Reader Deb and her husband are in the final stages of their DIY vintage style kitchen remodel. It’s coming together just beautifully — but now, they are stuck on a final design decision: Shoudld they add adorable 1940s style Bradbury & Bradbury wallpaper to the backsplash? Or will it be too much? They want to hear from the ever-helpful tribe of Retro Renovation readers. To wallpaper or not to wallpaper, that is the question. Read on to hear Deb’s story and to weigh in. Pam and I will hold back and post our photoshopped ideas at noon.
Deb writes:
Hi Pam,
We’re in the final stages of our kitchen redo (having done all the work ourselves except for the sheetrocking) and we can’t agree on whether to use this wallpaper from Bradbury as our backsplash or not.
I love it but my husband thinks it is too busy and takes away from the nickel outlet covers (which he has some strange attachment to lol). Behind the stove will be new/old fan with a sunburst stainless steel panel. Is this all too much? The wallpaper would be vinyl coated for protection and used only under the cabinets.
Also, I want to let you know that your explanation and pics of doing the metal edging on your counter tops helped immensely when it came time to do ours.
The floor is Armstrong Linoleum Tidal Wave and the counter top is Forbo Bleeker Street Lino.
The original kitchen had the washer and dryer under the counter and a “Diana” Youngstown sink unit. It was too far gone to save but I did manage to pry off the the Diana emblem and will be putting it on my new sink cabinet. I know I said that we did it all by ourselves but that isn’t entirely true. We had the floor installed and we bought the RTA cabinets from Barker Cabinets in Oregon. Barker also has slab front cabinets and they are a joy to do business with. Shipping took seven days from Oregon to upstate New York.
The walls are a very light blue. We have a Big Chill fridge in Buttercup yellow (ebay) that hasn’t been put in yet. The woman I bought it from in New Jersey, had won it in a raffle and could not fit it in her kitchen.
If anyone wants to know the particulars of putting in linoleum counter tops and stainless steel edging, my husband is willing to share what he did. It’s taken 1 year and 3 months of no vacations, working every single weekend and a lot of evenings to get to this point. And best of all my DH and I are still talking to each other.
Pam asks: What are you doing over the stove?
A Nutone exhaust fan (new old stock) and a stainless steel panel with a sunburst design.
So readers — now we need your thoughtful opinions — what should Deb do with her kitchen back splash?
Through the magic of Photoshop, Kate made some mock-ups of Deb’s kitchen to help her visualize how it would look with the three variations wallpaper and the sunburst stainless steel backsplash:
1. Sunny Day Combo:
For the first mock-up, we put the stainless steel sunburst backsplash over the stove and Bradbury & Bradbury Apple Betty wallpaper between the cabinets and counter top. This looks pretty nice… but we feel like the drama of the stainless steel backsplash might be overwhelming the rest of the kitchen design, which is so lovely. Hmmmm….
2. All wallpaper:
For the second mock-up, we extended the wallpaper all the way behind the stove and up to the ceiling. Deb wasn’t planning on having the wallpaper extend this far up, but if the stainless steel backsplash is not used, it would be a more finished look to have the wallpaper extend all the way to the ceiling, instead of being cut off at under cabinet height. We’re kind of digging the vintage charm starting to come together once this wallpaper is added…
3. Add a shelf to the combo:
Deb could also add a shelf for knick knacks — made using the same red linoleum and metal edging from the countertops — an idea that is similar to the shelf in Pam’s kitchen:
4. Shelf plus stainless steel backsplash
If Deb’s husband still isn’t sold on the wallpaper, this option is for him. Combining the sunburst stainless steel backsplash with the shelf provides a more toned down look, while still allowing space for Deb to display vintage knick-knacks. Maybe paint the backsplash the same yellow as the refrigerator coming in… or tone the yellow paint down a bit… or, a shade similar to that of the floor might work, too.
Pam and I both agree on this one — the Bradbury & Bradbury wallpaper that Deb chose is just perfect for the space. The pattern picks up the red from the counter tops, the blue from the floor and the buttery yellow from her Big Chill refrigerator. The space above the stove and fan is just calling out for a shelf to fill it — one that Deb could use to display some cute vintage knick-knacks. If it were our kitchen, Kate and I both are loving mood board number three.
