Decorating A Kitchen Like A Spanish or Mexican Style Hacienda
Posted by: THAT Painter Lady in Decorating, The Hacienda Style, kitchens
I often wonder what it would be like to live in Mexico on a large hacienda with a Spanish style homes kitchen. Kitchens are the heart of the home… and in Mexico this couldn’t be a more true statement.
Most Mexican kitchens are filled with color featuring a combination of traditional Mexican decorative arts and the hacienda or home owners’ creative style.
Colorful talavera tiles and pottery and dishware are plentiful in a hacienda style kitchen. Usually their is a representation of San Pasqual - the patron saint of cooks and kitchens. He blesses every kettle, pot and spoon. I have several in my kitchen… I need all the help I can get.
Infuse your kitchen with a little flavor of Old Mexico. By combining Old World style mixed with carefully concealed contemporary innovation… it is possible to have the look and feel of a Spanish style kitchen with all the modern conveniences needed in todays’ lifestyle.
A new book (well… it is a year old) came to my attention by a reader. Mexicocina is a tour of kitchens of Mexico, including private homes, haciendas and cooking schools.
The use of tile in every kitchen will have you drooling. Page after page of full color photographs filled with warm, comfortable kitchens… dripping with handmade Mexican tile. Colorful and muted counters, floors and walls fill the pages of this big glossy soft covered book. It is 175 pages and heavy… too heavy for a lazy beach day read. This book is for serious research. 
The use of color, paint and texture is always amazing and surprising to the Gringo in us all. But… learn to be brave. Nothing done with color or paint is permanent. It can be changed in a few years… or a few days if your partner can’t live with it.
In looking for ideas for my own kitchen remodel, most of the kitchens pictured in this book have high ceilings. Smart choice in warm weather areas. Heat rises and it is trapped up at the ceiling letting cool breezes flow through the many doors and windows. By having tile on the floor… it also traps the cool evening temperatures and that can feel great on your toes when it is hot and steamy outside.
The idea of a large range hood has been appealing to me. It looks authentic and traditional. Mexicocina is filled with ideas for massive stove hoods. Some are plain stucco with hand hewn beams, while others are covered with tile or murals.
The colors of historical Mexico are derived from the pigments of minerals, vegetables, insects, and seashells… creating warm yellow ochre, sumptuous indigo blue, brilliant carmine red, and pale icy purples.
Think of mixing
- Terra Cotta orange with Mediterranean Blue
- Sunny Yellow with Cobalt Blue
- Creamy White with Brick Red
- Pink, Orange and Blue
- Yellow, Green, Turquoise and Orange
These are the colors of Mexico. Always… Blue seems to be in the picture. Some kitchens are and entire feast of blue and white and other cocinas have just a touch or two.
The Mexican kitchens that fill the pages of this book are artists… and it shows. The eye for color, pattern and texture permeates the pages. In some of the photos… it seems as if they should smell of great home cooked tamales.
In fact… this book has many recipes included. Some I have never heard of…
- Chilies En Nogada
- Trufas de Chocolate Con Carne
- Gazpacho de Mango
- Quesadillas de Brie Con Salsa de Fruta
And…. we also get a tour of Casa de Alfenique in Puebla, Mexico at the Museum of the Revolution, historic kitchens from the 1800’s.
Amazing tile, recipe and colorful paint. Ohhhh…. I am in heaven.
Mexicocina: The Spirit and Style of the Mexican Kitchen
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