Inspiration kitchen: Check out this photo from houzz - https://www.houzz.com/photos/kitchen-remodel-in-nw-washington-dc-traditional-kitchen-dc-metro-phvw-vp~151815298

Here's a photo of the Marin Sand Dollar tile installed: https://www.instagram.com/p/DPBrEdngQCf/?img_index=1&igsh=ankzbGp3czluOTFr

^^^^^^^^ Good advice in the above comment.

Also, Bedrosian Marin tiles have a V4 variation rating = highest variation rating. I would purchase an entire box from HD/Lowe's (free shipping + free returns + no restocking fee) - otherwise, you will not be able to see the variation from just a few pieces. Also, different color lots potentially might be a bit warmer or cooler. I have Bedrosian Cloe white and baby blue tiles - they are V4 variation - and they have a lot of shades.

SW can do a custom match of your tile to a paint color for free. The white temperature rating of your led lights can have a major impact on the colors. 3500K is different in warmth than 4000K.

@dani_m08 - Ooh, I didn't know about the variation rating scale - that's good to know. I do know that Marin has a lot of variation (and I love that about it) - maybe you are right, that we should buy a box and lay it out. Thankfully, it's not a very hard-to-find tile.

@dan1888 - good reminder about the paint match. I did that for my front door once and it worked pretty well.

@Kendrah - Thank you for your comment. I agree that in my inspo picture, I also love the way the tile and the wall color are very close in value (makes everything feel very seamless and intentional). However, the room on the whole, while incredibly warm and welcoming (what drew me to it), it all reads a bit too yellow for me. So, I don't want to copy it exactly, just take inspiration from how warm and welcoming it is to me. I told my cousin that the general vibe I am going for is "modernized 1990s kitchen of my dreams" and hopefully in the end that reads "classic." But, when I look back at my Pinterest board from years ago now, when I first started saving kitchen ideas, I had a bunch with tile that had a lot of variation in it. My husband also wants a tile that is "interesting" and more dynamic than a straight color subway tile because he is concerned that since the cabs will be all wood and the floor wood, that without something providing texture, the kitchen will be too "boring." And honestly, I share some of the same concern because if you look back at my initial kitchen discussions from when we started with the first kitchen designer, our kitchen concept was very bold and I was afraid to give it up because I wanted a kitchen that felt unique. But, as we've gone further in the process, I also realized how important it is, for all the money we are spending, to have a kitchen that is sellable should something happen and we need to move.

Re: tile variation as mentioned by @dani_m08: When we were remodeling our current house, I posted a thread on tile variation because I've been burned not once but twice (slow learner maybe?) In case it helps, this thread has some pictures of tile variation in real life compared to the marketing photos, and a few bullet points that I wished I had known and followed prior to spending money on tile.

Thanks to Chicagoans and others chiming in about the backsplash variation, I went ahead and ordered a box of the Marin Sand Dollar. Thankfully, my designer has a display kitchen in her shop with a nice big slab of Colton (which is how I fell in love with it) and she said I could come visit the display kitchen and lay out a bunch of the Marin tiles to see how they work together. Fingers crossed there.

we actually successfully selected appliances this weekend and landed on cabinet hardware we liked. We ended up splitting the difference between the Pewter and the matte black and went with gunmetal. The pulls are Milan by Jeffrey Alexander. Photo below with the cabinet door, hardware and countertop together.

I have begun shifting my attention to the dining nook area that will be open to the kitchen. This will be an opportunity to bring in some real coziness. I have included a photo below of the general vibe I am going for in the space, though perhaps a little more paired down. I have a couple light fixtures I am looking at. Anyone have a favorite? finish would be black or brushed nickel.