Orange and Black: Can Halloween Colors be Glam?
Halloween colors need not frighten us after the bats and candy corn are gone. See how interior designers are making this besmirched combination work with the right surroundings and glamorous details. Is orange and black a trick or a treat? You decide:
An orange headboard creates a warm greeting, then steps to the back when it's time for sleep. Shadows and light soften the border between colors, and the Dalmation bedcover makes everything fun.
Accents of deep orange and soft black act as modern graphics against a neutral canvas. Translucent chairs and thin pendants don't interfere with the strong rectangles of color. No need for additional artwork here!
Dallas designer Valerie Davis says people either love this room or aren’t so sure. Her client had the orange fabric leftover from a previous project and was not afraid of color. So Davis balanced the fire with a wall of cool blue (in this case Sherwin Williams Willow Tree #7741), complementary fabrics and neutrals all around. The sheen and metallic details in the pillows, custom headboard, and accessories glam it up.
Rusts and red moderate the orange in these showstopping drapes on black curtain rods. The fabric from Kravet was key to pulling the room together—and to framing the view of a beautiful golf course. Designer Valerie Davis hung the fabric just below the crown moulding to draw the eye upwards and to make the room look bigger. "Using the horizontal stripe in the fabric works in the same way."
It would be hard to find a stronger orange-and-black statement than this orange-laquered vanity from European Cabinets By Design.
Orange walls emphasize the extreme height and turned shapes of dramatic bed pillars.
Guest rooms are good places to have fun with strong colors, says decorator Joanne Fairmont Yinger. But "orange is such a shock color—already associated with industry and safety cones." So she kept the rest of the room simple and understated. The dark finish on the bed is a versatile neutral that allows the homeowner to change up the room with other color when the mood strikes.
The patterns and surprise (is that Sir Walter Raleigh or Elvis?) in this vignette make you almost forget you're looking at orange and black. When in doubt about your Halloween color combo, add a touch of turquoise.