For curtains to really look black and stick with your vision they need to be thick material, so no cotton or sheers as they will let light shine through and appear gray. A black damask velvet would provide texture and contrast. A solid velvet in deep plum or navy would, too. What are you planning yo do with your walls? If you paint the walls dark, paint the ceiling, too. If you’re going to paint them black, then I’d suggest incorporating some type of pattern—vertical or horizontal stripes?—that alternates between flat and semi-gloss if you want visual interest. You could also use a patterned and/or textured peel-and-stick wallpaper on the bottom half and add a chair rail, so that the top half of the walls and the ceiling are left to be a solid color. Or just wallpaper them all so that your black room appears and feels more intentional, rather than lack of creativity. Don’t use an overhead light if your walls are painted with a satin or semi-gloss finish – the bouncing light will be obnoxious and will also highlight any imperfections in your walls’ surfaces. Everywhere that has been patched previously will become the focal points. Honestly, overhead lights (unless recessed and placed properly) have no place in a living room anyway, but that’s not a hill I’m willing to die on today. I’m sure there is one installed in the room already, but you don’t have to turn it on! In any case, a living room does indeed need to have lamps providing most of its lighting. You should have at least one floor lamp that diffuses light upward, at least one table lamp on an end table, and at least one directed task light for reading if you have a spot/chair for that purpose. Make sure to bring in metallic accents (I’d lean toward gold, brass, and copper over silver or steel) and lots of diverse texture. Sofa blankets, throw pillows with textured covers, baskets, curtains, and a carpet will go a long way to soften up your room and make it cozy. More on reddit.com

I had mine painted black for a year and a half. I loved it. My husband did not. It looked stunning at Christmas time but he said it was just too dark in winter (it was). We now have a green living room with a pink fireplace and it does feel a bit more jovial in here. More on reddit.com