(KRT) - Remember the day s when painting your flea-market find white was the only way to go? That chalky white paint turned your grandmother's old dresser into instant Shabby Chic.

But times - and trends - are changing. If you are the kind of person who likes to keep up with the newest looks, get out the black paint. More and more, in new furniture and old, furniture is painted black.

Ralph Lauren is showing new black furniture. Martha Stewart's magazine features old furniture painted black. The Pottery Barn catalog is sprinkled with black, from a dining room table and chairs to accent pieces such as a coffee table that holds baskets on the lower shelf. And local furniture stores are showing the same looks. ¶

"We've always carried black pieces in our core groups, but black is becoming very, very popular right now," says Stephanie Voss of Arhaus furniture stores. Black has gone beyond occasional and dining chairs to tables, bedroom sets, individual desks, armoires and more.

"Black is excellent for layering into a home," Voss says. "It performs better than the white pieces. It's not so Shabby Chic. It also mixes with textures very well, and with natural materials like stone, copper iron. It's a great strong accent that can help anchor other elements in the room."

"Interior designers love painted furniture because it can complement other furnishings without exactly matching, or provide contrast without clashing," boasts the Pottery Barn catalog. The Ballard catalog (800-367-2775) has kept ahead of trends since 1985, when Helen Ballard founded the company. It has long been a source of reasonably priced painted furniture, including a decade's worth of Shabby-Chic white.

"People have become more accepting of painted furniture in general, more open to color in their home," says Laura Daily, senior director of home accents for Ballard, based in Atlanta. "We grew up with wood furniture, so it's refreshing to be able to paint things." It's fun because you can get so many different looks with paint, she says.

Black fits in almost anywhere, from traditional to cutting edge. "You can have a classically inspired piece painted black, and it can easily fit into a contemporary setting," says Daily. "And it is very practical, especially if you live with kids."

Most of the painted furniture has a satin or duller finish, and much of it is rubbed on the edges to give it some age.

``Black is dramatic, but what's different about our black furniture is that we have a hand-distressed finish with a nice red undertone," says Voss.

"That way it looks more like a classic neutral piece, not contemporary. It's not solid and flat; it has more warmth."

Much of Ballard's furniture also features rubbed edges. "It's rubbed off on the natural wear parts," Daily says "Customers are becoming more discriminating. They want a more authentic look."

All this black doesn't mean you can't have white, Daily says.

"People are traveling more and expanding their looks. We are maturing as a country in our likes and dislikes," she says. "People are more tolerant of eclectic mixes. It's like ready-to-wear - you don't see as many suits.

Shoes and purses don't match they way they did 30 or 40 years ago."

"Black is like the quintessential black dress," Daily says. "It always works."

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