It'll only look sterile if you don't have any accents of any kind at all in there, such as a small, bright picture on one wall, or flowers, or cool primary color retro small appliances around. Or what about a colorful backsplash somewhere?

I think that a touch of contemporary mixed w/ vintage is the best way to showcase vintage!

I remember a Brooklyn (I think) Victorian Brownstone that designer Vicente Wolf did some years ago. The juxtaposition of contemporary w/ Victorian has always made me drool. It was def. a kid free design!

Do you have any inspiration pics that you could show us or are you looking for inspiration pics that some of us may have tucked away?

Have you been to the Kitchens Forum? You will get a lot of answers there.

Plus, check out the Finished Kitchens Blog below. It's where a lot of people submit their kitchen when they are done. It is an excellent resource.

Here is a link that might be useful: FKB

Where are you going to put the blacks and whites? I've seen the white cabs with black granite tops and they're very pretty. The main color for accessorizing with b&w is red and yellow which is perfect for a vintage look.

Do a Google search on black and white kitchens, you'll get a lot of pictures there!

Would you consider black and cream? or another shade of off-white? That might "unsterilize" the room enough for your DH.

I don't know what era your vintage stuff is, but my grandmother's kitchen was from the 1940s. There was a lot of off-white in the cabinets, a light gray marbled linoleum floor, and accents of black and red. The walls were gray, with a red chair rail and then off-white above that. The curtains were white with red embroidery. There was a gray speckled Formica table with chrome legs, and two benches that my uncle made in wood shop at school, with red tops and gray legs. It was all homey and warm.

Sarah Richardson did a budget kitchen do-over in a black and cream scheme that came out at the end as a French bistro look.

But black and white is always a good backdrop for other colors and gives you the freedom to tweak your look with a few accessories, instead of having to redo the whole kitchen.

Here is a link that might be useful: black and cream kitchen

I like that Sarah Richardson kitchen, especially the floor.

I've always loved the look of the vintage black & white checkerboard floor, but I've heard that both the black and the white really show dirt. Don't know if that would stop me, though!

Black and white are fun and never go out of style...
~boxerpups

Montclair

The Conlon House Blog Gray and White (looks black)

This Old House

Black Lowers

Urban Interiors

HGTV

Mine was black and white when we moved- I added a little red because I am just like that :)

Before:

After:

It's amazing what the addition of a couple of lizards can do for a room...

Meghane, I love it! :)

Scarlet, do have photos of your own kitchen to share. There are gals here that can do virtuals for you. I can, but not as well as others can. But would be willing to try for you.
Meghane, your kitchen is adorable. Your home must be from the fifties for the cabinets are just like my folks last kitchen cabinets were. They were in original condition when we moved in. Stained. In the seventies Mom painted them two different times in pretty colors of the day, then Daddy striped them all when Mom again wanted them stained. Lots of work, but lots of love in the kitchen too. You don't find custom built ins in today's home. They are all semi custom as ours are.

Wow and double wow! Great pix and ideas! I lu-u-u-ve the black cabs but DH went ballistic and had a whole herd of cows about it.

No pix to send you because I lent out my camera and it's still not back. My kit is basic 1950's old stained cabs and wood underneath is not worth redoing, we tried it last month. The black and white tile floor would be a snap - went to Home Cheapo today and the guy looked at me like I was nutz. He said maybe he could special order it.

My oven, micro and dishwasher are all black, so the B&W tiles on the floor, white cabs and black granite counters would be divine. And may land me in divorce court. I'm sure gonna miss that man....Hee, hee...

I painted my 80s oak cabinets white, and added black (ubatuba) granite. The walls are SW Restrained Gold. The cooktop and dishwasher are both black.

I love the black and white kitchens! I think to make it less modern you could use white appliances instead of stainless, and the checkerboard floors definitely make it more vintage looking. The suggestions to add color with red or yellow accessories are great.

Black cabinets are nice but I can't imagine keeping them clean. The black furniture that I have always shows the dust so much more than my wood tones or lighter painted furniture. If I were doing a black and white kitchen it would definitely be white cabinets with black countertops.

We are re-doing our beach cottage kitchen in black and white. White cabinets w/ some beadboard, solid black granite counters, and wood floors. Our house is vintage, too -- or it was before we ended up practically rebuilding it. I'm using colorful, retro-style accessories, and I found great light-green jadeite glass knobs and pulls, and I'm matching the wall color to the pulls (a bit lighter). I think as someone else said, if you add some color to the B&W, it can be very charming.

I think black and white kitchen is nice... It looks kinda neat and clean.

Here is a link that might be useful: NJ Electrician

I've posted this picture before, but here is my previous kitchen from our last house, a 1914 bungalow. It was all original cabinetry, so we sanded and painted BM White Dove, added an inexpensive laminate sheet to the counter that looked like black granite with a glossy black wooden trim piece on the nose, and scraped up the linoleum floor and painted the old boards black (they weren't stain-grade). The appliances were SS and the wall color was BM Carrington Beige. I loved that kitchen; it was a super cheap update and buyers loved it when it came time to sell.

