Author |
Message |
Texannie
Member
07-16-2001
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 9:35 am
Brown is a great neutral to build a room on. Cranberry and sage would look great with what you are going for. Also a dusty blue would work kind of like the blue pillows on my leather couch. Accents of yellow like your sunflowers are good too. Add color with some throw pillows and other accessories. Fill up those corners with some wonderful tall plants. If you want, put down a drurie type rug on top of the carpt to bring in some color. You are off to a great start, you have a great foundation to build from.
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Scooterrific
Member
07-08-2005
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 9:39 am
I like bright and airy! And the lived in look!
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Landi
Member
07-29-2002
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 9:39 am
escapee, i would bring in some cranberry, sage, forest green, rose (southwesty colors). you do have a lot of brown, but you have a good base to start with. now you just need to add color! also, i would replace the two hanging lamps (one in dining and one in kitchen) you need a rustic looking light fixture, possibly can be done with ceiling fans.
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Escapee
Member
06-15-2004
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 9:42 am
Tall plants, you read my mind. I am very into "less is more" but I hate bareness. So far, IMO, I am working with an empty canvas. There's a lot to be done. But, now that the drapes, furniture and painting is done, the fun stuff can begin (antiquing, etc.) Scooter it is actually very bright and airy. 12 foot vaulted ceilings and a lot of light. I just have the drapes closed for effect. There are going to be sheers underneath and the curtains will be pulled back so the cream sheers can let the light in. It is very "lived" in with barbies, books, toys, kids, etc. all over the place. I love that you think it looks like a model home though. In reality it doesn't but hey, we can dream. BTW: I hate southwest. I like rustic, but I try to stay away from the southwest. My couch pillows are being recovered because they have a southwest pattern on them. I don't know why I am turned off to it, I just am. I like western and rustic, but not southwest, go figure.
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Vacanick
Member
07-12-2004
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 9:43 am
I just bought the most beautiful brown leather couch but with the brown entertainment center ... I have to admit it's too much brown. I just found a great Asian print that I'm getting framed. It's in reds, oranges and yellows ... I'm using it to pick out the colors for pillows and accents. Escapee, my brown loving sister, lol ... I do love the art piece over your fireplace. It's beautiful!!! 
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Escapee
Member
06-15-2004
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 9:45 am
$20 at Ross. It's actually a candle holder. I just can't decide on the candles I want to put on it yet. Looking for round candles.
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Yankee_in_ca
Member
08-01-2000
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 9:45 am
Oh and Escapee, I agree that if you start with a neutral palatte (browns, ivories, greys, whites, etc.) you can add color with accessories and accents. Good thinking.
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Costacat
Member
07-15-2000
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 9:47 am
Escapee, I'd pick lighter colors than cranberry and sage. Although sage is a bit light, it's still a wee bit on the darker side. Then again, I'm the light and bright and airy kinda gal. I tend to prefer lighter colored pieces, and bring in the color with accessories and plants. I've had arguments with several people over my choice of tile for the bathroom. I wanted white. I wanted it to blend in and "flow" from the rest of the house (I have light walls and cream carpeting). I had a designer yesterday trying to talk me into stone, for pete's sake. Um, yeah, I looked at stone. It wasn't WHITE ENOUGH. I said it three times and she still didn't listen. And please tell me WHY I WOULD NEED A DESIGNER FOR A SMALL BATHROOM?????? Sheesh!
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Scooterrific
Member
07-08-2005
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 9:51 am
Costa..your place sounds like just the place I'd love!
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Vacanick
Member
07-12-2004
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 9:52 am
This is the picture that's going above my beautiful new brown leather couch. I'm using the colors in it to choose the accent colors for the room. Love it!

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Escapee
Member
06-15-2004
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 9:56 am
OMG THAT IS SO PRETTY! I love that. I am looking into some early american folk art. It would bring in some color without being too bold.
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Yankee_in_ca
Member
08-01-2000
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 10:03 am
Escapee, it sounds like you and my mom decorate in the same way - she has also used folk art as color accent and it really works. I wish I had some pics from their new house...
