Backsplash Ideas

Incorporating one material throughout a room is a great way to unify the design and establish a distinct focal point. For this contemporary kitchen, Herzlinger used large slabs of marble to create a monolithic look, thus allowing the dark cabinetry and floors to pop.



A backsplash can also be used to separate one area of a room from another. In this modern home, Herzlinger brought in stainless tile to designate a butler's bar within the oversized kitchen.
A smaller budget doesn't have to mean a sacrifice in style. Graphic designer Jen Ramos selected honed Carrara marble for her backsplash, which she found at Home Depot and installed via independent contractor.



For designer Jamie Herzlinger, a backsplash is the finishing touch that can make or break the room. "So often I come across backsplashes that aren't in sync with the rest of the kitchen," laments Herzlinger, "and that's a missed opportunity to make a big statement." For this space, Herzlinger chose a mustard yellow and oxblood red pattern to accent the Mediterranean decor.



Design blogger and fine artist Nicole Cohen had her work cut out for her when she took on a gut renovation of her apartment. She selected miniature stainless steel tiles for the backsplash, which gave an industrial edge to the Calcutta countertops and white lacquer cabinetry in her kitchen. A twist on traditional subway tile, the metal is modern and easy to keep clean.

Kitchen Designs

Classic Modernism

 

 

Designer Michael Berman laid a linoleum floor in the kitchen and stained the original walnut cabinets the color of black tea to set off the white tile of the countertops.

California Kitchen

 

A 4-by-4-foot chase — a column holding all sorts of electrical wiring and plumbing — runs right through the room and could not be moved. So designer Sandra Bird worked around it, and built it out into four areas: a cooking area with the range, a buffet for the table, a desk, and then a baking area in back.

Think Upwards

 

Home Depot designer Emily O'Keefe added cabinetry with period charm to this small kitchen. "Since space was tight, I went up, stacking the cabinets," she says. "The ceilings are 11 feet high, but not every cabinet touches the ceiling — that way they look more like furniture."

Old World Charm

 

The kitchen island, made from reclaimed chestnut with barley-twist details, resembles a piece of furniture. It gives the space an Old World charm. Interior design by Healing Barsanti.

Clutter-Free Kitchen

 

Judith Barrett designed her kitchen to be remarkably organized and clutter-free. Leave it to a cookbook writer to know what works best.

Simple Storage

 

Poured concrete countertops cover sleek cabinets built for storage. Design by Form Architecture + Interiors.

Sleek Kitchen

 

Poliform cabinets give this kitchen a sleek and sparse look.

Casual Feeling

 

Designer Ray Booth wanted to give the kitchen an aged, casual feeling, with distressed finishes. The ceiling is made from pecky cypress, and the center island is oak treated with ammonia and wire-brushed to pull out the grain.

Italian Kitchen Designs

If there were an olympics for design, the Italians would surely take the kitchen category. The country has been producing cutting-edge kitchens since as far back as I can remember (and I’m old). Pedini began designing modern kitchens in 1965, focusing on functionality as much as on form. The company researches the way people use their kitchens, careful to design their cabinets as to minimize stress to the body. Cooking, for those of you who don’t do it, requires repeated motions—a well-designed kitchen should acknowledge this. Any Pedini kitchen pays close attention to ergonmics, and they all look good doing it.
But the Outline Collection, designed by Domenico Paolucci (a name someone should steal if the Sopranos ever comes back to HBO) is particularly striking. With a horizontally-oriented profile, Outline turns the kitchen on its side—and with good reason; while many of us have been married to vertically-oriented cabinetry, it is not the best use of space. Good cooks know that everything should be within reach, and a shelf that’s six feet high is good for very few people. You can further emphasize Outline’s orientation by choosing their grooved drawer fronts, which also feature horizontal lines. If you prefer to keep it minimalist, face the drawers with smooth lacquer or lacquered glass. Any of these materials is available in one of Pedini’s signature “chromatic personalizations,” in other words, “significant flexibility in color choice, innumerable tones of laminate, many shining colors of glass, and wooden doors with different colors and veining.”

All of these materials are 20 mm thick, medium-density balance panels, making them resistant to denting and warping. The finishes also resist fading, so you’ll never lose any of those brilliant colors. The strong lines of Outline are complemented well by contrasting accessories, such as the playful area rug featured on the Pedini website—a composition of circles of varying sizes that brings to mind plates and bubbles (two things one must have in the kitchen).