It may depend on the context? My kitchen is white cabinets and black countertops. It doesn't seem bold in any way to me. There are other white/black elements throughout the house, so it just appears as a neutral and blends in.

Now.... if you're wearing prison stripes.... that wouldn't come off as a neutral. :)

Maybe black and white patterns, like a checkerboard floor, are bold. They are definitely more eye catching.

Uh, what do you mean by bold? Daring? Certainly not. Verrry NYC? Definitely.

In the '80s, I was a loud and proud "whitepainter", as anyone daring to clean up grungey downtown Toronto homes was derisively called.

Its very kardashian
http://www.instyle.com/home-decorating/home-tours/peek-inside-kourtney-kardashians-home#363379

not a good look imo

Mary: I see how Kardashians can turn something from classic to trashy -just by association.. :-). I now know what not to do with black and white.. which is overdo.

Sanford: I do agree how no color makes things stand out, I definitely agree on that point.

LoLauren: Prison stripes and Kardashians a complete No-NO.. I do agree that black and white kitchens are classic and the context is what makes or breaks it.

Worthy: Actually I am not sure-- daring, bold , stand out are all synonyms. I was not aiming for it my main goal was to seamlessly integrate something and fit like in a puzzle piece sort of way. That is the style/look I was aiming for.

It seems like one of two possibilities....fear or color or absence of distraction. Black and white photographs make you notice the details, while not getting distracted by the colors. But in real life, an absence of color can look like a fear of commitment.

If done well, an all black and white space can emphasize a certain detail or a particular pop of color. It also looks very adult and sometimes a bit severe. Not a family friendly color scheme IMHO, but definitely a bold choice. Can one successfully pull it off, seems to be the bigger question.

Am I weird that I like the Kardashian kitchen?

I don't, know, because it think there are a lot of other factors. I grew up in a house with a black and white kitchen, black and white laundry room and black and white library. This was 1970.

The house was colonial revival and it had white plank-door cabinets, white and stainless appliances, a white vinyl brick floor. black wrought iron hardware, Formica Irish linen countertops and a black tole chandelier with white pinstriping. White wallpaper with flowers outlined in black. It wasn't particularly bold, it was cheerful, actually.

The library had black grasscloth wallpaper, black and white upholstered furniture, walnut stained bookshelves floor to ceiling and a black and white wool houndstooth rug. But the books were so colorful, it actually had a lot of color. And it was dark, masculine and den-like but not Kardashian like.

The laundry room had black and white mattress ticking wallpaper and otherwise matched the kitchen. It just seemed "clean".

I think it's all a matter of how it's done.

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Nini804 - I thought the kitchen was the only room in the house that I could live with. Sorry for going off topic r2.