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Key Points
- A designer turns a dated Tuscan style kitchen into a dream home for a couple of empty nesters.
- Dated Tuscan style homes can be fixed with brighter color palettes.
- Making furniture less ornate and grand in scale is another way to update a Tuscan style home.
When it comes to home trends, what was once old is often new again. And right now Tuscan style kitchens are back—with an updated look that is.
These kitchens were supposed to make homeowners feel like they were living in Tuscany. At the time, they felt fashionable and stylish, but to many today, they now look completely outdated.
Ahead, an interior designer shares how she transformed a dated and dreary ‘90s Tuscan style kitchen and made it desert chic.
Meet the Expert
Jennifer Beget, MBA, ASID, is the founder and principal designer at J Beget Designs.
Desert Inspiration
Designed by Jennifer Beget, the founder and principal designer at J Beget Designs, this kitchen underwent an extensive renovation to connect the home back to its native landscape in Arizona.
The home’s desert views informed many of Beget’s design decisions. This included expanding windows strategically placed to frame views and then extending that beautiful color palette throughout the home, she says.
She opted for an overall color palette that ditched the dark, dated colors of late ‘90s and early 2000s Tuscan style in favor of warm tones layered with sage and cognac—all elements of a timeless kitchen.
“Tactile, organic materials including leathered stone, polished quartzite, wood flooring, wool rugs, and linen bedding elevate the home throughout,” Beget says. “Every finish was intentionally selected to reflect a sense of earned luxury, quiet, grounded, and timelessness.”
Light and Bright
To invite in light and openness, windows were replaced and enlarged. Against this, Beget painted the walls in hues that brighten up dark rooms. She then brought in other white surfaces to help bounce the natural light around: the linen sofas and white bedding.
“My clients, now in their early sixties, are enjoying travel and luxuries they have worked hard for,” she says. “They are newer grandparents and ready to enjoy a home that is just for them.”
In the kitchen and great room, a bulky corner pantry was removed, ornate dark cabinetry was replaced with a lighter set that extended to the ceiling to draw the eye upward, making the space feel expansive.
Finally, a larger island was added to anchor the space, creating a natural place to gather that also feels both elevated and effortless.
How to Transform a Tuscan-Style Room
Beget shares advice on how to renovate a ‘90s and 2000s Tuscan style home into an updated dream house.
Rethink Your Color Palette
Tuscan style is very visually ornate, dark, and heavy, so the best way to move away from this color scheme is to get rid of the deep browns and reds. Lean into softer brighter color palettes, a paint trick that can make smaller spaces feel larger.
“Move away from the dark painted cabinets, dark wood flooring, yellow tumbled tile and gold paint,” Beget says.
Renovate the Kitchen
The outdated feel of Tuscan style is most obvious in the kitchen, where the darker shades and visually heavy materials—like gold granite countertops—can feel stifling.
This home’s kitchen is under 250 square feet, but by removing a bulky corner pantry and extending the cabinetry to the ceiling, Beget was able to double the visual space without changing the footprint.
“Bringing cabinets to the ceiling will always increase the visual space of a space,” she says.
Refine the Scale of Your Furniture
Tuscan themed homes often feature oversized furniture: They feature deep sofas with high backs, or huge lounge chairs that are difficult to sit in, with wood and metal tables and chairs that have ornate and bulky designs.
“Keeping furniture the correct size and scale in a room is important,” Beget says.
Read the original article on The Spruce
