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Shelly says,
"Find peace in your home."
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Shelly's Tuscan Kitchen - Home Decorating Design Tips & Tricks
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Tuscany emotes visions of the
Italian countryside replete with gently rolling hills of a
splendid and unspoiled countryside – including cypress,
oak and olive trees.
Stone houses with clay tile roofs –
and inside those homes, an inviting, comfortable and cozy
place to be and live. |

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This is why so many North Americans are looking for some
Tuscan styling in their own homes. Who wouldn’t want to
look out a kitchen window and see rolling hills of
countryside?
Well, maybe we can’t get those rolling
hills but, we can achieve some of the Tuscan look inside
our homes. Today, I will be focusing on Tuscan Kitchens.
Tuscan style is Italy’s version of
country – Italian Country.
I suppose we have our own
country style in North America but, it is more likely to
include ducks, flowered wallpaper or borders, wreaths and
pine furniture which are usually new and they all match.
Tuscan style or Italian country is an adlib, 'au naturel'
style – a style you must be able to accept if you want
to adopt this style in your home.
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Furniture does not need to match and
it should be old or worn. Elements of the kitchen should
be very natural – stone floors, wood furniture, brick or
marble fireplaces, clay tile countertops and backsplash,
plaster walls and solid wood beamed ceilings – just a
few of the elements you might find in a Tuscan kitchen. It
all makes for a natural and comfortable environment – as
if everything was meant to be there – and the materials
were taken straight from the countryside.
Now if you are lucky
enough to have stone walls, GREAT! However, this is
something most of us will not be able to achieve
naturally. There are ways to achieve this look. You can
buy faux stone products, which install similar to half
brick walls (which are a lesser expensive alternative to
full brick walls).
"I can afford
it" Tips: An even less expensive method, not to
mention easily changeable (something I always like to
implement in my designs), is painting faux stone or marble
walls.
A faux stone block
wall can be done in different configurations, shapes and
colours for a personalized stone look. In my previous
house, I faux painted stone blocks in my front hallway and
around the archways. There wasn’t a person who came into
my house who didn’t say, "WOW, look at the
walls" and of course, they had to touch
them to see if they were real!
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Plaster walls are also found
extensively in Tuscan homes - usually in a creamy grayish
white colour. Venetian plaster can be purchased just about
anywhere these days and is easy to apply.
In a Tuscan kitchen, there is a lot
of wood - stained on the darker side. Not only is there a
lot of wood but, none of needs to match. An armoire can be
different than the shutters, which can be different than
the wood cabinets, which again can be different than the
table. I love it!
Here’s a time when you can take
advantage of your mismatched pieces. Maybe you have an
armoire in your bedroom that you could use? Maybe you have
some old chairs in your attic or barn? Maybe your mother
has an old farmhouse wooden table that is now too big for
her and is looking for a new home? If you have always
loved the Tuscan theme, I am betting that you have some
pieces tucked away that would work well in your new
kitchen design.
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A farmhouse wooden table is a must.
Chairs are also wood with rush seats - a great choice for
this 'au naturel' Tuscan kitchen. "I can afford
it" Tips: As I have done in the past, I used 4 un-matching
chairs - a look that gives the room an automatic air of
hand me downs from generations. They were all antiques and had
somewhat similar lines. I also recovered the seats in
similar fabrics. It gave a real homey, cozy feel to the
kitchen. Everyone was able to pick their favourite chair -
kids and adults alike loved that concept - just part
of the charm of a Tuscan themed decor.
In order to get a true Tuscan kitchen
look, cabinets will be unfitted. I know that this is not something a
lot of people can live with, even though the look is
fabulous. It is also, more importantly, something not
everyone can achieve inexpensively. If you are
redecorating or redesigning
your kitchen, then it can be done.
"I can afford it" Tips:
If you are not redoing your kitchen, here are a few
suggestions for getting that unfitted look. Remove an upper cabinet and
install open shelving. Use these shelves for display of
dishes or pasta stored in great glass jars. Having open
shelves can be a tad intimidating for some - it means
those shelves are always on display. This could be a good
thing. You will now be forced to keep it looking tidy -
you are no longer allowed to just stuff stuff in the
cupboard :-) For those of you out there who do that...you
know who you are :-)
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"I can afford it" Tips:
For those really brave out there, remove
some bottom cabinet doors to reveal your great looking
pots and pans - preferably copper.
"I can afford it" Tips:
If you can, fit an
armoire in your kitchen to achieve that fabulous Tuscan feel
- not to mention additional storage.
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Tuscan
kitchens should include some black wrought iron. This
could be in the form of a black iron pot rack or how about
a wrought iron chandelier or light fixture. Both or either would
work beautifully. "I can afford it" Tips:
If you don't have a wrought iron light fixture, consider
spray painting the one you have in a solid black
to give the look of cast/wrought iron.
"I can afford it" Tips:
To get a unique, old world pot rack, consider an old
wrought iron fence gate. You may find these at antique
dealers, salvage stores or even new fence contractors.
Flooring is also 'au naturel' as well
- being either stone or tile. Choose a natural flooring
material such as marble, clay tile, slate or stone. "I
can afford it" Tips: If this is
not an option or out of your budget, try to find a ceramic
or porcelain tile resembling any of these products. There
are a ton of great looking, affordable ceramic tiles on
the market. They can even be found at your local hardware
store.
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A Tuscan kitchen will look wonderful
with a hammered copper range hood. "I can afford
it" Tips: If you can't do this, how about
painting your current range hood with a high heat copper
paint (just the outside). Even better, take a hammer to
the range hood first to give it a 'hammered' finish, then
paint it copper. Voila - a hammered copper range hood.
"I can afford it" Tips:
If the copper range hood is out of the question, get some
copper in your kitchen with some copper accessories or a few copper pots
and put them on display.
An easy way to go Tuscan is to add some Tuscany-styled dishes, plates, bowls and more. Find some dishes
- tomato red, olive green and sun-burnt yellow - perfect for
any Tuscan kitchen.
Other accessories to add are glass
jars filled with pasta, decorative containers of olives
and olive oil. And last but, not least, to finish the
look, a bowl of grapes on the table - fresh from the
vineyard.
Enjoy your new Tuscan kitchen!
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