SFGate

Staged for Perfection What do you love about this room?

Jayme Hobbs I think the blue is too much for this space. I like the color but seems too much for a smaller area. With that pretty backsplash, the walls can be toned down. Then I think the kitchen would flow better into the rest of the house.

Staged for Perfection I think you have too many styles going on. The barstools at the kitchen bar do not mix well with the rest of your furniture. Behr seems to have many colors called twilight something. Is this twilight grey?

adianezh Yes, Its a twilight grey from their 2013 collection. But it turned out to be more on the blue cool sided than I intended to be. Attached is a closeup picture of the backsplash.

mmilos The color is more blue than you want because it's up against warm yellowish cabinets. The yellows amplify the blue undertones in the paint.

A Kitchen That Works LLC What strikes me most about the room is not the wall color but the lack of balance in the masses. The graduated cab heights in the kitchen, the china cab in the dining area, the television screen and then the fish tank. There is a lot of unused wall space and very simple window coverings which gives the room an unfinished look. I am assuming that the tv is situated where it is so that it can be viewed from the kitchen. If my assumption is incorrect, consider placing the tv screen on the wall where the fish tank is now, opening up the seating area and allowing the wall where the tv is now to be adorned with a nice piece of art as a focal point.

adianezh I did think about changing the TV to where the fish tank is but then I won't be able to see it while im in the kitchen. Window treatment is one of the first things on the to do list. Thank you.

Sharyn Have you ever placed your sectional on the other walls? Using the back of the sectional acts as a room divider and can be working, but if you want an open look, try moving it. Be careful with TV placement since the sun glare from the windows can be annoying while catching up on your latest sitcom. Move the smaller tank to a corner, it shouldn't be the focal point of the room. Try drawing your room plan on grid paper with to scale furniture pieces and see what you can come up with on paper before you decide to move those tanks. You have beautiful artwork in the staircase, continue that theme onto the living room walls. Maybe paint the back wall (current tv wall) an accent color, same as used in the kitchen, or contrasting with it. Curtians and/or roman shades are needed on the windows for some texture and color.
Also, It seems as if your backsplash tile matches your kitchen table top nicely which is browns, tans, black. I don't see Blue/grey. I would pick a dark brown color from the table and backsplash and paint over that blue. Brown tones will compliment your cabinets better. Paint the barstools black. The brown will also compliment your off white walls.

adianezh Thank you. Attached are some color combination that I like from behr. They are called coconut shell, spiceberry and Mesa taupe. I was thinking of painting the kitchen coconut shell. Also I am thinking of a Chocolate or Desert Khaki color for window treatment.

adianezh This is Mesa Taupe sample. Thank you

Sharyn I'd go for the deeper brown. I don't like the mesa taupe, looks purplish on my monitor, and I think your room would look washed out. Your room can handle the darker color. The spiceberry has redish undertones. Buy samples of different brown paint samples, apply on some foam core panels and place it above the cabinets for a couple of days to see how you like it. Observe it in different times of the day to to see how it changes. Always do samples first, the chips are never a good source because of lighting and other tones in the room. I think you'll be happy with the deeper browns.

Sharyn excuse rough drawing, but you get the idea.

adianezh Thank you for the sketch. Something like this in the brown family instead of reddish tone would look nice.

KN Interiors Hi adianezh! What you need is some color inspiration. You've fallen prey to one of the easiest mistakes in decorating, which is choosing your paint color first. I'm not saying your paint color is wrong, but you have made your life a bit more difficult! :) I ALWAYS advise my clients to select their furnishings first, then choose a paint color based on their furnishings. For an inspiration piece, you could select a fabric for your draperies, a great piece of art, an area rug, or even the colors in your backsplash tile. If you like the way they work together there, you will like them in the larger scheme of your room as well. Your original question was on how to pull the space together, so that's what I'm going to address. For starters, select one of the non-dominant colors in your inspiration piece for your paint, and carry it through both rooms. Choose a different color for your window treatments, and use the same fabric on all the windows in these two spaces. (They don't have to be the same type of treatments.) Next, select one of the dominant colors for accent pillows on your sofa, and a centerpiece on the dining table. Mount the television on the wall to take up some of that vertical space. Add table lamps to the end tables in the family room (preferably in the same finish as the rest of your lighting), and add hardware to your cabinets (again, in the same finish as your lighting). I would suggest moving the the fish tank on the left side of the TV elsewhere, and instead, adding a chair upholstered in the same fabric as the accent pillows on your sofa (if that fabric is appropriate for upholstery). Ta-da! Two completely pulled together spaces!

curacaoblue I would take that stuff off the cabinets for starters. It doesn't match the style or color and it pulling the eye upwards. I really like the blue but those decorative pieces don't look like they belong. The blue looks modern as do the stools and lighting but not that decor. I think you need to decide what your focus is and what you like. It's hard to tell what your style is by looking at these pics. It looks all over the place

jenn3745 I"m having a really hard time with the gray wall color against those cabinets. We have the same cabinet color and we ended up going with "Salsa Dancing" from Benjamin Moore, it looks beautiful against the yellow of the cabinets. You need some color and things to bring these rooms all together. I would probably paint all the way around, two complementary colors as you posted above. Also the bar stools seem a bit contemporary to me and clash with the dark wood and leather of the table. Maybe some textured stools like these: http://www.worldmarket.com/product/elana-banana-leaf-bar-stool-set-of-2.do?&from=Search

adianezh @KN Interiors. Thank you so much. Now things are making more sense. I will make those changes and post more pictures. Thanks again.

adianezh I started buying the mayor items that will then determine the room colors. Attached is a grommet window treatment color Smokey Taupe also the rods in the same chrome finish as my lamps. Next I will be looking for pillows and other coordinating pieces. There is a picture of the window treatments next to my rug. I might change the rug but not sure. Any suggestions and/or ideas are greatly apreciated. Thank you.

