Barnhart Gallery I think it would look really sharp. Where would you end it along the left wall, and what would you do on the ceiling? I'd take a tone from your wood.

decoenthusiaste Go for it!

Sharer Design Group LLC I like it! Post photos when you finish it.

nagoose At first I was thinking just to do the stove wall, but where would it end. To the left on this area is the doorway to the diningroom and then the eating area. The eating area is surrounded by windows and the wall across from the stove is a full pantry wall.

And so I thought to paint all the walls black since there is really very little wall to speak of.

I haven't thought about the ceiling. What do you think?

tennisanyone NO NO NO NO NO Do a sample on a piece of board first. What I would do is add more cabinets to the left side to balance it off. Deco's pictures are beautiful because they have black cabinets and a more modern feel to the kitchen. I am not getting that feeling from your kitchen. Maybe tile all the way up to the cabinets. I assume your table is on the other side. Can you take a picture?

tennisanyone I might reconsider now that I see the pictures of the table. I know you only asked for paint suggestions so I hope it is ok that I tell you these other things. I love the windows. Lower the light and maybe get two black parsens chairs for either end of the table and recover the remaining chairs. That is easy to do yourself. I like your table. This is screaming two different styles. Why do you have a blue chair in the corner?

sab1948 Dont do it. We just painted our black walls today. Unless you have an extremely light and bright home. We found it to be very depressing. Our condo was 3 shades of gray, one of which was almost black. We loved it when we bought the unit, but after a couple of weeks, we realized we couldn't live with it. I must say it covered nicely tho with behr paint with primer

sab1948 This is before. The pics were left here, but we didn't like them either. I'll post an after pic later. Black is gross. BTW from your pics, I love your place the way it is

nagoose Thanks for your suggestions. I have a slipper chair in the corner so that I can lounge a bit in the kitchen.

I think the style is a bit disjointed. I like mid century modern, but have the maple shaker cabinets and raw-looking wood shelves.

nagoose But I like modern too. I don't know if I would go full out black, but a charcoal to blend with the backsplash.

tennisanyone I see from the table that you like mid century modern.

Kathryn Peltier Design I think it feels a bit disjointed because of the shelves in the foreground. Any chance you could install cabinets there instead? I think that would give you more of a visual stopping point. If you have really good light in this area, then I would say to go ahead, although I would still opt for a very dark gray vs. a true black. Here is an idea: do the back wall in the dark paint, then turn the corner and turn it into stripes (gray and your wall color. for instance) with spacing the same as the open shelves. This would work for the kitchen proper itself, but I don't think it would work as well pulling it into the dining area.

Idea number 2 would be to paint in a color as close to the backsplash as you could make it, and bring that up to the tile height at the hood. I think that is what is bothering you: the visual clutter that the shelves and the stuff on them create against the lighter wall, and then the line of the tile.

My final suggestion would be that nstead of paint, expand the backsplash tile to the same height as that behind the hood.

tennisanyone Kathryn, I said some of those things above but I don't agree with doing stripes. Too many different things visually going on in this kitchen already and stripes would just be another "different" thing to add.

nagoose Here is another picture of the shelves. We did have cabinets on either side of the stove before the renovation, but I thought the cabinets closed in the kitchen. I think it is more airy now.

And I found this:
. Green!

n247080 You don't look like you have enough natural light to offset things. I think you'll regret it. I'd try just one wall first to see the effect.

nagoose Now that it is done I don't think cabinets would have closed it in, but I like the shelves because I can just grab thing off it.

I wish I knew about Houzz before our renovation. We had to make all the decisions ourselves.

Again thanks for all your feedback.

elklaker We have black walls and maple cabinets. It appears that you may have even more natural light coming in than we. Do. We LOVE our black and always get complimented on it. If you want to do, go for it! It is both dramatic and cozy.

tennisanyone I guess I started something here about the shelves, tiles and cabinets. If you like the open shelves, then keep it. If it were my house, I would add the cabinets to finish it off and tile up to the cabinets. I am thrown off by the asymstery and the little stuff on the shelves. I would paint it the green in the picture above. I think you are fighting against the cabinets by thinking about black walls and trying to make it something it is not. You can still do mid century modern.

eagledzines I don't have photoshop but it would be really nice if someone could photoshop the black in to give it a test run.

