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movenready properties, LLC I love a wood floor in the living area. Have you thought about changing out the carpet and extending to the stairs? I would either remove the white cabinet/wall in the entry and replace with a railing system or take the wall all the way up to the ceiling. Also a new, light, more modern tile would freshen up the entry. Great space!

Judith Taylor Designs Wow, great space. There is a lot to take in. I would love to see hardwood in there. It would be beautiful. You might want to look into staining the brick wall - maybe a warm grey with green undertones. It would update it. I love painted or stained masonry as it adds character and history even in a modern space.

preynolds06 Thanks for the ideas! I will definitely look into wood flooring as well, do you think darker or lighter wood?

Here are a few more photos from the top of the stairway looking down, turned out kind of dark.

preynolds06 Another photo..

preynolds06 Anyone have any thoughts on adding a light colored (probably white) marble flooring to these rooms?

lindasdesign White marble looks beautiful, but shows every speck of dirt and can become a real annoyance in a high traffic area. If you have pets . . . every hair that's shed will show on it. Just a thought.

bussinah Hi,I agree that marble shows dirt. Natural finish,less shiney does not.There is alot of design elements here that should be left to stand out. I agree with others on wood.Keep it light,not too busy so the unique floor plan is the star!.open the entry with matching rail.Play up with lights that show off these walls,brick and railing..Paint brick and stone walls bright white or light ivory.Keep walls light taupe or grey.pick one or two feature wall areas to add color to walls or with art to pop.Dining light too low and dark. Slate entry would look good with wood, but have a professional refinish to renew.or go with light travertine all over in extra large tiles for spacious look.Play up this home more by adding wood trim,crown,etc to accent room details and turns to each area. Get organic in that great window-big indoor plant.maybe a fountain

Design Mode I like your space, and I see a small Greek column, and you want white marble. So you want to update your mid century modern home with classic materials like marble, and have a modern feel?
I think an exotic wood with white throughout can give you the look. Start with the white entry cabinet - tweak it by adding walnut.

lintaylor The brick is too much..paint the main brick wall the fireplace opening is on, and flank it with floor to ceiling bookslelves! Either a nice wood tine or white would look great. Woodfloors definetly!! Paint is your friend, how about a nice Maize color and bright white trim?

lefty47 HI -- Love this space ! I would NOT change the features in the entrance such as the flooring . I would remove the wrought iron for some crackled temperd glass panels . The center (closet) cabinet should be made more of a feature , I would NOT change the structure such as the shape or height , it's great the way it is but I would clad it in wood such as ribbon mahogany and have it all flat looking like a big block by not haveing any moldings around the closet doors etc . The closet doors would also be the mahogany with the wood grain all matching horizontaly around ,so the closet section looks like one whole piece, then have it stained in a rich medium tone . Have this wood color match the wood on the rails and any other wood in the house . The light fixtures would look good (better)with the white Orb shades .Or you could also use Walnut instead of the mahogany which will be a little more money . All the other floors would look great in hardwood ( no marble ), maybe in a wide plank style . If you don't want hardwood in the kitchen , then some tile that is or looks like terrazzo would look right with the arcitecture.or you could also repeat the flooring at the entrance , I would hold off with doing anything to the fireplace , I like it the way it is because it goes with the style of the house. It does not need to match the front door area . The stone at the front door matches the stone on the out side of the house , this also goes with the era of the house .This house looks like an architectural gem , so I would be careful of certain or too many big changes. I would continue with the mid century features to keep the charm that the house has now . PS: I like the chandelier in the dining room BUT I think a big NELSON fixture would look even better .

Cancork Floor Inc. Hi, I love the idea of replacing the white carpet with a cork floor that is a "white marble" mimic. It will keep the same sense of "calm" (sound wise) as the carpet without having to live with carpet. You can float a cork floor in there or you can glue down a permanent cork tile...either way it would look stunning in this area!

Cancork/Icork Floors have 5 different white coloured floors on offer. The most expensive is a floating cork floor - White Leather Beveled edge plank that is priced at $3.99/sf. The rest of my whites are much less than that.

