I want to paint my guest bathroom black. Black and what? I'm thinking maybe a cream or white. Too boring?

Cheryl stanley
by Cheryl stanley
Any suggestions?
  60 answers
  • While black may be a good color for perhaps a powder room, I would think again about a guest bath. Black while a interesting color it will show all water marks and spills. Also it will tend to make the room very small feeling. Lighter and brighter colors makes the room more inviting. Perhaps using black on trims, but for wall colors I am not so sure about that. What color are the fixtures, tub, toilet, vanity?
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 29, 2013
    thanks for your input! right now fixtures are bronz and the rest is white, but all is to be changed.
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 29, 2013
    oh! and the vanity top is blue.
  • Miriam Illions Miriam Illions on Jan 29, 2013
    What about black white and emerald green? I love that combo...Do you plan on keeping the blue vanity top as is? Here is a clipboard full of black projects (which I personally love) to give you some ideas: http://www.hometalk.com/b/149036/50-shades-of-black
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 29, 2013
    no, the blue vanity top has got to go! it's seriously ugly! the emerald green sounds pretty. i'll get my paint chips out and play with them. what about black, white and cobalt blue? or cream instead of the white?
  • Jonell Everett Jonell Everett on Jan 29, 2013
    My mother said NO, lol I had a black throw rugs and that was awful. So good lock and post pics. please..
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 29, 2013
    since i have 2 dogs and 2 cats, one each being white, i say no to black throw rugs, too! so does mom have any color combos that she loves?
  • Gina Little Gina Little on Jan 29, 2013
    Pet Hair on any rugs is inevitable...lol I like Black and cream, you can find nice wrought iron fixtures for the towels and toilet paper holders and cleaners. Not sure if this type of stuff will go with the rest of your house decor, but I have found that mixing 1 color, as an accent color, from outside of your room into the next room works best.
  • Sharon E. Hines Sharon E. Hines on Jan 29, 2013
    Not boring....classic! You can add splashes of blue, green, yellow or whatever your favorite color is. I love using black and white to make my favorite colors pop.
  • Jonell Everett Jonell Everett on Jan 29, 2013
    There is a rug I think its at walmart, its got black,tan,and cream in it. I think that would hide more. I am going to do purple with my bath, maybe....lol
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 29, 2013
    so true! that would be cream AND white! i could use emerald or cobalt do-dads and pretties as accents! so glad i asked the question. you guys are so smart! feel free to keep the suggestions coming, though! i need all the help i can get since i am seriously color challanged! what color for the ceiling? anything but white. i do not like white ceilings!
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 29, 2013
    jonell, i think purple would be lovely! i wish my husband loved purple as much as i do. sadly, there is no purple in the house decor, but there sure is in my wardrobe!
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 29, 2013
    thank you, sharon! i think it's classic, too!
  • Julie Julie on Jan 29, 2013
    I painted my bathroom cabinets black sanded the edges and stained them for a rustic black look . Then painted my wall a medium camel brown. Classy look!
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 29, 2013
    oh! my! that sounds just beautiful, julie! are there pictures?
  • Mary Insana Mary Insana on Jan 29, 2013
    I love the idea of a black, cream and red bathroom. I painted one of our bathrooms navy. It has a nautical theme with sand colored flooring, cream trim,ceiling and door with white accents. It is a small bathroom and the dark nacy doe not make it look samller at all. While I LOVE the navy color it does show streak marks from the steam after someone showers even thought the fan is on. That is the only reason I would hesitate painting the guest bathroom black.
  • My powder room is black and white and I love it! It's chalkboard on the top and white bead board on the lower half. We haven't finished the process so this is an old picture but you can get the idea!
  • How about black with light blue shade? I think it will give a cool look.
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 29, 2013
    your nautical bathroom sounds really pretty, mary. i hadn't thought about the steam runs. are they still visible after drying? good point! and the chalkboard powder room sounds interesting! can you write on it, too? love the beadboard! i'm still on the fence about using black.
  • Georgia Lyman Georgia Lyman on Jan 29, 2013
    when my daughter was a teenager,she wanted a black bedroom with silver trim. I vetoed it. Navy blue would bw a vwetter choice with cream trim.
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 29, 2013
    now that sounds nice, too. i love soft blues. i was looking on the house beautiful site and they said to use only matte paint if you were using black because it shows every flaw. the walls are textured, so flaws are a moot point. does anyone out there think that an eggshell would be ok?