Kathryn Peltier Design A large part of the problem is actually the backsplash. As I said, if you could unify the shelves by either tiling or painting the color of the tile, I think it would make a difference. So maybe try the dark gray. The reason I suggested stripes is that it would create a unifying horizontal background for the bottom shelves and continue the strong horizontal line in the room, while keeping 50% of the wall in the lighter color.

loroca Here are a couple pics with a very dark grey. I love the stripes idea from a comment above. I think it would look good

tennisanyone I wish someone would photo shop these ideas too.

nagoose I like the idea of the grey. I don't quite understand the stripes idea.

We didn't put the tile all the way up partly because I liked seeing some wall. Our kitchen has no wall space at all and the shelves along the stove wall is the only place where there is a good amount of wall. But this was a decision I went back and forth with and so I figured more tile could be added later although it would be a little tricky with this tile.

Kathryn Peltier Design Although the first photo shows the most closely what I had in mind, you can see from the other two that the stripes create a strong horizontal line, unifying the space.

nagoose The stripes are a really interesting idea to consider. Thanks for the links!

Kathryn Peltier Design Yes, I don't know that it was what you had in mind, but it's another option :-)

Kim Drier Send me a couple of photos of your kitchen and I will "paint the walls" any color you like so you can get a "feel". If you choose some paint color chips at the paint store, I can match them to the chips, so let me know what brands and color numbers. I live in the country but I might be able to get chips myself if you give me the brand, type, and colors (they all have ID numbers). I can either send you the finals via email or post them and send you a link. Send to: theuncannie1@gmail.com

:). I'll look for some photos in my in box!

Kim

Bill Fry Construction - Wm. H. Fry Const. Co. The good thing about paint is that it is relatively inexpensive. You can try it and if you don't like it, you can change it.Of course it is better to get it right the first time, and a good interior designer can do a consult for you. Also note that painting very dark colors requires more paint & labor and costs more to paint. :) Rhoda

ccmagistra101 Do NOT do black. I would pick a grey as close to the tile backsplash as well but don't see any problem with bringing the grey into the dining room. There's hardly any wall to speak of and so the stripes idea would be lost among those windows and doorway.

eagledzines Like I said, I don't have Photoshop but I did my best to make a rough mock up using Windows paint. I thought I could leave the shelves in and tried it but it still didn't look good with the shelves. They look cluttered. If there were less items on them and the items that were on them were useful but more decorative it would make a difference. Stainless steel shelves would fit the look better and help eliminate some of the eclectic look. It would also carry the look of the stainless appliances and pulls.

sjkingston My gut reaction to your question was no, don't paint the kitchen walls black. And it felt like the tile should extend up above the hood of the cooktop. But on the other side of the room with the limited space around and above the windows, a deep charcoal paint might be awesome. I like the suggestion above to extend the softer grey toned tile up to ceiling in the kitchen, stopping at front edge of the peninsula counter. Then use the deep charcoal paint around the rest of the room.

ASVInteriors If this helps

onthefence I'm going to be a nay-sayer. You've got very soft looking countertops and backsplash. I'm afraid those would get completely lost in black walls.

Even though you have good windows opposite your kitchen, you don't really have any natural light IN your kitchen. Black walls are going to be asking a LOT of work from those recessed lights.

I'm honestly not sure what I'd prefer to see - but it just doesn't feel like black is the best solution for your kitchen.

onthefence The other thing I noticed is that because you have the shelves (which I really like!) you have no undercabinet lighting. It looks like you have recessed lights that reflect off the walls a bit to provide working light.

