While my preference for pale tones spanning the rainbow of whites is well established, black paint colors are on the agenda today. There’s always a need for black and high contrast design elements. Black frames a view. It can shout “LOOK THIS DIRECTION THIS VERY MOMENT” or tease with an edgy sexy vibe. Black kitchens and cabinets are everywhere! As with white paint colors, there are all sorts of undertones affecting a black shade’s quality and effect. I hope the interior design inspiration and help from Best Black Paint Colors (Designer Approved!) will be helpful if you’re ready to choose blacks to sample.
![Athena Calderone Brooklyn kitchen with black cabinets, marble, and floating desk in front of window. #blackkitchens #blackandwhite #inteiordesign](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/anthena-calderone-eyeswoon-kitchen-desk-black-cabinets-herringbone-floor.jpg)
Even when you decide to paint a piece of furniture, a picture frame, a shelf or an accent wall in a black color, there are a myriad of choices. Narrow the list down to a few to sample first.
Best Black Paint Colors (Designer Approved!)
Farrow & Ball RAILINGS No. 31
SAMPLE Railings RIGHT HERE. I love Railings, and I have sampled it when choosing a soft, off-black. The most recent time I sampled it for a stair railing, the blue undertones surprised me a little. It appeared navy at certain times of the day.
![Farrow & Ball Railings black paint color.](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/05/farrow-and-ball-railings.jpg)
That’s not a bad thing at all when you’re after a cooler look or looking for a very deep blue-black. Remember how Drew used it in his own home including the kitchen?
![Drew's honeymoon house kitchen (a classic black and white 1920s beauty!) with Farrow & Ball Railings on island and trim. #drewscott #propertybrothers #honeymoonhouse #kitchen #railings](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/drew-scott-linda-phan-honeymoon-house-kitchen-island.jpg)
Get glimpses of the paint color from this (and there may or may not be a scene with Drew in a freestanding tub painted black…):
And yes, you can paint the whole room Railings when you’re going for a chic cocoon look:
![Railings (Farrow & Ball) black painted master bedroom in Drew's Honeymoon House with Linda. #farrowandballrailings #blackbedrooms](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/farrow-ball-railings-drew-scott-linda-phan-honeymoon-house-master-bedroom.jpg)
Black is still a popular color for kitchen islands when you’re after some contrast and a two-tone color story:
![Beautiful black and white rustic modern Cotswolds kitchen by Torn and Cotton Interiors with black island. #farrowandballrailings #blackpaintcolors](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/farrow-ball-railings-kitchen-island-tornandcottoninteriors.jpg)
Alternatively, a wardrobe, kitchen pantry, or dresser is a smart way to use a dark moody color which adds weight and presence:
![Railings by Farrow & Ball paint color on a bespoke kitchen cook's pantry- Humphrey Munson. #paintcolors #railings #farrowandball #pantry #kitchenpantry](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/farrow-ball-railings-cooks-pantry-humphrey-munson.jpg)
Sherwin-Williams TRICORN BLACK 6258
SAMPLE Tricorn Black RIGHT HERE. For a truer black, Tricorn Black is a designer favorite.
Lots of front doors and shutters are painted in this shade of black, and it’s always a good idea to buy a sample pot and live with it for a few days before going to all the work of painting.
![Black front door painted SW Tricorn Black - @agk_designstudio. #tricornblack #frontdoor](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/sw-tricorn-black-paint-color-front-door-agkstudio.jpg)
There are so many fresh ways of using black in traditional homes! And I know a bunch of folks think homeowners have no business painting trim or floors in old houses, but I disagree.
![Sherwin-Williams Tricorn Black in a kitchen butler pantry - Ladisic Fine Homes & Matthew Quinn. #tricornblack #blackpaintcolors #blackkitchens #sherwinwilliams](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/matthew-quinn-black-kitchen-scullery-4-friar-tuck-atlanta-ladisic-fine-homes.jpg)
Just because a house has had tired stained brown trim or cabinets for decades (and it’s in great shape) doesn’t mean it should stay that way. Sometimes they didn’t get it right in the first place. And sometimes it just pays to be bold so a house becomes a home that feels like you.
