A couple of years ago I clipped a feature on a house from Elle Décor that had ebonized floors – meaning black, laquered floors.  I absolutely loved it.  The house wasn’t necessarily cold or modern, as you might expect from the description.  It was just appealing.  Somewhere I lost that clipping, but the idea stuck with me.

In my design work – and in my own home – I sometimes find traditional hardwood floors difficult to work around in terms of decorating.  On one hand, the richness and simplicity of pretty wood flooring is a winner.  But without going the white slipcover route, it is often hard to incorporate a balance of color and texture in a casual, traditional look without it feeling heavy.

I clipped this home from the pages of the now (sadly) defunct Cottage Living last fall.  Everything about it speaks to me.  Initially what caught my eye were the doors and window sashes accented with black.  That takes a boring, blah room and gives it immediate personality and gravitas.  And it eliminates the expectation for “window treatments,” which can feel so affected & even stuffy sometimes.

The new furniture has a more modern twist, but the black floors and doors and windows add character to the room, as well as warmth.  And the black also pulls in the family antiques the homeowner wanted to incorporate while allowing her to express some of her own decorating sensibilities.

The sisal rug keeps the feel clean but give great texture and contrast to the black.  These are all the ideal elements to incorporate in a room for balance.

A dark wood floor like ebony, or the reverse – a very light brown – shows off the furniture more and makes the room more stylish.

In this Jonathan Adler house for maternity designer Liz Lange, the more contemporary furniture and colors are softened by the black accents he uses on doors and windows.

Visualize this kitchen and entry with white doors, and the entire feeling changes from clean and warm to cold and stark, despite the splashes of color in the furniture.

These two houses, very different in style, clearly show how black accents can be used in a various incarnations to bring in warmth.

Ebonzining wood floors is akin to re-doing any hardwoods – stripping them free of all polyurethane and re-staining and sealing them if they are already stained. If you’re going to be putting them down for the first time, you might want to check your buildings insurance policy to see if you need to alert your provider first. An easier switch would be painting door and window sashes.  I’m keeping these pics in my idea file for my own house!

Tags: Antiques, black, design, flooring, home, Home Decor, windows