Decorating Guides
How to Hide Your TV in Plain Sight
If you don’t want your television screen to dominate the room, camouflage it in the decor
There are a lot of fancy new ways to hide your TV today: Motorized picture frames, electronic mirrors and compartments that pop up from the foot of your bed are among the latest features. But all you really need is a little black paint or stain and some well-considered placement, and you can hide your TV in plain sight.
1. Big black wall. Covering a wall in black paint might be the easiest way to make your TV blend into the background. This family room in Brentwood, California, features a stunning hillside view through a large picture window surrounded by crisp white walls, while the wall-mounted flat-screen TV demands as little attention as possible when turned off.
2. Black stripe. If you’re not eager to paint an entire wall in your house black, perhaps a smaller black stripe on the wall behind the TV is more your style. This stylish family room in Milan, Italy, is definitely not TV-centric.
3. Above the fireplace. Many people are not fans of TVs above a fireplace, but if you don’t mind the look, consider painting the fireplace surround black. This chic library in San Francisco provides a fine example.
Design Debate: Is It OK to Hang the TV Over the Fireplace?
Design Debate: Is It OK to Hang the TV Over the Fireplace?
4. Next to the fireplace. The same principle applies for TVs mounted to the side of the fireplace. This Sydney living room features a gas fireplace next to a flat-screen that has been incorporated into a custom wood built-in. By painting the niche black, neither the TV nor the fireplace distract from the surroundings.
5. Black bookshelves. The bright red piece of modern art hanging above the fireplace demands much attention in this stylish London living room. The flat-screen TV mounted inside the black bookshelf, not so much.
6. Black stain. If you don’t love black walls, perhaps black stain is more your cup of tea. This ebony-stained bifold cabinet provides an ideal backdrop for a mounted flat-screen TV.
7. Just another appliance. The appliance wall in this Boston kitchen features a built-in wine refrigerator, microwave, double oven and, that’s right, a mounted flat-screen TV.
8. Take it outside. This sleek outdoor covered patio in Orlando, Florida, uses many of the techniques already discussed. A black wall that has been stained a deep ebony is the ideal spot for a stealth flat-screen TV to hide in plain sight.
More
New Strategies for Hiding the TV
How to Hide the TV, No Cabinet Required
More
New Strategies for Hiding the TV
How to Hide the TV, No Cabinet Required