KN Interiors Morning adianezh - happy to help! Your rods and panels look great. I don't hate the rug, but I'm not sure if I love it either. The colors in the rug look very warm compared to the cool crispness of the panels, but that could just be the photo or my computer screen. Have a look at the examples below for some ideas - these are all either Surya or Loloi. You're doing great!

adianezh Thank you. These rugs look right on. Attached is my latest purchase. I took my window treatment and a very nice staff from pier 1 helped me make these purchases. I decided to give some color splash with blue & teal, brown details. So my color combination will be chrome accents, blue, brown, cream and a hint of teal. I think everything is starting to look "pulled together" :-) Your thoughts are greatly appreciated.

Sharyn Looks like I have a trip to Pier One in my very near future. These are my new colors as well!! Kirkland's has vases that match your centerpiece balls.

KN Interiors Yes, you definitely have a "thing" going now! By gum, she's got it! :D Now don't forget to bring a FEW splashes of those colors to the kitchen above the cabinets and on the counter. (One or two plates, a vase, and a couple plants will do it above the cabinets - don't get carried away... it's more to dust.) Oh, and the cabinet hardware - you'll be AMAZED what a difference that makes. Can't wait to see your finished product!

jenihuff I would love to see the cabinets painted...I am a fan of clean, fresh, white kitchens. I think the cabinets need some color and an updated look. There are so many great color choices to choose from that would brighten and freshen up your space. With all the blues you are incorporating a nice light grey would be a good consideration for the cabinets? By doing this you can add the blues that you love and give your kitchen an updated look. Just a thought!

curacaoblue I like where you are going with this and can't wait to see it! So glad you didn't listen to the kitchen painting advice in the other thread. Those cabinets are nice and I'm tired of everyone suggesting that perfectly good cabinets be painted as if its an easy endeavor that always turns out nice.

adianezh @KN Interiors. Thank you so much for your comments. I got very inspired by your suggestions; it was like a revelation of ideas :-). I’m currently looking for hardware for my kitchen hopefully put the TV on the wall as well as the window treatment. Those rugs by Surya got me going crazy, love the Moroccan trellis style. I can't seem to like any other after seeing those :-). As far as painting the walls, I will wait until I have all the mayor things set up. I recieved a lot of suggestion to paint the kitchen cabinets white due to the fact that the appliances where white as well. But I am not considering painting the kitchen cabinets because the appliances were there when I purchased the house so I would prefer replacing them with stainless steel in the near future. I will be posting more photos soon in a couple of days. Thank you.

KN Interiors Morning! I'm so glad I was able to help! (I love that rug too. :) I don't think the cabinets need to be painted. Painting cabinets (and having it turn out well) is a time consuming and not inexpensive process, especially since you already have perfectly nice cabinets. If you had some horrid 1980's dark oak going on, we might have a different conversation, but I agree with you - they are perfectly fine, and will look great with stainless!

okibujp Just recently updated color in our new house. I have similar kitchen cabinets and had such a hard time deciding on a wall color. I only did one accent wall with the red because I was afraid it would be too much in the entire space. It's a work in progress! Curtains and decor next. Eventually I would like to add cabinets with glass doors above the existing cabinets. I love all of the great ideas that you received! Good luck:)

adianezh @okibujp Thanks for sharing your photo. Definitely very similar cabinets. I am going to finish with all my decorating then choose my paint colors. Below is my current photos of all my house decorating projects. Im still working on installing hardware to my cabinets and can't wait to see the end result. Then I will decide what to do in reference to paint colors.
I got many great suggestions to paint the pantry, the staircase wall (called core wall) and the Island a nice greige (brown-gray) color, then paint the TV wall an accent color.
Another alternative was to paint the Pantry, Core wall and T.V. wall a Greige color then paint the Island a nice accent color. Thank you for your advice: comments, suggestions, etc... always welcome :-)

KN Interiors What a difference a few days make - way to go! Can't wait to see the hardware and paint.

adianezh Yes, very impressive how just placing window treatment can transform the place. It really does make it look complete. This has been very fun and definitely requires attention to detail so it can look at least somewhat pretty similar to what you see in magazine. I still have in my wishlist a nice wall art and an upholstered piece of furniture to complete the living room and the fish tank will be caddy cornered as well. Thanks. :-)

adianezh ...and there was hardware :- )

KN Interiors Niiiiiiice! What a difference, right?!?

Jayme Hobbs I like what u have accomplished! Good work!

adianezh Thank you for your comments. Enjoying little by little my decorating project.