Mediterranean style is immediately evocative of sun and sand, beaches, ancient values, and fresh, flavorful cuisine. The diverse Mediterranean aesthetic borrows from numerous cultures to create warm, inviting interiors that are as practical as they are visually appealing.
What are the Features of Mediterranean Kitchen Design?
Mediterranean kitchen design features warm, neutral, earthy tones that range from soft yellows and creams to deep umber. Include a few pops of bright, sunny colors such as orange, green, red, or blue to add a lively aura to the room all year-round. Think breezy, beachy, sunny, and sandy, and you’ll have the look you want.
Archways and geometric designs tend to replace straight edges. Beveled countertop edges, ornate detailing on cabinets and drawers, and a flared range hood are all common elements.
Mediterranean Style Combined Spanish and Tuscan Design Sensibilities
Since the design is a mish-mash of Spanish and Tuscan, you’ll find elements of each approach in equal measure.
For example:
- Colorful, hand-painted tiles. Choosing hand-painted tile for your backsplash, baseboards, or trim creates a focal point in the room, and it’s the perfect way to add color and texture. Whether you tile the entire wall behind your stove alcove or the sides of your island, decorative tile gives you the Mediterranean look instantly.
- Classic Mediterranean colors. Spicy, rich tones that evoke sand or deep red clay generally form the backdrop, while generous splashes of colors like blue, red, green, orange, and yellow provide a lively underscore.
- A cooking alcove, enclosed inside an arch, is a hallmark of Spanish kitchen design. The entire countertop around the stove will be the center of all the action, so whether you enclose the area or not, the Mediterranean tradition suggests you should have ample space to prep and cook.
- Cabinets and furniture in a rough natural wood finish lend a rustic and ancient vibe. Teal or red is nice in a weathered, distressed finish, especially when paired with a white countertop in quartz or marble.
- The ceiling may not be something you think about too often, but in a Mediterranean kitchen, it is a significant style element. Exposed timber beams can be matched in color and style to your cabinets to tie the room together.
- A flared hood is a classic Mediterranean kitchen design element. Hood coverings can be made of cast stone or sheetrock, though some feature enclosures of copper or stucco.
- Flooring in the Mediterranean kitchen is generally terracotta or clay tile, but light or medium-toned wood matches nicely against an earthy backdrop.
- Countertops in the Mediterranean kitchen can be light-colored or dark. Either color choice looks equally at home. Depending on your personal style, you might choose dark wood for your countertops with a live edge or go for a more classic Tuscan look with marble or granite.
- Ornate details provide punctuation in a Mediterranean kitchen. Features can be introduced via non-practical decorative elements like wall sculptures, or it can be part of the overall design scheme. Even if you aren’t a big aficionado of ornamentation, you might be surprised at how “at home” some of these types of things look when they are part of the overall design approach. Little things sometimes make a big statement, so it’s easy to get away with a light touch.
Think fancy countertop edges and cutaways, chandeliers, wrought-iron door inserts or gates, corbels, scrolls, columns, drawer pulls, hinges, hardware – you get the picture.
- Texture is a major feature in the Mediterranean kitchen, and it’s easy to add using a variety of different elements. For example, a mosaic-tiled terracotta ceiling, stucco walls, or an area rug in a deep, earthy color. Hang a collection of copper pots from an oversized wrought-iron pot hanger for even more dimensional interest.
- Lighting plays off of your textural elements to create even more texture. Choose wrought-iron pendants or chandeliers for above the island. Sconces are lovely for task lighting. If the fixture or the shade has a lot of texture, or if it features mosaics of glass, crystal, or any other kind of ornate styling, it will fit right in.
- Fluid lines grace the Mediterranean kitchen from floor to ceiling. Geometric shapes, arches, and exotic curves dominate, lending elegance and tremendous visual appeal. Arches can be subtle features, such as over a window, but they can also be sweeping and grand.
Is a Mediterranean kitchen remodel in your future? We would love to show you how we can help. Reach out today, and let’s talk about it.