  • Georgia Lyman Georgia Lyman on Jan 29, 2013
    oh yeah, go to Lowes or Home Depot and ask about their kitchen ceiling tiles that are silver, copper or bronze for the bathroom ceiling. Too cool!!
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 29, 2013
    wow! now you're talkin'! that would be awsome! will have to run that past hubby!
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 29, 2013
    and i agree that navy would be pretty, too. thank you all! this was fun and informative. off to bed. if you all think of anything else, i'll be checking back tomorrow. sleep well!!
  • Z Z on Jan 29, 2013
    Our master bathroom has Ralph Lauren Candlelight paint in a silver though I can't remember the exact name right now. The floor is black marble. The ceiling is a lighter shade than the walls. The fixtures are all white. I change out the towels often. Right now I'm using a light lime like green and dark aqua. I do however have plans to paint out water closet in black chalk paint so hubby and I can write love notes to each other.
  • Hamtil Construction LLC Hamtil Construction LLC on Jan 30, 2013
    We actually painted a bath in our home grey, which was my wife's pick. I was a little reluctant at first, but must say that it looks really good! All the trim and the vanity is white.
  • Douglas Hunt Douglas Hunt on Jan 30, 2013
    Go retro with black and pink.
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 30, 2013
    good morning! silver and black marble! goodness, becky! i would love to see that! and you could use any accent colors you want.
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 30, 2013
    grey is a nice choice, too, especially a dark grey. what color did you paint the ceiling? and douglas, umm, no to the pink. i really like pink, but not a fan of it with black. thank you, though. i think black and teal would be pretty.
  • Z Z on Jan 30, 2013
    I don't have any current photos Cheryl, but will share this picture that I took of some towels that I fell in love with at Target, but didn't work out. I found the curtain that day too. I took it all back and went with solid colored towels but didn't take another photo.
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 30, 2013
    that's pretty, becky! it looks inviting. i like that cabinet. both of our baths are so small i don't have room for something like that, but sure wish i did.
  • Z Z on Jan 30, 2013
    Thank you Cheryl. We don't have any linen closets in this home so cabinets like this are a must.
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 30, 2013
    with our small bathrooms i am fortunate to have large linen closet
  • Z Z on Jan 30, 2013
    Two of our bathrooms actually had linen closets in the original plans, but I removed them. With walk in closets in each bedroom I figured we'd store towels and linens there, but changed my mind after we moved in. I actually like the cabinets. But then I have a thing about furniture. 8^}
  • Mary Insana Mary Insana on Jan 30, 2013
    Becky, the steam streaks actually do show on the walls. This is in the kids(teenagers) bathroom so I try not to go in there very often :) I do wipe the walls down when I get brave enough to go in.
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 30, 2013
    we have been designing our retirement house ourselves that we plan on building in 1,1/2 years and i want tons of closet space. my hubby wants to downsize. that's fine with me as long as i have a bigger bedroom, kitchen and bath than i do now. i love furniture, too. i love to find stuff on the curb and fix it up or make something from it other than what it was originally. i love to raid my parents attic. i also find something really cool to play with.
  • Cheryl, yup! We write on it constantly. Guests love signing the walls and my 6 year old is always writing lovey dovey messages to me on it.
  • Z Z on Jan 30, 2013
    @Mary, I know what you mean. Our 30 year old son (and his five year old son) is living at home again while he finishes college so his bathroom is not as clean as I'd keep it personally, but I've laid down the law that HE has to clean it on a regular basis. He's doing pretty good, though I did have to remind him recently that it "was time". @Cheryl, had we each not had our own bathrooms with vanities and walk in closets I'd have wanted more closets here too. I had loads of closets in our last much smaller home and loved them. It took a bit of getting used to not having two linen closets, but really it's better here that we store towels that match each bathroom in the bedrooms they belong with. I do have extras in a solid door cabinet in the hallway for showers and such. We also have a dresser in the master bedroom just for bath towels. Bed linens are stored in under the bed roll out containers. As for your retirement kitchen I highly recommend a large pantry over loads of cabinets. As one ages it's much easier to grab things off a shelf than dig in a cabinet. I'm still young and am glad we have a walk in pantry. @Jenny, I'm glad to hear that you do use your chalk board walls for fun. Makes me want to get to that sooner rather than later, but I'm waiting for a decision on just how we're going to make an access panel the shower on the other side of one of the walls.
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 30, 2013
    the chalkboard sounds like so much fun! and the steam from the shower doen't hurt or change it? becky, i do have a huge walk in pantry here and will when we build, too. that is a must!
