apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

For the hall I would suggest painting the entire space, trim and all, in a single color. High-gloss white or slate grey, or even melon orange would be fantastic. The key is the gloss. (I lean towards a darker color)

Hanging art I would only suggest directly across from doors--so that entering the hall you see the art. Otherwise, mid-hall, a person cannot appreciate it effectively.

The floating sideboards is a great idea.

Do you plan on keeping the TV in the livingroom?

That fire place is gorgeous.

At the end of the hallway, where it looks like the hall veers off to the left, put in a *large* mirror to reflect light and appear bigger...?

What a gorgeous space ! Based on other Victorians I've seen, the best way to deal with the long narrow rooms is to have more than one seating area. For instance, put a small table with two small chairs (or a window seat) by the window, and a sofa-chair combo near the fireplace. In the dining room, have a small chaise or writing desk on the far end of the room in addition to the dining table/chairs.

Victorian rooms can go wrong when there's only one seating area and the "dead space" becomes a home for storage and clutter.

As for the hallway- there was a post about long narrow halls last week on AT. It should be in the archives.

Lisa Hunter (Montreal) et al., that post about hallways (with links to other posts about hallways) is at the bottom of the post under Related Posts.

I'd get two large shelving units to put on either side of your fireplace. You can either put the tv above the mantle or put it in one of the shelves on either side.

You could do floating sideboards...
...but do you want to use them to house the TV and other media components? If so, do you want the wires to dangle from the bottoms of the credenzas to the electrical hookups in the baseboards? Remember - because you have plaster walls, they're going to be difficult to work with to install hanging cabinets and move/add electrical boxes to the inside of the cabinets - and if you want shelves above it's going to be just as difficult to install end-to-end. I'd suggest traditional built-ins that rest on the floor and use baseboards that match the rest of the room as a toekick - something designed to compliment the existing architecture in your space rather than a contemporary affterthought.

I'd get a professional interior designer who has experience with media and has resources for custom cabinetry to come in and help you design your space.

I love the idea of some floating shelves, but instead of a mirror, I would strongly encourage you to consider a mirrored cabinet for over the mantel to house your television. Having the tv off to the side of the fireplace like that takes the focus away from the fireplace and makes the space seem unbalanced.

I would also consider (depending on your POV) replacing the heavy top trim of the the paneling in the hallways. It draws the eye down the hall and accentuates the narrow-long-ness of the hall. You might also consider going with a darker-on-bottom-lighter on top scheme for paint. I think that bold lines would help widen the feel.

you have a gorgeous place! i like the idea of the floating credenzas... or even some floating shelves in a crisp white to match your trim (as long as you know they will be secure in the old walls). that way, you can mix the old with the new without detracting too much from the beautiful fireplace and mantel. what were you planning to use the nooks for? if you have a huge book collection and plan to display it there, then i would definitely go with built-ins... if it is done well, it will add a lot of value to your home. i do also like the idea of either hanging the tv above the mantel (the mirrored cabinet that Delairen is talking about sounds great) or just finding another place for it. having it next to the fireplace seems a little odd to me.

I would strongly recommend putting your TV on top of the fireplace. My living room set up was almost identical to yours, with the TV & components on a stand to the left of the fireplace. I finally removed the TV from the base and have actually just set it on the mantle, leaning against the wall (as opposed to having it mounted to the wall). I secured it with earthquake velcro. I LOVE IT.

I was really concerned about it looking too modern/cheesey/making it the focal point of the room. But the TV looks great up there, and it freed up the space to the left of my fireplace for additional seating. I put my components in this: http://tinyurl.com/6oq2yr. Maybe not your style, but something tall and narrow would fit the bill.

Hi Tamara,
Beautiful space - That dark neutral color in your living room area looks great with your fireplace- May I ask what paint color that is?

one more thing -- I was also worried having the TV on top of the fireplace would be too high. Because obviously, it was way above "eye-level." But I adjusted immediately, and everyone who has seen it says it works perfectly.

First, I love those white vases against that beautiful wall color and the crisp white trim.

Second, I would put the tv on top of the fireplace, but I don't know how one puts DVD players on there since I've never had a fireplace.

Lastly, instead of floating sideboards, why not get two matching cabinets covered in mirrors? I love how they keep the space looking open. I'm not so sure it's modern contemporary, but it could be another option to put the TV on instead of the fireplace.

I chose a very light very glossy sage green for my hallway. I hung pictures across from the main entrance to the hallway in dark wood frames and hung a very contemporary light across from the doorway to the bathroom. The other two doorways to the hall face each other so I couldn't hang anything in front of each other, but I definitely recommend putting art, lighting or mirrors across from each doorway. The previous owners had a framed mirror on the door of the closet at the very end of the hall, and it does wonders to bring in light and make the hall feel huge. With your long hallway and nicely spaced out doorways, I would hang large pieces across from each door.

Go modern and mix of classical with the lighting and furnature. I wouldn't worry too much about painting color on the walls they would look best white. Glossy white sounds the best option. Keep the color in the furniture. As far as a mirror- stay classical- don't fight that architecture with too much modern- keep the "bones of everything" classic, and the furniture modern.

