We picked an accent tile for the kitchen!

So stick with me here for a minute. Today I was talking about a coworker who is amazing. She has this quiet Clint Eastwood strength that makes people sort of lean in to listen to her because she isn’t a loud talker. I think there is something to be said for quiet simplicity. Not usually my style but maybe I’m growing as a person. It may be all that time I spend in the dirt.

Anyway, I know everyone has been waiting on pins and needless for this very important announcement… we successfully picked a backsplash accent tile for our kitchen. For those of you following along, we wanted a really fabulous accent tile to go behind the range so I made poor Gary drive me to Minneapolis to look at the Akdo Balmoral Plaid tile that we’ve been in love with for years and…

It just doesn’t work. The plaid is gorgeous but it felt like tumbled stone in person and it just didn’t feel like “us” at all. Gary and I are nothing if not a very specific taste. We clearly aren’t tumbled/natural/honed marble. We are a little too glamourous for something so… flat? That’s the worst when you are in love with something and then you see it in person and it is disappointing and awful. Like going to a Mariah Carey concert post-2003.

So what now then? We looked and we looked and we found all kinds of tile…

Birds behind glass! And $700 a square foot artglass flowers…

And we came to the less-than shocking conclusion that we don’t need an accent tile. We’ve decided to just use the marble and keep it simple. Which is so not our style. As this project has evolved we’ve really learned that in some cases more is just more. The countertops went in on Monday and they’ve really transformed the space. It doesn’t need anything showy and over the top. It’s just fine on its own and it is appropriate for something as fabulous as Gaye Gardens. It doesn’t need plaid or $700 a square foot tac and ink art glass flowers.

Plus, marble wainscoting isn’t exactly subtle. You knew I’d get something excessive in there!