apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

You are insane. Your floors are beautiful! People pay thousands of dollars to have floors like that.
I would paint your trim white. Don't paint your walls white though...too stark. Go with a cool tone. Like a cool gray or muted blue.
Your furniture is what needs to change. Get rid of those muddy browns and use some whites and colors.
For your kitchen, put in a color on the backsplash. Green looks great with cherry.

i think the floors are beautiful as well! i think if you want brighter, go with a robin's egg blue or something that has a cool tone but a bright one as well. is that your furniture in the picture? if so, i think you have unintentionally picked a place with floors that match your furniture- there is quite a bit of brown there!

I agree, beautiful place and great kitchen cabinets. I agree with painting the trim as well as the fireplace; that looks like a black whole in your living room that stands out. If you want more light, use light. Try some ceiling mounted spotlights or a skylight if possible or a 'solatube'. Nice use of Floor lamps and candles though. Mirrors are another simple, yet effective solution!

oh two more things- 1. your place is very lovely (i don't think i mentioned that) 2. my office has the same dark wood trim everywhere and our walls are a buttery yellow with a bit of orange in it. it sounds kind of strange but it is very warm and inviting

yes, definitely paint the wall/window trimming white. it would look so much better.

i think you should get rid of the rug underneath your sectional and choose a lighter/bright color along with the pillows on your couch. it's just too dark in my opinion, especially if you want to brighten things up.

paint the trim white (or cream) and give the walls some color. it will make the whole thing pop better. I think you could work around your netural sofa but that rug has got to go.

I think you need some blue here, something cool.

I am in agreement, the floors are wonderful! I also agree that you have too much brown as it is with the furnishings shown and your living room rug is too small. I'd go with a white shag that is just a bit wider than the sectional, but place it so the right side is flush w/ the carpet's edge and let it extend the other two directions for it can then be more effective as a visual delineation for a seating group.

Paint the fireplace a much lighter color and one thing, the kitchen cabinets are a bit dark and if you are not getting a lot of light in the kitchen, those dark cabinets will absorb the light. Do not be afraid to utilize artificial lighting for when it's dark and gloomy outside and in the evenings/nights but what you need to do is assess the lighting coming in now through your windows and see how bright the room is, without anything dark in it as possible to get an idea of just how bright it can get.

White, unless you go with something like antique white with crisp white for the window etc trim will work fine without being stark but I'd also look into lighter colors too for they will visually expand the room and allow light to bounce around. Dark colors will absorb, lighter colors will bounce and white as accents as in a conversation area like I mentioned above and go with less brown if you can.

Hope this helps

I think the floors and cabinets are gorgeous, but I can see how it can make the place feel dark and cave-like, especially if you don't get a lot of sun light.

I think white walls would cause a lot of contrast with the cherry, and make the floors and cabinets look even darker. I would suggest:

* painting the walls a creamy/yellowy color - like butter cream frosting. This will help warm it up, but also (hopefully) tone down the look of the floors.

* area rugs! In the third photo there is a lot of naked floor. Some light colored rugs would brighten things up. Also, I don't think the living room rug is helping the situation as it's rather dark toned as well. I think a fluffy flokati or felted wool rug in a natural color (off-white) would be spectacular.

* trim: I am with you, I hate wood trim. But, if it's varnished it will likely bleed through the paint and look like crap. Instead, I would suggest investing in some nice drapes and hanging them in a way to cover the top and sides of the windows. If you have the budget, silk drapes would offer a marvelous luster.

Good luck!

PS - the floor in my kitchen is a dark reddish-brown wood like your cabinets. I painted my kitchen eggplant purple and it looks divine with the floor color. So, maybe instead of focusing on brightening things up with light colors, embrace the dark wood and play off it. Also, some halogen lights really help a lot too.

Change the rug for something larger and lighter in colour. Also change the brown pillows on the sofa for something more colourful.

Maybe try some sheer drapes - go wider than the actual window size to draw your eye up without blocking light coming in.

Your woodwork looks quite nice (at least in the photos). I'd leave it alone.

As others have commented, a blue or green rug, pillows and throw would liven things up. That may be all you need. Some window treatments might be good.

I would not paint the trim white. What you have is beautiful, and I think you will regret messing with it.

ooooooo I love the wood. I'd paint the walls a muted color like a pale moss/sage. Beige walls always feel darker than they are to me. Maybe some crown molding in eggshell? Then maybe bring in a little color to the couch with throw pillows, maybe in a sage or light teal. Some tall sheer colored drapes...

I'm not so good with kitchen color though. Maybe some sheer colored drapes there?

I second the above votes for halogen lights... I use them and the white lighting bouncing off the ceiling helps open up my living room. I also really dig the idea of a rich color in the kitchen, as suggested by an above poster.

i like white walls and there are plenty of designs showing darker floors with white walls. Could you stain the floors to match your cabinets?

i also think your kitchen reads heavy. a couple of ideas : remove the upper cabinets at the corner/back wall and tile to the ceiling with a back splash of reflective tile like white subway tiles or glass mosiacs. you could add cabinet storage under your half wall/breakfast bar if you need the lost storage. paint the upper cabinets white or light gray (i know heresy to some) to lighten their impact and coordinate the tile with your color choice. paint out your island (white/gray/blue).

as for the trim. i again like white. consider painting the inner egdes in gloss for added reflectivity.

