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Dytecture Perhaps a different color scheme on the walls and a brighter area rug would have inject more character the life into the dining room.

olldbobbi Paint the bar wall teal, or peacock, and paint the ceiling a very pale blue. Pick up the peacock color in your table linens: [houzz=Peacock Blue Cloth Dinner Napkins by Mona June] and small dishes: [houzz=Paperproducts Design Paradise Peacock Dessert Plate] and accessories: [houzz=Peacock Feather Pillar]

Look for some fabric, or vinyl in this color and recover your seats, it's super easy to do.

elklaker Beautiful room- great bones. I agree that color is needed. Find a fun rug that you love and pull a color or two from it for the walls. I would hold off on painting the wood (if ever) and add your color with accessories.
Keep us posted. Love Victorian homes and you have a gorgeous one!

Stanton Designs-online design services Great start to your space. You might want to consider adding a color to this space. Everything is wood tones. What are some colors you like? It could be as simple as adding a table runner, or re upholstering that chair by the windows and hanging a few pieces of art on the walls.

Cheryl Morgan Use your rug as a guide for color choices. Contrast paint above molding onto ceiling. Add a medallion around the chandelier with a deeper hue. Adding stationary side panels at the windows with a slim valance could soften the look. New colorful seat cushions would do wonders. This is a Victorian, so, you can be bold with your choices!

defever How about installing a simple chair rail and painting the bottom a different color? Find some new art work and pull a color for the lower half...OR have you checked out wall paper? It would fit the period of your house and it's making a comeback.

missdanalove Along with some of these suggestions, decorate and set your dining room table. You can incorporate colors and themes there too and it's relatively simple to do (florals, china, crystal, place settings, etc). Also a nice mirror on the wall, textured art, rich window fabrics (valence panels?) are other ideas to take away the "drab" and add life and elegance to the room.

apple_pie_order You need a fabulous, colorful rug. Your new chandelier has a touch of whimsy; try to match that spirit of fun and grace. Then paint the walls, not the window trim, one of the lighter colors in the rug. Not beige, not tan, not off white, not HGTV green, not Revere Pewter. Get paint samples, paint large cardboard rectangles with the samples, and move them around the room to see if you like the colors on the walls.

If you just bought the quiet rug, take it back. A large rug store will often let you bring several rugs home on approval.

lefty47 HI -- First of all , I would NOT do a two tone half and half wall color because there are too many windows and it does not need to be chopped up any more than it is already. Just find an elegant wall paper and that could have a suttle tone on tone pattern. Find something that has a new modern look. There is a grass cloth look that has a damask print on it or maybe a linen texture . There is also a grass cloth look that has a sheen to it. Or do a polished plaster finish. Play up the ceiling with a darker color picked from the wallpaper or maybe a texture in a paintable paper., maybe something that has a sheen to it., a touch of metallic would look wonderful and would add a glow with the chandelier . I love the chandelier ,and hope you keep it. The rug is great too and take that into concideration for the wallpaper. You could paint the trim BUT I don't think you need to. And all the furniture is great too. Now all you need are some nice drapes , something that has a texture and maybe a semi-sheer or some sheen to them maybe something that looks like silk or silk ,but I am not a fan of real silk but thats up to you. I think dining rooms need to glow a little in the evening when the lights are on and candles are lite. Then the table could have a big bowl of flowers or a big pot of orchids and a collection of crystal candle sticks and jars and urns or asian style blue and white jars and urns etc.

aterraci Thanks Lefty and everyone. I love your ideas. The dining chairs were just recovered - and yes I did them myself. They are a purple modern fabric. The rug is more muted than I wanted, but it is new and here to stay. The chandelier is new and here to stay as well. It was supposed to be my focal point. It was very expensive. Its from canopy designs.com. Check it out. Very cool stuff. very pretty pink, white and lavender flowers. I just had the whole room stripped of very old victorian wallpaper and would consider my husband on more wall paper, but it would be easier to see him on changing the paint color. What about a drk plum color? Any thoughts?

