How To Add Areas Of Interest To Dark Decor Schemes

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Dark decor paints a suave and sophisticated aesthetic, but it’s easy for the effect to fall flat in the shadows. This is why it’s important to introduce elements of added visual interest, either by unexpected lighting solutions or with unusual furniture choices. Our first home design uses both of these concepts to shake up a serious black and concrete scheme, along with a glass wall bathroom to capitalise on natural light. Our second dark home design takes a different approach, employing warm umber accents to pepper a charcoal backdrop. Watch out for the unique double sided fireplace design that doubles as a stunning bedroom divider too.

Visualizer: Mihail Grinceac

In Chisinau, Republic of Moldova, our first dark home interior is zoned by perimeters of light. LED strips mark the wall of the home entryway and the walkway to the kitchen diner, where more glowing outlines define shelves and cabinets from the shadows.

A duotone sectional sofa arrangement creates added visual interest in a minimalist lounge layout.

A black marble coffee table and a smaller white table make an overlapping nesting formation that slots into the jagged sofa composition. The contrasting tables complement the duotone sofa modules.

The black marble element is repeated in the kitchen, where it streaks across a sleek island design.

Two sections of the modern sofa are flipped around to face into the kitchen diner to promote social interaction. The arrangement presents the couch as an integral anchor point in the open plan, a core orbited by all other functions.

The halo of light in the home entryway is a huge backlit mirror.

The glass pushes natural light to the back of the apartment. An entryway bench is coupled with the mirror to make a convenient outerwear dressing area.

Oak flooring pulls one smooth warming accent through the whole interior, right from the home entryway.

Concrete elements bring in rugged texture across the ceiling and structural columns. Exposed electrical conduits add to the industrial vibe.

Open shelves hold white ceramics to break up the black kitchen.

The kitchen island doubles as a dining bar at one end, where the countertop benefits from the light of a large window.

Wood grain lifts the dark kitchen cabinets, revealed subtly in the window’s light.

A modern faucet blends into the darkness, becoming just a backlit silhouette against white radiance.

A glass wall bathroom module drinks in light from the living room.

Inside the bathroom, black marble floods the floor to create comfortable cohesivity with the visually linked kitchen. A freestanding bathtub crosses the glass corner, which makes it not only an attractive bathroom feature but a unique feature of the living room as well.

A unit of black marble backed shelving crosses behind the glass bathroom, utilising a short hallway to the bedroom. LED shelf lights illuminate the black walkway.

More black marble covers the walls of the bathroom in great swathes.

The grey bedroom is a minimalist design, dominated by a deep cushioned platform bed and an open walk-in wardrobe.

A modern bedside table neatly wraps the side of the grey upholstered bed.

The bedroom doorway is an open void to the living room, creating an airy free-flowing living style.

Marble accents take the concrete bedroom upmarket.

White linens provide a bright note to the room.

The only leave from the dark decor scheme is a pink kid’s room. House shape motifs sweeten the look of a storage wall. A KAWS sculpture adds a fun yet high-end touch.

Concrete elements are whitewashed to lighten the aesthetic.

Visualizer: One Tone

In our second dark home interior, a linear sofa stretches low across a charcoal living room. An even lower round coffee table adds in a beat of warm umber to shake up the shadows.

Slab front cabinets piece together like a puzzle across a perfectly flush fitted TV wall. An Easter Island sculpture drops a touch of character into the minimalism.

A trapezium ottoman fills out the other side of the lounge arrangement, cornering the edge of a large grey area rug.

Black interior doors blend into the wall decor to allow the more interesting design elements to shine.

Over in the dining area, a snake light dangles from a linear chandelier, burning a wave above the black table.

The kitchen seems full of secrets, with appliances tucked behind huge featureless doors.

The worktop and sink dissolve into shade.

An umber pouf makes a small but prominent statement of colour in the black entryway.

Inside the master suite, a dual aspect modern fireplace flames behind a bespoke seat.

On the flip side, the flames animate a unique headboard.

The glass fireplace screen reaches all the way up to the bedroom ceiling to create a transparent room divider.

Deepest black paintwork over the walls and ceiling causes the eye focus upon the light grey floor and attractive wood grain furniture.

Fiery umber accents heat grey bathroom decor, blazing a bright outline around an understated square vanity mirror and colouring a modern bust sculpture.

Handle-free vanity cabinets fall away in a matt finish. Fixtures and fittings are kept simple and minimal, letting the darkness flatten and consume the space.

Opposite the vanity area, the shower screen relieves the flat scheme with a block of glossy reflection. A white bathtub breaks the monotony of dense colour.