Help! My villa is finished – but where’s the soul?

Here you are, standing in your brand-new living room. On bare concrete. Outside, the tyre marks from the cement truck are still etched into what’s meant to become your garden…

Congratulations. Your Spanish villa is complete. The dream project you sketched, selected, planned and fought for over months – it’s finally standing. Sleek. White. Modern. And utterly soulless. Don’t panic – it’s not you. It’s the clockwork Spanish way of building, the developers’ obsession with grey and glossy, and the myth that “new” somehow equals “done.”

Time to give your modern villa some character. And yes, you can do that without resorting to macramé plant hangers or Moroccan cushions straight out of a garden centre photoshoot.

Start with texture, not colour

In a modern villa, colour is often the first thing people trip over – sometimes quite literally when choosing floor tiles. But the secret to atmosphere isn’t in the shade, it’s in the texture. If everything is smooth, sleek and shiny, your home ends up feeling like a showroom. Add contrast. A rough linen sofa, a wool rug that sheds just a little, a ceramic vase that’s anything but symmetrical. Think materials your fingers want to touch. I once bought a handmade cabinet from Ronda with drawers that don’t quite close properly. Neither do I, after a couple of glasses of wine.

Dare to embrace imperfection

Perfection is overrated – and frankly, an un-Spanish luxury. Just look at the village houses in Andalusia: their charm lives in crooked doors and lime paint that’s gently peeling away. Even in a brand-new villa, something should be allowed to feel slightly off. Use limewash or textured plaster with some soul. Leave a wall deliberately unfinished. Put a vintage chair in the kitchen, even if it ‘doesn’t belong there’. The house should reflect you, not your developer’s Pinterest board.

Personal tip: “Buy one thing you absolutely can’t justify. If it still makes sense after a week, it belongs.”

Lighting is everything (except spotlights in rows of three)

Lighting is the most underestimated mood-setter – and in modern villas, usually the first thing to go wrong. Spotlights in a grid pattern turn your living room into a waiting area with nicer furniture. Be bold: a fabric-shaded floor lamp, a linen-covered cord, a Portuguese lampshade that’s slightly too big. Light is allowed to cast shadows. Use wall lights that glow indirectly, and in the evenings, go for fewer lumens but more layers. My living room has five light sources – but not a single ceiling lamp. That one lives in the broom cupboard. Where it belongs.

Leave something out (and add something of your own)

Your home doesn’t need to be ‘finished’ on day one. In fact, a real home takes time to grow. Leave walls deliberately bare. Place a table without knowing what’ll end up on it. Try the Saturday rastro in Jalón – a market where you’ll stumble over weathered wine barrels, glorious Spanish kitsch, and possibly that one thing your house didn’t know it needed. I once found a cast-iron rooster there, which the seller claimed once sat atop a fountain in Benidoleig. “It’s hideous,” I thought. “And absolutely perfect.” Give your house time to collect memories. Because character – even in a modern villa – doesn’t come from furniture. It comes from stories.

On the other side of the Costa Blanca, the market in Guardamar del Segura is worth a visit – as are the flea markets in Torrevieja and San Miguel de Salinas. Based on the Costa del Sol? Then head to the rastro in Fuengirola on Sundays, or – if you’re feeling brave – dive into the charming chaos of Málaga’s Saturday morning market. One golden rule: the fewer the tourists, the more soul you’ll find.

Character is context

Finally, consider what surrounds the house. Perched on a hillside at the edge of a village? Then your home can afford to feel a bit more rugged. Got a sea view? Lean into soft colours and natural materials. Soul doesn’t just live in the interior – it lives in the atmosphere. And that should flow seamlessly from outside in.