![SW Tricorn Black painted base cabinets in kitchen by Havenstudiodesign. #tricornblack #swtricornblack #paintcolors](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/001-sw-tricorn-black-kitchen-havenstudiodesign.jpg)
This bathroom vanity by Darryl Carter seems reminiscent of Tricorn Black:
Isn’t it incredible? Here are other black paints to sample:
![Black Paint Colors - ideas for using black on walls or cabinets - Hello Lovely Studio. #paintcolors #blackpaint](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/001-black-paint-colors-hello-lovely-banner.jpg)
Easiest way to see if a color is right? Order samples to be delivered to your door with Samplize (a peel and stick sheet of “paint” to stick on your wall and easily move around to other walls!).
![Funny menopause humor and whimsical quote about being tired - Hello Lovely Studio. #menopausehumor #tiredquote #funnyquotes](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/funny-tired-quote-hello-lovely-studio-1440x2016.jpg)
Sherwin-Williams URBANE BRONZE 7048
SAMPLE Urbane Bronze RIGHT HERE. Black paint colors suggestive of warm metals can be so timeless. Here’s a great example:
Where could you use it? Home offices are becoming quite important these days.
![SW Urbane Bronze painted walls in an elegant office with ballerina print - Sherry Hart. #urbanebronze](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/sw-urbane-bronze-paint-color-in-feminine-office-sherry-hart.jpg)
A powder room might also be an ideal spot to try something moody.
![Urbane Bronze (Sherwin-Williams) charcoal or soft black paint color on brick in bathroom - design by Sherry Hart. #urbanebronze #charcoalpaintcolors #sherwinwilliamsurbanebronze](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/sw-urbane-bronze-paint-color-brick-bathroom-wallpaper-pynehollyhock-schumacher-sherry-hart.jpg)
BM Wrought Iron
SAMPLE Wrought Iron RIGHT HERE. Here’s another metallic black that would be wonderful to update window trim:
I loved how Sherry Hart used it for a gallery wall in a powder room. So many of us settle for these boring white boxy half-baths when we could be welcoming an art gallery into the home.
![Benjamin Moore Wrought Iron black paint color on gallery wall in powder room designed by Sherry Hart - @sherryhdesigns. #blackpaintcolors #bmwroughtiron #gallerywalls](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/bm-wrought-iron-black-paint-color-bathroom-gallery-wall-sherry-hart-2-1.jpg)
Bonus inspiration is how the designer displayed a woven basket with the framed art…
![Benjamin Moore Wrought Iron black paint color on gallery wall in powder room designed by Sherry Hart - @sherryhdesigns. #blackpaintcolors #bmwroughtiron #gallerywalls](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/bm-wrought-iron-black-paint-color-gallery-wall-sherry-hart.jpg)
PIN THIS POST to save for future reference!
This Wrought Iron color reminds me of a PPG color Leanne Ford uses called Black Magic:
See more of Leanne Ford’s favorites in THIS.
![Leanne Ford painted this gorgeous staircase PPG Black Magic, Walls: PPG Sugar Soap; trim: Delicate White; Stairs: Black Magic. #whitepaintcolors #leanneford #restoredbythefords](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/ppg-sugar-soap-paint-color-delicate-white-blackmagic-leanne-ford-restored-by-the-fords.jpg)
How is Wrought Iron from BM paint color different from Iron Mountain (which designer Sherry Hart has used with great success including her infamous ORC bedroom makeover)?
![Iron Mountain (Benjamin Moore) painted statement wall in bedroom with design by Sherry Hart and the "before" room painted white. #ironmountain #blackpaintcolors #smironmountain](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/bm-iron-mountain-painted-wall-bedroom-sherry-hart-before-after.jpg)
You can see more brown undertones emerge from Iron Mountain when you compare it to Wrought Iron.
