New Year’s Sale: Get 20% off Dwell with promo code YEAR20
SubscribeSign In
All Photos/kitchen/backsplashes : brick

Kitchen Brick Backsplashes Design Photos and Ideas

Lights in the sauna reveal when it’s in use.
In the kitchen, minimalism prevails. Jared notes that the use of plywood was loosely inspired by design seen in the 1960s Sonoma County Sea Ranch community. "It's something that one of my heroes, [architect] Barbara Bestor has done very well," he says.
The family gathers in the kitchen, which features oak cabinets, a concrete island, and brass fixtures. The backsplash is made of pink bricks hand-selected by Alix and Onur from a nearby brickyard. The mango wood pendants were purchased in a market in Bangkok.
Pros: Wood countertops can be half the price of a lot of stone or metal options, and are soft to the touch and lend a warm, organic feel to a space. Cons: Wood requires maintenance, so you should be prepared for regular oiling and, if the wood gets scratched, sanding.
Making the decision to buy a home is never easy; it’s hard to know what life will look like five or ten years down the line. But on the bright side, buying a home is exciting. The responsibility can be invigorating.
As you tour a potential home, look out for a lack of natural light or possible renovations—those details can be used during negotiations.
An older building doesn't mean that it can't also be modern, particularly in the kitchen.
Four steps take you down to the kitchen, tiled with Mat’s grandmother’s catchphrase, "Waste not, want not." The countertops and storage are low, and finished in alternating colors, to add vertical emphasis in the long space.
Blue, laser-cut trusses provide lightweight support. On display, they offer a playful contrast to the heavy roof.
The house opens up progressively from the dark and intimate front rooms, through the open-concept kitchen, and into the light-filled glass extension.
The eye-catching kitchen cabinets are made of recycled milk bottle tops, manufactured by Smile Plastics in Wales. On the wall, red arrows "pierce" the wall, a sculpture by Liam Fallon. Across the room, a McDonald’s M sits in the corner. "It’s a pop icon," says Mat.
With a brick backsplash, it is important to make sure that it is carefully cleaned and sealed with a sealant designed for its specific location. There is a charm with exposed brick that, if that is the look you are going for, you will want to ensure that the brick is in good condition and can withstand being exposed.
The kitchen backsplash is white brick, so as to sync with the other white brick accents in the home.
The open-plan living room, dining area and kitchen on the ground floor open up to the rear garden through folding glass doors. Concrete flooring helps improve thermal mass, while a minimalist palette of timber, stone and Equitone cement cladding used for a portion of the cabinet fronts help achieve a sleek and handsome look.
Colored wall cabinets and a kitchen island structure the open-plan cooking area. White-painted bricks and a large skylight keep the space bright.
In the kitchen, lemon-yellow and mint-green cabinets complement the forest-green granite countertops. White overhead cabinets blend in with the white brick backdrop.
The stove was kept in place in order to retain the position of the gas and venting. The designer dropped the sill on the right-side window to the floor. Sleek black cabinetry is topped with Essastone Concrete Pezzato weathered stone on the perimeter, and custom terrazzo on the island.
“We don’t need the full ‘breakfast bar’ that is a feature of so many modern kitchens, as we make a point of eating together as a family at the table for meals,” say the clients. “The stools under the cantilevered bench are usually used while chopping vegetables with a glass of wine in hand.”
A wall of custom blackbutt cabinetry conceals the fridge and lots of storage.
“One night when we sat and had a dinner, I said I would design this neon for his kitchen because it would be perfect,” Schwalgien says, “and then he agreed to it.”
The stairs lead to the first-floor kitchen and living space. As in the rest of the home, the material palette is intentionally simple and elegant. It includes engineered timber Proparq flooring by Unico, custom joinery crafted from stained oak veneer, and a marble countertop.
"The kitchen is basic by most typical house’s standards. It’s everything that we need and nothing that we don’t," says Hudson-Smith.
The neon pink flamingo, a wedding anniversary gift from Richard to Kristina, adds a punch of color and whimsy to the kitchen.