I worry that with black walls, that would be gone. It would be like working in a cave with a flashlight not aimed directly at you for your only light source.

nagoose We recessed led lights in/under the shelves.

nagoose After seeing the mock ups I don't think the black works. I think it really looks disjointed with the black and the wall should blend more with the tile. So grey paint...

carolins Perhaps a very dark grey, almost black. For instance Farrow & Ball, off-black http://eu.farrow-ball.com/off-black/colours//fcp-product/100057
I do like your shelves and your dining space. Wouldn't go for stripes if I were you. But I'm not :-)

carolins

CMR Interiors & Design Consultations Inc. I would not do a black but rather a charcoal color. I think its going to be cool looking if you get the shade in a non purple base color but rather a dark brown -charcoal base. I hope you enough wattage and lighting in the room and natural light.

tennisanyone You guys are great with the mock ups. I stand by my decision of NO black. I'm not even sure about using gray. How about the green? I see that you have a green container on your counter. Can someone photoshop that color. Then I can see bringing black chairs and then I would paint two of the four chairs the same green. You will fight against the style and feel of those cabinets forever.

Fleishman Construction & Fine Cabinetry I just painted my office walls black a colored called Beluga by Behr Paint and I was a bit nervouse but I absolutely love it. It really makes the lighter colors in the room pop. You cabinets will look fantastic next to black. Besides if you decided you don't like it, paint is the easiest and cheapest thing to fix.... just paint over it!

eagledzines I don't think this kitchen is well suited to black cabinets. I do think that you could do something with it that would make it more appealing to you. I see a few options.

1) Install a cabinet of the same wood (Birch?) on the left side of the chimney that is the same height as those on those above the shelves on the refrigerator wall. Position it at the same height as well. This will partially address the balance issue. Make it less wide than the shelves that are there now and also don't put anything on top of the cabinet, these two things will give a little more feeling of spaciousness. To make it as convenient to you, as the shelves are, the door could swing up and then in, totally out of the way while you work. To address the clutter issue, use a door that has an opaque glass panel to hide the 'clutter' look and provide visual interest. For balance and design harmony, on the right side of the chimney, place a mid-century stainless steel clock.

2) Next, to clean up the lines in the kitchen, bring the gray blue marble up to the ceiling on the range hood wall. Not just behind the hood chimney but on that whole wall (except where the cabinet is) and ONLY on this wall. OR if that is not financially feasible or not as desirable, then paint this entire ONE wall into the livingroom a color that best harmonizes with the marble but a shade or two lighter. You will use this color to make the kitchen visually harmonious with clean lines and in the livingroom it will become an accent wall.

3) Now the shelves. Keep a bottom shelf all the way around, shortening it to match the cabinet above on the left. Match the distance away from the range on the right as well. Only keep the most used items on these shelves. It needs to be decluttered. However, use a floating stainless steel shelf as I posted above. The brackets that hold up the ones you use now, add to the clutter look. The stainless steel will tie the appliances and pulls together.

4) The other walls in the livingroom and on the refrigerator wall could be the same color. The bowls on the top of the cabinets don't seem to tie anything together and contribute to the clutter feeling. I would remove them and leave it empty there as on the new cabinet on the range wall.

Lizabeth I love your kitchen as it stands open shelves and all. But I am not a big fan of "matchy" stuff.

If you want to try color I love the green that is sitting on the countertop and would to see that on the wall with the stove and the wall next to that.

But hey I love green.

tennisanyone I feel bad about this one. She asked for paint suggestions and we are redesigning part of her kitchen. But sometimes, what you think the problem is, IS NOT the problem at all.

tomda I think your kitchen is really cute as it is. I think you did a good job with it.

Aja Mazin Paint will not deflect from the "unfinished" open shelves and clutter.
I apologize for my bluntness.

nagoose Hi Everyone,

Thanks for all your comments and suggestions. It's fab!

Upon one of your suggestions I decluttered a bit. I always thought that the bowls on top of the cabinets were too much, but I thought what the hell.

The shelves have always been a bugaboo with me. I always thought that the bottom brackets are too long after they were installed but hey, I just thought perhaps if it bothered me enough we would do something about it.

