5 Gorgeous Wallpaper Backsplash Ideas for Kitchen Spaces

kitchen backsplash — Design: Naked Kitchens

One easy way to update a kitchen is by installing or replacing a backsplash. Backsplashes have many benefits, from purely aesthetic to protecting walls from cooking residue. But when you're renting, an existing unsightly backsplash is a bit of a challenge. It's not your forever home, so it doesn't make sense to cough up the big bucks to replace it.

While some things are easy to ignore in a rental, like a floor you covered up with a statement rug, others have a way of staring you in the face, like your outdated kitchen backsplash. Luckily, there's a new wave of products on the market that are making it easier than ever to update your outdated digs. Enter peel-and-stick wallpapers and tiles that bring your kitchen into the 21st century without breaking the bank or sacrificing your security deposit.

Ahead, take a peek at five gorgeous kitchens to inspire your temporary and removable backsplash project.

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Go Classic With Subway Tiles

kitchen subway tiles — Design: Pure Salt Interiors, Photo: Vanessa Lentine

As the name suggests, subway tile is just what you'd expect to find underground in a Manhattan subway station. Traditionally, it's a thin, low-fired, glazed, rectangular ceramic tile, that's installed in a staggered pattern. Since going mainstream, the subway tile trend now comes in a variety of materials, like glass, stone, and marble, among others, and colors, shapes, and sizes.

Proving that subway tile in a traditional rectangular shape is ultra-modern, this glossy backsplash could make even the most free-spirited home dweller consider going chic and sleek.

That said, if you refuse to settle for classic white subway tiles, turn your attention to another hue, like pale pink or sky blue. Color makes the whole space feel luxe and unique.

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Try a Pattern

There's no better way to bring some major style into an often-forgotten space of your kitchen than a patterned backsplash. Source tiles with a print or get your hands on a peel-and-stick wallpaper in any funky design.

Allow us to introduce you to the kitchen backsplash of our dreams. The way this charcoal and white geometric-inspired print pops off the mustard-colored cabinets and dark wood walls is perfection. The gold accessories, like the sink basin and the faucet, finish off the look in the best way.

Bring Old World charm into your modern-day apartment with a Mediterranean-inspired print, but make sure to keep the colors relatively neutral or quiet so they don't compete with the pattern.

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Don't Forget About Tiles

kitchen — Design: Desiree Burns Interiors

Tiles don't just come in basic squares and rectangular shapes. There's a whole world of shaped tiles that including hexagons, chevrons, fish scales, and so many more. Although the penny tile on this kitchen backsplash is a clean shade of pale green, the sleek look elevates the space, making it feel so expensive and luxe.

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Opt for Stone

The stone most commonly used in trendy kitchens right now is none other than the versatile, clean, and modern marble. This dramatic black marble backsplash is what kitchen dreams are made of. The organic shapes and black-and-white color palette feel elegant, modern, and so fresh.

If you love the look and colors of classic marble but are looking for something that makes a bigger statement, black and white quartz is the stone for you. The large-scale veins in the stone create a pattern that makes this backsplash and countertops the star of this kitchen.

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Add Pops of Color

In a world where most kitchens are white and gray or some neutral variation, now is the perfect opportunity to infuse an unexpected color by way of your backsplash.

This white kitchen with gray marble accents benefits majorly from this inclusion of a bold aqua backsplash. After all, this bold shade isn't a color you see in kitchens very often, and this space is making us wonder why not. The combination of a simple chevron pattern and the Caribbean-inspired shade feels modern with a retro twist.

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