SFGate

205wea I like the backsplash ending at the hood

michigammemom I prefer the tile terminating below the hood. I would however be inclined to go with a more solid colored backsplash...a glass subway tile perhaps? I love the penny tile up close, but from a distance the speckled look is quite busy.

carolannr Not over the hood.

ckanters I too like the backsplash ending at the hood, but I think that perhaps you could have a slightly decorative pattern behing the stove below the hood. I wondered if you may want to add a mix of tile?

onthefence Another vote for ending the backsplash at the hood.

Ellsworth-Hallett Home Professionals What I can't tell is, do the cabinets extend to the ceiling? If they don't, then you can't run the tile all the way up, too odd, no place for the tile to stop on the sides, you will see the cut edge of tile. Looks better ending at bottom of hood anyhow.

bakinbitz Thanks everyone!
@Ellsworth-Hallett Home Professionals - Actually they will run up to top, its not an actual door but cabinet would be extended with molding. If so, would it work?

ckanters If you like it, you should go for it, but I would get some of the tile and put a few sheets there to make sure you really like the look.

bakinbitz These inspired my choice.

ckanters I think that the biggest difference is that the range hood has more stainless steel so it allows your eye to follow the hood up the wall further. Do you have any unphotoshoped photos of the space?

bakinbitz Yes, here they are.

To make short story, trying to finish this kitchen and open up on a small budget since we will also be purchasing hood, induction cooktop, changing floors (probably white oak-antique finish) also changing pendant lights above sink. As you will see in before photo, the cabinets do not go to ceiling,so would like to bring them to ceiling (our ceilings are 9' and that gap is 22") by extending with "faux" cabinet.

The wall to left is all cabinets and feels full.

For backsplash was thinking of small 1" x3" subway but with brick on side I am not sure how that will look.

Here is my question in yesterdays post:

http://www.houzz.com/discussions/283664

Sorry for the recap but I think it will help in understanding what Im trying to achieve ;)

bakinbitz Here is how Im thinking to extend cabinets on the cheap ;)

bakinbitz Thanks so much for all your help :))

Christine I like the tile all the way up

ckanters I like the way you are extending the cabinets. If you are buying a new hood, I think that the tile behind it would look great if you had a hood with a longer vent. I also like the way you are changing the hardware on the cabinets. What material are your counter tops?

bakinbitz You have a good point about the hood. I will certainly take that into consideration since we havent purchased it yet. We actually wont be changing hardware those were changed only a while ago.
The countertop is from the last renovation about 15 years ago but was a "high quality" imitation quartz and is actually nice in person, only thing I dislike is the rounded edge of counter. But otherwise colours are white with light variations of mint green, taupe and grey. This is why I thought the penny tile I chose could pull everything together.

Elyn's Library For a bit of "kitchen wow!" I think extending the tile all the way to the ceiling would be great paired with a hood with a configuration more like these from Home Depot -

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-25ecodZ5yc1v/R-100595669/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&keyword=range+hood&storeId=10051#.UOOMI2_oRrA

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-25ecodZ5yc1v/R-203590804/h_d2/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10053&langId=-1&keyword=range+hood&storeId=10051#.UOOMQ2_oRrA

and I love your penny-tile choice!

Marilyn Wilkie I like it going all the way up to the ceiling. It provides a focal point and a bit of Wow factor.

Susan Jablon Mosaics Hi bakinbitz!
I think that if you are extending your cabinets to the ceiling then you should extend the tile behind the range to the ceiling, otherwise that space would feel a bit empty. A nice way to make your kitchen more interesting would be to use two different tile backsplashes, one behind the range, and the other under the cabinets. A cool stainless steel backsplash would look very modern and cool behind the range, and then you could do something more neutral for the rest. The images below are tiles from our site. The stainless steel in a 2inch diamond pattern would mimic the pattern of your floor. The gray tiles are 1inch and have a glossy finish. I like the idea of repeating the square shape, but in different layouts and sizes. Just some ideas. Good luck, I'm sure it will turn out fabulous as all your design choices thus far are beautiful!

bakinbitz Thanks for your great suggestions!

Chroma Design No, doing the tile above your vent hood is simply wrong. While your inspiration photos are lovely and show tile above a vent used properly, these are different configurations than yours. Both example have the tile going up on the same vertical plane. Yours would be on two vertical planes; the lower on the plane of the wall and the upper on a vertical plane 12" out from the wall. It would look disjointed being on the plane of the soffit.
Yes, the first pic has it projected, but wrapping around makes it work.

bakinbitz Thanks, I agree that it may be weird but maybe since I havent purchase my vent yet, maybe if I go with something chimney to ceiling or even just slimmer like second attached(although I kind of prefer the more commercial look to the other one), it would permit me to go to ceiling? I really would like a sort of accent with wow factor and thought that this could be it(bringing tile to ceiling), so much to think about!
Unless I would take out the cabinet on left and right of hood to give it more of a complete wall and replace with just shelves? I think I may go back to drawing board and see what it looks like.

bakinbitz I cant get the second image to upload, sorry.

bakinbitz trying again

Elizabeth Lovenberg I like the look with the tile below the hood. Much cleaner, and works better with your space.