Moving from carpet to cork is an easy transition because they have a lot of the same properties with temperature control and sound abatement. With those high ceilings and tile at the entrance, you would have quite a bit of echo without the carpet. There is a lot of stone and brick that will accentuate loud noises inside that space if you go for traditional hard flooring.

Just a suggestion.

AMN I would much rather see natural wood flooring instead of marble or anything else. The only other thing that I would consider if this were my home is Terrazzo.

Many of these photos have a mix of wood and Terrazzo.

lauhan Your home is beautiful!
Natural, simple materials would look best.

annl8100 I would change out the white grout for black grout with the present black tile in entrance. Itbwill make it look solid and not distracting. Tne thing about marble or wood is it echo's. I recently moved into an open airy house carpetted. I had wood in home before. This carpet is so much warmer and quieter.. I would defintely put wood and not marble because of home sales purposes. One never knows when you may want to sell. Buyers want or ask for wood not marble!! Life has a way of not going quite as planned so always think what would appeal to a buyer..when you make your changes. Your house is beautiful. I would not paint rock on fireplace! Good luck..remember keep neutral..:)

annl8100 I would change out the white grout for black grout on entrance floor and paint the wall with cupboards black. Then place large trailing plants on it! It will then tie in with the black railings and look very cool!

Cathy Mills I agree the fireplace is too much, I would love to see floor to ceiling windows on each side to brighten that room up, or light colored open book shelves. Also would replace the railings with wood, and the floors with wood, not dark, stay on the lighter side.

gillianlf You have a beautiful home. Love the entry, railings, dining room fixture. I too think hardwood is a better option, although if you are set on harder surface, I would also suggest the terrazzo. I think the fireplace should be veneered to match the stacked stone in the entrance. And mounting thick dark wood shelves on either side of the fireplace would create a display space for books and art.

hollymahler Just off the top of my head ,I would choose travertine floors in dinning room in a lighter color . If it were my home I would paint the short wall under the rod iron,on the table side , black . It would make the rod iron and wall seem as one ,grounding the room and tying in the colors from the other rooms floor, without having to go dark on the floor. (I would paint more than just that small wall black ) for instance imagine the cabinet and 2 dinning walls black?? And then longer outer walls in a nice lighter color that goes with the fireplace? ... Is there any color in the brick you like?..any soft beige or greys?
My wood floors show dirt my travertine floors didn't .i would get a polished travertine so it something spills like lemon aid is will not etch the floors. I personally find marble on floors too much if it has swirls of color.
I absolutely love these rooms and find it a beautiful challenge to make things work well without destroying what is there , unless it is awful... This is not awful in anyway!
If you are worried about black don't be it can push walls back and make art work pop , in the right amounts!

Grace Archives Gallery walls are a classic, yet modern look. I've got tons of vintage art prints that would look great mingled in with your family photos.

www.GraceArchives.etsy.com

4resas You can change the doors on you front closet to mirrored. plain or with a design like this cabinet, and either keep the knobs in the center, or move them to the edges.

Barbara Wahler Interior Design Inc. I would have to advise against the marble flooring in either white or travertine. I think that you already that your brick and tile are bordering on too much hard surface in the space.

I would agree that your tile floor would look much better if you stained the grout dark grey. There are very effective products on the market that work well and are easy to apply.

I also agree that hardwood flooring is the answer when it comes to replacing your carpet. I would not go too light or too dark. I would look at a medium brown with definite grey undertones to pick up on your grey tile.

I wouldn't remove or increase the height of you're dividing structure. I would look at introducing more colour to the space in general and think about how that could be used to integrate that structure.

I would change out the iron railings and look at something lighter in both look and and finish.

Barbara Wahler Interior Design Inc. I would have to advise against the marble flooring in either white or travertine. I think that your brick and tile are bordering on too much hard surface in the space.

I would agree that your tile floor would look much better if you stained the grout dark grey. There are very effective products on the market that work well and are easy to apply.

I also agree that hardwood flooring is the answer when it comes to replacing your carpet. I would not go too light or too dark. I would look at a medium brown with definite grey undertones to pick up on your grey tile.

