Go on, make a SPLASH

VAUGHAN Majendie walks the talk when it comes to glass splashbacks. The managing director of Wellington-based Glass Splashback specialist Colorit likes to encourage homeowners to do something a bit different to ‘‘take the bland away’’.

In his own home he’s done exactly that.

‘‘We’ve got splashbacks in both our kitchen and bathroom — in the bathroom we’ve got glass all around the walls, even behind the toilet.

‘‘We have metallic polka dots, because my wife’s into polka dots.’’

Glass splashbacks are becoming increasingly popular in bathrooms, kitchens and laundries these days.

And with so many colours to choose from they can make a real statement in an otherwise neutral setting, says Vaughan.

‘‘The fact is that you can choose from 12,500-plus different colours, and you have the option of putting digital images on glass as well, which means the options are endless.’’

Vaughan talks of a bench to ceiling splashback they installed in a kitchen that was 3m long by 1600mm high and featured red and blue spheres.

‘‘It was all open plan, and pretty much all white, everything in the lounge, dining and kitchen was white, the only bit of colour was the splashback.

‘‘It gave an otherwise neutral setting something quite different, and it’s a real talking point for the homeowners.’’

Splashback digital images can range from geometric shapes through to landscapes, whereby high-resolution images customers have taken are embedded on the back of the glass splashback.

‘‘We’ve had a Banksy image used on a kitchen splashback, it was a photo a customer took of a wall in the UK, it was something they really liked, and it reminded them of that time.

‘‘We had another one, which was an image of graffiti artwork on the side of a building in Mexico City, which really took their fancy, at first glance you think you are looking at a building next door, it’s that detailed.

‘‘We used that photo and put it on their kitchen splashback, and now they’ve always got a reminder of their time in Mexico.’’

Another customer with a blank end wall on the cabinetry in their kitchen was keen to add something.

‘‘They got a digital image of a flax installed, it gives a bit of interest and it’s a good talking point.

‘‘People are even putting images on shower walls, like a beach theme, just something a bit different that takes the bland away.’’

The beauty of splashbacks, Vaughan says, is that they can make a real statement or talking point, or they can simply and subtly make a plain area look modern or fresh and easy to keep clean.

‘‘Metallics, for example, can give a bit more texture and a bit of life, it just depends on how bold you want to be really. There’s always the extremes, you can go for your fluro greens and oranges that are really vivid, and stand out.

‘‘One kitchen we did has bright green throughout, so they tied the colour into their splashback which has green geometric shapes, it is really quite bold.’’

Homeowners can even opt for toughened mirror splashbacks, ideal for making rooms look bigger.

Colour taste is very personal though, says Vaughan, and regardless of whether the choice is bold or subtle, splashbacks do make a difference to a space.

Most commonly, splashbacks are installed in kitchens, but increasingly in bathrooms and laundries.