You may have already made a decision on this but I thought I'd just weigh in with my thoughts anyway ... six months ago we finished fitting out a new kitchen and we are thrilled with both the look and the practicality of it all. Initially I was going to go down the glass splash back track but eventually I chose tiles because I decided that, for me, the seamless splash back was a bit bland and same same. I also love blue, brown and white as a palette – and the tiles I chose were just slightly wonky (not too crazy – they still had to be easy to wipe over etc), rectangular, hand-made Spanish tiles in a lovely duck-egg blue. The slight wonkiness means they catch the light beautifully as you move around the room. The benches and cupboards are a warm white and the large island bench is a fantastic slab of spotted gum with another long piece of spotted gum on the upstand behind the sink. Behind the stove (which is the only place that the real concern about grotty grout really comes into play) we have a stainless steel splash back going up to the rangehood. Not sure if this helps but I am thrilled with my kitchen and have no regrets about going with interesting tiles.

I ended up using Lea Ceramiche Slim Tech porcelain panels from the Baltic stone range. My husband (a bold DIYer) decided to use the angle grinder to cut it himself. It was all good until he glued it on and pressed it sightly to make it adhere. There was a small crack. I could have cried! We decided it was barely noticeable (a hairline crack) so we have left it and it looks superb. No grout lines, easy to clean and so modern looking. We also used it on the face of the island (in front of the bar stools). We are SO happy with it. It cost roughly $450 (aud) a panel but a panel is 3 metres long x 1 m high x 3mm thick. I highly recommend these for an alternative to glass or tiles. :)

Sorry to keep you waiting. Busy as crazy doing another bathroom in the house. Hopefully the last for a while. Yes it is paint behind the vanity. After much deliberation I went ahead and painted it. It is easily wiped down for any accidental splash back but unless your bathing in your washbasin there’s hardly ever any The floor tiles, and in fact all the tiles are from Moorabbin Tiles. Polished porcelain. Thank you for your kind feedback

Hi Emma, You can get the splashback tiles professionally sprayed, this will give a good quality finish and since it's only a small area it shouldn't be too costly. I'm sure there will be a number of company's in your area that will be able to come out and the work for you. There is the DIY version but this is the one where people can have issues with the finish. Best of luck, MKG