I wouldn't remove or increase the height of you're dividing structure. I would look at introducing more colour to the space in general and think about how that could be used to integrate that structure.

I would change out the iron railings and look at something lighter in both look and and finish.

rosak I love your space! I personally love hard word floors in the family room. You could always warm it up with a nice area rug. The fireplace is really different, I would sheet rock each side walls. Put a mantle on the fire place so it would break up all the brick. I also agree removing the closet by the front door continuing the rail around would make it flow better! Good luck

mac9 Great house. I see a stacked quartz stone on the fireplace wall with glass shelves flanking the fireplace wall. I also would change the railings to a thin painted metal with steel cables. Then decide on flooring. Good luck.

designforce Personally, I think you need to embrace that you have a beautiful MCM home and leave as much of the original architecture as is. I wish this was my home. I think that the wrought iron railing is killer and if you take it out I want it. It is just fantastic. I would also embrace the natural materials that are existing.
The slate in the entry is fine, the grout just needs to be dulled down. I would not go with the black or grey grout, but something more natural looking as in the color of the stones. It is too stark and clean looking to be adjacent to the beautiful stonework. I love the brick wall of the fireplace, I just don't like the modeling of the brick. I like the idea of the stain, not paint, to keep the natural effect. A charcoal would be nice. Dark is not a bad thing. It is sexy and you have the space to pull it off. I also like that the brick goes all the way across the entire room. There are brick hooks that you could use and put a gallery wall on the two recessed sides. Very keeping with the period. I would take the carpet off the stairs and make them big, chunky wood. They are already open with is a huge plus. It is also very on trend at the moment and would maintain the character of your home. The chunky wood lends to the natural feel. I absolutely would not put down marble or travertine. If you used cork I would make it a natural cork color, not a lighter, unnatural look. I believe that I would do hardwoods. I like the idea of painting the low wall in the dining room a darker, even black, color. Would look fantastic and merge the spaces together, especially with the charcoal brick in the background. Please take down your drapes. There are many, many people out there that are looking for original MCM homes that people have left alone and not tried to make them into something that they shouldn't be. I personally would pay more for a home with these original characteristics. And remember, if you take down you railing... I oh so want it. Besides, if you leave the original intact, it will save you money so you can put in true hardwoods and not cheap imitations.

Best of luck...

PS The jury is sill out on the storage cabinet in the entry. I would have to see more details of how everything runs into each other. Example, does the raining on the top floor go all the way across to the wall behind the cabinet. If so, you might just want to lower the cabinet to the height of the lower section and let it run into the base of the upper floor. Also would like to see what it looks like from the dining room side. Lowering it would let more light into the dining room while leaving the slate floor in tact in the entry. Paint something other than white. You know, the natural thing.

Keep us posted on what you do, I would like to see the outcome.

hr01 cool room

beke Love the "mid-century modern" vibe! I don't like the white closet (although I appreciate the functionality!). And I would get rid of the carpet on the stairs. But I like the rail. I like the stonework in the entryway (wall), and the fireplace, maybe the big white closet could get stoned (haha). I actually like carpet, and the acoustic quality it brings to a space, especially such a big wide open space. But I wouldn't have it so light.

annl8100 Okay.. just saw more photos of your house.. so I would replace white grout with black grout in entrance area. Make it look neat and emphasize the rock. Later maybe nice round textured rug. I would paint the cupboard black.. maybe add mirrors later. Have large trailing plants on top of it. Itbwill tie in to black railings and bring them out. They are pretty. Replace carpet with light oak wooden flooring.. in living room and dining room maybe more. Not staircase for safety and cost. The "light natural oak" will will come out "medium" color anyway, because your home is already dark. Dont touch rock fireplace! Its beautiful. Maybe add a mirror or mantle. Break up the expance of it. Put rugs on living room and dining room floor... maybe zebra!! Now look at my house it was similar.. this is "light natural oak wood flooring" see how rich it looks with black and it will bring out the pretty wood on your railings and complement your rock accents.. good luck:):)

Barbara Wahler Interior Design Inc. Your additional photos show the detail of your railings more clearly. I take back my suggestion to remove and replace but my other comments still stand.

