All Eyes on Marsala: Incorporating Pantone’s Color of the Year into Your Kitchen Design

Every year Pantone Color Institute decides on what it feels will be the color of the year.

The winner this year? Marsala.

Marsala had some people scratching their heads because it’s a very earthy shade with hints of deep red wine, and typically Pantone has gone with more vibrant and contemporary colors. At first glance Marsala may not fit with more modern design styles, but after delving below the surface a bit it’s easy to see why the color was selected.

Pantone has their own reasons for the color selection, with Executive Director Leatrice Eiseman saying the following:

"Marsala enriches our mind, body and soul, exuding confidence and stability. Marsala is a subtly seductive shade, one that draws us in to its embracing warmth."

That rousing vote of confidence for the color makes a lot of sense and it’s really a decadent, rich color that can work beautifully in home design, regardless of the overall theme or style.

Here are some interesting ways to include Marsala in one of the key areas of most homes: the kitchen.

The Kitchen Countertops: This is possibly one of the most daring ways to use Marsala in a kitchen, but for homeowners willing to take a chance it can turn out beautifully. Of course you may not be able to find a kitchen countertop that’s solid Marsala, but one great way to incorporate this subtle tone of red into a kitchen is to choose an option like the Ruby Carnelian countertop option from Antolini’s Gemstone collection. It has a lot of vibrant shades of red as well as hints of Marsala, and it’s easy to balance out the boldness of the color of the countertops by choosing more neutral flooring and cabinetry.

In the Accessories: For homeowners not ready to make the full leap into a Marsala-centric kitchen, consider accessorizing using the color. For people with very contemporary kitchens or a homeowner who has gone the minimalist route with monochromatic countertops and cabinetry, adding pops of Marsala can really warm the space up since it is such an earthy tone. Accessories can include countertop items such as vases, bowls or even mixers, or you may want to just add bits of Marsala in the form of kitchen towels and dishes.

Spice Up the Cabinets: A great way to undergo an inexpensive kitchen makeover is through a cabinet refacing or a paint job, so for homeowners giving their cabinets a makeover considering Marsala can be ideal. It works really well as a cabinet color option because it’s such a deep-yet-still subdued shade of red that it almost mimics natural wood tones, with a bit of a punch. Marsala-colored cabinetry can look particularly beautiful paired with a light natural stone countertop, especially one that’s primarily white. There’s a lot of great contrast that allows both the countertops and the cabinets to be seen for their beauty and impact.

Marsala is one of those color choices that’s likely to have long-lasting appeal. What was seen in the color options of the kitchen remodels of the 1990s has now come full-circle as the most talked about color of the year, so whether a homeowner is going with a bold Marsala-infused countertop option or simply experimenting with accessories, it’s likely to be a look that lasts.

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