apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

This may just be an issue with photo quality, but it doesn't seem to me that your furniture works with the blue wall. That may be part of the problem you're having.

This isn't a super-helpful response either, but my apartment looks exactly like yours, and my furniture's set up the exact same way! You don't live in Gramercy, do you? (I know there are probably apts like this all across the city...)

I also have a similar brown sofa. I am going to try a cream rug from IKEA--cream textured squares on cream background. Will let you know how it goes.

This may just be my current obsession talking, but I think a shag or sheepskin or flokati rug in cream or white would play beautifully against both the darker colors and the clean lines of your furniture. It may be a bit more modern than you're looking for, but the softness would just make that room and look lovely against your blue wall.

Are you going to get any kind of window treatment?

Lori,

I think you can get a lot more interest and versatility out of a traditional influenced styled rug. Due to all the sleekness that you have working in the room, texture would be the key here. The more the better and the warmer your space will look. I would strongly advise you to look for a blended rug. If you get plenty of sunlight from your window, natural fibers will fade over time. Blended rugs will fade as well but are less resistant. Your choice of cream would look lovely, but the sunlight can turn them yellowish. Have you explored FLOR?This could be a great product for you in your situation. The tiles can be easily replaced if any sun damage does occur. Just a thought….
Best of luck!

Go for bold! Check out Angela Adams: http://www.angelaadams.com/woolrugs.php

We have an orange Crispina rug, which we love. I think it's a happy medium of traditional and modern. Traditional b/c of it's woven style, but modern b/c of it's bold texture and color. Also, they're made from recycled sweaters. Check 'em out: http://www.crispina.com/collections/rugs.html

http://www.flickr.com/photos/13528704@N03/1440260440/in/set-72157602167937603/

I'll second Koikub above about the use of a Flor-composed rug. The old pattern Thick-n-Thin use to have a selection with a sort of robin's egg blue and taupes or greys as I can best recall and it might tie the odd color of your room to the modern look of your furniture while also give you some desperately needed pattern. Lots of potential in the lovely space.

Is the couch brown? It looks mauve on my computer screen. If it's brown, I take back my earlier comment.

Traditional. I have bought a few "old" Persians from a guy off of Ebay, $200 and up... very satisfied for the price. So much more interesting than having your place look like a West Elm showroom.

Hey Lori,

I'm like JV, a shag rug would look nice. I also think that a rug with a modern print that pulls all the colors together (a bit of brown, a bit of blue, ..) would be nice.

I wouldn't go too traditional, but why not try a modern pattern, like these (the round rug could be interesting):
http://www.2modern.com/site/ProductImages/angelaadams/nasturtium-dusk5.jpg
http://www.2modern.com/site/ProductImages/angelaadams/fern-suede.jpg
http://www.floordecor.com.au/images/rugs/finest_modern_rugs.jpg

Good luck on your search and show us the final result :)

I would opt for some kind of pattern to liven up the space. From my screen it looks like your couch is brown. If it is, perhaps a modern geometric motif rug tying in brown and blue?

I love the pottery barn wool rugs as well. Is there one in particular you liked for the space? I like the idea of mixing one of those into a more modern room. Is the stepevi rug you liked pictured on their website (http://www.stepevi.com)?

Go with a traditional Persian or Turkish carpet, with lots of taupes, grays, browns, and blues. It will help give your modern furniture a bit of history and richness.

Right now....I'm all about Persian/Turkish rugs, I want to add a bit of warmth/age/richness/classic feel to my place and I came to the conclusion that that was the only way to do it.....I'm over all these modern rugs!

But a thick shag might look good in that place...

Thanks for all the comments!!! Very helpful although its seems like its still 50/50 on the traditional vs. modern. :) Even within the same posts!!!

I'm going to try to answer all of the questions:

Lisa Hunter: The couch and ottoman are chocolate linen velvet. The pics didn't come out so great but it's a very dark, rich brown.

Jan Brady: No, I don't live in Gramercy. Brooklyn Heights
and please let me know how your cream rug looks.

JV: yes, I was thinking of getting some nice window panels on the sides of my pleated shades to soften up the room. Not a super priority right now however.
jlg: Do you know the name of the guy on ebay you purchased your Persian rug?

I really like cantabrigian1's idea about the Crispina rug and M2JL's idea about the round rug. Thanks! Not sure about the Flor. I think I saw them in the new CB2 store and wasn't thrilled. Any comments?

Lizzykewl: I was thinking about the Neela Rug at PB which has the blue of my wall and also alot of red on the border to liven up the room. I have been reading here on AP that shedding is a problem with them. No, the Stepevi rug wasn't on the website. It's on sale at ABC right now. It's expensive but has alot of texture.

Thanks again.

ooo i like the Neela one too!

I had a real problem with FLOR. I tried to put it in my daughter's room and they never really stuck to the floor--there were always little spaces between the squares. I was not happy and threw them all away.

I am really into Kilims and have been searching for the perfect one myself! I think one with lots of rich colors would warm up your place a lot. I really love Kilims with modern decor. The Eames did this in their famous Case Study house in Ca to great effect!