Nancy EC says
The kitchen is very stark without color on the walls. If you think wallpaper is too busy, would it be possible to paint the walls a pale yellow (as someone else mentioned) with the wall paper on an accent wall elsewhere in the kitchen? Plexiglass will keep the area behind the stove clean, but it isn’t a very ‘retro’ option. The stainless overwhelms the great stove and the whole feel. There is just a bit too much of it. A yellow tile to match the walls and fridge with a red trim strip, or the shelf, would tie in the counters or go ahead and do the wallpaper except put tile behind the stove. Great job though! The kitchen looks fabulous.
Julie says
I am voting no on the wallpaper, because it is my experience that stuff accidentally gets on the walls especially while I am preparing the holiday feasts. I don’t mean just on the wall behind the stove. It is much easier to get stuff off a painted surface. I love the way the project looks so far.
Sally Sue says
The wallpaper’s a good match, colorwise, but it’s going in a homey direction versus the gleaming streamline nearly-deco direction that the kitchen is going in otherwise. Remember too that all kitchen counters end up cluttered in real life. That means 1) the wallpaper will be barely visible, 2) the wallpaper will add to the cluttered vision, and 3) the outlet plates will be obscured (sorry, Hubby!).
I do vote for something water (over the sink) & GREASE impermeable as backsplash, even if it is just glossy white paint which can be wiped and retouched.
I am thinking outside the photo. Surely there is another wall or two to this kitchen space. If there is an eat-in area, breakfast nook, small lead-in wall, etc., that would be the perfect place for that fab wallpaper! It would get more noticed, be less in conflict with the shiny steel, and still tie all the colors together yet in a much grander scale.
If there is no wallspace, what about using it as a breakfast table surface cover (wallpaper it right on?) and covering it with a piece of glass? Like having an easy-care, always-matching tablecloth.
Also, the shelf over the stove is a nice visual effect, and would serve to help direct the exhaust to the wall-mounted fan below (rather than straight up to the ceiling). Keep in mind that anything you put on that shelf will be warming up every time you cook, so no spices, nothing meltable, etc. Plus these items will probably get their own sheen of grease (and dust) over time, so maybe not cookbooks, etc.
Heidi Swank says
I love the wallpaper and shelf combo. Very very nice!
oh Holland says
Wallpaper all the way, Baby! With or without the shelf.
But not that horrendous stainless shield ….
Shannon says
Oooh, the sunburst panel is different than I envisioned. It is beautiful, but defintely competes with the wallpaper. My personal favorite is the wallpaper with the shelf above the stove, but I also think the panel would be lovely with a painted backsplash. I think I’d pick one or the other since they’re both so bold.
AK says
I vote #3
Steven Keylon says
In a perfect world, I would have the new refrigerator painted white. I love the wallpaper. I’m conflicted about the shelf, but if you do use a shelf, I would prefer it to be as unobtrusive as possible, and make it the same white painted wood as the cabinetry. I think you’ve done a fantastic job with all of this so far, so congratulations!
Are you going to put any hardware on the cabinets? We used chrome with red painted accents, it looks great…
Deb Cerrone says
Hi Steven, yes we chose Rejuvenation’s Deco pull for the cabinets. http://www.rejuvenation.com/catalog/products/deco-drawer-pull. They were our one big splurge. I agree that the yellow fridge made pulling it all together more difficult but it was such a great deal I couldn’t pass on it.
Tony Pinizzotto says
The wall paper is great. I know something like that is a leap of faith but once you do it, you’ll love it. Definitely add the shelf to break it up near the upper part of the wall 🙂
Deb Cerrone says
Thank you everyone for your ideas and thoughts on our kitchen! You’ve given me a lot to think about! Our kitchen is not yet done (no molding on windows or cabinets, not all of our pulls are on yet and no curtains yet either) so maybe that’s why some feel it’s too sterile. The walls are a light blue and I am tying the fridge in with yellow accent pieces. I agree that we’ve got 2 competing themes going between the sunburst panel and the cute wallpaper. To answer a couple questions asked, I would be spraying on a protective coating to the wallpaper and the lights are two antique schoolhouse fixtures. I’d post a pic of them but don’t know how to on here. We pulled the stove home in a snowstorm 10 years ago and it’s been in constant use since then,only needing a new thermostat. Again thank you everybody!