With most of the practical work at the beach house now done—like the walk-in pantry and the new bunk beds—we’re shifting focus to the big aesthetic projects. First up: the kitchen backsplash.
sconces / hood / stools / hardware / shelves / pendant lights / faucet
That photo was taken a few weeks ago (before we swapped the mini fridge for more counter space), but it’s the image we’ve been using to visualize the backsplash. The far end of the kitchen looks a bit different now—since we added cabinet hardware—but the photo captures the layout we’re working with.
counters / cabinets / fridge / shelves
We’ve been leaning toward a classic white subway tile backsplash for a while (you may remember an early mock-up from September). Anything too trendy felt out of place in this 100-year-old house. Subway tile reads classic and casual—exactly the unfussy kitchen vibe we want.
The big question became where to place the tile. Standard 18″ above the countertop? All the way to the ceiling? Wrapped around the room? We’ve typically favored tile that goes to the ceiling—we did that in our last two kitchens—because it creates a strong visual statement and reads like a finished surface. But this space has unique proportions and sightlines connecting the kitchen and dining areas, so we tested several options in Photoshop before committing.
faucet / woven blinds / hardware / similar tile
I created a tiled overlay using a repeated subway tile pattern and adjusted it with Perspective and Skew so the mock-ups matched the room’s angles. We aren’t decided on grout color yet—likely a medium gray—so the renders focus on placement and proportion.
Below are the options we considered and the choice we ultimately liked best.
Option 1: No Backsplash
We included a no-backsplash option for completeness. Early in our DIY days we skipped a backsplash in a remodel and regretted it, so now that we know how manageable and affordable it can be, we’re ready to install one here.
Option 2: Up to the Hood
A smaller option is to tile up to the bottom of the hood/top shelf. Since we don’t have upper cabinets, finding a natural stopping point is tricky. Standard 18″ felt low in the 9′ ceilinged room, and the tall range back panel would sit awkwardly above a short backsplash. Tiling up to the hood felt simple, but a bit unfinished—the top shelves would still lack tile behind them.
Option 3: Up to the Hood + Back Wall
Extending the tile along the back wall balances the room and visually ties those shallow storage cabinets into the kitchen, even though they don’t need a functional backsplash. It adds cohesion and makes the overall design feel more intentional.
Option 4: To the Ceiling
Floor-to-ceiling tile was an immediate contender. We’ve used this in past kitchens with great results—the continuous tile makes a bold, clean statement and works especially well with high ceilings. It felt like the obvious winner, but we wanted to test a variation first.
Option 5: To the Ceiling + Stairway Triangle
We briefly considered wrapping tile onto the bottom of the back staircase bump-out to soften the large triangle in the back wall. It looked dramatic in the mock-up, but the angled surfaces would be difficult to execute and ultimately felt like overkill. Tiling the nook behind the bump-out seemed more natural than covering the angled bump-out itself.
At that point we favored Option 4—tile to the ceiling—but another sightline issue emerged: how the tile would stop on the left-hand wall. Because the kitchen opens into the dining room, the tile could end awkwardly two-thirds of the way down a long wall unless it had a clear visual boundary.
We like floor-to-ceiling tile when it sits within defined boundaries—corners, cabinets, or a dedicated nook. In this space, continuing tile across the entire left wall would read as an overly large expanse of tile and would blur the distinction between kitchen and dining areas, which we don’t want.
Option 6: To the Doorways
Surprisingly, stopping the tile at the top of the doorways felt like the best compromise. It brings the tile up behind the upper shelves, feels substantial without overwhelming the room, and uses the doorways as natural terminations so the tile ends cleanly. The exact height will be finalized so we can end with a full tile row, but this solution gives a classic, balanced result that defines the kitchen visually while keeping the dining area distinct.
Our remaining decision is the exact subway tile and grout. We’re leaning toward a basic 3 x 6″ white subway tile—similar to materials we’ve used before—but we’re picky about undertones, so we’ll collect samples to make sure the tile complements the cabinet finish. If you have a favorite subway tile, we’d love suggestions.
P.S. For beach house paint colors and where we sourced furniture and accessories, we compiled a shopping page with those details. We also have a similar page for our main house.
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