Beautiful comforter! I'd either go for crisp white sheets and headboard, plus some tallish narrowish wall hangings (photos or art) that combine the navy and taupe or (because I love the color), use light blue to bridge the navy and taupe. BTW, where'd you get the comforter? It's lovely.

I am not a fan of navy but that's one nice duvet cover (and shams).
Can you drape some fabric behind the bed? Or navy curtains? you can also think of adding a small pop of orange here or there (they are complementary colours).
Congrats on your nice purchase.

Is there anyway you could do a wall or two of temporary wall paper or fabric starch your walls? (very removable). Or, if you plan on being there for a while, ask if you can paint the walls white and return them back to taupe upon your departure.

I'd keep things crisp with lots of white accessories -- a white rug, white sheets, white lamp and shade -- with a few pops of color in the navy/blue family.

What a lovely comforter! Pops of orange could be sweet. Perhaps you could find a large piece of art for above the bed - or make your own with some fabric - with orange predominating. Would be neat to find a sunset scene over a body of water - aglow with orange tones and the navy of the evening water. A chevron in orange and white for a rug, or perhaps curtains (hang them high to show off your tall ceilings!) could inject color, keep it crisp, and if the scale of the chevron approximates the scale of the paisleys it could be a good balance.

We live an apt. where painting walls is not allowed and I think they are going to be sorry whenever we move out! I have gotten around it by hanging very large artwork that infuses color. It has actually been fun & made me think outside the box, going to garage sales and junk stores to find cheap items to use as frames. One of the most spectacular items turned out to be a 42 inch round table top that the glass must have broken out of for $15. I painted it black, then inserted art. Kind of hard to see the scale but copy and paste following to see. http://snootyfox.shutterfly.com/pictures/20

Paint the room. Either offer to replace the color on your way out, extra security deposit may be required, or just paint it anyway then repaint it back to taupe when you move out. The landlord should be happy that you would be moving out with freshly painted rooms than having to paint it to freshen it up themselves.

Hard to tell from the pic, but does that headboard have a wide enough ledge that you could put some accessories on it? I can picture some nice mercury glass vases and candlesticks there. A plush throw rug would be nice under or next to the bed. Maybe a small chandelier above the bed (one that does not need to be hard wired in). I wish we could see more of the room.

I don't understand the problem. That's a lovely comforter, and I think it will look just fine with taupe walls. The way to keep things light and popping is to use white almost everywhere *but* the walls--art in white frames with big white mats, white furniture, white lamps or shades, white curtains, white rug, etc. Work in a bit more navy here and there, and an accent color or two (yellow? gold? orange?) and you'll be good to go.

I don't understand the problem, either. If you have taupe walls you can't paint, put art on the walls for color. Complement the walls and the duvet.

I have a similar problem and color palette in my rental. I went with a white, texture comforter with a white/navy handblocked quilt and white/navy patterned pillows. Mixing up the bedding a bit keeps the bed interesting and draws attention away from less sightly aspects of the room. I used cup hooks, jute twine and two raw, white linen panels to make a canopy over the bed that drapes down behind a canvas headboard. A mix of white and wood furniture helps. Bring the white/navy mix to the window as curtains and then add large artwork in a complementary color, or a tasteful gallery wall (with white, wood and/or metallic frames), or maybe consider an eye-catching mirror. Bring in some texture (baskets, leather, faux fur, etc.) and a plant to top it off. I think it'll be lovely!

Wall decals are a quick, inexpensive way to transform the look of walls and are a perfect for those with limited decorating freedom. (yes...we make wall decals :). Aside from that, an area rug, framed artwork or curtains are a great way to add a pop of color. To stay away from appearting 'too busy', just be careful of how many different patterns you add to the mix. Good luck. The comforter is beautiful.

Hey funstraw- Please, don't advise people to "paint anyway" even though their agreement with their landlord forbids it. That's no way to treat people by violating agreements and trust. It's not cool. The comforter is lovely and I agree that using crisp whites in accent pieces would be very attractive.

Keep it simple. We have taupe walls, a lovely blue patterned duvet (Sand Dollar Percale by LL Bean) and white sheets and pillows. Our furniture (headboard, dresser, nightstands) are all dark wood, and we have simple Black & White canvas paintings on the walls and glass lamps with white shades and a blue ribbon around for trim. For curtains, we have solid blue ones to match the duvet. It's very easy breezy and relaxing - just the way we like it! :)

I think hanging art with crisp white picture frames would make the art pop and the wall will just become a neutral backdrop. Do a gallery wall and tie in your navy color throughout the artwork. Don't introduce too many other colors into the room except through art. Keep a nice crisp monochromatic navy and white in everything else in the room. Use white furniture across the board.

i got this idea from nate berkus; get a multi panel folding screen and dispay it flat behind your headboard.

How weird that someone isn't complaining about the standard rental white for a change.

White furniture would cover up a lot of the wall space and keep things looking crisp (though I think dark wood would also look great with that comforter).

Frame photographs in white; use black and white images to make the frame stand out.

Add a white folding screen somewhere in the room.

White or navy curtains with white sheers would be lovely.

Queen,

Sometimes you have to live outside of the rules to be happy. Just be ready for the consequences.

My first suggestion was to make a deal with the landlord.