Black is the new black in home renovation
For some, the colour black is kind of creepy, the colour of death. But for more and more home owners, black really is the new black – both inside and outside the home, as you’ll see in this awesome gallery of the latest trends.
This is the infamous Black House in San Francisco. It was owned by the very creepy Anton LaVey and used as the headquarters of his ‘Church of Satan’ from 1966 until his death in 1997. One thing LaVey understood very well was the powerful contrast between black and white, an effect modern designers have latched on to.
Black houses are now far more common than they have been for years. This one uses black and grey to create a layered effect and stark white door and window frames to create contrast. And it doesn’t look creepy at all!
Black, of course, provides the perfect contrast against almost any other colour or shade – even grey. In this home, the black really brings out the natural look and texture of the timber.
Black isn’t a colour many people would once have considered for a kitchen, but now it’s de rigueur, dwarling. This kitchen even has a black floor and black blinds, all designed to help the stainless steel benchtops and appliances, and those shiny white cabinets, stand out like, well, dog’s b*lls.
Black hasn’t been traditionally used a lot in living rooms but doesn’t it look amazing against the black-and-white photographs, grey furniture, drapes and carpet, and those shocking pink pillows?
Technically, black isn’t a colour at all. It’s an absence of light. A black object absorbs all the colours of the visible spectrum and reflects none of them to the eyes. But if that’s the case, how can you make black paint? And how can you have different shades of black?
In any case, if you’re not sure about black for your bathroom, how about compromising and using shades of grey? You still get some nice contrast against white and even subtle splashes of colour such as flowers and plants.
Back to the kitchen. If yours, God forbid, looks something like this, there’s nothing like a bit of black to really bring your kitchen into 2017. Yes, the photo below really is the same kitchen as the one above.
Three things we really like about this kitchen – apart from the black-and-white look, of course. The first is the way the floating kitchen island and cupboards at the back add to the sense of space and openness. The second is the armchairs in the kitchen! We’ve never seen that before, but we can imagine relaxing there while doing brunch or sipping a glass of wine while waiting for something to cook. Another thing we’ve never seen before is what look like tree trunks stuck inside the window frames. Not very eco-friendly but they add a kind of natural look to an otherwise very stark contemporary interior.
