SFGate

anitajoyce Would painting the walls one color or having one accent wall color be in the plans. If so, I would do one of these things first ..To me the two colors seem to clash!

misspeggy7 Definitely paint over the yellow. Maybe more subdued like a taupe. I would put a large piece of art, whether its a framed poster or painting etc, over th couch. In between the windows, add a long mirror. Get oatmeal colored curtains if you can. They have the BEST textiles at Ikea, and get them in all cotton. I'm assuming you will get rid of the treadmill???? On the shelves, add books and perhaps earthy baskets to keep magazines in. Think about painting the coffee table an earthy red then put a large bowl on the top . Find some pole lamps at Goodwill or another thrift shop, buy two and paint them black, but get matching shades. Put those on either side of the couch. Where the treadmill is, you can turn that in to an office type area, or put two side chairs with a table in the middle. Find another lamp you like at a thrift shop and put that on the table. Good luck and have fun.

chantelfrancis I think you should paint the walls one colour. You can pick a colour out of your rug. Also the piece over your chair should be a little bit larger. If you have to keep it there try putting it lower and centre over the chair. If you can tidy up some of the wires,and move the exercise equipment to another location that would tidy it up a bit. You can also purchase some table lamps, and an arch lamp. If you can post more pics that would be great

sandkshouse Some random ideas. Move the treadmill and the folding to a spare bedroom or basement. I like the taupe color in your hall, I'd paint the living room one or two shades darker than the hall to blend the spaces. Recessed lighting would be great in this room. I'm not crazy about the three stair-steped items between the windows, replace those with one vertically-oriented item (maybe the piece over your sofa turned sideways). A larger piece of art over the sofa. Lowe's sells under cabinet lighting that is pretty reasonable. Adding some of that inside the entertainment center would be cool. Also, add some on top facing up for mood lighting and night time viewing. Not crazy about the miscellaneous plants in the window. I think you could have a great living room without spending too much money.

Aja Mazin The yellow is jarring.

Try Benjamin Moore Limestone to go with your earthy red.wall and curtains

niroti To widen your living room I would paint the walls a light gray with a creamy white ceiling. Remove the bike from the room. Have staggered picture frames on the back wall or a large accent picture. Make sure the picture frames are the same color and uniform I would suggest a different rug-- a more contemporary feel. Change the curtains to a softer color with a transitional or modern feel. You can get things to update your space from ikea or overstock.

Aja Mazin Pillows!

The room needs pillows.

Aja Mazin Leave the treadmill.

Add a vending machine.

cyn222 Lose the drapes and install roman shades. Pop some bright colorful pillows. The three piece of art are kind of low. I would light color from the rug to replace the yellow. If you like the bright color then maybe a new jazzy rug is in order with the red and yellow.

saipiyer Wow thank you all for your great ideas. Yes the elliptical machine is not for decoration and we can easily move it to another one of our rooms. We also had been thinking of getting table lamps but werent sure of what type/color - cream? brown? Like the idea of putting a mirror or just flipping the back wall piece sideways to put in b/w the 2 windows. We'd also like to re-paint the heating grates under the windows. any suggestions as to what color? will post some more more pics soon. Also any other ideas as to how to decorate the bookshelf? we were thinking of lighter shade pieces, to contrast with the dark brown. Also, for the window sills and baseboards, what color scheme? dark? gray-ish? chocolate? beige?
Once again, thanks and pls keep the ideas coming! We also need ideas for our foyer (pics coming soon!)

bahareh17 Just use bright wallpaper
ChAng ur curtins and make it white and replace the style of tv place by sth smaller

anitajoyce Paint all the walls in beige or tan be bring light and calmness to the space. Remove the curtains and everything away from the window (too much clutter) and place blinds on them along with panels in a nice tan, rust or beige color thats in the rug. Remove everything from the room except the two sofas, tv and tv stand, and coffee table. Remove all art from the walls its too small. If you can, place the 2 sofas facing each other. Place the coffee table in front of the brown sofa. Place a side table beside each sofa along with a lamp . Add accent pillows with colors that are in the rug (pillows with stripes, bold print and solid color also to blend the 2 sofas and rug together. Add a small plant a big book to the coffee table or a group of 2-3 candles and a picture book. Place a big abstract picture or big flower picture on the wall where the brown sofa is now. Do you have any book cases or another long side table that could go along the wall where the brown sofa is now.

misspeggy7 Paint your trim (baseboards and windows) WHITE!!! White is clean and fresh!