Spanish corbels are decorative elements that transform home interiors, and modern foam construction makes them surprisingly affordable. Traditional plaster corbels are expensive to build, but cement-coated foam and urethane alternatives look identical once installed.
I’ve used both methods in Santa Barbara projects, and honestly, most people can’t tell the difference. These decorative corbels work beautifully in hallways, entryways, and living rooms to create visual interest or define spaces.
Scroll through to see installation techniques, cost comparisons, and direct links to ready-made corbels you can install yourself.
Both Interior and exterior Spanish corbels are built in similar construction methods. A traditional way is to build corbels with plywood and standard lumber. Once the wood form is built, it is covered in waterproofing paper and several coats of stucco are applied.
Today, a high-quality Spanish remodel can incorporate less expensive corbels made with cement coated architectural foam. Manufacturers also offer urethane foam corbels, made by injecting liquid foam into preformed molds. The liquid urethane expands inside the mold to form it’s shape.
I provide my clients the various choices in the type of corbel construction to choose from. Personally, I enjoy creating Spanish-style interiors with all of them.
Once the project is completed, it is very difficult to tell the difference between store bought corbels and those those built with the traditional, more expensive construction methods.
Spanish Corbels: Designing Them into Home Interiors
Decorative details like coving and corbels are often built in to both interiors and exteriors of Spanish homes (and commercial buildings).
I like to design Spanish corbels into transitional areas of a home. For example, at a entry foyer. Note the photo above. The foyer is on the right side and the corbels frame the view into the living room.
Here is another view of the corbels. They look great paired with the coved ceiling in the modest entryway. As a Santa Barbara Home Designer, I enjoy sharing resources for where clients purchase affordable elements, like these attractive Amazon star pendant lights.
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Check out other direct links to Spanish product recommendations.
Spanish Corbels Installed in Spanish Home Interiors
A higher perceived value of your homes interior can be accomplished by adding Spanish corbels in special places within your floorplan.
Hallways that lead to bedrooms, a kitchen family room transition, as well as the entry foyer were all locations we chose to use corbels to make the home more attractive to a buyer.
An extra wide corbel was incorporated into a plaster column as a creative way to visually separate the kitchen from the living room.
A Jeff Doubét recommended product for designing and building your charming, high-quality Spanish style home +landscape. A 240 page, full color Coffee Table Book.
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Affordable Spanish Home Interior Upgrades with Spanish Corbels
Architectural foam is often specified and incorporated into Santa Barbara Spanish home remodels as a cost effective way to include decorative coving and corbels in the build.
Here, I meet with a favorite General Contractor friend as we strategize how adding corbel details will improve the hallway transitions in this home.
Here is how the foam corbels turned out once they were finished and painted. They make this hallway to a guest suite feel cozy and special.
Where to Buy Corbels for your Own Spanish Home Interior Project
Since my Spanish Home Design Book came out in 2018, there are now manufacturers who sell off-the-shelf corbels made of durable urethane foam. This company has corbel designs very similar to the our custom designs on this page.
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During an impromptu design meeting at a Santa Barbara home, we study some options for improving the interior space. These were architectural foam pieces left over from another Spanish interior remodel project nearby. We were deciding where we could utilize them.
Here is how that transition turned out. We incorporated those small scraps of foam and made something beautiful.
The foam corbels and coving were coated with a thin layer of cement, and finished with drywall mud to match the surrounding wall finishes.
Planning your Spanish Interior with Decorative Corbels
When planning your Spanish home interiors, consider main focal points as places you can incorporate decorative corbels. Styrofoam, as well as store bought urethane corbels are easy to “glue and screw” into place. They still will require effort to build and blend them into the surrounding wall and ceiling surfaces.
With a leftover foam remnant, I plan how we could cut it in half and create something with it.
I’m holding up the piece to show the crew how we could frame in a lowered wall section and then add the foam corbels to it to create an attractive passageway.
Here is how the project turned out once extra framing was added and the drywall details were finished out.
How-To Make Stunning Spanish Interiors
Once our Styrofoam components were cut to size, they were covered in Fiber Mesh and coated with FoamBond. FoamBond is a special mortar made for adhering stucco moldings to the exterior of a home.
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These photos show how the completed corbel passageway looks from different vantage points.
Looking through the corbel passageway and across the living room. Decorative elements like this become unifying designs within your high-end Spanish remodel.
This is a view looking from the kitchen, across the great room—to the master bedroom hall.
More Spanish home Blog Posts Featuring Corbels
If you found this project helpful, here are more projects with Spanish corbels.