I also thought about the asymmetry of the shelves and I kind of liked it afterward.

Also, I thought the shelves should be more "neutral" rather than have such a strong personality. But this is one of the first parts of the kitchen we bought! We actually chose the maple cabinetry because of them! They are solid pieces of spalted maple. Anyway, I thought the brackets with their more industrial look would offset their rustic nature. In hindsight I probably would have chosen something more plain like stainless shelves or straight maple shelves, but the kitchen developed very organically. Perhaps some might say they are out of place, quirky, weird, but even though I am not that fond of them we decided to live with them.

I always thought that we would tile the whole wall behind the stove, but I kind of chickened out. I thought it might be too overwhelming or overpowering and I thought I might get sick of it too!

Anyway, no need to feel bad about offering advice on our kitchen. I find the comments interesting to think about and I really appreciate them.

After all that I am thinking of painting just the stove wall grey to get an idea what it might look like if it were all tiled.

Here are some more pictures after the "decluttering".

Cheers!

ASVInteriors Gosh! SO much better! Great work!

onthefence That looks spectacular! And it really highlights your shelves. Those shelves really are a thing of beauty.

nagoose I posted a close-up picture of one of the shelves so you can get a better sense of what they look like - really organic. I wanted them to look raw and unfinished, but they have been lacquered.

tomda They are very cool. I love them.

onthefence Those are really beautiful. Ans seeing them up close, I think you made the right call with the brackets. I think the juxtaposition of the industrial vs the organic works great - especially since they both have clean, simple lines.

rachaelbryant Have you seen Down Pipe by Farrow and Ball! Looks a little greenly grey at first, but I think it v.industrial and would look fab on all the walls, because the wood would really warm it up. It's always in Living Etc!

eagledzines I apologize too for overstepping. It's your kitchen and you did it the way you liked and that's what matters. It does look really good, just moving things around. Thanks tennisanyone for reining us in.

nagoose No need to feel apologetic,eagledezines. I did take your suggestion to declutter and it does look better.

I am still wondering about the tile. Would a whole wall of tile be too much? Having some wall space seemed like it would leave it more open? In a way I thought it would be less chunky or divided up if there was more wall, more like a room, if that makes any sense. We did it this way and thought we would live with it for now. It seemed the least risky and can easily be changed.

I also thought about putting a cabinet on the left, but in the end liked the shelf idea.

infinityfloorsandcabinets I love love LOVE your kitchen!!! It's absolutely gorgeous the way it is, ESPECIALLY the shelves!

I think if you really want to do black, do it on your refrigerator wall. Then go with something a little softer- a gray, maybe- for the rest of the walls. I think on that one wall you could handle black because there isn't much wall to speak of.

I just want to reiterate how jealous I am of your beautiful kitchen! Great job!

tennisanyone gnenerak, I posted a dilemna in Shed and Fence (should I paint the fence). I saw my problem the way no one else saw it and I will listen to my houzzers and from their experiences. I will NOT paint the fence. It is all a learning experience and we all have opinions based on how WE see things through our own eyes.

Kathryn Peltier Design If you're going to paint, try painting to the underside of the higher wall cabinets. That would give you sort of a step-down at the hood area and would incorporate the bottom shelves into that color. If that doesn't work, just go ahead and paint the whole wall. If you paint it a bit at a time, it will give you a better idea of whether or not you want to bring the tile further up. The top shelf on the left would be assymetrical, which I like. It's a way to go about testing the color and the placement!

nagoose Thanks Kathryn P. for the suggestion and thanks everyone else for your comments.

To tennisanyone: I completely agree with you. I am a bit puzzled by your last entry. I am not sure where you are coming from. Did I say anything to offend you or anyone else? Really puzzled.

eagledzines If you painted, as you said, it would give you a good idea of how you would feel in the room before you went to the expense of tile. I think that is a great idea. You might find that you're perfectly happy to just leave it painted and if you don't like it, just paint it back.

