Color Combinations That Work With Travertine Tile

Tuscan-inspired design swept through homes from the late 1980s, all the way through ’90s, and included many features you’re probably familiar with: travertine floors, golden yellow walls, traditional fixtures and hardware, and dark wood furnishings. 

While it’s easy to paint walls, swap out your hardware, and get more up-to-date furnishings for your home, replacing your flooring, however, requires a renovation. That’s why it’s no surprise that here we are, decades later, with travertine tile still in abundance.

Why Is There So Much Travertine in Florida Homes?

Tuscan-inspired homes have almost always included travertine because of its soft golden tone (which matched those yellow walls). Style aside, however, I think its true popularity stems from the fact that it was an affordable upgrade material for flooring and bathroom tile. 

In Florida, we prefer tile floors because of their low maintenance and resistance to moisture. When you have a design trend and it’s both affordable and functional… well, you’ve seen the result. Many homes in the Pensacola, Pace, and Milton areas still have a ton of travertine, or tile that simulates it.

However, it’s 2021 and soon to be 2022. We have seen a widespread shift to grays and light neutral colors over the last decade, and now, these travertine floors are making homes look instantly dated. Not good. I’ve had many clients ask for help updating their homes to either work with the travertine or gut it. While both are equally viable options, let’s focus on that first one today.

Above is a great example of a Tuscan-style kitchen with travertine before and after a cosmetic refresh. We kept the travertine floors and granite countertops, and we brought in new life with new paint on the walls, cabinets, and island. It’s now a completely different kitchen!

Why Keep Your Travertine Floors?

There are several reasons that keeping your travertine floors could be a smart option…

First, the most compelling reason to keep your travertine floors is the cost it requires to remove tile floors and bathroom walls. It is expensive! 

Second, the process is also invasive, especially if you are considering replacing the tile in the whole house. You would also have to remove the cabinets and prepare the subfloor or slab before putting down any new material. In other words, it’s a lot of work, time, and money to replace travertine floors. 

Third, the maintenance of a tile floor can be pretty reasonable, especially if you have active kids and pets. Keeping your travertine tile may be preferable to installing easily damaged wood flooring.

Last but not least, many people here on the Emerald Coast are military transfers. You might be here for a few years before moving on to another community. Working with what you have in the home may be preferable to a larger time and financial investment. 

Convinced? Keep reading for my best advice on using color to update your home AND feel cohesive with your existing travertine. Pour yourself a glass of Tuscan wine for this one, and andiamo!

Keep the Travertine & Add Fresh Color By...

1. Painting the walls and/or cabinets. 

Use paint to get rid of darker colors like the muddy brown, gold, and other deep tones that were popular in the Tuscan-style era. When you paint the walls, you begin to minimize the yellow or brown cast of the travertine. One of my go-to colors to pair with travertine is Sherwin Williams Shoji White, which works well with the tile’s brown or even pink tones.

Pro tip: Not all travertine is the same color. Look at all the options because some tiles may be lighter or have more brown in them. This post includes a complete list of paint colors I use with travertine.

2. Updating your countertops and backsplash.

Your countertops and backsplash make up a significant amount of surface area in your kitchen. If they are all gold or brown, they are playing a big role in your space feeling dark and dated. This step is a more significant investment, but updating these areas with lighter, more current materials will balance out the darker travertine floors.

Here’s an two examples of materials that would work well with travertine that has blue-grey undertones:

The option on the left is a bit cooler, which is perfect if your travertine is the same. On the right, you can see that the brown tones have a bit of red in them, which helps them blend better with travertine that has equally warm undertones. (Color is a science!)

3. Adding color with soft furnishings.

You can also introduce more up-to-date, fresh color into the room with drapery, Roman shades, area rugs, and upholstery in lighter, linen fabrics. To show you what I mean, I’ve put together a few more color combinations with both hard materials and fabrics.

I also love to use a variety of greens, blues, charcoal, or warm gray tones with travertine. In addition, I use fabrics and accent accessories that blend well with the tile, while feeling fresher than the tired brown and gold. Here’s a great example of this approach at work:

Our clients’ original kitchen had these dark travertine floors with blue-grey veining in them. We painted the island a blue-grey color, painted the cabinets white, added in a mosaic tile backsplash, and brought in Cambria quartz countertops in white and grey. 

These updated glass pendants help bring this kitchen into the 21st century, too! Proof that travertine floors can look up-to-date when surrounded with more contemporary colors, fixtures, and finishes.

And there you have it — several color combinations for bringing your travertine — whether in the kitchen or bathroom— into this decade. If you’re tired of the golden Tuscan style of your home and need some help, we’d love to support you. Reach out to us here and let’s see if we’re right for your project.

Warmly,

Sarah