No to the grey - your wall seems to have a green tinge in them, so I would say either green/grey or a warm white tile with darker grout. If you choose the right grey/green, it is a classic look so shouldn't date. If you are a bit scared to choose colours, why don't you get a couple of warm white sample tiles and put where the splash back will go. You will soon see if it looks too stark....(maybe another idea, but possibly not a good one - why don't you see if you can put a few pages from a blank sketchbook in the whole area where the splash back will go (not super white white, but a warm white). That could also possibly highlight how stark (or not), the white may look. I can see what design tank is saying, as your cupboards appear to be more cream than white in the photos and if this is the case, then I agree the white will most likely look too stark. My cupboards in kitchen were white (but a warm white not a cool white). The stone bench tops also have the little speckles of stone in them..I can't remember the colour Ocean foam/Osprey.......but even with those colours and them not being cool whites, I thought the white tiles looked too stark against them. I therefore went for a glass splash back and ever since I then went to think of designs for my bathroom renovation, I constantly regret going with the glass in the kitchen and modernising the house too much..........definitely don't do glass if you are wanting to keep a classic charm to the house. In a long winded way, I think yes, I also think you should just stick with the grey/green. It will make a statement. Not the right shade...but another example....it may be hard getting the colour of the tile exactly right given that the walls are already painted and the tiles need to match.

Nice chairs. Have you browsed the Temple and Webster site. Lots of dining chairs. I'm a magazine tragic but I don't recall these chairs having a distinctive name. They look slightly like Eames copies but not exactly.

I'm in New Zealand ( as a lot of you know ) and our rules are different , and will maybe act as a warning . Councils seem to be left-leaning , and therefore see anyone with property as a continual source of money . They make the rules with that in mind . Of course , what they don't seem to be able to comprehend is thaat every action has an equal and opposite reaction . Anyone subdividing an existing section or doing a subdivision has to pay a 'development contribution' . In most cities this is $50,000-100,000 . Per section/title . so they think they are hitting the greedy landowner , but of course , it is the person buying the smaller property that effectively pays this -- I don't think most councils can appreciate that . As a slight side issue , one large company has bought several hundred rural acres , and are trying to build their own town -- factories for themselves and support businesses , as well as shops and groceries and takeaways and gas stations and the lot . 1000's of houses to buy or rent or rent to own . And they want to pay for their own streets , and sewerage scheme , and power , and water , and parks , and upkeep . The council involved , predictably , has spent $10's of millions of ratepayers money fighting them every step of the way , changing the rules , all the usual tricks . So a tiny home here isn't classed as a caravan , it needs to have permanent water and sewerage and power , so , yes you guessed , needs to have someone pay a development contribution . It needs to comply with all the building regulations , so you can't have it for only 'summertime' use or similar . In Aus , you have a lot of areas that are effectively off-grid , because power and sewerage would be way too impractical , but here you cannot opt-out . And even caravans cannot be 'lived in' permanently , with the exception of some caravan parks , and I think even then technically the caravan has to be moved once every 3 months or similar . Park a caravan at your house , have the grandkids stay for 2 weeks , you probably get away with it . But have them and their Mum live there -- you then need to permanently connect it to your services , and , you guessed it , pay a development fee ! Same with mobile homes and the like . My mobile home I have had it deregistered , and re-registered it as a mobile office , in my businesses name . This is because Mobile Homes are not allowed to park overnight and be slept in , on the streets or carparks in most towns . Of course , if I got a ticket and disputed it , the relevant council may show local CCTV footage , or ask for an accomodation receipt from a nearby business , but at least it will tie them up in court for at least a couple of hours or more -- they probably have lawyers on the payroll , but if they are paying $300 an hour , plus 3 or 4 council employees time , plus the Judge and court people -- its cost them way more than the $200-500 fine . So long story short -- tiny homes are a legal nightmare in NZ , as is almost anything that doesn't look like a conventional house .

Thank you robandlyn. I am definitely leaning towards the karndean especially for the kids. I might use it for a splashback?? hi the interior therapist. Thank you for your reply. The budget that was put into our build (by the builder) makes hardwood floors an extra $23k. Although the 600 x 600 are expensive to lay it still comes in at less than half the price including bathrooms. We had hardwood in our last house, I liked it but it scratched and dented with chairs and kids dragging their sandy bikes inside. i am worried that I will choose the tile and hate the cleaning and potential slippery accidents in summer but I worry about the look of karndean....... is it very plasticky? I have some samples but it's very hard to tell from such a small piece. Is the tile we have chosen too 'busy' for all areas? Maybe I have really bad taste and it's an ugly tile lol Thanks so much for all your help guys :)