If you’re re-designing your home, or perhaps are moving into a new place, it can take courage to completely change your colour schemes. Moving into a ‘beige’ home that needs updating can be exciting, as long as you have some great ideas about what colour direction you want to go in. So, in this Trend Watch, we’re taking a look at dark themes which may inspire you to head off into new territory, colour-wise!
Dark Directions
A dark colour scheme doesn’t need to be totally black or grey or navy, in fact, there’s more emphasis on the dark shades used when there’s an element of contrast. These are our Bayona Grey Floor Tiles, shown here in an industrial-loft style setting. Which is perfect for large-format porcelain tiles with a timeless aged stone look.
Dark Drama
Go for dark drama with our Cliff Grafite Grey porcelain tiles, measuring 600mm x 300mm, so they can be used horizontally or vertically to great effect. Interior Design Tip: Keep the ceiling and window reveal walls white to maximise the impact of daylight, meaning the walls retain the drama but the look doesn’t become overpowering.
Industrial Influence
Our Lemmy Venom Black Wall and Floor Tiles are a high-drama look for kitchens, bathrooms, living spaces and in fact, anywhere that needs a striking and practical surface. Suited to both walls and floors, Venom Black tiles have an industrial look that works well – and smaller format tiles are available too, 600mm x 150mm as well as larger, 600mm x 1200mm so there really is something for all scenarios. And they come in Viridium Green, Indio Blue, Pumpkin Gold, Excalibur Grey and Nimbus, so there really is a colour for all eventualities.
Dark Views
This fabulous bathroom has a couple of dark walls, which are a great contrast to the white wall tiles and paler stone-style floor tiles. The main pain colour is Charcoal Slate HC 178 by Benjamin Moore, and it’s part of the traditional Historic Colour collection. For a similar look for the wall tiles, try our Linear White Wall Tiles, and for a similar stone-look floor tile, try our Yosemite Ivory Wall and Floor tiles.
Slate Style
Go for a weathered slate-style look with our Belize Grey Wall & Floor tiles, which can be used throughout the home – as well as bathrooms and kitchens, we think they’re a particularly good choice for a busy hall or porch as they will disguise any bad-weather-footprints!
The Dark Cabinet
Here are our Belize tiles again, this time we’re singing the praises of Belize Light Grey Wall & Floor tiles. The shade is light enough to make a very strong contrast with navy blue cabinetry, but again, the grey is a practical choice for the kitchen. These porcelain tiles, in a 598mm x 298mm format, are also highly suitable for a kitchen splashback as well.
Minimalist Good Looks
Bringing you news of a new kitchen collection from Symphony, this is the Linear Finesse kitchen in Charcoal. Also available in Hunter Green and Pebble, all with a matt surface and anti-fingerprint finish – what could be nicer in a hectic family kitchen! We like the simplicity of the design, and suggest that you also take a look at our Tejos Medium Oak Porcelain Wood Effect tiles to get that sleek, contemporary look shown here.
A Closer Look
For a definitive dark and dramatic look, choose our Nature Black Slate Floor Tiles. They have a high R10 anti-slip rating, so can be used both indoors and out. Ideal for a scheme that needs to run from a kitchen-family-dining space to an outdoor terrace.
Textured Options
We often talk about the importance of texture within an interior design scheme – and it’s often important within a scheme that contains tones of similar shades. This is a great example of textured tiles adding an extra-special ‘something’ to a scheme. These are our Sparkle Black Split Face Mosaic natural stone tiles, with a mineral content that provides that touch of shimmer and sparkle. Each tile measures 300mm x 150mm and is an interlocking format that looks like smaller strips.
Dramatic Contrast
The Milano Contour Castle Rock Matt White kitchen from Wren Kitchens is a very stylish combination of colours and finishes, most of white are dark and dramatic – except for the light coloured laminate work surfaces, which bring in that element of contrast. The choice of glossy floor tiles works very well against the matt cabinetry.
Perfect Patterns
Time for an outdoor suggestion to fit within a dark and dramatic theme. These are our Concretia Concrete Grey Decor Tiles, with a choice of three surface designs, rectified edges for crisp grout lines, and a R11 Slip rating, which means they are eminently suitable for outdoor use.
Diagonally Dark
These ceramic tiles are Hudson Black, measuring 400mm x 100mm, so they are easy to handle and install, and can be used in a number of different formats, including zig-zags, herringbone, brick-bond and lined up vertically or horizontally. The choice is yours!
Been inspired to embrace your dark side and combine any of the ideas here into your next renovation project? If so then do send us any pics of your completed projects – hit us up on Twitter tagging @TileMountainUK or on Instagram!
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Linda has worked as a freelance interiors writer and blogger for many years; she has written for most of the major home and design magazines, including KBB Magazine, Grand Designs, Homes & Gardens, House Beautiful, Period Homes and Good Homes. She made the break and moved from London back to her home town of Shrewsbury three years ago and has just finished renovating her house. She also works in an interior design studio, produces copy for brochures and website, tries to tame her garden, aims to finish all the home furnishing projects she has on the go … and loves walking.