I agree with you about making it less chunky. That's why I suggested making that whole wall into the livingroom the same color. Either by the combination of tile in the kitchen and same color on the rest of that wall or by paint on the whole wall. Going up to the ceiling would also make it feel less broken up.

Spalted maple is precious. Every time I got some in a load of lumber into my shop, if it had a few pieces of spalted I would set it aside. It was always an exciting find to get a piece of lumber that was special in the lot.

It was a bold idea to go black and definitely worth thinking about. Darker colors will make the wall seem to receed and feel that the room it is actually bigger. But you also might find that the color is too much as some have suggested. How well you like it might depend on how dark you go.

Best wishes and thanks for sharing your home with us and letting us share our thoughts with you.

nagoose If I have, I certainly apologize.

nagoose I am definitely considering the whole paint idea of yours, eagledezines. Thanks for your expertise. I really appreciate it.

I definitely leaning with those of you who say no black for the kitchen walls. But I am going to try it in our family room for our fireplace. I think black for a fireplace and for the whole wall looks cool.

DIAspoton love, love , love those shelves. where did you get them?

i'd be careful about going with too much dark. i once painted my kitchen olive and eggplant after seeing a new calvin klein bed and bath display at macys. it was early fall and the change sounded great. and it was great. right up until the 1st dreary, stormy morning. suddenly life seemed bleak. i wasn't going to endure that all winter. by the end of the week it was painted a soft,happy, pale moss green with white trim and all felt right with the world.

nagoose We got the wood for the shelves at a specialty lumber store and had a furniture/cabinet maker mill the wood, recess the holes for the lights, and seal and finish the shelves.

I think all of you who say no to the black may be right about going too dark and it being dreary and would make the room too dark. I love black, but after having tons of black coats in my lifetime and in my closet I try to steer clear of them! I don't need another black coat! : ). But perhaps a black room or accent wall somewhere in the house?

Pale moss green sounds so pleasant!

tennisanyone gnererak, I posted my problem too on this site. What I meant was I did not see my shed/fence the way other people saw it. I wanted to add to it and they thought less is more. I enjoyed this discussion with you and everyone else and it takes guts to expose ourselves and our homes on here and open ourselves up for all to critique our projects. If we said things rather then write things, it might come across better and more articulate. We try never to offend and I hope you were not offended in any way. I'm certainly not offended.

Urbana ~ Designer Ellen Crystal a charcoal grey will be less severe. Pick a tone that is a progression of tone from your tile, that way it will still be a highlight. It should be a great backdrop & quite dramatic when done.

Lizabeth Thanks for posting the closeups of the shelves. They are wonderful. I am thinking of using "live edge" slabs for one of my countetops and now you have inspired me to do some weekend explorations at local sawmills. Talked with an owner who has some spalted slabs.

carolins Your kitchen is just beautiful the way it is (certainly now that it's de-cluttered a bit, but hey... we live in our homes and they are not show-homes :-)). Those shelves are gorgeous and I like the openness of not having cabinets all the way round.
I still think (almost) black would look wonderful on the wall with the stove, and you could paint it another colour if you didn't like it after all. But of course you don't need to paint it, as I said... beautiful the way it is.

tennisanyone Omg i just realized i was referring to the wrong
Person. Nagoose, no wonder you had no idea
What i was talking about. I think i had too many conversations
Going. I have to slow down. Lol.

Mottles Murals Ceramic Tiles I love your light wood cupboards with the dark counter tops. The nice thing about your kitchen is you can paint the walls whatever color you like. I even liked the way you had the bowls on top of the cupboards. Maybe you can put them back after you decide on a color. I vote no for black though. You can't go wrong with a pastel shade of paint.

