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One of my favorite Interior Design Trends of 2010 was black painted walls. The dark look came around in 2010 in the form of chalkboard paint, wallcovering, paint, wood and fabric. Black paint is a sexy and sophisticated way to upgrade a space. It is bold, crisp and able to transform a room for ordinary to extrordinary! It can be used as an accent wall to showcase artwork, glassware, dishes, frames, furniture or lighting…. basically anything with texture or visual interest. This color is especially great at showing off delicate textural items in white or bright colors.

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Black is about high contrast and making a statement. Ultra glossy paint, matte paint and textural wallpaper  are great options but they play up very different feels. Remember they are just walls and you can always repaint or recover the walls if you get tired or overwhelmed with a color.

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Dining rooms and bathrooms do very well with darker colors as deeper tones can provide a far more cozy and sensual experience, particularily in candlelight. Consider mixing the noir walls with warm gold, orange or red tones for a warm intimate feel.

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Black and white are the perfect pairing. White trim can define a space and add the contrast required to freshen the intensity of black. Large scale white furniture, lighting, picture frames or mirrors can be used instead of trim to achieve the same balance of dark and light in a space and can make the room feel bright and clean.

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Versace fashioned a fabulous set of residences at the Park Plaza in New York with dramatic black and white interiors. This photo is what sold me on black walls for good. Very clean and chic for a contemporary twist to traditional moldings and trim work.

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Bathrooms and powder rooms can have a higher class feel, sense of mystery and refinement simply by adding black to the walls and/or tiles. This bathroom I found on Contemporist from the Vine Hotel in Madeira Portugal. Consider using high gloss finishes like Thermofoil, glass mosaics, ceramics or waxed or foil  wall coverings to achieve a reflective and super glossy shine for your high profile space.

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I think we will still see more dark walls in Interior Design trends of 2011 but they may be more deeper shades of color rather than black. Personally I am going to keep both black and grey walls in my repertoire of paint colors for the next few years as both shades offer so much potential in a variety of styles.