Whether or not you're considering glass splashbacks for your kitchen, it's worth reading this, because you may not have thought about them in this way before.

Let's be honest, there are three things wrong about cleaning kitchens. Apart from the fact that it's often left to you! First of all, considering how much mess a kitchen gets into, regardless of how many children or dogs you have roaming wild, kitchens aren't generally the cleanest places. From splashed food, sprayed food, chopped food and particles floating up with the steam, the walls of your kitchen can quickly become even more plastered than an enthusiastic chef trying to finish off the last of the Chablis.

Yet what do we put on our walls to protect them? Unless you already have a glass splashback fitted, then it's likely to be textured tiles with grout in between. Hardly the most sensible solution, and one that takes almost as long to put up as it does to clean each time you whisk a few eggs, whip up some icing or tackle a new casserole.

Then there's the hygiene factor. Because we all know that just because a surface looks clean that doesn't mean to say that it is clean. In fact you can't see bacteria, microbes, spores and other horrible little irksome growths - unless your kitchen came equipped with an electron microscope. Which is unlikely. Yet for all their diminutive size, these things can wreak havoc with your insides if food becomes contaminated. Which then means your bathroom needs cleaning too. But let's not go there...

Of course the textured tiles might look great, but all that texture does is make it even harder to clean. Then there's the grout. You can't effectively clean grout with the same cleaner and cloth that you use to clean the tiles. An uneven surface with seams and joins is an ideal environment for all those microbes and bacteria to lurk ready to wage war on your family's innards,

Finally there's the really depressing bit. After all that scrubbing and cleaning, you step back and realise that the finished look is hardly worthy of a photograph. It's like cleaning the toilet - it has to be done, but no one's going to admire it and tell you how lovely it looks. And frankly if they did, you might want to check the local asylum's not a head short.

Which is where glass splashbacks for kitchens come in. If you have already looked at glass splashbacks then you have probably been drawn towards the fact that they can be manufactured in an astonishing variety of colours and styles, which help to make your kitchen look funky, unique and stylish. But forget about the style, the glamour and the gushing comments from anyone lucky enough to be invited in for a cup of coffee, when it comes to keeping them clean (the glass splashbacks I mean, not your guests) they are in a league of their own.

Because they are completely smooth, with no uneven textures, transfers or other knobbly bits found on tiles, they are an absolute doddle to clean. A quick spray, a quick wipe, and the job is done. Because glass kitchen splashbacks are manufactured in one section there are no seams or grout to worry about, and absolutely nowhere for those horrible little microbes to lurk. This means that your kitchen splashbacks don't just look squeaky clean, they are hygienically clean as well.

Not only this, but once you have carried out the onerous task of spending a brief few seconds cleaning your entire kitchen, you can stand back and admire your handiwork. Perhaps the only problem is though that you may find things like the kettle and the toaster become relegated to the cupboards because you won't want to hide your magnificently clean coloured glass kitchen splashbacks behind them!