As an aside, I have a glossy black vanity in our current home, and while I love the look, keeping it clean is terrible! I wouldn't go that route with kitchen cabs for that reason alone. White or off-white is much easier, IMO.

Believe equest when s/he says black is hard to maintain, especially if you intend to do much cooking in your kitchen. Unlike most of the posters here, I hate the stuff. I'd much rather cook and do an easy cleanup than look at the black monster all the time. It shows all the dust and water spots, and unless you wipe it dry it looks smeary. Fortunately, I only have to deal with black granite in my kids' homes, am so glad I have white. Anyway, that's just my opinion.

My granite is black and white with some taupe & gray. It was one of the least expensive, too : ) It's called Luna Pearl (aka: Bianco Sardo). No crumbs, fingerprints, or water spots showing up on this! My cabinets are about the same color as the basket in the pictures below.
-Laurie

This is my super cheap kitchen redo.

The cabinets were maple that were ripped out of another house. They didn't fit exactly but we did the best we could and then made the custom plate rack to fit in the gap. We then put new (made from 120 year old window moulding) trim around the top of all so it all looks original to the house.

The "legs" are just decking spindles from Lowes sliced in half. I think I'll get two more and cut the bottoms off to put feet under the sink.

I sanded and painted and distressed it all myself. The counters are made from carribean walnut flooring that is treated with pure tung oil. The sink was a habitat restore bargain find. The whole thing, not counting appliances, was probably around $800 to $1000.

This is a horrid photo (taken with my phone) but hopefully you can see. My kitchen is very very tiny but I went with black cabinets anyway just because I've always wanted them. I have dark floors and counters too (both walnut) but the walls are just off white and the trim is white. My window treatments are black/cream toile. I have a beautiful, but simple, black 5 arm old fashioned chandelier hanging above the bar. The ceiling is white (faux tin) and the appliance are stainless. I have white subway tile for the backsplash (it was supposed to be beadboard but the contractor at the time, whom walked out with our money right after, decided he liked tile better and I was too short on time and money to rip it out).

I thought I'd use the lights all the time but there is actually a fair amount of natural light so it's not that dark. I have 4 recessed lights above the main work part (what you see there) and then the chandelier so all in all it's not bad.

That price included the cabinets (as I said, used), the paint, the custom plate rack add in, the faux tin ceiling, the sink, the faucet (I also have a matching pot filler but it was a Christmas gift), and the tile.

Our new kitchen will be white, gray & black with lavender accents and chrome, all done vintage style. Go with what makes you smile.

Mine is a white & brown kitchen, the brown being very dark, it looks almost black.. and I consider my house to be traditional than contemporary.. so take a look and see if you like the look.

Good Luck !

Here is a link that might be useful: New kitchen

Beth - I just wanted to say your kitchen is beautiful! I normally not wild about black kitchen cabinets but that looks really sharp. I love the plate rack and spindles. It's great how you guys made it work. I wish I could see some more photos.

Crozzroad - I can't see your photos. It wants me to login.

The original version of my parents' kitchen, a traditional colonial revival kitchen in a traditional CR house, was black and white.

White cabinets with black hardware; white "brick" floors; black and white appliances (thats how they came then) and a stainless steel cooktop and hood.

The wallpaper was a traditional pattern but overscaled black outlines of flowers. A black and white tole candelabra with metal shade over a pine table and chairs.

It was tempered with green Irish Linen formica (Still one of my favorite, and discontinued in US patterns)--and it faced a view with a lot of trees.

It was very 1969, but also very traditional looking and not stark. That particular floor didn't show anything even though it was white. It would probably be more current than the mid-80s update to green and yellow paper, matching balloon shades and brass hardware.

Black and white is not sterile ... it's crisp and classic! And with some strong accent colors, it can be sassy.

I love that salt and pepper granite! There is an entire subway system in Seoul, Korea that is mostly salt and pepper granite walls and paving. I think they recycled the stuff they dug out of the tunnels because there is granite all over that city, used like we use concrete.

beth0301 - Your kitchen looks great! The photo is a bit out of focus, but I can still see everything fairly well. I love the black cabs, walnut floor & counters & that beautiful apron sink (wish I would have got one of those sinks). I like the white accents of the dishes and the white back splash tiles.

Any chance you could post more pics? Would love to see everything else (like the tin ceiling & chandelier)and especially the black/cream toile window treatments.

lazygardens - It's interesting to learn Seoul, Korea uses that salt & pepper granite in their subway system and for other general uses around their city. I've never been there. Would be interesting to go, someday.
Dh and I picked that granite for our kitchen because it reminds us of the rocks/boulders we see all over the Sierra Nevada mountain range when we go on our camp/hike vacations.

-Laurie

Beth..You did an incredible job, and that sink is smashing not to mention your countertops and flooring. I was just wondering what would a sink like that cost at Habitat, I'm nosey. Of course you could never find something like that in a million years again, but it's so good looking.
You put me in the mind of ttodd on here, she is a successful DIY person as well.

.....Jane

Note: I would put my black and white kitchen on here for the 1,000,000,000 time, but it is a farm kitchen and not modern like the OP requested.

beth - Great job! I'd also like to see some more pictures, especially of your floor.

the other Laurie :)