aterraci Also the color on the walls is a very pale lavender. I know it doesn't come through in the original pictures I attached.

aterraci Also the color on the walls is a very pale lavender. I know it doesn't come through in the original pictures I attached.

judyg Lavender was a great choice for your Victorian room with the dark woodwork. The windows, with the leaded glass, are just beautiful. How about two host/hostess chairs upholstered in a more contemporary Victorian pattern? Bring out the colors of the chandelier in the fabric.

missdanalove I like the lighting, and the victorian windows. You originally listed "drab" as a concern, you could also do a ceiling tray design or small detailed chandelier ceiling medallion with accents to further highlight the chandelier as a focal point. And I still think that setting the table and bringing rich elegant texture will further compliment your work and it requires minimal labor. If you find the right room accessories you may not want to change a lot of major things if it reflects your style and taste.

lefty47 HI -- Have a look at Ralph Lauren Paints " Loft RLUL 217 " It is a silvery greyed lavender that might be a good color for your room.

victorianbungalowranch Don't be afraid of color--this room is large and can take lots of it. Deep rich jewel colors can really complement the woodwork and furniture and looke great at night, especially with such a wonderful chandelier.

Love the sideboard and the side chairs are nice--how about picking up some green or pumpkin or golden yellow from them and painting the walls below the plate rail? Unless you really need the table in the bay window, I would consider making a nice little seating group there with the side chairs, possibly just by swapping out the chairs you do have and putting the ladder-back one someplace else.

I could also see a large scale Chinoserie type pattern on the walls. but that may be too old fashioned or but too bold for your taste. Or a subdued stripe with a Arts and Crafts type stencil above the plate rail, Some sort of light color or even a metallic finish on the ceiling could look great too.

If light and privacy isn't an issue, I'd be relunctant to cover up those georgeous windows and water views with drapes. If you go Arts and Crafts, simple linen-like cafe curtains with a stenciled border could be nice, and would make the space less formal. Full-length drapes on the sides of could help with drafts and unify all the windows and add a note of color and softness, especially in a rich velvet like fabric.

With a room with such good bones, there are a lot of ways you could go, and they all could be beautiful..The selections aren't perfect but I put a few variations in Photoshop, including copying some of the pattern above the plate rail, to give you an impression of what just some color could do. The first is just lightening up the wall above the plate rail, and that alone does a lot. I also experimented with changing the color of the ceiling and walls.

They all look so similar in thumbnails that I'm not sure if you can see the differences.

victorianbungalowranch Here are some more :)

elklaker A dark plum would be stunning. A lighter tone on the ceiling with a metallic sheen would be dramatic. Someone mentioned a medallion. That is always a good idea for a Victorian home. If you could use the rug in another room and find another with more color, that would be my recommendation. It's pretty but may work better in a family room or bedroom.

houssaon I like the idea of deep plum on the walls. It will pick up on the color of your rug. Paint the ceiling from the walls above the crown molding a grey.

Here are some great color combinations. This on the walls: Autumn Purple 2073-20 Paint and a grey like this on the ceiling: Benjamin Moore Rockport Gray.
A more muted shade: Vintage Wine 2116-20 by Benjamin Moore on the walls and Albescent OC-40 by Benjamin Moore on the ceiling.
Or more more to the blue: Approaching Storm CSP-535 Paint and this light grey on the ceiling: Slip AF-605 Paint.