Chroma Design Those two vent hoods would be appropriate for taking the tile above. You're on the right track now! That said, I still think your kitchen is best served by stopping the tile at the vent. My reasons are several. Your original vent is cheaper than the new examples. You said you wee on a budget. Less tile means less expense both in material and installation. I agree you would need a width buffer around the vent and changing or modifying the adjacent cabinets is more cost. An eye catching tile will give you plenty of wow factor even at vent height. But the most compelling reason not to take the tile higher, for me, is the height of the soffit you must create. (When i say soffit, i realize it is not a true soffit and you intend to make it look like cabinetry that goes to the ceiling.) It appears to be nearly two feet. That is almost the same as the height of some over your upper cabinets, for example, the two over your range. That will be a lot of flat surface above the doors and could verge on looking top heavy or unusual to the point of strange. (Use a larger crown at the top to mitigate this.) So the point is, with this very tall "soffit" I would do nothing to draw the eye up there as it could give away that the cabinets have been topped. Keep it clean!

bakinbitz Thanks so much for your input, I really appreciate you taking the time to answer. Everyones comments are really making me re-think the whole picture.

I am now wondering, if I had budget (my actual budget is $10 000cad) should we top the cabinets with an additional row above (with glass doors(?)) OR open the wall will range to allow for a tile Accent wall(l made another quick mock up) and as shown on the new photo attached, have doors made for the open shelves on the left of kitchen on this new attached photo? Or continue with my first idea?

Since my counters are over 18 years old( but in very good shape) I am now considering changing them too, with what, that is another question, lol!

What should I prioritize? The things bugging me in this kitchen are the following:

-Open space above the cabinets (there is 22" space)
-Don't like the style of doors, would prefer Shaker style
-Needs finishing touch like a nice backsplash (in my opinion) I think this would help pull it together
-I dislike the bullnose on counter and how the counter ends at end where it meets brick (end of u)

Must consider that we have to change our cooktop(now a Jennair) and get a hood vent and change the pendant lights for sure! So probably only have about 7000$ for changes.

Note that the shelves on my mock-up are totally not well proportioned or well placed but it gives an idea ;)

THere are just so many things to think of and I keep changing my mind!

Thanks again!

Chroma Design I suggest you begin to quantify your wish list. Put a cost to each element. Backsplash, how many square feet and materials cost per square ft. Same for counter top. Cost of new cook top, cost of new vent. Who is going to do the work? Yourselves or will you hire someone? Will your vent hood exhausted to the exterior and have you factored in that cost? Etc. there are many things to consider. Tally those up and compare to your overall budget. Then prioritize, which is something only you can answer.
I thought about doing over cabinets for the uppers. That could be a great solution but again, a significant cost.

ManLand LandMan Backsplash looks cheap. You can see the start to finish. The backsplash needs to be re done.

bakinbitz Thanks Chroma- My next step is finding out how much to do cabinets and/or doors, this will be the deciding factor. Just going through this has helped me see clearer thought, thanks again!

Casey LandMan- this is a photoshoped photo, its not for real ;)

ManLand LandMan Backsplash is a total train wreck. It's like a DIY project gone wrong?

bakinbitz Casey LandMan- I think you didnt read above, this was done in photoshop, not the real thing.
No backsplash up yet! ;)

kerryjhoffman You may consider keeping the area behind the cooktop stainless and then running that to the ceiling a well. It will give you a more contemporary look and a much easier to clean surface from grease etc...
I recently revamped a kitchen with older cabinets and used open shelving and love it. You dust a lot more but it looks great!

Marilyn Wilkie Casey LandMan, your comments are rude in my opinion. She clearly stated in the beginning that she did a Photoshop mockup so that she could see possibilities. And I disagree anyway.

okmrazor You posted two treatments of the space above the cabinets: the second a full cabinet tier above the uppers and the first a flat-stock and molding treatment. If you are set on extending to the ceiling, I would go with the full cabinet tier, as 22" is a HUGE amount to cover and will ultimately look like a very large, molded soffit. Your uppers look like they're 30," and there would be little balance (very top heavy/imposing) with 22" of soffit-like space. You could also do an "open" cabinet area up there, as a display area.

Regarding the initial photos of the backsplash ideas vs the inspiration photos: both the inspiration photos are of very open walls where a vertical influence feels natural. Taking the backsplash through the existing plane of the cabinets and to the ceiling in your space will feel more contradictory and forced. Nice idea on the inspiration, and nice looking kitchen, but the two don't necessarily mesh (imho) in your space.