apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

I would try just living with it for a while. At Liberace's house, *everything* is velvet or gilded or both. One wild loveseat in an otherwise modern or just modest environment can fare just fine.

Pictures would be good, tho.

I think that without more context it's really hard to say anything useful.

I love that sofa!!

hmmm. can't spend any money, can't re-cover it, and can't provide an actual photo? perhaps you should just drape yourself over it in an alluring way when guests arrive.

can you paint? a couch like the one pictured might look cool against a grey wall. but I'm guessing the one pictured is less intense than true "marigold."

I want that sofa... If Marci's looks anything like that I'm jealous!

I'd just throw some gray or dark gray pillows on it to make it blend better (guessing you have some black or white furniture around). Gray and yellow are killer together. I would go with large throw pillows though, otherwise the couch will take over them.

I *LOVE* the color and the style. I agree that mixing these 2 pieces in with more neutral, modern stuff is just fine, it's a good balance to the wow factor of the couch/loveseat. That yellow color is THE new color of the year according to Pantone, so let them hang out in the open. I have a lot of bursts of bright yellow throughout my house, it's a great accent color. Gorgeous!

Can no-one else see that photo?

Anyhow - I love that couch! Some great chocolate brown pillows or some w/ a neat print would be cool.. Embrace the semi-gaudiness and just OWN it.

Oh wow! it's gorgeous and modern all by itself. Just paint the walls white, keep all other casegood furnishings white or clear and use a bold print or solid upholstery in a complimentary color. SCORE!

Oh - sorry - just saw the editors note that the photo is not Marci's - sorry! But - I still love the couch that IS pictured! =)

If you surround them with modern pieces, they won't look Liberace at all.

Start a piggy bank, skip on some other indulgences, and save up for reupholstering. Nothing else is going to fool anyone.

What popped into my head was a grey menswear type of tweedy (?) upholstery.

That couch says to me: "Save up and dress me up nice and I'll be good to you for years and years."

I agree with other posters to balance out the brightness of the yellow with gray, maybe in a variety of tones (charcoal, and some lighter grays that stray towards a steely blue). I have a rather large painting done predonimently in yellows in my living room, and I've found that gray is a good complement.

If you're not exactly sure which colors will work best, go to a paint store and browse the paint chips. You can bring several that you like home with you and get at least some idea of how various colors will work in your space. And then you can bring the chips with you when you go to buy pillows or fabric to make pillows. This is, I am sure, an old trick of the trade that I am just picking up on. Paint chips are my new favorite decorating tool.

I am SOOO jealous! And I ADORE the color.

This can absolutely work with a modern interior. As so many designers have said, every modern room needs something old. A counterpoint. An unexpected punch. A shot of life. Uniformity in decor is boring; it is juxtapositions that make rooms interesting.

And in reality, the lines of this piece are relatively simple. It also has a rather low slung profile; I'm guessing it is from the 50s.

There are many approaches one could take. It is hard to offer specific suggestions without knowing more about your space, but here are a few thoughts:

1) This yellow can work with almost any color scheme. Even your bag (the soft blue-green) looks great with it. So the yellow can be blended/matched to existing colors, or you can use it as a accent color (for example, a monochromatic room with the yellow as the only shot of color)

2) Keep the sofa relatively "clean" --- don't go crazy with pillows or busy throws. Think of it as a piece of functional art -- you wouldn't want to obscure it completely. Pillows and throws should not upstage the sofa.

3) I'd also consider storing one of the pieces, or using it in another part of the house. Part of the success of the "antique counterpoint" is that it does not come in the form of a matched suite. It is just one item.

Oops. Just saw that this is not your sofa. My comments are still relevant, but you have to provide an image for anything other than the "sweeping generalities" we've offered.

arroyo - the couch pictured is not the actual couch.

Hmmm. It's hard to say without a photo of the sofa in question, to be honest.

They're probably ok the way they are.

Keep them or store them...they will mix well with modern. That yellow is very classic you can add a mustard color wall and warm white paint in your space. Mix and add brown or charcoal, or greens in similar tones (citrus, sage). You can go dramatic or young, hip and fresh..so many ways to incorporate.

