Tile Tale

Taaa Daaa........the kitchen, not quite finished, but we're getting there. The granite is in and the Gorky mural is up behind the stove. We still have cabinets to install that will go on either side of the stove and a corner shelf for the microwave and the painting and finishing the floors. In the dining room the cabinets have yet to go in and there will be granite on top of the counter on them too. Although we still can't put everything away, it is a functioning kitchen.

I'm really happy with the tile behind the stove. From the very beginning I thought that the granite I choose was very compatible with the colors in the Gorky pottery that I have and I love Gorky's palette of colors. But Gorky is a little pricey for his tile so I tried for months to find a replacement. One tile company repeatedly made samples of tiles for me but every time the colors just didn't turn out like we talked about. Finally in exasperation I gave up on trying to find a cheaper way to get the look and went to my original love, the Gorky tiles. We went to his shop in Guanajuato and in two hours we had designed the mural and three weeks later I had the tiles and it turned out just as I expected. You know, sometimes God just takes care of us and there was a good reason why the other tile maker couldn't get it right.

Gorky has a whole series called "Boda" or Wedding" plates. The design in the center of the platters and plates are a bride and groom hugging or kissing or something at the altar. Since it is our 50th wedding anniversary year, we decided to use the design from one of the platters in the center. The colors are just perfect with the granite. It brings a whimsical Mexican feeling into the kitchen. I love it! And it opens up some nice colors for the walls. Oh, one other thing that always surprises me is that although the concrete "hood" over the stove has to be repainted, the colors just go with the granite and the mural. When you choose colors that feel good to you, they all seem to work together.