I would paint because I think the red does pull the eye down and you don't notice the wonderful wood and brick. But if you think you like it, live with it a bit and see how you feel.

That color is kind of awesome if you like the drama of it. There's probably a warm white that would work with the darker woods and the other colors you have in there. Another halfway solution would be something like paining 3 of the walls white and leaving a red accent wall if you wanted to keep some of the color and drama. The red looks kinda cool with the brick though.

Go with the white. I think it will make the space look bigger.

How fun to start in a completely new space at the New Year! Lucky girl. :)

Go with something light and bright, like yellow.

I think if the ceiling and the walls were the same color, the space would look much larger and your eye would be drawn more the beams and hardwood floors.

Go with a white

I would at least paint the short wall (see first small picture). I think it should be the same color as the ceiling b/c it really cuts the flow off having it contrast so much.

I vote for a light color too.

I vote for paint + a professional to do it. That dark color is going to require a frillion coats of Killz.

The red with the angled ceilings feels to me like the sky is falling, a little. Painting the walls similar to the ceiling might "push it up".

When we bought our house, all the rooms were painted jewel tones. Nice as colors, but it felt like a series of caves to me.

I love red walls since I have a bunch of salsa red items, but I would only keep one wall red as an accent wall and paint the others beige to lighten up the area. But if you really hate the color you can always pick another color as for an accent wall.

what about a contemporary gray? it seems to fit with the colors you list for your personal items. best wishes - great place!

http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/for-your-home/rooms-by-color/crisp-contemporary-living-room

I agree with BonnieProject: walls and ceilings the same (light) color. The nice floors and beams are lost and all that red reminds me of a 1980's era formal dining room.

And for the love of god, don't use ceiling paint; with low slanted ceilings, you'll be constantly aware of how cheap and flat (read dead) it is. Plus it will show every hand print and they won't wash off.

A warm white (not an off white) would be lovely in that space.Use the same white on the walls and ceiling. It will be lovely with the brick and wood tones, and cozier than a stark white.

Dunn Edwards Lily (off white with touch of yellow/brown) for all walls combined with Swiss Coffee. Paint brick Swiss Coffee eggshell. The place will end up light and elegant -- and allow the space/lines/architecture to shine. (Sloping Ceiling should be SC flat.)

Before jumping in, I'd take time to explore "What if we kept the red?" What stuff that you already have would you use? What direction would it drive you in? Does it sound like an interesting adventure? The fact is, once you have gone for white (which will itself take quite a lot of work) you will never again be able to experiment with this out-of-the-way colour. If, once you have spent a few months with it, you say "OK, I've had it, let's go white!" fair enough. But imagine if, in a few months time, you were saying, "Y'know, I understand now why the red was there..."

You don't need to use Kilz to cover red (or any dark colour). A good primer and 2 coats of good quality paint will do fine. Kilz is good for covering bad stains or knots in wood like pine, but is otherwise unneeded. Know your paint (and your painter).

Agree with Aninhas . . . warm white.

Its still hard to tell without being in the apartment, but I might paint the walls a light to medium gray and the ceilings a dove white, or a silvery gray. Perhaps the wall by the bricks - is that a fireplace - a richer color such as charcoal, plum...... with large mirrors or paintings on either side for drama and contrast.

I agree with BonnieProject and amyfaith. Paint the same light colour as it sounds like you already have colourful accessories. The light colour will set off the architectural details and make those gorgeous floors come out. I personally feel that the high contrast of the red and white makes the room look choppy and draws the eyes to the corners.

If it's growing on you, why not live with it a while; or at least calculate how much it's going to cost $ & self or someone else labor to thoroughly cover the red and then decide whether you want to paint. If it's a warm red (& it looks kind of red magenta on my monitor) then I'd try to work with it, have fun with it. If it is actually more magenta & not maroon, .....urk...see about painting. Either way, have fun with it. Ask the landlord what colors have been used in the past.

I would paint, too, like many others. With the geometry of the place it feels busy with the dark color.

I am with western tizzler - that color is awesome. I would find a color in the same family, lighter or darker, to paint the ceiling. I think the color would enhance what you want to do. You could play with texture of rugs and metallic mirrors and frames. If you use red and purple, tip the yellow towards green as the perfect contrast. The color will bring some coziness to a large space. Use mirrors across from the windows to increase the natural light.

I like the red, but I would paint--I agree with other posters that the contrast doesn't work so well with the slanted walls. I like the suggestions of grey with the wood and brick.

Since you're renting DO NOT paint the brick--I think I saw that suggested somewhere.

Oh, and I love Laura W's suggestion of charcoal or plum with grey.