If you like them you can make it work : ) Eclectic is not a bad thing! You can always pull other colors in with some great pillows.

great pillows can definitely change the look of a couch. check out thomas paul or anthropologie for some great ones!

I was gonna comment on the super cool looking sofa...until I realized that it is not the sofa in question.

That is an awesome sofa, buuut it's not yours. I'm still jealous though, I want a vintage velvet sofa so badly, but my boyfriend does not :( I agree with everyone else though, just pull the look together with pillows and throws.

I love the couch in the photo too! Hopefully yours is just as lovely. Well...without photos, and using my imagination only, this is what I suggest. If there's any wood showing, update it with a paint color to match the rest of your decor (i.e. glossy white, black etc etc). Then a few funky, modern or retro throw pillows (not to matchy-matchy) to help bring it into the current century! Do you have any old cool sweaters that aren't really wearable anymore? Cut and sew into nice pillow cover (or cut and have a tailor sew)....the possibilities are endless!

If you can't afford a full recover you could try having just the seat cushion done (assuming that its similar to the one above)

Pick a big graphic modern print and have the cushion covered. At the very least this says "I'm trying". Also - save your pennies (and quarters too). I make a point of tossing all my extra change - especially after laundry - into a jar that i ONLY touch for indulgent purposes.

Just think - if your morning coffee is $2.10 and you give $3 - thats $.90 a day you could toss into your change jar.

LOVE the sofa! It is very, VERY, Dialogica! To me it resembles the Diva Sofa, and aches to be covered in deep red velvet.

To get an idea how such a piece works in a modern interior -- one that bears NO resemblance to Liberace! -- check out the Dialogica website paying particular attention to the press section. One of my favorites is a piece on Monique and Sergio Savarese's Pennsylvania weekend house, "the Appeal of Austerity". Also, check out the Interiors section.

This is a GREAT piece to build with, and is far more versatile than you realize!

http://dialogica.com/category_splash/frames_flash.html

Oooh! I'm jealous too! You are probably (literally) sitting on a real gem....

Totally agree with a grey feature wall- and crisp white skirting boards would accent this nicely.

Not one for matching everything, I would mix cushions up a little (in terms of colour, pattern & fabric texture). Any of the following would look amazing: Black & White simple graphic patterned print, I'm also thinking Navy (leaning more towards a deep purple/Navy) would look great- simple & sophisticated (maybe also in a velvet, but with a feather based insert so it sits more relaxed, a rich red/pink could look pretty amazing too (in a silk shantung or something similar- I would make this cushion a smaller, rectangular shape & plump), a rectangular cushion in a white linen with a smaller, wide edged Navy rectangle outline/border sewn within. I can see the room in my head and I know it could look really great!

Mustard/Marigold?, Navy, Magenta/Red-Pink, Grey with accents of Black & White.

Alternatively, if the colour of the sofa is a lighter brighter yellow (cleaner looking with more white in it): I have an old nursing chair in this colour and it sits against a brown (sort of chocolate with a very subtle olive tinge) feature wall and looks amazing (believe it or not!)- I have a zebra striped cushion on it (which is more subdued and earthy rather than tacky). It seems to work really well. The skirting boards are also white. So maybe the answer is, if your sofa is more of a mustard, "dirty" yellow- lift it with richer bolder colours (have fun & throw in some jewel toned colour- if not the pink, then maybe a jewel toned blue) and if it is a lighter more "clean" yellow, some earthier colours combined again with some black & taupe would help ground it.

I also agree that if you keep your other furniture contemporary, clean, simple lines then the sofa will act as a striking contrast. If you can't afford new furniture (something in clear perspex would look great!), maybe something could benefit from a lick of paint- either white or glossy black to simplify and modernise say an older piece that you could pick up on ebay or from a garage/yard sale etc.

Of course, this is all just one person's opinion- I'm sure you have many options & directions you could take it. Sorry for the long post! (I am passionate about this stuff!)

Please post a photo so we can all see what we're talking about! (some before and afters would be cool when you get around to making over the room).

You could accessorise it with cushions in plain dark blue and red - make the whole thing a feast of primary colours, that way the whole package would be a focal point, rather than just the couch itself. Then you could still keep the rest of the room modern/plain.