The kitchen has become more than just a functional room and more of a hub for the entire house, it is the visual point of many modern kitchens, homeowners are looking more and more for unique ways to add stylish touches to their homes, to make it uniquely their own. The ideal place to add your own personal touch of design is the kitchen backsplash and it is a very affordable part of the kitchen to remodel.
The kitchen is the number one gathering brick backsplash place in many homes either while entertaining guests and having that coffee with the neighbors or just spending family time together while preparing a meal. The kitchen backsplash is positioned vertically right in the line of sight of visitors to this area of a home, a well designed backsplash using glass subway tiles for example is a very affordable way to spruce up the kitchen in a budget conscious way.
The following five tips can be used by any homeowner or designer to update their own or a customers kitchen:
1. Choose the right materials. In previous decades the most popular choice for kitchen backsplashes has been porcelain or ceramic tile. The last several years have seen a large increase in glass subway, glass tile and mosaics, colors, shapes, and designs are almost endless and they are readily available either online or at your local home center store. Secondly, the rise of glass tiles popularity has been driven by its functionality it is very easy to clean and maintain with many off the shelf cleaning solutions thereby supporting tile. It is also non-porous and requires no maintenance.
Glass tile in either mosaic sizes or field tile sizes is always a good choice for the kitchen backsplash area of the home. Glass tile is easy to clean and maintain and is a great way to add a bit of color to any kitchen. The colors available with glass tile make it easy to fit into any theme within your home, bold or conservative glass tile covers the complete spectrum.
Metal tile had previously been to expensive for the average consumer, but with the improvements in manufacturing the cost per square foot like glass tile has come down significantly without compromising quality. Metal mosaics can be installed as an entire backsplash in a modern or contemporary kitchen. Or, metal decorative tiles look great as accent pieces in a ceramic tile or natural stone backsplash installation.
2. Match Color to Décor in the Kitchen. When selecting a backsplash material, it is important for it to match the overall theme of the kitchen, take into account the color of the cabinets, flooring, faucets and flooring. With the backsplash consider selecting one color as the “base” color then select one or two (no more) “accent” colors as complimentary components of your kitchen design.
3. Be careful when choosing tiles. A porous tile or unglazed tile near sinks or cook tops, or even new style glazed crackle porcelain tile.
Food and grease will splatter up and on the backsplash above a cook top or near a sink, so choosing a porous or unglazed tile in these areas generally is not a wise choice. Natural stone can be a great choice, but you have to remember to seal the tile and then re-seal again in 12-18 months particularly in the area in front of the cook top, a home owner can easily forget which could lead to staining or discoloration over time.