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dark ceiling color that is not black?

14K views 39 replies 14 participants last post by  Archaea 
#1 ·
ok, last step is to paint the ceiling (which is currently white).


i guess the obvious anwer here is 'flat black', however, wife says "NO". she wants this to be a family/media room, not a dedicated ht.



carpet is dark beige, wall is behr "aztec gold" (brownish), and trim is white.


i am having a hard time choosing a dark paint for the ceiling that would go well with the wall/carpet.


suggestions?


thanks


PS: pics are attached, my poor photo skills are making things look brighter than they shoud.



 
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#2 ·
I used the darkest color brown I could find at Home Depot - Behr "Espresso Bean" - lights off, it might as well be black - lights on, you can barely tell its brown. My wife actually commented "ooh, I like that color" when she saw it up on the ceiling - rare that she actually notices anything going on in my build.

 
#4 ·
Also be aware that if the Mrs. doesn't allow a full dark ceiling, the next best option is to go dark on the ceiling just around the screen.


Depending on the layout/aesthetics of your room, it might actually look good (my wife wouldn't have allowed for a two tone ceiling, but luckily she OKed the black ceiling to begin with.)


-Suntan
 
#6 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by smokarz /forum/post/19985457


mrs is OK with dark ceiling, as long as it's not BLACK.


i was thinking dark grey, brown, burgundy, green....just couldn't decide on one.

I don't blame her for saying no.


I had a flat black room (all walls and ceiling) from 2000 ~ 2005 and it was a nightmare to maintain. If dust settled on the walls, it was visible and when I wiped it off, it left a marks. If I used a touch up paint, it dried slightly different shade and looked worse. In the end, it was either repaint the entire wall each time or change the colour. I elected to move rooms and use a different colour.


I've used Pompeii Ash for the last two rooms and it can have a high WAF.
 
#7 ·
A little from my color theory classes.


I would try mixing some of the wall color with black. If you get a color you like, have it scanned at a paint store that does paint matching.


Whenever you mix a color into another the result will usually look complementary to the original.


But you are going to need to do something with that molding. Too white.
 
#8 ·
Ralph Lauren Suede "Arrow Wood"


Great color.............compromise from a black hole. I'll be using this color on ceiling and accents.


I'm an outdoorsman...........hunter greens and browns are the way I roll.


On another note, can't wait to locate my five and one-half feet spread elk antlers in my dedicated room ...........a great acoustic treatment!
 
#9 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by BIGmouthinDC /forum/post/19985656


A little from my color theory classes.


I would try mixing some of the wall color with black. If you get a color you like, have it scanned at a paint store that does paint matching.


Whenever you mix a color into another the result will usually look complementary to the original.


But you are going to need to do something with that molding. Too white.

i used behr premium ultra white on the trim. it is quite WHITE.


however, when the lights are off and room is dark, it is not very noticeable.


the photos were taken with all available lights on the room on max, and cam was a bit bright also.
 
#10 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by doublewing11 /forum/post/19985937


Ralph Lauren Suede "Arrow Wood"


Great color.............compromise from a black hole. I'll be using this color on ceiling and accents.


I'm an outdoorsman...........hunter greens and browns are the way I roll.


On another note, can't wait to locate my five and one-half feet spread elk antlers in my dedicated room ...........a great acoustic treatment!

so this is a dark brown color?
 
#11 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by smokarz /forum/post/19986279


i used behr premium ultra white on the trim. it is quite WHITE. however, when the lights are off and room is dark, it is not very noticeable.

Guess what is going to happen when you shine your light cannon at the screen.
 
#14 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by smokarz /forum/post/19986283


so this is a dark brown color?

That could be a subjective question............


The key is light reflectiveness........Ralph Lauren Suede paint is very unusual--textured, hardly any sheen at all........besides its looks GREAT! The look of suede really gives that "high end" look..........soft with very low light reflection


Google the paint color..............and yes, the color sample on line looks nothing like what it looks like on the wall. Very deep, chocolate brown.............a much better alternative to flat black IMHO.


The paint is expensive, and you need to roll and then use an X pattern to bring out subtle patterns of the suede look. Don't discount colors from online source..........see for your self. I believe Home Depot distributes the paint...............

http://www.kaboodle.com/reviews/ralp...e-image-search
 
#17 ·
#18 ·
two things - First, I'm not sure I like that muted color. Sorry, just my opinion of course (and it's your room so only you and the wife needed to like it anyway). A lot will depend on if you're using crown molding and what color that will be though. I find that white strip there now very distracting. See my thoughts about color in the next paragraph.