Sheryl Millar I think I would do the tile straight up alongside the hood, all the way to the ceiling. It sort of looks chopped off to me. Someone put a photoshopped pic on here with the grey tile all the way to the ceiling--just ignore the black walls in their pic. :)

PYRAMID DESIGN GROUP If your kitchen cabinets were darker then black would work. Since they are light AND because you have the backsplash I think a medium -dark gray such as Behr brand (Home Depot) Pencil Point UL260-22D would be a better option. I would go with an eggshell finish.

aniluap2 Interesting unique, kitchen. You have great taste, so go with your gut. I do think black would detract from the overall balance you have going with light and dark elements. It's very harmonious right now. Continuing the tile up would give it a visual stripe that is unexpected and that might be enough combined with your other WOW factors.

Vanessa Brunner You can always try and introduce black via accents too! This ideabook has some great suggestions and specific paint colors to try:

allthingsmodern I love that you thought to face the cabinet flanking the frig with three vertical panels --- great integrating choice.

laurae1967 How about a modern patterned wallpaper in dark gray?

Lisa Eden Love your kitchen - it really is beautiful. If you feel the need to paint, the idea of gray would be stunning. Perhaps do the tile wall in a slightly different strength than the other walls - really make it the focal point (which it already is). Whenever considering paint, I always buy a sample, paint it on a few poster boards and then place them in varying spots to see how I like the color at different times of the day. Also, the mock ups people did for you with the black are great to give perspective - I would like to point out that the ceiling was black too in the mock ups which you prob would not do in actuality. My point being it wouldn't be as dark as the mock up. Please post pics of your progress!

Lisa Eden http://interiors-luxury.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/7Maple_Kitchen_by_dutdee.jpg Gray kitchen with maple cabinets...

Lkristine Black I do think you would eventually regret, dark contrast with subdued color however, I think you would love.

AMN Painting any walls black should automatically come with a price tag of ensuring that there is proper lighting (if there isn't already). It can look beautiful in the right setting, but you must have the lighting to handle it.

JAMEITE Hand-painted Silk Wallpaper Co., LTD think about wallpaper

riverrose I painted a single wall VERY dark charcoal, almost black, color is 'cracked pepper' it gives a look of blk but without the stark chalk board look and without looking grey. I love it. The rest of the walls are a slight ivory, which you would have that contrast in your cabinets. I'd refrain from doing the ceiling, besides the black up against the lighter ceiling lines gave a nice crisp sharp edge finish. However it was not a kitchen and my room has no natural light but looks great anyway.

kbardel You have so much gorgeous light wood, and black walls or dark grey would look amazing!!!! Do it! be original, you can always change the lighting later if you really needed to. I love rich dark modern colors, so I totally get the look you are wanting to do. Please post photos, with whatever you will decide!!!! Its going to be fantastic, don't overthink it so much. Only you can understand your own style.

somethingelsebyd black walls with stainless steel accents

katydidit Not enough light in this room for black.

slsf61 Don't do the black with the countertops, it will detract from how great they look against the wood of the cabinets. How about wallpaper to bring in some black? You could do something modern with just a bit of black to coordinate with the counters. If not wallpaper, how about just a texture on the wall like florentine plaster?

Cassie I think you should paint it grey, not black. Black might look ok at first, but it might make your
kitchen look really really dark. And I don't think that the cabinets would look good with black. :)

ideahuntress Hi
Your kitchen does look very good and for what its worth here are my two-cents .
I would have done the tiles farther up the wall. Either in line with the bottom shelves or in line with the bottom of your cupboards . I do love the shelves and think maybe the problem is the bare walls above . I think so nice artwork would compliment the shelves and make the wall look better overall .

As for the paint I am a lover of the quirky and not following the herd but I would definitely not go black . I think if you did a dark grey (with undertones of black) that the room would look nicer . I know there have been some pictures put up of black walls but a lot of the rooms are very big with a lot of light .

I think I'd put a lighter grey then on your other walls and then go for maybe a print material on your window furnishings with colours such as pistachio , purples , oranges even a steely blue all of which would compliment the grey well.

Have fun whatever you do as sometimes too much advice is a bad thing lol

hartz374 I have a friend who has a black kitchen and it looks quite elegant opening to her dining room. You could use some modern molding if you need a stopping point for the paint.

