exhibit b.
exhibit c.
Last night Liz was over for dinner (yay!) and we did what we do which is start talking about being a minimalist, rental properties, moving, the thrill & challenges of new spaces, and landscaping.
Jeremy and I have been in our little house for over 3 years now and I'm starting to take it for granted. I mean, I love it but I don't think about it. What I think about is moving from cute little house to little house every year as we grow our rental empire. I'm think about buying land and living in an Airstream for a few years while we build our dream home. I think about renovating an old run down, but fabulous, mansion in a shady but up-and-coming area.
Liz interrupts me before I get to my next idealistic and romanticized money-pit notion and says "Why don't you just paint your living room black?" She knows me so well. She knows that I need to change my environment or I get bored - so why not start with the (really cute!) space I've already got.
Pros, cons and worries about painting my living room black:
• The tall barrel ceiling presents a design challenge. Do I paint just up to the quarter-round (see exhibit a - about 8 ft. high - to the top of the windows on the left)?
• And what about the insides of the shelves flanking the fireplace (see exhibit b) - do I paint those too?
• If the living room is black with a cream ceiling it will match our hallway (which you can see from the living room) - see exhibit c.
• The TV (seen here) would blend right in to the surroundings.
• The wood floor and neutral furniture would really pop against black.
Here are some black rooms that inspire me:
• Victoria's black living room (see! surprisingly airy for being black)
• Anna at Door Sixteen is a fan of black & white interiors. She has a good collection of inspiring black rooms here.
What do you all think? Should I go for it?
i always find it best to just go with what liz says.
ReplyDeleteyes, yes, yes.
ReplyDeleteit's just paint so if you truly hated it you could cover it with a few coats of primer.
but what if you truly love it? aah, you have to do it now.
I think you should go for it!
ReplyDeleteIf I were to do it I'd go for more of a dark gray than a full-on black. And I guess just make sure that it's very matte paint.
But it might be a bitch to paint over if you get sick of it...
First off- I'll come clean: I'm a long time lurker and fan of your blog- but don't think I've ever commented. Sorry! Next, let me tell you- I went through the same turmoil about my dining room. Please let me save you that trouble and tell you: Yes!! You should do it! I have loved it every moment! No regrets at all! Can't wait to see how you resolve the design quirks- as I trust you'll figure it out perfectly! http://collectedideas.wordpress.com/2010/11/21/black-walls/
ReplyDeleteFrancine - I think I would go with a very matte black - the same black I use in the hallway. But a dark charcoal could be interesting...
ReplyDeleteDo it! I LOVE Victoria's black living room.
ReplyDeleteI also get antsy and need to switch things up. Luckily, we rent. But, what am I going to do when we buy? Probably paint my living room black.
Naurnie - Agreed!
ReplyDeleteAndres & Candice - Exactly. It's just paint!
Collected Ideas - Oh, I LOVE your dining room. It's nice to see it in context with really white trim / windows / blinds since that's what I'll have too.
Hmm.. I usually agree with all your decisions as I love your stuff, but this one I have to say no to. I really think it would look super neat, however dark colours tend to show every single flaw in the wall/plaster. And with a room with so much light coming it (as opposed to a hallway), the sunlight will reveal even more imperfections! Maybe if you only painted the furthest wall from the window, or the one that the sun hits the least?!
ReplyDeleteBlue Ivy - I'm still totally debating it and weighing the options in my head - so thanks for piping up!
ReplyDeleteI will say I'm not really too worried about imperfections. I kind of like them. Also, I would use a really matte paint so there wouldn't be as much reflection (which would highlight imperfections).
My main concern right now is how it would look with the brighter barrel ceiling...
I say do it! The main rooms in my apartment are all open and connected, so I just painted one long wall and my tiny entryway black, and I loooove it. Everything looks more dramatic against a black wall.
ReplyDeleteyou can see part of it here:
http://lovecitron.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/img_6285.jpg?w=490&h=653
This is a job for... PHOTOSHOP!
ReplyDeleteDo it!
ReplyDeleteI've been wanting to do a black wall/room for years, but seeing as I live in a pine house it's not going to happen yet.
I say find a good transition between black walls and cream ceiling, paint the inside of the bookcases something funky (black isn't funky enough?) and let me live vicariously through you for a while.
Eep!
DO IT! You can always repaint if you don't like it.
ReplyDeleteAnd this might sound crazy but, what if you did a banded gradient/ombre effect up the barrel so it faded into white? Or just paint the ceiling black too.
