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Spanish design interiors


Spanish-Style Living Rooms

By

Ashley Knierim

Ashley Knierim

Ashley Knierim is a home decor expert and product reviewer of home products for The Spruce. Her design education began at a young age. She has over 10 years of writing and editing experience, formerly holding editorial positions at Time and AOL.

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Updated on 03/29/22

The Spruce / Christopher Lee Foto

There are few interior design styles more romantic than Spanish-style design. Part of the Mediterranean family, Spanish interiors are warm, welcoming, and utterly stylish. Recognizable by their traditional stucco walls, decorative tile work, and exaggerated dome ceilings, these ten Spanish living rooms will make you want to plan your next vacation (or at least your next remodel).

Whether you're drawn to the rustic Spanish look or you can't get enough of the colorful bright colors that feel like the perfect blend of Spanish and Mexican traditions, there are many ways to take this look and incorporate it into your own home. Even if you don't have the iconic Spanish architectural details in your space, a few accessories like antiqued pottery or bright woven rugs can give you a Spanish feel without a costly renovation.

Spanish Interior Design Characteristics

While it’s easy to find images of Spanish style homes all over the Internet, figuring out precisely what makes them look so great can be tricky if you don’t know much about this style of decorating. In this Spanish interior design guide, you’ll learn how to achieve the elegant, airy look that comes with the stunning Spanish style decor and how to incorporate some key elements, such as painted pattern tiles and wrought iron railings, into your own home design.

Where are Spanish style homes found? The areas of the United States with the most Spanish style homes include the states that were former Spanish colonies such as California, New Mexico, Arizona, Texas, and Florida.

While there are no hard and fast rules for how to achieve such a look, there are certainly some characteristics that seem common among most examples of homes with a Spanish style:

Heavy curtains in dark reds and browns are often used to help block out cold winter winds and block heat from escaping on hot summer days. Although Spain’s hot weather can be uncomfortable for some people, homeowners love how cool their Spanish homes feel year-round as a result of these solid home design features.

If you want to experience this aesthetic yourself but can’t move to Spain (at least not yet), consider incorporating these Spanish interior decorating ideas into your own living space.

Earthy Color Palette

The color palette of Spanish interior design is earthy, vibrant, warm, and welcoming. However, that doesn’t mean it should be limited to those with a fair complexion and olive-toned skin.

There are many beautiful pieces for decorating your home in a traditional Spanish style without sacrificing your own personal flair or taste. In fact, if you have light hair, green eyes, and/or freckles you can incorporate these into your decorating scheme as well!

Just don’t limit yourself by choosing to use only neutral colors in your decor because although they’re lovely when they match a space, they tend to look quite plain on their own.

Stucco Walls

During medieval times, masons used brick to construct their houses. However, as they started to rebuild their cities after taking control of Spain in 1492, they realized that bricks were expensive and took a long time to build with.

So, they decided to use one of their most abundant resources: sand. Mixing it with lime, plaster, or cement and water gave them a durable material called stucco that could be molded into almost any shape they wanted.

@hadleyjameshomes @richard.beard.architects

In addition to being cost-effective, stucco walls are also very strong; they can withstand earthquakes without crumbling as brick walls do. Since it’s made from natural materials (sand and lime), you can paint over stucco without worrying about lead poisoning or other health hazards that come from paints containing toxic chemicals like cadmium or chromates.

Stone Fireplaces

Spain’s rich history, combined with beautiful landscapes and rich resources make it a prime location for stone fireplaces. Stone is naturally available from nearby mountains, and they’re an integral part of Spanish interior design.

@haciendadreams

Many visitors to Spain remark how even in homes where only one or two rooms have central heating, most rooms have a fireplace—including bathrooms! To keep your stone fireplace looking its best, remember that these types of fireplaces aren’t designed to be used for cooking.

If you use your fireplace regularly for cooking, your chimney could become blocked and actually start causing fires instead of preventing them!

Wrought Iron Railings

Installing wrought iron railings is a great way to incorporate classic Spanish elements into a home. If you’re lucky enough to have a large staircase, front porch or balcony, adding wrought iron banisters will not only keep you from falling off, but it can serve as a lovely decorative feature for your home.

@billycotton

Painted Pattern Tiles

Painted tiles are a decorative and utilitarian option is a great way to add color to your house and make a statement. Often used in commercial spaces such as public buildings, apartment complexes, and office lobbies, patterned tiles are extremely durable.

HouseBeautiful

Painted pattern tiles can also be used outside on a patio or walkway. The downside is that these tiles are expensive and are difficult to install yourself.

Terracotta Tiling

With its earthy tones and easy-to-work-with format, terracotta tiling is a great way to inject a little Spanish interior design into your home. Although often used in flooring, terracotta tiles can be used just as effectively on walls. With their rough texture and thick appearance, they’re perfect for creating something bold—and will bring an instant sense of warmth to any room.

@casa.buena.vista.build

Arched Doorways

An arched doorway is a traditional Spanish detail that offers visual interest and allows for extra lighting and decorative touches on a wall without adding too much weight. This arch can be used to separate two rooms or create an entryway.

AD Katie Hodges

Although not obvious, there are certain limitations to using arches in any space, such as ceiling height restrictions; the overall size of the room; and consideration of light sources coming from above or within walls.

