Trends: How to Add a Touch of Marble to Your Décor
Marble is beautiful, but it can be pricey. If you’re looking for small ways to introduce this timeless stone, check out these ideas
Andrea Von
10 October 2015
Formerly editor at thegreenhubonline.com and Houzz UK Editorial Staff. I'm passionate about sustainability, innovative architecture and clever design.
Formerly editor at thegreenhubonline.com and Houzz UK Editorial Staff. I'm passionate... More
Marble is enduringly popular, and for good reason: delicately patterned, cool and smooth to the touch, and timelessly elegant, it adds a shot of luxe to any space. It comes in different colours, depending on the other minerals present where the marble was formed: purest calcite marble is white, the presence of hematite makes it reddish, and limonite turns it a yellowish colour.
If a whole swathe of flooring or wall panels isn’t an option, don’t give up on having marble in your home: there are myriad ways to introduce a little luxe, as these schemes demonstate.
If a whole swathe of flooring or wall panels isn’t an option, don’t give up on having marble in your home: there are myriad ways to introduce a little luxe, as these schemes demonstate.
Consider your occasional tables
Try introducing marble on a small table, such as a console or coffee table. This trio of hexagons brings a little luxury into the room, as well as pleasing pattern in the veining.
Marble goes beautifully with gold, so try tapping into the trends for warm metals and mixing materials with a gold-legged marble table.
Try introducing marble on a small table, such as a console or coffee table. This trio of hexagons brings a little luxury into the room, as well as pleasing pattern in the veining.
Marble goes beautifully with gold, so try tapping into the trends for warm metals and mixing materials with a gold-legged marble table.
Update a traditional feature
Marble fire surrounds are nothing new, but this minimalist one just goes to show that traditional pieces can be modernised while retaining their character. Here, the marble continues around the room in the skirting board and doorjamb – an idea that would work equally well without a fireplace to introduce a subtle shot of marble to a bathroom.
Marble fire surrounds are nothing new, but this minimalist one just goes to show that traditional pieces can be modernised while retaining their character. Here, the marble continues around the room in the skirting board and doorjamb – an idea that would work equally well without a fireplace to introduce a subtle shot of marble to a bathroom.
Make your splashback stand out
Make a feature of a small stretch of marble splashback by turning it on its end. This section, which runs up between glass-fronted units, acts as a focal point in the kitchen. Here, it’s a continuation of the marble worktop, but it could work just as well with a plain white worktop with marble upstands along the back to link it in.
Check out more kitchens that break the mould
Make a feature of a small stretch of marble splashback by turning it on its end. This section, which runs up between glass-fronted units, acts as a focal point in the kitchen. Here, it’s a continuation of the marble worktop, but it could work just as well with a plain white worktop with marble upstands along the back to link it in.
Check out more kitchens that break the mould
Go small and simple
The quickest and most inexpensive way to add a little marble to your home is to buy small accessories, such as utensil holders, chopping boards, vases, plant pots or a wall clock. In this kitchen on a London barge, the utensil holder blends with the worktop, but white marble accessories like this would also look striking against a dark grey or blue wall.
Tour the rest of this out-of-the-ordinary home
The quickest and most inexpensive way to add a little marble to your home is to buy small accessories, such as utensil holders, chopping boards, vases, plant pots or a wall clock. In this kitchen on a London barge, the utensil holder blends with the worktop, but white marble accessories like this would also look striking against a dark grey or blue wall.
Tour the rest of this out-of-the-ordinary home
Define an area or feature
This landing slab could have gone completely unnoticed if it were the same material as the rest of the staircase. But in this smooth, white marble, it draws attention to and defines the area where the room and staircase meet.
The step also references the slice of marble on the floor to the right, which is another clever way to introduce the stone if a whole floor isn’t an option.
This landing slab could have gone completely unnoticed if it were the same material as the rest of the staircase. But in this smooth, white marble, it draws attention to and defines the area where the room and staircase meet.
The step also references the slice of marble on the floor to the right, which is another clever way to introduce the stone if a whole floor isn’t an option.
Welcome in a classic
Eero Saarinen’s marble table for Knoll is a midcentury design classic that works with any style and era of home, and it’s a great way to introduce an elegant slice of marble into your scheme. It looks at home amid the whites in this room, but it also pairs beautifully with natural wood and sings out against bold colour.
For a smaller hit, look at the side table in the same range.
Eero Saarinen’s marble table for Knoll is a midcentury design classic that works with any style and era of home, and it’s a great way to introduce an elegant slice of marble into your scheme. It looks at home amid the whites in this room, but it also pairs beautifully with natural wood and sings out against bold colour.
For a smaller hit, look at the side table in the same range.
Accessorise a monochrome room
The secret to a welcoming monochrome room is layering. Here, different textures of black, white and grey, with small elements of natural wood for warmth, make for an appealing room with depth – even the dog is working the theme!
The hexagonal marble mosaics that form the splashback make the strongest impact, and are a relatively inexpensive way to introduce this beautiful stone.
Discover smart ways to do monochrome
The secret to a welcoming monochrome room is layering. Here, different textures of black, white and grey, with small elements of natural wood for warmth, make for an appealing room with depth – even the dog is working the theme!
The hexagonal marble mosaics that form the splashback make the strongest impact, and are a relatively inexpensive way to introduce this beautiful stone.
Discover smart ways to do monochrome
Add a sliver to your windowsill
Having a marble windowsill instead of the more usual wood is both pleasing and practical. Admittedly, the marble windowsill in this kitchen is a natural extension of the worktop and splashback, but it would also sit nicely with painted walls.
Having a marble windowsill instead of the more usual wood is both pleasing and practical. Admittedly, the marble windowsill in this kitchen is a natural extension of the worktop and splashback, but it would also sit nicely with painted walls.
Reboot a minimal scheme
Covering one surface with a thin slice of marble can add dimension to a plain scheme. Use it on an island like this, or even a vanity unit or dressing table, for a subtle touch of glamour. And don’t think you have to stick to white marble: the rich browns in this island worktop inform the colour and texture choices for the rest of the room.
Covering one surface with a thin slice of marble can add dimension to a plain scheme. Use it on an island like this, or even a vanity unit or dressing table, for a subtle touch of glamour. And don’t think you have to stick to white marble: the rich browns in this island worktop inform the colour and texture choices for the rest of the room.
Luxe up with a marble basin
A marble basin will add a sense of luxury to any bathroom. This beautifully veined countertop bowl forms the centrepiece in this room, and it would look equally at home on a rustic raw wood table or plain white vanity unit as it does on this imposing chest of drawers.
TELL US…
Have you used marble in your home? Please share your tips and photos in the Comments below.
A marble basin will add a sense of luxury to any bathroom. This beautifully veined countertop bowl forms the centrepiece in this room, and it would look equally at home on a rustic raw wood table or plain white vanity unit as it does on this imposing chest of drawers.
TELL US…
Have you used marble in your home? Please share your tips and photos in the Comments below.
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Great article. We supply marble to all sorts of different people and places, from restaurant table tops to patios to luxurious marble bathrooms and everything in between. Like all natural materials it has stood the test of time thanks to its beauty and versatility!
I also really like the hexagonal tables; simple and elegant.
Great article, at Jigsaw we love this 'raw materials' trend. The addition of marble, whether its in a kitchen or bathroom as a surface or just a side table in the lounge can add so much glamour to any interior.
Fantastic article, its always a good idea to go to your local marble dealer and ask them what 'offcuts' and 'wastage' material they have. I know from being a marble fabricator for over a decade that were always happy to deal on some material left over from a large project.