brittydear The room is gorgeous! It seems to me, given the pieces you have chosen (lavender paint, modern fabric for chairs, light rug, unusual chandelier) that you are going for a different look, but are trapped by the previous owner's vibe/tradition. Furniture does not seem to go with other things and only accents the wood trim/traditional slant of the room. So, I would sell it on craigslist or another resale site, or redo it.
You could keep your chair fabric and paint the table and chairs a high-gloss dove gray. Or, paint the chairs dove gray and the table a contrasting color.You could also add two gray velvet chairs for texture.
Then paint the area above the high wood trim and also the ceiling a rich plum *(love that idea for a color you had). *optional: You could then add a painted ceiling medallion or antique white medallion around the chandelier.
This would make the room feel more intimate and dramatic, while keeping the lavender that ties in with the chandelier and keeping the wood trim your husband likes. I would then add a mirrored piece (e.g., sideboard) or an antique beveled mirror.
I would also add something warm/orange-ish accessories to tie in the wood trim.
What color are the floors?
Also, LOVE your chandelier. I went to the website and was intriqued! It looks like they don't sell direct though, curious what model yours is and how you got it. Thanks and good look, keep us posted in your updates.

aterraci Love, love the idea of painting the ceiling dark plum and painting the table and chairs a high gloss grey. Who would do that? A furniture refinisher? Any idea what it would cost? The chandelier was purchased at a high end lighting store in Scarsdale, NY called Klaff's. They have another store in CT. Canopy Designs also sells fixtures out of ABC Carpet in NYC. Hope helps. Love your ideas and thank you everyone for posting samples!

anitajoyce You could place panels on the windows to help brighten the room. Add a table runner to the table and place a vase of flowers on top, a grouping of candles and a small plant or the vase and candles. I would keep the walls painted a nice white or beige. You could add a more colorful rug if it's in the budget also. You could remove the table and chairs at the bay window and place the two side chairs there instead, along with a small table between them. Place two house plants by the two windows in the corners.

brittydear Thanks! Glad that you like the ideas. I think that any furniture refinisher, or maybe some painters or cabinet makers could take on the challenge, or you could easily do it yourself since there is no paint to remove (just need to sand the wood, then paint). I imagine that it would be expensive, but in this economy, you can probably get some good deals/quotes - especially for workers wanting extra cash for holiday expenses. I would estimate 600-1,500 to do the job, depending on who you got to do it. But I am sure rates are different everywhere. Might I ask, just out of curiousity - how much was the chandelier?? I am dying to know prices. We live in the DC area, so it will be a while before I get up to NY to check things out. Here are some more images...Just to give you an idea of the warm orange (as an accent) with the grays/lavender. And also another one of a painted table (in a contrasting shade)

aterraci Chandelier was $3000. Love the inspiration photos. BTW, I am thrilled with how my living room turned out. I will post pictures of it tomorrow.

aterraci Here is my living room. You can get the vibe I was going after. You can see the dining room in the background of one of the photos.

houssaon I think you are headed in the right direction with your style!

brittydear Love your vibe and the living room's feel. It is funny that your living room's color is nearly the same as the color in the lower left inspiration pic (and your couch's color is similar to some of the couch pillows on the inspiration pic). I think it will look great once you get the dining room tied in. Also, I had an idea for your sideboard - you could cover the back area with some pretty metallic wallpaper or fabric in a tone-on-tone (damask-ish) design. Then, you could paint some of the little indented (detail) areas on the sideboard a metallic silver. It would update it without taking away from the beauty. I saw this done before by an artist that had a store downtown where I used to live, and it was lovely! Also, in looking at the dining room pics again - I think there are too many seating areas (that room has a lot of chairs!), so maybe remove the table and chairs by the window and replace it with something more interesting?? Keep us posted on how things turn out, and thanks for the info on the chandelier!! I would love to have one someday.

apple_pie_order Now that I see the photos of your living room, it's clear that the table and chairs are 180 degrees from your vibe. The sideboard could be a real character piece - I love brittydear's suggestion of reworking it. But the transitional table and chairs are just not going to work. I suggest you replace both and use the chairs in your ideabook photo below
They'd be fabulous in a dark purple (the pink would upstage your chandelier). Your ideabook also contains large mirrors which would be perfect for adding the extra sparkle the room needs to go with the subtle coloration. Speaking of sparkle, the room needs more lighting, but something that does not clash with your chandelier. Add some silver or metallic art objects on the sideboard, similar in style to those in your living room. A silver metallic stencil over the lavender would also be lovely.

