By Christy Heitger-Ewing | photos by The Home Aesthetic
There was a time not all that long ago when the buzz of home décor centered around infusing pops of color to make a room come to life. Though color still has its place, it’s not the only way to add interest to a room. While trends come and go, according to many industry insiders, black is back and it’s here to stay.
“It’s timeless,” says Joe Garcia, owner of G&G Custom Homes. “When you see a home that includes black accents, you can’t really tell when it was built.”
In the past four years Garcia has seen an increased demand for black design accents, in both the home’s interior and exterior.
“You may see a white farmhouse that accents with black gutters, black shutters, a black front door, or black windows,” says Garcia.
The same is true with interiors where black windows are popular. Particularly in modern homes with a drywall wrap where instead of having casing trim around your window, it’s drywall to the window itself and then the window is black.
“In some of the homes that are not modern, the homeowner still wants the casing trim around the window, so we paint the window black but then paint the trim white to achieve that black accent,” says Garcia, who is currently building a home in which part of the staircase is black (not the tread but the vertical piece underneath the tread).
BLACK ACCENTS ARE EVERYWHERE (AND SO VERSATILE!)
Garcia has done built-in black bookshelves on either side of a fireplace as well as black ceiling beams, gutters, light fixtures, and pretty much any feature where the homeowner says, “Hey, let’s paint this black!”
He’s currently working on a home that has a white kitchen with a black hood and a few black accent doors. The clients also opted to paint their island black and above the island hang two black light fixtures.
“We did a house with black interior doors and white trim,” says Garcia. “A lot of people like to use the doors as accents to make them stand out.”
He has seen it done, time and again, when people are looking to refresh or revamp the exterior look of their home.
“Let’s say you have a farmhouse that’s completely white. While it may look nice, if you take that same farmhouse and put black gutters on it, paint the garage doors and the windows black, and add black accents to it, it just really pops and makes it look like a completely different house.”
He’s also seen an old ugly brick home come to life again when the brick was painted white and black accents were added. The transformation was breathtaking. While Garcia appreciates the black accent look, he recommends that homeowners consult with a professional designer to bring it to fruition.
“It’s not like you want to go painting all your doors black,” he says. “Sometimes when a homeowner tries to do it on their own and they don’t have an eye for design, it can fall flat. However, you use black accents in the right place, whether that’s inside or outside, you can really change the look and give your home that wow factor.”
Connecting with the right builder is just as important as connecting with a good designer. If you are ready to talk about building your own custom home, contact G&G Custom Homes to start a conversation.
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15530 Shining Spring Drive
Westfield, Indiana 46074
