How to use black accents in every room in your home

Black is a design classic, and whilst it may seem easy to pull off, it can be a really tricky accent to introduce into a room.

Sleek, high-gloss furniture can be overpowering in black, whilst black feature walls can often become flat and uninspiring. We enter tricky territory too with where and how to arrange black accessories – too closely grouped and the eye will be repetitively drawn to them to the detriment of the rest of your space.

'Every room needs at least a bit of black to ground the space,' says Suzanne Duin, interior designer and founder of Maison Maison. 'Whether it is a coffee table, box or large tray on the table, subtle hints in the form of black accessories help to ground the space allowing your eye to "settle" into the room. Pair black with chinoiserie to soften the colour, while classic, chinoiserie is always in style and fresh! If you are brave enough, why not anchor black accessories to an accent wall. Accessories that complement a dominant wall colour can help bring a room together.'

We've found some clever homes that have created inky feature walls, punctuated Scandi-style living spaces with black lighting and accessories, and framed their outside view with black painted windows. Here we look at 13 ways to introduce accents of black in every room in the home...