Sara Williams I think a lighter warm gray paint would look good on the walls. Counters are dark, tile medium, then paint lighter...a progression (I hope that makes sense). And I like where the tile ends as is.

Kevin I'm also thinking a dark charcoal... and maybe the back wall an accent color... and some colorful art to tie it all together

nagoose Thanks everyone for the suggestions and mock-ups. The mock-ups really are helpful to see. I have Photoshop, but I don't know how to use it. Was it easy to do? Kevin, I like the art work you used.

I am definitely thinking a light to medium grey. I am thinking to paint the stove wall and under the cabinets on the fridge wall the grout color we used and then possibly a different color for the rest of the kitchen. The grout is by Mapei in pewter and I attached a sample. So the second color would start above the cabinets and to the left of the shelves.

tennisanyone Good Luck. Post when you are done painting.

nagoose Or a lighter grey.

Kate Your kitchen is very nice and I love the shelves. I like the idea of more tile. I think the shelves would look even better with more tile. Starting with a paint that is similar will help give you the feel and help you decide if the paint is enough or to go with tile to the ceiling. I think the other wall with cabinets should have tile up to the cabinets if you decide to add more tile to the stove wall. Would love to see the end result. :-)

susanvanderberg I think the black will add an air of sophistication and flair! but why don't you "paint" the wall virtually and see what it looks like! there is a computer program available here on houzz where you can change the wall colors on the photograph, and then you will be able to see exactly what it looks like before going through all the trouble first!! Good luck - I think it will look stunning.

bat80233 This is a lovely kitchen. Love the shades of grey in the countertop and backsplash. They look great with the light cabinets. Once you gave us a closeup of the shelves it became more apparent why you had to have them. Please post an updated picture when/if you paint or add tile.

tashabug You have a beautiful kitchen. I agree with using a medium charcoal paint. I love the first mock- up picture done by Kevin. It really highlights the maple cabinets.

sooneralumom A medium -dark "greige' (brown undertones on all the walls would look great. It's an earthier, more natural color than black. The shelves are great. Get your color cues from them and the tile. You can lighten up areas with "organic" fibers. The key is using fewer, larger items for impact and to keep it "clean". nice job!

Mottles Murals Ceramic Tiles Susanvanderberg how do I find the program on Houzz to change the colors of a picture? Thanks.

kimmey49 This is a lovely kitchen, and I can see how it grew up around the shelves, they're gorgeous. I'm a big fan of black but I do agree with others here that it may look a little 'stark', I would go with the 'shades of grey' idea, I think it would give you that 'edge' you're looking for but in a much softer way. Also I do think you should carry the look through into the eating area.

marilenab Hey, I wouldn't paint it Black. How about orange, turquoise or green. If your backsplash has a blue tone, why don't go for a bright blue? I think, a nice color will give you a perfect morning or any time in the kitchen. Could you imagen, how depressing it could be, to wake up an have breakfast in a black room, when it is still dark outside? Or dinner? Probably it is full of light now, but what happens in winter and autum time?

missyme I painted my kitchen walls black in my previous house and it was gorgeous. The painters were extremely skeptical. They thought I was crazy. I held my ground. No one could see it but me. THEN, when they put that first tentative brush stroke of black paint, they were shocked. They loved it. For the next year, my doorbell would ring and it would be one of the painters wanting to show off "their" black kitchen! I knew it would be awesome, but sometimes you have to just do it for other people to see it. When you first posted, you were thinking about painting your kitchen black. You have all the makings of a phenomenal space. Go for black. It will be stunning. Your kitchen, as is, is perfect for black.