Beautiful yet practical materials define the home—such as the Indian ink–washed plywood used for the kitchen cabinetry. Purchasing secondhand furnishings from eBay also helped keep costs low and add personality to the home.
The brick pictured is original to the home. “We wanted to connect our new extension against the retained rear wall of our house as a feature and acknowledgement of the original building,” says Richard. “The doorway/opening is actually the original doorway into our side alleyway and garden—we just removed the doors and tidied up slightly.”
The kitchen features a mirrored backsplash that makes the space feel larger. The orange cabinetry conceals the laundry.
White paint brightens the modest kitchen of this Denver home.
Here, a brick backsplash makes this black kitchen pop.
The kitchen area is full of charm, starting with the original painted brick wall and continuing with cabinets made from reclaimed Iroko wood. The uneven application of paint mimics the aged wood.
In this Australian kitchen, keeping the original exposed brick wall as a backsplash helps tie the kitchen to the rest of the home.
Keeping the original mottled, worn-brick walls and outfitting the kitchen with their own custom cabinetry were among this couple’s cost-saving measures.
Gray, full-height, seamless cabinetry matches the gray-painted original brick wall. The contrast with the white kitchen island is striking.
An illuminated brick wall makes a lovely backdrop when juxtaposed against this kitchen's glossy black cabinets.
Here, an industrial material palette—with a concrete brick backsplash and counter foundation, and zinc-plated pan-decking ceilings—complement the development’s edgy facade.
Located in the addition of this Toronto home, a new kitchen flanks the residence’s original brick wall which has been painted white and paired with whitewashed maple cabinets to create a clean, simple cooking space.
Vibrant blue cabinets brighten up this kitchen and serve as a bold contrast to the exposed brick. The stainless-steel countertop wraps slightly up the wall, and creates a trough for storing items.
Brick, paired with concrete and wood, creates an organic warmth throughout this Spanish home.
Brick is used throughout this Indonesian home, giving it a warm, earthy quality. A low, translucent layer offers additional protection while cooking. The extensive use of brick echoes the vernacular architecture of Central Java, sparking happy childhood memories for the homeowner.
The kitchen of this Brooklyn brownstone features a brick backsplash with a metal panel connecting the Bluestar range to the Viking chimney wall hood. The mashup of materials preserves the personality of brick with the ease of cleaning stainless steel. The island and cabinets are fashioned from remilled Douglas fir beams salvaged from Upstate New York.
Set in a heritage brick building in Montreal, this apartment maintained the brick wall in the kitchen to evoke the building's industrial heritage. The brick was painted white to brighten the space.
A brick backsplash, painted white, pairs perfectly with this Australian kitchen's understated material choices, which includes wood cabinets and a streamlined Caesarstone counter in Raw Concrete.
Galley kitchen with existing brick wall celebrating original fabric of the house.
Kitchen
The architects highlighted, rather than hid, the contrasts between the old construction and new. For instance, the backdrop in the new kitchen is the former exterior red brick wall.
The floor tiles in the kitchen date back to 1923 and stand as a reminder of the original character of the building. Natural oak cabinets with hidden joinery are a contemporary insertion in the historic building shell.
The well-appointed kitchen includes all the modern necessities for entertaining. A band of glazing wraps around the open-plan living space to take in panoramic views.
The angular galley kitchen is illuminated by a hexagonal skylight.
Dining takes place at the large custom-fabricated table underneath pendant lighting. Seating is a mix of Eames Shell Chairs and Real Good chairs from Blu Dot.
The spacious open floor plan maintains a utilitarian sense of function. The floors are made from colored concrete.
In the kitchen, the team refinished the original cabinets, supplemented them as needed, and introduced a new stainless steel countertop. New appliances provide modern functionality.
The bright contemporary kitchen features high-end appliances and custom cabinetry.
In this kitchen, an exposed brick wall stands out against the milky smoothness of the marble tile floors.
Once hidden away in closed quarters, the kitchen has been moved to a more open and central location in the home, blending historic elements with modern additions.
The kitchen was constructed from a mix of lacquered wood and natural oak.
12