![Iron Mountain (Benjamin Moore) paint color on walls in a lovely laundry room office with open shelving and white cabinets - Sherry Hart. #ironmountain #benjaminmooreironmountain #office](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/sherry-hart-office-laundry-room.jpg)
No idea what the exact paint color name is for the home below, but it certainly seems to be in the family of Iron Mountain black-browns:
Slightly darker, yet still very close to Iron Mountain’s black-brown color is this one:
![Black Fox (Sherwin-Williams) paint color on black kitchen cabinets in a home with design by Sherry Hart - @sherryhdesigns. #blackfox #blackpaintcolors](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/sw-black-fox-paint-color-kitchen-cabinets-sherry-hart.jpg)
![Funny mom humor or adulting quote about tomorrow - Hello Lovely Studio. #momhumor #adultinghumor](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/funny-mom-humor-quote-tomorrow-hello-lovely-studio-1440x2016.jpg)
More Paint Color Ideas for Soft Black With Brown or Blue Undertones
My own personal favorite which I keep returning to again and again?
Sherwin-Williams Carbonized. I transformed builder-grade kitchen cabinets in a condo we renovated here:
![SW Carbonized on kitchen cabinets - Hello Lovely Studio. #sherwinwilliams #carbonized #paintcolors #blackkitchen](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/hello-lovely-studio-condo-renovation-kitchen-sw-carbonized-paint-industrial-pendants-1.jpg)
![Urban Industrial Condo - Hello Lovely Studio](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/urban-industrial-condo-hello-lovely-studio-lookbook.jpg)
You’ll be seeing Carbonized show up in images of our new interiors!
![Light black and dark charcoal paint color ideas from Hello Lovely Studio. #paintcolors #charcoalgraypaintcolors](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/LIGHT-BLACK-DARK-CHARCOAL-PAINT-COLOR-IDEAS-hello-lovely-studio-banner.jpg)
Clare GOODNIGHT MOON
But what if brown-blacks and those muddy grays are not your jam? Maybe a deep blue-black will be:
I’m a fan of the paint colors from CLARE, and even though we’re not sure what color this bathroom vanity below as painted, you could approach the look with the color Goodnight Moon.
While I don’t know (not yet!) which black paint color was used on this gorgeous exterior by Ladisic Fine Homes, at least in natural light, you can see the blue undertones coming through:
Clare BLACKEST
Why would you want to use a richly dramatic very black paint color? Here’s the description of Blackest:
“Chic. Modern. Dramatic. Our blackest black might seem edgy, but when paired with the perfect light, it has the power to make a space pop.” – CLARE
Maybe you have a small area where a pop of black makes sense to create high contrast like in this “cloffice” type space:
![Chic cloffice design via @designhallyu with doors that recess and high contrast on walls. #cloffice #homeofficedesign #closetoffice](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/03/cloffice-designhallyu-modern-smart-closet-doors-black-wall.jpg)
Designer Sherry Hart chose a bold black for a pantry, and this is a brilliant way to try out a color that is scary for you.
![Deep black painted pantry wall with white shelves and white dishes - Sherry Hart. #blackwalls #blackpaintcolors #blackandwhiteinteriors](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/black-painted-interior-pantry-white-dishes-decor-sherry-hart-modern-farmhouse-shelves.jpg)
After living with the color in a small area, maybe you’ll decide to boldly try it in another room. Black can be quite elegant…
![Dramatic deep black painted walls of sophisticated and elegant dining room with design by Sherry Hart. #blackpaintcolors #blackrooms #diningroom #blackandwhiteinteriors](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/black-white-dining-room-sherry-hart.png)
![Funny Target shopping quote - Hello Lovely Studio. #shoppingquotes #shoppinghumor #momhumor](https://www.hellolovelystudio.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/funny-Target-run-quote-hello-lovely-studio-1440x2016.jpg)
I can imagine there are lighting situations where the warmth of the yellow sun may warm a cool, very dark black.
Not yet sure of precise paint colors used for the exteriors above and below, but an argument can be made for how black makes a striking backdrop for the lush foliage:
Peace to you right where you are.
-michele
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I am rethinking my idea of black paint and all the spaces it will make better!
I’ve Pinned so many ideas from your post!
Author
Best to you as you sample these colors – thanks so much for pinning liberally – it helps support my small business, and I appreciate the help! 🙂