Welcome to week 4 of the One Room Challenge, the 6 week challenge to transform a room. I’ve chosen our kitchen for our renovation and we are utterly in the thick of it at this point. This next step in my journey toward a white kitchen has everything to do with a calcatta gold marble backsplash which I’m crushing on big time.
Let’s just take a step back for a minute to review the progress thus far. We started with a dark cherry kitchen above, with even darker granite counters, a muddy faux terra-cotta floor and the most curious backsplash. In Week 2 we replaced the island countertop and in Week 3 we replaced the floor. Next it was time to address that oddball backsplash.
Smoky blue grey tiles that didn’t match anything with a cheesy sheen that made it hard to look at, this backsplash was among the things that drove me the most nuts about this kitchen, a room we agreed to change before we purchased the house. But worst of all was something I consider a cardinal sin. Rather than extending the full 18″ between top and bottom cabinets, the bottom of the backsplash had a 4″ piece of granite that you often see in bathrooms where they’ve omitted a proper backsplash. This was simply non-negotiable. It had to go.
The first thing we had to rip out was this small granite piece, no small task given we were keeping the granite counters. There is also a second bar counter above the sink that was staying in place, so the strip had to be removed between the two counters. We had this done by the counter fabricators when they came to install the island counter. Next the tiler came to do the floors and I was thrilled when he finally finished and turned his attention to ripping out the rest of that backsplash.
The new tile I chose was an easy choice, something I was certain about from the very start. It was the same backsplash we put in our butler’s pantry, a renovation you must take a look at if you’ve never seen it. (We took a basic storage closet and turned it into our dream French country butler’s pantry.)
The backsplash tile is my favorite marble, calacatta gold in 2″ x 8″ pieces, set on the wall in a stepped brick layout.
I was already loving the difference from the minute I saw it, but those dark wood cabinets are still killing it for me. Still, when I cover them from view, I can begin to imagine the realization of my vision.
Next up, of course, was grout and we went simple as can be.
I think this tile is stunning in it’s natural soft and varied colorations. No faux would do here. We went marble all the way.
I’m starting to think, at this stage, of the styling that I’ll be doing in the finished kitchen. To maintain the look of the rest of our home, there will be lots of functional antique pieces.
Next week is the really big week, when we finally address the cabinetry. The doors have already been removed and have been taken to the carpenter’s shop. So I’ll leave it here until next week and invite you to look at the other One Room Challenge guest participants by clicking on the link below.
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It’s looking amazing! I can’t believe the difference the backsplash made! Stunning.
Thanks, Nancy! Just wait… I think the cabinets are what will really make it look like a completely different room… 😉
Love the new back splash! Everyone has her own taste but I often wonder what they were thinking or what the influence was that triggered the decision.
Thanks! And I actually often think about that. The entire home was very dark with rich dark painted walls and heavy window coverings, so it’s just a completely different taste choice. The people were lovely and their quality selections in so many things were very high end, so yes, it’s just simply a taste difference. I sometimes wonder if they’d be horrified to see what we’ve done… 😉
It’s beautiful Lory
I love following to see the results of your new kitchen.
You must be so excited ~
Have a dust free day
Rose
Thanks so much, Rose! I think the really big changes are coming int the next two weeks, so that should be really fun… 🙂 Thanks for following along!
Love, love, LOVE the back splash. Your weekly updates have been fantastic, each showing a vast improvement. I can hardly wait for the final reveal.
Thank you, Jeannie! It’s really fun sharing this with a group of like minded people. It makes it more enjoyable for me… 🙂
Can’t wait for the final reveal…..you probably can’t wait either! Ha! It is beautiful!!! I think I love transformation of existing things, even more than all brand new…..it takes more creativity I think. You do a beautiful job.
Thank you so much, Toni! I agree that changing the existing is more of a challenge that all brand new, but it;s also a lot less expensive! I think in the end, the final reveal will be so different, that it will look like new. Our layout was fine, but the only thing that would have been nice would have been to customize the cabinets for our specific uses. But they’re really fine and we saved *so much* money!
The new backsplash is SO beautiful! So excited to see more next week!
Shelley
Thanks, Shelley! Oh gosh… next week I think is the biggie. Maybe it won’t be as obvious until the final reveal with all the styling details, but living through it, as different as each step was, I kept finding myself thinking… ‘yeah but I still see those darn dark cabinets’! Thanks for coming along for the ride… 🙂
Perfect choice–love it! Bet you stand in the kitchen with your hands blocking the cabinetry to envision the final look–I do that in rooms we’re refurbishing LOL! Since we have the same exact cabinetry, it’s really of interest to me to see how they look painted white. What is the painter doing in order to seal the natural distress marks before painting? That is a concern I have as we have thought of going to a creamy white paint when these cabinets get older.
YES, that’s exactly what I do! Lol. Not sure but I think just sanding, priming and painting.
I’m about to weep at how beautiful that backsplash is! It’s amazing the difference it makes.
Aw thanks, Rebecca!!
What a lovely change and a perfect choice for your new backsplash. I have been enjoying the transformation!
Thanks, Chloe! I’m kind of excited for next week. Hope it comes across well.
Like everyone else, I am TOTALLY in love with your kitchen make-over! Such a perfect blend of classic and modern, I just want to move in! One question about the backsplash tile: the link got me to 2×4″ but in your narrative you call it 2×8″? which is it? Thanks, obviously a bigger/longer tile will be faster to install! Thanks for all of your generosity and gorgeous vision to inspire the rest of us! Regards, D. Nordstrom
That’s actually a great question. I wanted the 2″x4″, but our supplier didn’t have it in stock, so I did go with the 2″x8″. I’m very happy with it, but couldn’t find a link to it to provide, so I enclosed the 2″x4″ instead, since I think it maintains the same spirit. Thanks for your kind words!!
Hi,
Did you run into any gaps between the granite countertops and your wall, or issues when they removed the granite backsplash from the wall? I want to do redo our backsplash and take off the granite as well. I’ve had two tile installers tell us not to remove the granite from the wall because of potential gaps in the countertops that regular depth backsplash will not cover up.
Hey Crystal, I’m so glad you asked that because it was something I was really worried about. Our tiler was also concerned to remove it but because we were replacing the granite on the island, I had the fabricator look at it and he was the one who removed it. There was absolutely no problem. The were 2 spots in the wall that needed a bit of sheetrock repair but that was no big deal at all. You may be able to tell how far back your granite goes if there’s a section at the end where you can see it from the side view. If so, you can look right at it and see if it goes all the way to the wall.
What is the maintenance on the Calcutta backsplash? Do you seal? If so, how often? It’s just stunning. We are doing new kitchen with bisque perimeter cabinets and mocha island. Island is 9′ so it’s large. We are going with a neutral colored quartz for countertops and we feel that the Calcutta would make a wonderful statement without being too busy. I am however concerned with what maintenance looks like. Thank you!!
Hi Marianna! I’m in love with Calacatta Gold!! I have it in my butler’s pantry, too, as well as my bathroom floor. My kitchen is now about 2 1/2 years old and I’ve never once sealed it since it was installed. I think it may have been sealed at installation, but I haven’t done a thing to it since then and it’s in perfect condition. Since it has a nice variety of subtle colors and veining, I think it would be forgiving with mild stains anyway, but I don’t see any on ours. I have it behind both the sink and the stove, so those are definitely the most used parts of the kitchen.