Hi Sara,

You have a great space, with wonderful hardwood floors, cool brick, nice door frames -- even the paneling looks good (never thought I would say that)! Each of these elements has some warmth to it, which is not bad. However, it seems to me that a red that is as deep and warm as the one here is making the place feel too warm, and dark, almost oppressive. I would definitely suggest going with a much lighter color to balance things out and bring some light to the room. Personally, I am a huge fan of gray color, which "acts" colder around warm colors, and warm around cold colors. So a light, cool gray is what I would go with.

Having said that, it seems that you are really liking the red, which I definitely think would go with your style. Check it out for couple of more days/weeks/months, and then decide whether you'd go for something different.

Best of luck,
LT

What if you went with two coordinating colors but use the darker of the two on the wall with the peak and use the lighter on the walls where the ceiling is low? The one color on the low wall and ceiling should help get rid of that sharp low line. Meanwhile, you can have your fun color on the wall that reaches the apex of the peak so it doesn't visually bring the ceiling lower but still adds some drama.

Whatever coordination or color you chose, you'll need a paint that has serious depth. I think they may be called full spectrum paints or something but don't quote me in that. :-) Anyway, the reason I mention it is you'll want a paint that doesn't get muddy or grim when light gets scarce (and it will) because of the low ceilings. Even a white can do it, so I'm not talking about color in this paragraph. I have beige walls in my apartment and that paint is flatter than a poorly prepared pancake and it gets gray and dull in shadow despite being a light color.

What if your accent wall was painted with metallic rust stencil over a nice semi-gloss solid? That could add just enough glimmer without going too far. Personally, my favorite application was a simple moroccan trellis pattern in a dark gray metallic with purple influences over a semi gloss dove gray. That's not the pattern or color scheme you probably want but I wanted to explain how I've seen it done successfully.

You may consider a smooth yellow - not butter or lemon - with rustier red accent wall and copper metallics.

I nice beigy grey. It would add warmth and dimension to the room and accent the interesting roof angles. BM Greige perhaps?

Natural light is the decider.

Our double upper flat is painted white throughout except for the smallest bedroom which is yellow (previously painted terrecotta then white and neither worked) and north facing.

Our other two bedrooms have been peach and buttercup in the north facing peach worked but not buttercup and in the south facing a turquorise blue which for a nursey worked really well

If you do decide to go a lighter colour it can take many coats of paint but it is usually worth it and i am told a coat of grey before white helps.

Here's sorta what I was talking about:

http://courtneyoutloud.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/stencil-wall.jpg

And yes that's paint not wallpaper. He's got a tutorial on it. :-)

I'd live with it with my own stuff, window coverings for a while to see if I didn't like it. Chances are you will get used to it or not notice it. I'd only change it if it still bothered me after a month. If you have much art a lot of it will be covered up anyway.

White! Please!

Nice color but not for that space. There are charming architectural details, but my eye is pulled in too many different directions to land on them. Painting the walls and ceiling in the entire apartment the same warm neutral color is my vote.

I like the idea of all white.... all those vents and outlets would disappear...it would be like living in a cloud!

That color is horrible and really dated -- like somebody upthread said, it looks like the color people did below the chair rail in a formal 80s dining room. Your decorating style/colors sound a lot like mine, though (I even have a chair covered in fabric similar to the red wall color!). I used a really warm gray on my walls -- Behr Granite Boulder -- and a deep, warm charcoal on my accent wall -- Behr Black Bean. I reallly like it, and it's neutral enough not to detract from my thick, bright-white trim, or to clash with my warm decor. Highly recommended!

I vote for a super light grey such as Benjamin Moore's Classic Grey or Behr's Dolphin Fin. It will pick up the grey in the brick mortar and let the pretty brickwork and floors shine. Painting everything the same neutral, light colors will make the space feel taller as well. I've had good success with color matching BM colors to just the cheap Olympic (Lowes) paint. It's low-VOC and much less expensive than BM. Good luck!

Paint. Use several nice, light, complex or full-spectrum colors, including the ceiling. This kind of color will react wonderfully with the light and shade provided by all the angles of the ceiling and walls.

The full spectrum paints (Donald Kauffman, Benj. Moore Aura, some Glidden lines, Farrow and Ball and others) achieve their colors without black, by using a range of colors from the 'full spectrum of colors'. In a space like yours, this will make a huge difference.

If it is growing on you, move your stuff in first. See how it works. If you decide you don't like it, I have a feeling you will have a much easier time picking colors after living in the space with your belongings for a while. Personally, I would paint it (maybe a brighter shade of red), but without seeing what's going in, it's an impossible call to make.

Damn -- are you not sure you are moving into my old house in Atlanta? It looks exactly like the upstairs bedroom when I moved in.

