Want a Travertine Backsplash of Petrified Sponge?!

You've seen travertine stone. Imagine the cool feel of a travertine backsplash with its various magnificent neutral colors. You could have a slice of another continent in your kitchen!

Made by Hot Springs for You...

Travertine is similar to limestone and is created when mineral springs, especially hot springs, deposit calcium carbonate - same as the supplements some folks take for strong bones! . If the depositing happens under the right conditions, it forms stalactites and stalagmites. Would you like a stalagmite - which one hangs down? - in your kitchen?!

Travertine is quarried on all seven continents including Turkey, Mexico, Italy, Peru, China and others. To imagine travertine, think of petrified sponge. When travertine is cut and smoothed, it can still have pits in it. Sometimes these pits are filled with material to give the slap a consistent smooth surface. One thing to consider is that acids such as lemon juice stain if left on long enough.

Flea Market Brainstorming

When you're looking for a travertine backsplash but don't quite know exactly what, take a look at eBay. It's a great place to get ideas about what's available. You could even find something you love!

Where to Buy

Ordering online is fine, but I'd suggest you first request some samples so you can actually see the coloring and texture in your kitchen. Look for the minimum order size as some merchants sell by the pallat. Such a quantity may be much more than you need.

First, I want to provide you with an online resource that can help you locate local businesses that might provide you with what you want. Make your way over to the Marble Institute of America (MIA) and enter your zipcode to find local natural stone merchants. MIA also has a resource website where you can explore what natural stone might work for your purposes including for a travertine backsplash. Watch their video titled, From the Quarry to Your Kitchen to learn about natural stone in your kitchen.

The Tile Shop offers travertine tiles amonth their product line. You may also live near one of their stores all of which are in the northeast quadrant of the U.S. Raleigh, for instance, has a store. It's probably one of their southern most locations. For others, ordering online makes geography a moot point. They've got some helpful tips on doing a project yourself as well as weekly in-store seminars.

Want images on your travertine backsplash? Spend some time at Alicia Tapp Designs Images on Tile. Two types of tile serve as the "canvas" for these pieces of art which work nicely as a stove backsplash. They use sealed tumbled travertine for one of these. In addition to classic masterpieces, look for their various types of vintage labels which become the image source for your travertine tile art. Labels include wine, posters, perfume and more.

Check out StoneImpressions too. They create beautiful murals, accents and listellos on natural stone tiles including travertine. The murals work well as kitchen backsplashes. "Muted glory" comes to mind as I peruse through their various product offerings.

How to Search for Travertine Backsplashes

Tried some search engines already? Check out these searches by clicking on them:

Google : Yahoo : MSN : Visimo : IxQuick : DogPile

Open Directory : Yahoo Directory : eBay

Choices, Choices, Choices

I love options, and you may too, but sometimes too many can get a bit out of hand. Maybe you narrowed your travertine backsplash choices to a reasonable number. Want help making the final choice? Try Choose It.