Tiles are one way to introduce some pops of colour in your kitchen. If you are worried about the grout discolouring, use epoxy grout which is more resilient to liquid staining. Also, if you use a coloured grout, discolouration will be less noticeable. If you choose textured tiles with rectilinear edges, grout lines are almost invisible. Using tiles can look more traditional compared to glass or stainless steel. The problem with stainless steel is keeping it looking good. Drip marks and grease are instantly noticeable. Glass is less obvious when splashed. They are both more industrial and modern looking. What about using the same material that makes up your worktop as the splashback? Most manufacturers of manmade worktops also do an 11mm thick splashback and upstand.

Be brave, and go dark! Often people are scared to as they think it makes a room smaller but actually it can have the opposite effect. Blurring the finishing lines of the room can give the illusion of more space, and if the space isn't particularly bright anyway, embrace it! Feature lighting - LED strips under the vanity, or wall lights - can really come into their own in moodier spaces too - don't underestimate the power of lighting :) For the backsplash, bring in a mosaic, or perhaps to continue the natural look, check out a few textured tiles like below - they have less grout to maintain but still offer a nice contrast: If you need a hand or any assistance with supply of products, advice, or design, check us out if you're local to Surrey or South West London :) - Adam

Thank you, I really like this! Would you suggest white ceramic everywhere and patterns (like in the picture) behind the oven or patterns everywhere?

It does have a bit of a bland feel as there's so much cream but you have the makings of a luxurious-feeling kitchen. I'm not sure that it's tiling or new worktops that you need, so much as more personality. A few thoughts: - I wouldn't bother with a backsplash - the simple upstand is modern and classic. Lots of discussions on here about backsplash vs painted walls and how to clean them - you might like to have a read through. - I wouldn't combine white with the creamy yellow tones you have. A bright white (eg if you did go for a tiled backsplash) will make the creamy tones look dirty. - You could introduce colour elsewhere: - eg on the walls (I note that you don't want a dark colour but a mid-range taupe might work, paint some samples onto large sheets of paper so you can see how different colours work against the cabinets. You need something that's a different colour to the cabinets and floor. The ones you mention are, I think, too pale and too similar to the cabinets) - you could go for some more colourful chairs or blind (a blind which comes down from the top would look more modern than the vertical blind) - definitely add some art to the walls - consider a rug under the table and chairs - add some plants (real, not faux) - consider adding an open shelf or two, which you can style with cookbooks, interesting crockery, trailing plants, candles, more art - [this is a controversial one and very much depends on whether you are a "put it all away" or "leave it all out" type of person!] if it were me I'd try to get rid of some of the appliances, jars etc on the worktop. They don't add personality and look like they're in a bit of a jumble. Move the jars to the aforementioned open shelf, put the appliances (other than the kettle) away in a cupboard.