The other thing, I like the accent lights you have in the soffit. Very nice effect. Would you be willing to share what type, size, and wattage they are? Where did you pick them up? I am embarking on (planning) my own project and I would like to do something similar. Okay, back to the color. As great as PS it leaves a lot to be desired for choosing color in the real world. I once painted a ceiling a color that looked great in PS but what happened in the real world was very different. That color reflected downwards and shifted the color of the rest of room including the wall color that I liked previously. I was not a nice effect. Anyway, notice how much the color changes on your walls where it is lit by those cans vs in the shadowed area and non direct light area. It can make the same color coming out of the can look like a different color. Have you thought about going monochromatic and using the wall color on the ceiling? With those accent lights on the walls they will look lighter than the ceiling does simply because of the lighting. Obviously it will match well too because it will all just be varied shades and brigtnesses of the same color. Depending on how often those lights will be on and what other ones will be used it can change quite a bit. Anyway, just a thought.
 
#19 ·
To go along with this thread (sort of), I used flat black on my ceiling, but my projector (which is ceiling mounted and picture angled to the floor) still reflects a decent amount of light on the ceiling and lights up the first half of it.


is velvet better than paint to not reflect any light?
 
#20 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by IPT /forum/post/19987285


two things - First, I'm not sure I like that muted color. Sorry, just my opinion of course (and it's your room so only you and the wife needed to like it anyway). A lot will depend on if you're using crown molding and what color that will be though. I find that white strip there now very distracting. See my thoughts about color in the next paragraph.


The other thing, I like the accent lights you have in the soffit. Very nice effect. Would you be willing to share what type, size, and wattage they are? Where did you pick them up? I am embarking on (planning) my own project and I would like to do something similar. Okay, back to the color. As great as PS it leaves a lot to be desired for choosing color in the real world. I once painted a ceiling a color that looked great in PS but what happened in the real world was very different. That color reflected downwards and shifted the color of the rest of room including the wall color that I liked previously. I was not a nice effect. Anyway, notice how much the color changes on your walls where it is lit by those cans vs in the shadowed area and non direct light area. It can make the same color coming out of the can look like a different color. Have you thought about going monochromatic and using the wall color on the ceiling? With those accent lights on the walls they will look lighter than the ceiling does simply because of the lighting. Obviously it will match well too because it will all just be varied shades and brigtnesses of the same color. Depending on how often those lights will be on and what other ones will be used it can change quite a bit. Anyway, just a thought.

the recessed lights i picked up at home depot for about $10 each. they are cheap and serve the purpose. however, they are very HOT and have high defect ratios. i must have returned at least 4 defected units.


http://www.homedepot.com/Lighting-Fa...atalogId=10053



we wanted the room to also be a family area, and a place where we can entertain guess as well, so we opted for a more neutral look, rather than an all out dark room.


currently, i leaned toward a darker brown/gold on the ceiling so it would complement the wall. but obviously, i am open to ideas/suggestions.
 
#21 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by elmalloc /forum/post/19987724


To go along with this thread (sort of), I used flat black on my ceiling, but my projector (which is ceiling mounted and picture angled to the floor) still reflects a decent amount of light on the ceiling and lights up the first half of it.


is velvet better than paint to not reflect any light?

Velvet is a good choice, but installation will be tough and it's rather expensive. I used the Ralph Lauren Suede paint and it has worked out very, very well for us. Info on my build thread.
 
#22 ·
Thanks. I used RL Suede Paint upstairs, but home depot will not sell it anymore (and it's like 40 a gallon).


My questin to you will be is it really possible a brown (or dark) suede paint will work better than flat black? Flat black works fairly well but you can still see it light up the first few feet of the ceiling above the screen.


I hope I'm not infringing on this thread, just enlightening all that even flat black isn't good enough.


-ELmO
 
#24 ·
@elmalloc - I found the hard way that some "flat" paints are more flat than others - in my case, Valspar (Lowes) had quite a bit more sheen than Behr (Home Depot). You might try a couple flat paint samples on a board or scrap drywall to test, before investing in fabric for the ceiling.
 
#25 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by Brad Horstkotte /forum/post/19988731


@elmalloc - I found the hard way that some "flat" paints are more flat than others - in my case, Valspar (Lowes) had quite a bit more sheen than Behr (Home Depot). You might try a couple flat paint samples on a board or scrap drywall to test, before investing in fabric for the ceiling.

+1 for dark/flat ceiling, while others have done it IMO putting fabric on the ceiling is a royal PIA!
 
#26 ·

Quote:
Originally Posted by luelf21 /forum/post/19988701


Take a look at the walls and ceiling in my theater and see what you think.


I really like those color combinations (dark purple carpet).
 
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