No tv on top of fireplace. mirror to the ceiling sounds more dynamic.

One more thing. Definately do floor to ceiling built in cabinetry on either side of the fireplace for storage. Put the tv on some small table with wheels or something. I love all the white molding its beautiful! Don't put that tv above the fireplace. A tv can't be that important.

We're also in the process of renovating our older house - I totally agree with the posts that encouraged you to try and maintain the integrity of the "bones" and keep things fairly traditional in terms of the architectural details. Like you, we've got a similar "mod" esthetic when it comes to most of our furniture, but we're trying to offset that with Victorian detailing (even adding some where it was lacking). I think this actually works really well.

Also, we're right in the middle of doing our fireplace alcoves too. We decided to go with a built in "table top" (floating?) shelf that matches the wainscoting on the walls (at about 2 feet of the ground), with (self built) movable storage units below for stereo, DVD, Speakers etc. (the table top shelves are made of wooden slats that allow any power cables to be easily hidden below and behind the storage units). The effect is that it looks integrated into the existing (Victorian) wainscoting, but has a slightly more modern look when combined with the storage units below. We went with a circular mirror above the fireplace that works really nicely to offset all of our square edges in the rest of the room. I wish I had a picture of this so you could take a look (I need to take some shots soon I guess…).

Also – I love the warm grey you have going on! Similar to the color we chose for our kitchen (this i do have pics of):

http://www.flickr.com/photos/23096232@N04/2782699644/

But yours is warmer – makes me want to repaint a shade more brown on our walls! Doh!

Tamara-

I have some experience working with Victorian homes. You can look at my work at erinowes.com and get ahold of me through the contact info on the page if you are interested in any help.

I have to ask; if your taste runs to cocoa-coloured walls, white lacquered furniture and "modern contemporary", why on earth did you buy a Victorian house?

hank you so much everyone for your amazing, thoughtful comments (and keep em' coming :)). For the hallway, I like the idea of having a large mirror at the end of the hallway to bring in light. We would also like to get a really nice chandelier as the first visual for when people walk in.

In terms of the living room. I was never wedded to having the television in the side nook, and agree that it feels a little off balance. However, there really aren't many other options for placement, other than of course above the fireplace. (Which I thought would be too high and too much of a focal point--but maybe not!). We looked into built ins, but I was nervous that they would make the place look too cluttered--not to mention the cost. We are desperately in need of storage though, so built ins, large cabinets, or those floating credenzas are a must.

Juliunruly I would love to see you solution for holding your media, but your link isn't working. Delairen I love the idea of a mirrored cabinet for the TV above the fireplace...do you have any examples? I am not sure if I have seen anything like that.

For the color in the living room, we used Benjamin Moore's Iron Gate, and in the adjoining room we used Waynesboro Taupe, which I love even more.

Any suggestions on what to put in the adjoining part of the living room? Right now all we have is a chair and desk. I love the idea of another sitting area but I am not sure how we would lay it out.

Blandwagon asks, why a Victorian? Do you have to ask?

THANK YOU ALL.

I've looked all over for a picture for you - but this is the closest I could find, and it's not really what I meant (although it'd be an interesting choice as well)

http://kijiji.ebayimg.com/i14/02/k/000/79/9e/a21f_20.JPG?set_id=1C4000

The idea for it came from a design show that I think I saw on hgtv. They built a wall-mount cabinet for the television, where the cabinet door was an art piece, complete with frame. The frame could just as easily hold a mirror though, I would think. Maybe someone better at searching than I can find the episode.

I really like the idea of the open shelving to either side of the fireplace-- you can put the tv on one of them and place minimal stacks of books or objects on the others. Place large rectangular baskets on the floor beneath the bottom shelf to hold magazines and clutter.

As for the mirror above the fireplace, how about something minimal and luxurious like:
http://www.hudsonfurnitureinc.com/2007/

I'm really not a fan of placing the tv above the fireplace-- it's kind of passe now and says that the TV is the focal point of the room. You want to hide it a bit, and categorize its importance and function with the books and other media.

I would paint the baseboards so there isn't such a screaming contrast between them and the walls.

And as for the hallway, maybe painting the ceiling a darker color would "lower" it visually, so as to change its proporations and make it look wider. Also, maybe a fun wallpaper with a large pattern would "activate" it a bit.

Tamara! hi! my parents are just about finishing building our new house and i'm decorating my room victorian style contemporary! anyways, our wood floors are the same colors as yours and i am going to put a white wainscoting in my room. i was just wondering if by any chance you knew the color of those beautiful grey walls you have? i've been looking and i haven't found one that my heart desires!!! the painter has put up many samples in my room which are very pretty but none of them make me melt! this is just the perfect tone of grey i am looking for. it would be a HUUGE help if you can somehow get the brand and name of the paint for me! thank you so much!! i am sure your apartment turned out beautiful!! thanks again.

Yasamin =)