Arcade Walkways

The designers of Spain have always been fond of using metal and glass walkways, floor-to-ceiling windows, and large open spaces. This style makes a home seem lighter and airier, with plenty of room for circulation. If you’re tired of your small house feeling crowded in and want to add a touch of Spanish flair to your decorating scheme, consider implementing one or more of these arcade walkways in your home today!

Mexican Pottery

Mexican clay pots and vases are popular interior home decor items in Mexico and other Central American countries. Mexican ceramic pieces not only make your home more colorful but also helps you feel more connected to Mexico! This is one of the easiest Spanish interior design tips.

@fincadelicaibiza

I hope you enjoyed this post on how to get the Spanish style look at home!

Interior design in Spain.

Spain in Russian

Cheerful Spaniards, accustomed to enjoying every moment, appreciating comfort combined with beauty and elegance, transferred these characteristics to the design of their houses and apartments. The Spanish style in the interior is distinguished by simplicity in execution, organic design, but at the same time attention to detail. In their homes, the Spaniards create an atmosphere of comfort and warmth through the skillful choice of materials and accessories. nine0003

Spanish-inspired interior combines light colors on the walls with dark furniture accents, wrought iron and carved wood with bright ceramics.

The most famous Spanish designers who have earned recognition not only in their homeland but also abroad are Pascua Ortega, Lázaro Rosa-Violán, Luis García Fraile, Jaime Hayón o Pablo Paniagua. They participated in the design and decoration of museums, restaurants, residences in Spain, Milan, Paris, London, New York and Hong Kong. Many of the mentioned masters are adherents of traditional Spanish design with elements of modernism. nine0003

Spanish home design

The traditional Spanish style in the interior is distinguished by lightness and abundance of light, the use of natural materials in decoration, attention to detail, but at the same time, the absence of excessive workload.

Spanish design was influenced by the culture and scenery of the Mediterranean. Spanish-style interior designs are dominated by light colors, as well as brown, terracotta red, orange and mustard shades in the decoration of floors and roofs. Elements made of stone, wood and ceramics are very common in the Spanish style; also in the design of Spanish houses, wrought iron products are used as accessories: candlesticks, sconces, chandeliers, fireplace grates, furniture details. To create comfort in the interior of Spain, various decorative pillows made of natural materials, as well as decorative candles are used. nine0003

Spaniards attach a lot of importance to their family and its history. Therefore, in interior design in Spain you can find antique furniture with leather trim and carved wooden details, antique clocks, figurines, dishes, as well as paintings and family photos on the walls.

The main elements of Spanish interior design are quite varied.

Spanish Kitchen Design

We should also mention the design of Spanish kitchens. A traditional Spanish-style kitchen is a large spacious room with a massive wall-to-wall set and a wooden or stone countertop. At the same time, if space permits, in the center of the room there is a table - a bar counter for cooking, as well as a small dining table.

nine0002 The kitchen has many shelves and cupboards for storing spices and olive oil. The Spanish style in the interior of the kitchen also involves a lot of ceramic details: dishes, decorative painted tiles. Traditional motifs in the design of Spanish cuisine are very popular - household items, jugs, figurines.

As far as decor is concerned, the Spanish-style kitchen has a few interesting details.

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  • Plastered walls in warm light tones, dominated by ocher shades.
  • One of the walls of the Spanish style kitchen can be decorated with traditional patterned ceramic tiles.
  • The floor is tiled with ceramic or granite tiles.
  • Preference is given to wooden furniture: a massive wooden table of a rectangular or square shape, wooden chairs with straight backs.
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    Interiors in Spain in different regions

    One of the features of interior design in Spain is its versatility and the presence in it of the cultural characteristics of each region. Traveling to different parts of Spain, you can see that the further south the region is, the brighter the interior, the more colors are used in the design, the more open space in houses and apartments.

    Andalusia

    nine0002 Temperamental and emotional Andalusians prefer brightness and dynamism in interior design. A distinctive feature of Spanish design in Andalusia is its colorfulness: the design is dominated by mosaics, ornaments, colored ceramics, yellows, reds and blacks.

    Catalonia

    Interior design in Catalonia is more restrained. The design is dominated by light neutral tones and dark accents in furniture and accessories. nine0003

    One of the most popular interior design trends in Catalonia is stone walls. This is due to the fact that many buildings have retained their original brickwork, which is a historical monument, a source of pride for the homeowner, as well as an interesting interior solution.

    In Catalan homes, you can find traditional ceramics: painted plates and jugs with intricate designs.

    Basque Country

    The geographical location and climatic features of the northern region of Spain determined the distinctive features of its interior.

    Modern interior design trends in Spain

    One of the interesting novelties in the Spanish interior style, which can be taken into account by lovers of unusual and economical things, is the rejection of chandeliers in the interior and the use of large vintage light bulbs for lighting. At the same time, Spanish designers urge to abandon bulky shades that take away part of the world and use ordinary lamps. As a decor item, there are many options for pendants for the lamp. nine0003

    Another interesting invention of designers is the so-called recycled furniture. These are nothing more than wooden storage boxes that have found their way into the Spanish interior as tables, shelves, armchairs and sofas.

    You can learn about the latest trends in Spanish interior design by visiting special exhibitions.