Herringbone Kitchen Backsplash in Old Torrance

About This Project

A kitchen backsplash in an Old Torrance bungalow using cream-toned 2x4 subway tile in a herringbone pattern. The countertop is butcher block, and the cabinets are painted white, making the textured surface of the herringbone pattern the main visual element in the kitchen.

Herringbone requires more planning than a straight lay. The pattern needs to be centered on the most prominent focal point — in this kitchen, that was the range. We dry-laid the pattern on the floor before setting any tile to confirm the center point and check that the cuts at the cabinets and window would be consistent. A herringbone that is not centered looks wrong even if every tile is perfectly set. We also had to account for a 15-20% waste factor on the tile order because of the angled cuts.