aterraci I love these chairs! And I agree they would be stunning in purple. I really have to decide whether to paint the table and chairs or try to get money for them while they might be worth something in their original state and then buy new. I am leaning towards painting bec. I am about to switch my focus to a kitchen renovation which is going to steal any budget. I am definitely on the lookout for some metallic wallpaper for the back of the hutch. And I am thinking a dark plum ceiling also would also be a cheap fix for now. Apple_Pie I was thinking I could leave my table the way it is if I introduced purple velvet chairs like above...

karen paul interiors

aterraci Love this wallpaper! How do I get it?

rivers300 I didn't read all the post , so I don't know if you have already picked a paint color or not, but I love the way the green looks with the wood trim in the post by victorianbungalowranch it is gorg!!!. My only other comment was that you could see if the top is removable from the buffet, if it screws off you could remove the shelves and just use the bottom of the buffet for a more updated look.

victorianbungalowranch Here are some more mock ups in the purple and aqua range. I really think lightening up the space above the plate rail would do a lot to brighten the room and make the rest of the colors look less muddy.

I rather like the yellow option too, which is a complement to purple and could look nice with the blues in the living room.

victorianbungalowranch I cropped the photos, click on them to see the plate rail and ceiling colors (first has purple ceiliing, lighter plate rail and existing walls) Some have ceilings in a wash of purple, not an intense purple.

aterraci Thank you for taking the time to do that victorianbungalowranch! It really helps. I definitely like the first one the best. Really appreciate it:)

victorianbungalowranch I wouldn't have thought of purple on the ceiling, but it really does brighten it up along with the band of light grey above the plate rail. That alone does quite a lot and brings out the purple in the walls..

In a room this big and with a lot of windows you can do the unexpected. May take some experimentation to find the right shade, but I would go fairly saturated but not too dark. The actual appearance would probably be quite a bit softer. Could really set off the chandelier. Maybe trying some samples on painted poster board tacked up there first will help you find the right color because it will look really different and darker on the ceiling than on the wall and reflected light from adjoining colored walls changes the apparent color, as does different kinds of light. Painting ceilings is such a pain, so you want to get the color right. At least you won't have to paint the whole room.

Of course it is hard to get just the right shade this way on the computer. I like the Sherwin Williams paint visualizer and just doing the plate rail and ceiling would be fairly easy to create the mask. Other paint manufacturers have them too--just register and load your photo.

BTW, I love the top part of the hutch. Metallic papers are coming back in vogue, so you can probably find something. I would consider just using upholstery tacks to put it in, or using starch and fabric, or wrapping boards to fit so it can be changed easily.

OK, here are the options with just the plate rail area lightened, a lighter shade on the ceiling, and the one you like with throw pillow added to the chair. I also added a simple table runner just to show how much something that simple perks it up--maybe even a European type one that extends the full length of the table and hangs over a bit (like a narrow tablecloth) would be nice.

I put 20 transparent layers of color on it so it was kind of fun to experiment with different combinations, although the color wasn't always quite what I had in mind.

karen paul interiors Can't get the info on the wallpaper. As some of said, it is most likely discontinued. However, take the photo to a wallcovering showroom that shows most or all the better designers. They will either remember that piece and/or will be able to find a good alternative. I did a little research on damasks and only came up with something that has silver and purple. It was nice, but not spectacular....at least to my eye.

tennisanyone Paint your DR a shade darker then your LR. and tie the band around the top to the LR. Those two chairs are distracting me from the beautiful windows. They look like living room chairs. The room doesn't need any more chairs. You can always paint the "head" chairs in a color too. I would remove them and hang drapes to frame the beautiful windows. What is on the right by the window? Is that another table and chairs?