Paint nice colors - like a light blue in kitchen. Acessorize with punches of color. How about some colorful canisters on the counter? Fiestaware maybe?

Switch the rug out for something lighter and larger like a sisal rug. Get some bright striped yellow curtains and pillows to match. That will brighten it up. Make the curtains floor length and extending past the sides of the windows a few feet -so that they frame the couch as well as the window. They won't block the light if you don't close them but they will soften the room and could provide a punch of color as well as a frame. You could add a lighter, brighter occasional chair too. I'd suggest a bigger plant - like a palm in the corner between the couch and the fireplace.

How about an accent color on the wall below the stairs? Or a colorful runner carpet for that area? It seems kind of large and empty. You could move the plant and make a fun display there too - with a console table and colorful prints, or a desk.

Consider your lighting choices too. You seem to have a few lamps that may be too small for the scale of the room.

I wouldn't mess with the woodtrim or cabinets until I was sure that I'd tried other less permanent changes first.

Painting the walls and moldings white won't make the room brighter - just more boring.

First, I'd paint the ceiling a pale sky blue and get some color on the walls - perhaps a warm gold-tone to contrast w/ the red/brown woods and black stonework. Then I'd choose a bright glass mosaic tile for the kitchen backsplash - probably in a sea green/aqua/gold mix.

Finally, you need brighter furnishings: a large 9x12 ivory patterned rug (such as the pixel crewel rug or coral crewel rug on wshome.com), sofas and chairs in summer-y fabrics (pale blue linen sofa and navy blue & white ikat chairs?) with accent pillows/artwork in corals, oranges and reds. Breezy ivory linen curtains with pale-blue banded edges to tie in with the sofa fabric. Don't neglect the lighting either: I'd choose blue & white chinese ceramic lamps on painted or lighter-toned wood tables and a circular chrome and glass coffee table. Finally, a large circular/octagonal mirror above the fireplace in a silver-toned frame.

Your hallway also needs more of the same treatment: a nice Asian painted-wood cabinet/credenza with a lamp on top - and a long runner (don't match the rug in the living room - go for some contrast)

Paint out the trim. (When is trim in newer homes anything other than stingy and ugly?) Replace the rug. While blues and sages will look pretty with the cabinetry, if you really want to lighten and brighten the whole place use orange or mango or egg yolk or squash in the kitchen and living room and perhaps a much lighter version in the hallway. The right colour will make those cabinets sing for the joy of it. Slap up some prints or photos with white matting on those walls and, of course, coordinating pillows on the couch.

1. yes paint the trim
2. go with an ivory/cream rug, it will contrast your furniture and floor nicely- maybe a shag.
2. bring some bright colors in with pillows, curtains- flanking the windows- dont cover them, and other accessories
3. a vase of pretty bright fresh flowers do wonders for a room! bring some in the kitchen and maybe on the coffee table!
4. i think a light buttery yellow would look good in the kitchen

your home is lovely! i think it just needs some accessorizing.

I paint my ceilings high gloss white to reflect light back down into the rooms. Nearly any light colored high gloss paint is likely to do the same.

I have very similar floors and cabinets, also dark, with dark fireplace, dark stairs AND a dark sectional, even darker than yours :). I do have white trim though, that brightens it up a lot. My walls are a warm light beige color. I don't have my place decorated all the way yet, but I plan to use light and bright throw pillows, light rug, light table lamps and light roller shades, too. Should be plenty to brighten it up.

The "problem" with your kitchen is the granite - it's too dark, so there is no contrast. Since that's not so easy to change - try to create some contrast with accessories.

You have a very beautiful house. I love it!

Good luck!

My opinion, in general, is to find a 'contrasting'/bright color for your 'accessories', such as: throw pillows, lamp shades and window treatments.

It may be a little more affordable than painting or re-doing your floors, which I think should just stay put. Your floors are "Ultra-gorgeous", if you will.

I'm about to move into a new place with similar issues to you. Your window is a lot bigger than mine, so you are lucky. Contrary to what most people are saying I actually would paint everything white, including the trim. If you can afford it, I would make the floors darker. I think the contrast against the white walls would make the room appear brighter. I would move the sectional away from the window so that more light can get through. Maybe make the window the focus of the room. And if you can afford it, I would try to get paler furniture. Another trick I read about in a 50s interior design book was to include reflective/shiny surfaces.

As for your kitchen, I would do the same. I think the cabinets are way too dark. I'd paint them all a shade of white and then perhaps paint the wall/splashbacks a brighter colour for some contrast. Or put in some shiny tiles. (Pale blue or green I think would work) But I'd love to see a bright canary yellow (shocking I know, but I think that it would work well the the black granite). I like white, black and yellow together.

I think bigger plants into the lounge room would be great.

I support your idea of painting everything white!

Oh, also, perhaps if you go with the idea of removing some of the cabinetry near the window, you could perhaps replace them with open shelves where you could display some of your prettier items.

You've got a lot of space to work with... good luck!