I vote paint it....we had a pretty big similar deep red accent wall in our condo for the past 3 years. I didn't hate it, but we finally decided to paint it a light warm grey and it totally changed our space. It feels bigger, brighter, newer and cleaner.
good luck and send pics!

It's a beautiful colour, but probably a bad idea with the low slanted roof. I also think you should move your stuff in first, see if you like it, and if it feels too dark, go with white.

Go with a nice white like Swiss Coffee. ;)

Another vote for white or light.

If it was my place I'd paint it. The red it a rich colour but it takes away from the warmth of the floors, trim, and brick in the space.

The other thing that the red does is reflect a pink hue on the white ceiling, and your ceilings are huge. If pink is your thing you might like it though.

The suggested greys are good. If it was my place I'd also strongly consider a pale green.

No question, paint it white.

White paint looks good in a room that gets a lot of light. It really *shines* that way. Doesn't matter what the wood looks like, so long is there is a lot of light. Rooms that don't get much light should not be painted white. It just looks boring and drab. In a dark room, embrace the moodiness. This is not to say that I agree with red. That's a very particular choice. Instead, go with something moodier - mossy green, gray, or dark brown.

I used to have a similar bedroom (the walls were less steeply stanted though). My vote: ditch the red. You will want to paint all the walls as well as the ceiling with the same colour. Do NOT use two colours, the final result will be too choppy.
The red clashes with the exposed brick. I think that the off white will make it look like million bucks. Due to the exposed brick I would refrain from yellow.
Enjoy your new place.

I would paint the walls white, and the ceiling too. The contrast between the ceiling and the walls is too much, it's detracting from the space.

Go white. Too many slanted angles.

I would love to see this space in one unified color. A nice warm white would look great with the brick and wood. Plus, I love how slanted ceilings look with light walls and dramatic lighting. It reminds me of the facets of a jewel. It's a gorgeous room, but yes, I vote paint it.

Hate the red. Walls and ceiling should be warm white.

The red wall makes all the weird angles really stand out - it's visually disjointed and jarring. White would blur the line between wall and ceiling and make the space look much bigger and brighter.

I'd like to see a range of monochromatic shades in a light, rich caramel.

I once moved into a very similar space with red walls as well. It just breaks up the space, in my opinion, so I painted the walls and ceiling Benjamin Moore's Pale Almond and the trim Linen White. It looked so much better! Lighter, brighter, airier - just a lot more cohesive. Give it a try. I doubt you will be disappointed! Those gorgeous floors will look even more gorgeous without the red competition. (Don't get me wrong - I actually like red rooms. Just not like this, where the color accents the shortness of the knee walls)

Leave it, move in, live with it a little and then see. It wouldn't be so much work to repaint that room if you decide you're not comfortable with red walls, and nice if you found you liked it just as it is.

White. Absolutely. Currently the dark red walls appear to recede, while the white (or pink?) ceiling appears to come forward. Plus it emphasizes all the angles, and not in a good way. It's jarring.

White! If you don't do it before you move in, you'll probably never do it. I prefer RAL 9010.

Yes. Absolutely. Without a doubt.
Paint it.

Paint.
I'd go with a tan tone- something that's lighter and a bit neutral, but will blend in with your furniture.

White, white, white :) your place will feel much more "lofty."

Here's a great one: Benjamin Moore Swiss Coffee OC-45, get the sample or look at a chip (online colors are not accurate). It's not too warm or too cool.

Given the slanted ceilings, I would vote for white. You would probably want to paint the slated ceilings, too -- so everything was fresh and bright. If your white walls and ceiling were slightly off, I think it would stand out.

You might want to consider doing an accent wall. It would be a compromise of your two options. You could do one wall a deep, rich red or one of your other preferred colors. For the accent wall, I'd probably choose the wall with the greatest amount of square space -- if that makes sense. A wall that looks more like a traditional wall in a square room.

Lovely, lovely apartment. I live in an area of St. Paul where there are a ton of old mansions with carriage houses. I've always wondered what it would be like to rent space in one of them. This has inspired me to do some research. :)

I don't know if I'd necessarily go white, but I would definitely paint it something much, much lighter.

No doubt in my mind - paint it white.

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I would defiantly paint all the walls white or off-white but either leave the brick exposed of paint them too, one coat, and distress it.
White makes the place seem even larger, brilliant white is for a complete modern interior, off-white or a very light cream, one with a rose undertone will make the room very welcoming and will feel clean and calm.
You should try to use furnishings that are simple and calm too, but that do not overcrowd the colour scheme, so not too much blue or purple, more whites, creams, medium coloured wood, some browns and light pastels.

As you are going for rustic and metallic, distressing some features would be very good too.