It's only paint!! If you don't do it it will bug you that you didn't try so go for it!! I think I would go up to the quarter round with the paint as it looks like the line for the ceiling. If you don't like that you can do something different. I would also leave the book case white/cream. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteIf anyone can make it look fabulous it's you! And I'd say it makes the most sense to just paint to the top of the windows, since it would look weird to stop anywhere else & you definitely don't want a black ceiling.
ReplyDeleteGirl. Obvi: Photoshop some things first. I think black would be great.
ReplyDeleteWhat if you painted your ceiling black and the walls something else? But I'm always of the mindset that paint can be painted over, so I say take the plunge. I'm currently in the middle of trying to pick out the best grey for my entry & living room. I think designers and the design-minded need their environments to be constantly evolving. Keeps our minds fresh!
ReplyDeleteA lot of my interior is charcoal gray and I love it! :) Do it!!
ReplyDeleteDo it!! The bulk of my interior is charcoal gray and I love it. Everything light / bright I put on it or near it POPS by default.
ReplyDeleteI think you should do it! I'd echo the grey chorus, but just because I think a carefully chosen grey is totally underrated. You know, the shades that look like they're so soft anything up against that surface looks like it's falling in to the grey? Those greys are the best :)
ReplyDeleteI have a lapel pin that's 18% grey and it might be my favorite piece of jewelry.
Paint! You're right the furniture and the wood floors would stand out against some dark walls. The paint color would complement the other rooms in the house. Also there are some great curves both on the ceiling and the doorway arch that could benefit!
ReplyDeleteRe: your questions
BARREL CEILINGS - First decide HOW you want to deal with the barrel ceilings - which are a lovely feature worth showing off!
- You could paint just one wall - such as the one with that curved top window, and if you do paint only paint that wall - paint it all the way up past the 3/4 break so it shows off the curve at the top of the wall. In other words play up the shape of the barrel ceiling! [It's hard to tell the layout of that space, so it would depend what's to the right of that wall]
- If you paint all the walls in the room, ONLY go up 3/4 of all the walls to leave the ceilings white and the same 1/4 of visual white space on top even on all walls.
SHELVES
If you paint the wall with the shelves, paint the inside of the shelves. I think the contrast would be nice on it's own, but would compete with the fireplace/mirror and be a bit too busy.
Does the fireplace wall also have a curved top like the wall with the curved top window? If so, maybe that would be the one to do as an accent wall? There doesn't seem to be any molding on it at 3/4?
Rory - I love grey! Our bedroom is the perfect shade of grey. BUT I feel like if I go grey the tones from the dining to the living room would be too similar. Unless I went dark charcoal - in which case I might as well go all the way black so that the living room is coherent with the striped hallway...
ReplyDeleteJC - Ooohh - I like the idea of doing the wall with the windows ALL the way up to the barrel ceiling.
And I agree about going 3/4 up the wall. The thing is right now we have a piece of quarter round that delineates the wall from the ceiling (since it's curved) and I think it would make most sense to paint up to that quarter round... But it definitely gives me something to think about!
And that is correct about the fireplace wall. We don't have quarter round on that wall (so if we do paint all 4 walls up to quarter round we may put some up on that wall too). So yes - that wall could also work as an accent wall as well.
I do like the idea of painting the wall behind the TV just to help make the TV blend into the space rather than stick out like a sore thumb.
Thanks for your comment!
I am the same way.. My bathroom is still under construction from a paint job I've been working on since --August? So I totally get needing a change of environment.
ReplyDeleteexhibit a. I would probably just paint the wall with the curved window, rather than over whelming the black with the other wall.
exhibit b. Why not Only paint the inside of them?
exhibit c. Yeah I would use that same color. Looks like it would match....
Basically I would only paint 1 wall and inside of the Shelves... this way it changes it up a bit, but still gives a different look...
And..... use Photoshop to see how it looks first.
My initial answer to the title of your blog post was "NO!" But, after looking at the inspiration of your first example link, I'd say yes. With your sense of design I feel like you could pull it off well. AND you have a lot of light in that room too. That example doesn't look black though. It looks dark gray...
ReplyDeleteDo it gurrl! You have enough windows in there, so it won't become a cave.
ReplyDeleteI love the flat black idea.
Plus, if you don't like black, it's another opportunity to change things up in your cute little house.
Oh! I didn't take a look at the TV wall photos - things are making more sense now.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE the idea of the TV receding into a dark wall - so it doesn't take up so much interest in the room...when there are so many beautiful architectural details!
