Kitchen Splashback: A Comprehensive Selection Guide

 

With a seemingly endless choice of kitchen splashbacks, homeowners are sometimes overwhelmed with options on the market. Use these brief guidelines to narrow down your choices and pick the best splashback for your kitchen. 

Pick the colour

If you’ve already narrowed down your choice with the selection of benchtop material, choosing the colour is much easier. Depending on the material, you need to decide whether the benchtop is going to become a centrepiece of your kitchen décor, or not. If that’s the case, your splashback colouration should be subtle, so it doesn’t draw attention from the benchtop. On the other hand, if your benchtop is to remain neutral, pick a feature colour for your splashback, so it adds some interest and focus to your kitchen. 

Similar or contrasting

For a more consistent look, choose colours that are similar tones to your countertop, and for added drama, choose contrasting colours. A light-coloured tiles make a nice contrast to a darker countertop, while similar tones tend to tie the look together. Alternatively, your choice of cabinets might naturally pull you in the direction of some colours over others. So, if you go with a dark gloss grey kitchen finish, it's less likely you would layer grey on grey. If your kitchen is all-white, you may choose to break the block by a vibrant injection of colour. 

Choose the right material

The most typical materials for kitchen splashbacks include stainless steel, glass, stamped metal, and tiles. If a more traditional look is what you’re aiming for, tiles or stamped metal would be the best material for you. Mosaic tiles are especially attractive, however, they are more difficult to clean than large tiles with fewer joints and less grout to scrub. Also, consider using the same material as your countertop for the splashback. This creates a beautiful, seamless look for your kitchen work area. 

Custom printed glass

If going for a more contemporary and streamlined look, you can choose glass. By choosing custom cut glass, not only can you match the splashback to any kitchen décor in the world, but also make it ultra-easy to clean. Digital printing technologies now include ceramic inks that let you order a custom image splashback that is nothing short of a unique art piece in your kitchen. Glass also has a reflectivity bonus, as it bounces natural light all over the room, making it brighter without having to rely on the electric light. 

Natural stone

Stone is one of the more expensive options, but using it for the splashback really puts its features in focus. Beautiful veins in polished marble and granite are often lost when used for the countertop, but when applied vertically, they become a nature's work of art. In this option, you need to make sure that you like how the vertical and horizontal stone planes match before counting the cash. When using a stone splashback behind gas stovetops, make sure to leave enough space between the splashback and the burners, as the intense heat can crack the stone. 

Add extra light

A splashback window that lets you see outside and bring natural colours to your kitchen is a valuable upgrade that helps you open up the kitchen space. Similar to printed glass splashback, this option is easy to clean and brightens up your work area during the day. If a splashback window isn’t an option, for example, in case you’re renting the apartment, a mirror splashback is a great alternative. Not only can it make the kitchen look bigger than it is, but also reflect both natural and artificial light around the room. If the mirror can reflect a view through the window on the opposite side, it’s an inexpensive way of introducing colour to your kitchen. 

In case you’re still struggling with the choice of splashback, keep in mind that it’s not an essential kitchen element, so you can always install it later. Once you install the cabinets and the benchtop, the picture will get much clearer, so you’ll be able to choose the splashback colour and material much easier than in the planning stage. A short splashback makes more sense in lighter work areas, while behind the cooktop go with full height. Not only this saves the material but looks smart and custom-designed.