LaTanya Garrett I have to agree with missyme, when you say it people can't see it but once it;s done, wow! I let my daughter do her room and it was awesome i've since opened a salon and had the same experience. I wanted a very chic black with whit and chrome accents along with a bright color as accents and no one could see it but me until it was done and always remember it's paint, change it if you don't like it. Happy painting!

cibbb1 If you want a black wall kitchen I don´t think that painting the walls is a good idea, go for the extreme, go with black backspalsh tiles. I put it in my new white kitchen. I hope you like it because I love it.

bdennison I love grey. My kitchen is light grey, my MB is charcoal. But I have to say that I think black would be stunning. You could bring the tiles up to the bottom of the shelves and paint black up from there. LaTanya is so right...."it's only paint". I can't wait to see the finished produt. I'm sure it will be wonderful whatever you decide.

soosieq Yes to the black walls! I have black walls in my kitchen and love them!

cherstine I can't think of anything more depressing! A black kitchen does not promote life, warmth & happiness or passion for food... and yeah the list could go on and on. The black will bring in the walls whatever you do! If you do go for black walls make sure you have plenty of lighting!!

Inside Out Staging and Design I love your kitchen and am sooo glad you posted up close pictures of the shelves.... Which begs me to ask the question- do you NEED the shelves for storage of what's here or do you have some flexibility with items? The shelves themselves are an awesome design statement. If you could put pieces that complement them in style but don't distract from their beauty that would add visual interest while also providing a place to put things- think matching stacked plates/coffee cups, wine glasses... The "style" would mimic your taste but provide function as well as be appealing to the eye.

rnluvs2jetski Both of Kevin's options are gorgeous!! I would definitely choose one of those!

rhodalynn I think a medium/dark gray tone would look great. I just painted my cabinets Benjamin Moore Rocky Coast #1595. They look fabulous. I don't think black would do it in your kitchen.

Lawrence i like the comments of 'tennisanyone'. no black walls, add some matching wall cabinets on the left. the idea of using a tile is interesting, but from the ideas posted, a good paint color still feels best.
i note with interest that your extra photos were taken at night & the windows are 'black'!!! yikes! just for the fun of it, why don't you print those out, & then use marker to color in black walls.
hmmm, not so good. 'kudos' to all you folks doing the 'windows paint' mock-ups!

Marie Hebson's interiorsBYDESIGN Inc. As long as your stick to a black that has warm tones - rather than blue undertones to it.

You also need to be sure you have lots of high contrast - which, you currently don't have.

To use black in a space you need to ensure you have lots of natural and incandescent light. I've attached an article on using black in your space to help with this decision. If, in your mind its still the right thing to do then go for it.

debwill105 No to black - but you can find a dark, rich colour that's better. Check out Benjamin Moore "Willow" a brown/grey blend that is stunning. I've seen it done on the main floor of a home - fabulous! It will enchance the cabinet colour, pop the counter top and compliment the backsplash. It's warm, welcoming and inviting. Leave the ceiling a fresh white.

trudels Only paint black if you have tons of natural light from skylights or massive windows otherwise no not black, sorry

Design Alternatives, Inc. Definitely no black in the Kitchen. It will show all the splatter and grease build up that occurs naturally in a kitchen.

Kelly Williams I have a bathroom in my home with black walls. I think it looks very modern and unique. I say go for it!

brody1313 Dark charcoal gray or black.....no green

Tres McKinney Design Hands down - go for charcoal gray in a tone that works with the backsplash. It will be a beautiful compliment to the cabinetry. Do all the walls the same color or the stove wall a shade darker.

Design Alternatives, Inc. Black for a bath is a lot different then for a kitchen. More stickey grease involved.

Trends and Traditions Inc Go grey I say!

Carolyn C Black can be appropriate for a kitchen if the kitchen is the right size and has a lot of natural light etc., but my personal feeling is that it isn't the best choice for your particular kitchen. The gray seems to unify the space where the black breaks it up. See the images below. The gray, to me, seems to be much more flattering. A colour close to the backsplash would be perfect, or tile the entire wall with the same tile on that side which would also be stunning. Again, we are all expressing personal opinions and ultimately it's your space and it should reflect who you are :-)

I really like the left image that Kevin posted.

Hope you post after shots.

EB Interiors Would you consider painting a deep eggplant color instead? It would look really nice off the silver and cabinet color...