Maybe paint all the walls, with the TV/couch walls to the quarter round trim (3/4 up), and the others ALL the way. It could really play up the height, and the unique ceiling. The ceiling would then be kinda like an arched white sail above.
Also, now seeing the doorway arch, next to the arched shelves I'm undecided about whether to paint the shelves or not.
Whatever you do, I'm excited to see the results!!! I love the all those curves in your living room.
I'm remembering now once an art teacher of mine said that girls tend to prefer round shapes, while guys tended to prefer squared shapes. ha!
Yes! I painted my dining room black and LOVE it. It seems to work because the ceiling and trim are white and the doorways are quite large. You could leave the wall that curves into the ceiling all white, or do something like a scallop at the top - I did it in my bedroom because I didn't feel like trying to make a straight line and it turned out pretty cute.
ReplyDeleteSarah // http://sillygrrl.com
Just do it. Don't think about it.
ReplyDeleteGo right up to the ceiling, paint all the built-ins black. How *awesome* would it be to turn on the TV and the image just ... appears out of the wall? SO. COOL.
Do an "accent" wall in chalkboard paint and then HAVE A BLAST!
SHANNON!
ReplyDeleteBEST!
COMMENT!
EVER!!!
(Really!)
I see a dark sooty/charcoal matte gray/black like Victoria's going 3/4 of the way up with all the trim and windows painted the same color. Then for some reason, I am drawn to the banana yellow in your missoni throw pillows for the ceiling. Is that wrong? I don't know...I like the idea of the black all over but I think it needs some splash too. for some reason I see dark sooty black walls with a yellow barrel ceiling. If nothing else I say go all black and then tone it down after if you feel it needs it.
ReplyDeletei'm a HUGE fan of painting a wall black! I don't know if I'd be ballsy enough to do the entire main living space black but I think at least one wall would really inject something new to the space and give you the change you're looking for...
ReplyDeleteyes to black!
You seem to have enough windows there to make it work.
ReplyDeleteI've been wary of black in my own house as theres not much natural light, so I went for a mid-grey and love it, but do think the black would make it too dark and dingy. You seem to have oodles of light though, so go for it!
I think everyone is messing with you and just wants you to live out our collective 15 year old fantasy of painting our bedroom black.
ReplyDeleteSeriously bad idea.
Kevin - it's funny because that's where I go in my head. To 15 years ago when my brother was BEGGING my mom to paint his room black.
ReplyDeleteI think that's why I feel so conflicted!
But I think it could be rad.
Before even reading the post, the answer seemed so obvious to me: OBVIOUSLY YOU SHOULD!
ReplyDeleteThere you have it.
umm.... YES! indubitably YES!
ReplyDeleteand don't paint the inside of the shelves - it'll make them pop.
... or you could just do an accent wall or two and see how you feel. that's my two cents :-)
ReplyDeleteMy wife recently painted our dining room black, + some stencil work...
ReplyDeleteSee pic here:
http://www.scottnicolas.com/IMG_8598.jpg
I didn't think I would like it until it was done.. then I thought it was awesome!
You totally should! If you love it...you'll be thrilled you took the plunge! If you hate it...it's just paint!
ReplyDeleteI say do it!
ReplyDeleteMy grandma painted the kitchen in her old house black and it was probably one of the best decorating things she's ever done.
I say go for it! With both brushes blasting :)
ReplyDeleteAnd if a *true* black is too strong, Martha Stewart has a black that is just shy of black that rocks... I used it in our bathroom when she first came out with the latest paint line at Home Depot. If I recall correctly, it's silhouette.
Oh... And another option is to not worry about the curve of the ceiling, the corner round, or anything else and just forgo a straight ending line altogether. I've seen a few photos around the blogisphere that have used random brush strokes, zig-zag, and hombre stylizations to end the paint color. Not sure if it would work in your space, or if it even reads well IRL... But it is another thought.
Seriously... Just go for it! As it has been said, it's just paint...
This comment is coming a few days late, but where did you get your couch? I know you've talked about wanting a white one before, but I love the gray sectional you have. It looks so comfortable. Sadly with two Siberian huskies who shed like crazy, I think I'll be with a leather couch for a while.
ReplyDeleteje9601 - We got our couch at a local furniture place called 'Suburban' for a great deal. The cats shed too but it doesn't show fur. Unfortunately, the cats also think it doubles as a scratching post...
ReplyDeleteAnd I still daydream about a white couch.
Go for it!
ReplyDelete