Some interior designers will tell you that one of the "rules" of design is to always put one black accessory or article of furniture in a room. They say it "grounds" the room and helps balance out brightly-colored accents. I don't think this is a very good reason to use black in my decorating scheme though. Instead, I decorated my living room with touches of black because I like the way it looks. Black is one of the most versatile colors around. It coordinates surprisingly well with my traditional style, but it can look just as good in a room that's romantic or modern.

Now those are good reasons why I'm happy to hear that the color black is back in style—although I do wonder if it was ever out—according to designer Karl Lohnes. The new black, says Lohnes, is less shiny and more traditional than the big black leather sofas of the '80s. Look for picture frames, window treatments, side tables, lampshades, smaller furniture and even countertops in a matte, or flat finish, advises Lohnes. Lohnes best tip for using black: Mix black accessories with televisions, speakers and other existing black-colored items for a unified look. The more you blend the items, the less they will look like appliances or electronics and more like decorations instead.

The new CB2 catalog has some great new black accessories including this wool rug with a classic cherry blossom pattern, this oversized clock and the handwoven raffia shades on this floor lamp.