Barbara Wahler Interior Design Inc. Your additional photos show the detail of your railings more clearly. I take back my suggestion to remove and replace but my other comments still stand.

blindsdirectcanada I would remove the existing drapery its a bit heavy for the space . I would go with a Ripplefold Sheer or Drapery depending on the privacy you need.

http://www.blindsdirectcanada.com/drapery-toronto/sheer-drapery.html

http://www.blindsdirectcanada.com/drapery-toronto/panels/ripplefold-drapery.html

Kathryn Peltier Design First of all, great space, FABULOUS house! As others have said, don't fight the MCM - work with it. I like the slate in the entry a lot - it is original, but the material and even the pattern are very contemporary. I even like the lighter grout - it plays up the pattern. I agree that you should go with wood floors. White marble is not the right look for your house - too sleek and yet another stone surface. It would not look right with the stacked stone especially.

Remove the carpet from the stairs and go wood - they probably already match. If it were me, I would consider using a dark gray or ebony stain on ALL the wood: new floors and trim. This might be a bigger job than you have bargained for, however, so just make all the woods match. Your new floor should not be at all rustic looking - no handscraping or noticeable knots, for instance. I love the railings - leave them alone.

I also agree with designforce that your closet area offers an opportunity to do something eyecatching. I like the idea of cladding it in wood to match: narrow strips with a small reveal in-between each one.
Another option would be to paint this in your accent color - it would really add some WOW to walk into the house and see this in an orange or other more intense accent hue. You could also paint the insides of the openings on the 3rd level in this accent color, and then pick it up again over the FP in some artwork.

Yes, the fireplace wall is not as nice as it could be - too much brown, mottled brick. You could paint it white, but I think that a nice, darker gray would be a much richer, interesting look. I would even consider cladding it in either a long slate tile or the stacked stone, if your budget permits. You could even incorporate the wood slats of the closet with the slate - that could be a very interesting look. The wood could go on either side, with some "floating" shelves integrated into it and the stone (slate or stacked) in the center.

As far as furniture goes, especially if you go darker (paint or slate) on the FP wall, then I would go with either white/light furniture or a white/light rug. I prefer the idea of a light rug with light-to-medium gray furniture, along with some accent colors/patterns. If you go stacked stone, match a rug to those tones and go with whatever colors you like in the furniture. Since the house is so open, however, just make sure to pull your color throughout the rooms so they connect visually.

Can't wait to see what you do with it!

viratrevino A hand scraped, dark, wide plank floor would do amazing things to that space!!

MarbleWarehouse.com slate tile floors for dinning and living room would be a wonderful idea.

Doreen Schweitzer Interiors, Ltd. Wood similar to the railing would be great with a geometric area rug or a Tibetan style rug.

Vikrant Sharma Homez Always go for colours that are not too light as keeping them clean is a big task .

dbaune If you like a modern feel, I'd either paint the center portion of the fireplace a color (e.g. charcoal gray) or install tile over the brick (e.g. large rectangular tiles, placed on their sides--perhaps with a dull metallic finish like rusted metal). Then, I'd install bookshelves and/or cabinets on each side, with room for a flatscreen TV, if needed.

Committed Photography, Inc. What a beautiful house. If you're looking to accessorize with some wall art please feel free to look at a couple of the examples I've attached below. Everything is made to measure allowing you to choose the material, size, etc. Hope you enjoy!

http://www.committedphotography.ca/photos/frame/1010

http://www.committedphotography.ca/photos/frame/3725

http://www.committedphotography.ca/photos/frame/755

www.committedphotography.ca

preynolds06 Thanks for the ideas! A lot to think about!

briardeux Wood floors are always nice. I recommend dark hand scraped planks. The fire place is a little of a monolith. I would build built-in white shelves over the brick on each side. Paint the back of the shelves or put grass cloth in for color. Paint the fireplace or reface with newer glass tiles or travertine. Dan always go back to the brick behind.