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Vacanick
Member
07-12-2004
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 10:10 am
Thank you Escapee .. my living room is going to have an Asian feel. 
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Julieboo
Member
02-05-2002
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 10:18 am
Yankee, I would like to know the brand and color name of that green. Escapee, can you have your dh build a mantle for the fireplace? I'd do that and also replace the light fixtures. Your house looks very nice. Oh, I would also get much larger frames with matting for the six photos above your couch. From what I can tell the photos themselves are very cool, but I think they are too small on that big wall. I think the same size photos in much larger frames with larger matting would look very nice. I think your curtain fabric is very cool.
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Darrellh
Member
07-21-2004
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 10:32 am
A quick tip I've used is to take a canvas of the size you want, and staple/nail a piece of fabric to cover it. It's a quick way to add color and design to a room. Later, after you find what you want, you can un-nail the fabric and use it for something else (pillow cover) and you still have a blank canvas to use.
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Escapee
Member
06-15-2004
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 10:34 am
Thanks Julie and Yankee. I took the pictures above the sofa, I know they don't take up enough room, but I am thinking I might put them somewhere else. I want a large rectangular/horizontal picture there, maybe. I know I need new fixtures. We are pricing wrought iron that's got a rusted hugh to it. I never thought about a mantle. The mantle that is has now is 10 inches I think, that'd be nice. My coffee table is a mohagany, wouldn't that be pretty on the fireplace?
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Costacat
Member
07-15-2000
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 11:06 am
Vacanick, I love that print. Although orange is not my fav color (and personally, I'd use the yellows), it's a gorgeous print. Thanks Scooter! My neighbor always laughs at me... I'm so light and she's so dark. She just got thru repainting her entire place. Lots of purples, and then TEAL in the bathroom and office, and BLUE in the dining room. She says she loves color. Well, yeah, me, too. But I don't want my walls to be PURPLE, TEAL, and BLUE! (And that would be every wall, not just an accent wall!) 
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Landi
Member
07-29-2002
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 11:16 am
another thought about those pictures is to have them re-matted all together in a large frame. it would look very cool. and would help with the size problem against your large wall.
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Grooch
Member
06-16-2006
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 11:20 am
Costa, I may not know a lot about decorating, but I would go w/ an off white for a bathroom floor. From personal experience, a bright white floor will show every speck of dirt (and hairs). YUCK! My sister & I lived in the same apt. building 2 floors apart. Her bathroom had white tiles and mine was off white. She had to clean and mop the floor every day to keep it "looking" clean. Plus the grout was a pain also. I could get away w/ a good cleaning once a week, no problem. Both apt's had only 2 adults living in it and working full time. No kids around to make it even worse.
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Grooch
Member
06-16-2006
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 11:21 am
Mocha, did you win that orange material you were bidding on Ebay? (You posted the picture a few archives above.) I loved it! I hope you won it!
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Julieboo
Member
02-05-2002
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 11:31 am
landi is right abut the large frame. You could even have it done custom at Michael's. And then you don't need to worry about hanging them all perfectly aligned.
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Mocha
Member
08-12-2001
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 12:17 pm
Grooch yep I did, just waiting for it to be shipped to me.
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Urgrace
Member
08-19-2000
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 12:32 pm
Yeah Mocha, I was curious to see if you won your sari fabric, too.
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Texannie
Member
07-16-2001
| Wednesday, March 07, 2007 - 2:33 pm
Great news Mocha!! I would never had a white bathroom, white kitchen floor, off white carpet (seeing a pattern here?) again!! shows way too much!
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Yankee_in_ca
Member
08-01-2000
| Thursday, March 08, 2007 - 1:25 pm
The sage green in my parents' old kitchen is an Eddie Bauer paint called (my mom is 90% sure) Valspar. The new paint they have, which is a champagne color and is also very nice (I don't have a good pic) is also Eddie Bauer, called Wicker. She got the paint at Lowe's.
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