggestions! My husband likes the idea of the black but 1) I’m afraid it will close in the kitchen. It is an open concept main floor with the dining/living and kitchen together, but there is not a ton of natural light coming into the space. Four can lights in the kitchen. I love the idea of bringing in the black/gold with pendant lights, but we didn’t add any additional lighting to the space. 2) my husband just changed out all of the outlets and light switches to white.

There are some very subtle cream tones in the granite along with the tan and bronze ones. I’m leaning more towards a cream/ tan matte or honed tile that can bring those colors out more.

I think I’m off to get more samples!!! I will find the right option one of these days. I also was against the dark countertops in the beginning but love them now.

Heidi, under cabinet LED lighting is inexpensive, easy to install and gives off a ton of light. I keep mine on 24/7.

people always think "dark colors close off a space" and that's not always the case.

You'd use a light grout so the eye wouldn't see a sheet of black.

bringing in the under cab lights would give constant lighting to the tiles (very cheap to leave on)

btw, changing out 2-3 outlets to the black would take less than 5 mins! not a big deal to do if you like the black tile.

But, if you want a lighter tile, go for it. I love your granite and think keeping the same color palette would compliment it a lot better.

Another idea

Maureen, that’s a thought as well!

These are two of the light options we already had samples of.

The black tiles do look good, but i can understand your concern. Have you thought any about a seamless metal backsplash like stainless steel, copper or my suggestion-brass? It would be reflective and work as a solid element, not competing with the granite or the hickory grain.

that right one...dark taupe would work if thats better for you. it's neutral and kind of a non-statement. dont like the light cream. I think more a white would be better than cream....something that blends w window trim basically.

Here’s a good copper b/s with hickory cabinets

https://www.houzz.com/photos/housley-home-farmhouse-kitchen-nashville-phvw-vp~130691925

You need a really rich, creamy caramel-goldish colored tile if you don’t go with black. You also need to get more light in the room. And don’t worry about outlet covers - change them to black where you need to. Can we see a longer view of the whole space? It will help to get ideas on how to lighten it up if you want to consider the black backsplash (which looks perfect IMO). I love, love your countertop!

Beautiful Kitchen! Love it so far. Some options for you

Travertine Gold Turkish Tile, 3x6, Tumbled Field Tiles, 10 Sqft · More Info

Princess Marble and Brass Tile, Lena · More Info

Medici Gold Pattern Stone Metal Mosaic, 10 Sheets · More Info

12"x12" European Cnc-Arched Travertine Brick Mosaic, Set of 50 · More Info

Tuscany Gold 4x4 Subway Tumbled, Set of 60 · More Info

Gentle Net Calacatta and Brass Luxury Waterjet Mosaic · More Info

Noce Travertine Brick Mosaic, 2x4, Cnc-Arched Mosaic Tiles, 10 Sqft · More Info

Noce Travertine Deep-Beveled Diamond Mosaic, 3x6, Honed Mosaic Tiles, 10 Sqft · More Info

RedRyder, Here’s a wider shot, please ignore the mess!

I found some others.

Seneca tiles has this Brushed Nickel, dark tile, that is gorgeous. not really a deep black.

they have the metallic blend. maybe the burnished copper since someone mentioned copper?

Tilebar has this metallic looking tile in a antique brass, or a darker pewter, and a rose gold.

here's the dark pewter

the antique brass

and this rose gold color. comes in these smaller bars too.

https://www.tilebar.com/bohemian-brick-metallic-pewter-2-5x9-clay-tile.html

you can get 5 samples for either $5 or $10. take a look

Lowes has a similar dark pewter tile that looks like this

and here is the dark gray basalt tiles from jeffrey lewis at Home Depot

copper is a good idea too. Do you happen to have a copper sink?

Neither of these work.

the white really doesn't play w/anything, and the mushroom tile is the wrong color w/your cabinets.

A tile that falls between dark gray and black and I wouldn't bet on beige/tan walls for the kitchen either.

Use a colored grout to pick up the golden veining in the counters.

Other side!

My favorite so far for your kitchen. When you click on it and look at the other pictures, it has more veining and some quite dark, which I think would make a nice compliment, but keep the kitchen light, but there are a lot of great suggestions here.

Suggestion for deciding, get a box of the ones that you like, tape them up to fill a section of the kitchen, or multiple sections, live with each for a few days, then decide which one you liked best. :)

Good Luck, can't wait to see what you decide, you've done amazing so far!

Gentle Net Calacatta and Brass Luxury Waterjet Mosaic · More Info

Thank you all for these amazing suggestions. This gives me a lot to think about and digest. Going to go share them with my husband and start ordering some new samples!!

In situations like yours these decisions are not isolated...you need the “mood” of the kitchen to match all the adjoining spaces...what is your style?..if you are impacted by poor natural light i would aim for the black counters to be an accent...not try to add more dark influences...if we could see the adjoining spaces there may be some inspiration there for a more unexpected ...but lighter ...influence

Perhaps even some sparkle to reflect more light

Here are photos of the adjoining space.

Time to get other samples. Try the coppery look, the black and Lisa’s idea. And a rug in the kitchen will also,pull it together. Your kitchen really looks great so far. Backsplash choices are, by far, the hardest part of doing a kitchen.

I have the same counters as you and here is a picture of our backsplash. It was purchased from The Tile Shop a few years ago- don’t remember the name.

Thanks Kelly! That is a pretty option.

Ahhh! Your home has quite a “rustic?” feel...lots of wood an most of the surfaces natural wood color....the underlying tones are golden ..so if i changed anything it would be the wall and trim colors..to colors that come more from nature ....perhaps a pale golden green for the walls?..and the trim in a warmer golden creamy white...the next thing needed IMO...would be some understated but colorful patterned rugs to define the different areas..you could use southwestern ...floral...or oriental patterns for the rugs depending on what you like...at this point i would say choose a color from any of the colors added to the room that you like ....or are dominant...and use that color for the backsplash...with what you have already i would not aim for neutral backsplash...but for one with a little more pop..

Painting the doors and trim in a slight variation of the new wall color would be even better as they now sort of stand out a little too much.and are clumped together in placement somewhat