  • Z Z on Jan 30, 2013
    Yep Cheryl, you certainly would understand that a kitchen with a walk in pantry is a must then. We had a good sized pantry in our last home, but this walk in is even better.
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 30, 2013
    i don't knoow what i would do without my pantry. i don't have much cabinet space in my kitchen. don't you think the idea of the chalkboard paint in the bathroom sounds fun!? since i have textured wall i don't think it work for me, darn it! my grandkids would love it! heading to bed now. i'll check back tomorrow. sleep well!
  • World Contracting LLC World Contracting LLC on Jan 30, 2013
    here is a bathroom we did bringing in black as the trim and accent color.
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 31, 2013
    that's pretty! is that tile or wallpaper?
  • World Contracting LLC World Contracting LLC on Jan 31, 2013
    thanks for the complement! It is a natural marble called Equator that was cut down to 3 x 6 bricks and mixed to keep patterns from forming. There is an absolute black pencil and cap above it filled with glass tile. here are some more shots of it...
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Jan 31, 2013
    love that floor tile, too! really pretty!
  • Z Z on Jan 31, 2013
    Cheryl, we painted the panels on our pantry door in chalk board paint. We use the upper ones for grocery list and let our grandsons use them to draw and write on. They love them.
  • Shirle Amick Shirle Amick on Feb 01, 2013
    I would'nt paint all the walls black . I would paint 1 wall black and coat it with a glaze , then have black @ another color as accent . Perhaps a black and white rug would be cool !
  • Jeanette S Jeanette S on Feb 01, 2013
    The basic black/white/red is so classic and charming. White trim is no problem if you use a good paint that comes with a washable finish. I have found that the glossy has a tendency to hold dirt more than a flat with a finish. Use a white shower curtain, a white hanging mirror on a black wall and then add some red touches. Not having a photo of your bathroom, I can't suggest much, but you can find some things. If you have room, change out the light fixture with something red. If you have a place, use a red piece of conduit for a red pole to run the wire through and add a wire basket painted red over an Edison bulb! Your guys would love this. Add a small wooden box painted red for a garbage can...another one for magazines...etc. Post photos!
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Feb 01, 2013
    good morning! becky, i have a chalkboard in the kitchen that the grand kids leave sweet little notes to nana and papa. i love that! i was thinking maybe i would paint the bottom portion of the room black with a cream chair rail and the upper portion? well.....i can't decide. there are just too many colors that i love. i think i'll do the ceiling in the same cream.
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Feb 01, 2013
    jeannete, you gave me some really interesting ideas! thank you! i really like the light fixture idea!
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Feb 05, 2013
    you guys gave me some wonderful ideas and each and every suggestion is very much appreciated! now for a little more help please! i have decided to go with black on the bottom portion of the walls, cream chair rail and vanity with emerald green on the upper portion of the walls. my question is, should i go with light, medium or dark emerald and should i continue the green on the ceiling or go with the cream?
  • Z Z on Feb 05, 2013
    If you can load a photo that is as straight on as possible I'd be happy to do a mock up to help you chose Cheryl.
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Feb 05, 2013
    hi, there, becky! this may come as a shock to anyone out there in this day and age of tech savey people, but i am not one of them! i don't know how to upload pictures. as funny as it sounds, i'm surprised to have figured out how to do this chatting thing! now stop laughing! it is quite funny, though!
  • Z Z on Feb 05, 2013
    No laughing though I admit it did bring a smile to my face. If you know how to add the pictures to your computer you're halfway there. Just click on the blue "Add Photos or Videos" below where you type a message and soon you'll see another window pop up with all your files and folders from your computer. Find the photo you want to share, click on it and then chose the "open" button at the bottom right of that window. It will soon appear as a thumbnail (small photo) below the message box.
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Feb 05, 2013
    okay! did i do it right?
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Feb 05, 2013
    oh! i did it! you sure made it easy, becky! thanks, oh, great teacher! all of this bathroom is to be changed and we have alread started some of it. so pretty much it's a blank slate.
  • Z Z on Feb 05, 2013
    You're welcome Cheryl. This is not the best virtual, but hopefully it will give you a bit of an idea of your color choice. I'm way past my "gotta do housework" time so I'll have to come back to do more.
  • Cheryl stanley Cheryl stanley on Feb 05, 2013
    that's fun! i think you have answered my question! i think i'll use a lighter emerald.
  • Z Z on Feb 05, 2013
    Glad I could help.
  • Diana Deiley Diana Deiley on Jan 16, 2016
    Black and white is elegant and classic. You can add/change pops of colors throughout the year. Best of luck.