SFGate

judyg First off, lower your chandy 30" from table top. Purchase a rug, 3 ' bigger than your table. Do yellow to match your ottoman.

Your pix really don't show your room, so it is hard to imagine your space…. Could you provide more photos? i would like to see what is to the right of the chair. Possible to fit another chair?

Melanie Hon Your entrance would scare me - more than 2 people coming in at once, someone bumps into someone else when closing the door, and whoops, down the stairs they tumble! The basement stairs were right off our back door (which we used 99% of the time) in my childhood home, and I fell down the stairs once so I guess I'm paranoid. Seems like a weird design though.

misecretary How about moving that great painting/photo of the family to the wall by the stairs. This could be the start of an entire family wall grouping. If you choose to have a wood accent wall there, the grouping will still look nice there.

Kelsy Van_Egdom judyg- yes there is enough room on the other side for a chair. We have an end table there now. I'm wondering if a chevron print chair would look good with this style?

anikouellet First of all, i like all of our furniture and colours but none of them match together....it is either your pillows or your ottoman....you really need to create a focal point in your living room. I would invest in an electric fireplace and mount the tv on the wall. You already seem to have carpet on the floor so adding another rug would be too much! On the wall facing the entryway going down the stairs, i would install different frames of family pictures with a nice handpainted saying in the middle of those frames. You can find sayings on internet. Hope you like my advice....i love love your entry door!!!!!

Kelsy Van_Egdom Here are a few more views

carolannr First of all, get a metal fixed gate for that stair case!

mjlb I agree with Melanie Hon -- that entry is a real hazard. I like the stair railing, though!

Calzphotography try this on for decor,it has the burnt orange colors and a southwestern style

Julie Dyer I would put a southwestern style rug under your dining table w/ yellow, red tones to tie in with the yellow you have on your ottoman. Also, a centerpiece on your table to brighten that area. Possibly find an old trunk as an end table. I agree with the above poster, great family photo you could do as a wall grouping over your stairway at your entry.

Julie Dyer Rich colors in reds, yellows and oranges

Terri Symington, ASID I like the idea of the aged wood plank accent wall. I would do the both walls above the stairway.

You room can take a lot of color. I would add a second chair in a fabric so as not to overdo the leather. A mix of kilim rug pillow for added color, texture and pattern.

I think the TV wall needs a large entertainment/ shelving unit to fill the space.

The trim looks to be black (?)... this is a good grounding color for the space in some of the accessories and/or side tables

Kelly The southwest idea is great, but it can become tiresome if overdone. Take cues from nature. The first thing I would do is consider painting. The white walls and light carpet make the furniture seem too big, which they are not. I would anchor the room with an area rug. i like the blue one, but it really doesn't go with your pillows. This is another alternative. The rug will pull the room together. Carry the same colors over into the dining room, for example: a solid blue rug would incorporate your art work and pull the blue over from the living room.................

Kelly .......whatever you do choose large so your furniture doesn't overwhelm it. It will be a beautiful room.

sam0705 I really like the ottoman but I think it needs to be put in a different room. That is not saying southwest or rustic to me. It's an ikat fabric right?

sam0705 I think you can do chevron with the ottoman but that is not going to go with your pillows.

Terri Symington, ASID And PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE... it there is one thing anyone gets out of all these discussions... it is to raise that darn drapery rods...

I know you want to keep what you have so add an 18" border at the bottom. This will give you another opportunity to add color and pattern.

Terri Symington, ASID If you are wanting a chevron pattern in the room, you will just need to kind one with the right color combinations...

sam0705 Terri i agree with those colors for introducing chevron but what about the ottoman?

Terri Symington, ASID I'd like to see a close up of the ottoman. If she can get enough yellow mixed into some patterns and if she chose a large area rug with the right touch of yellow or gold in the pattern... it might work... as of right now it doesn't...

Also...If she were to put a large tray on top of the ottoman and have it styled well... the tray could break up the mass of yellow in the ottoman.

Terri Symington, ASID Kelsy... I think this may be getting to heavy in style for you... but I think there are ideas that can be taken from some of the Ralph Lauren interiors... and you can certainly lighten it up to make it more contemporary. His mix of southwestern with English is classic. Also his use of black, like I mentioned earlier helps ground the space. You can also see his extensive use of patterns... such as mixing in the plaids. Again... probably too heavy for you... but certainly lessons to be learned from him...

Also.. for a leg on your ottoman... I think a black turned leg would look good...

Terri Symington, ASID Sorry.... I didn't add the R.L. photos

libradesigneye Ottoman is beautiful, yellow and taupe. Kilims and drapery, rust. Both work, but they don't work together well. I see the taupe on the wall.

Personally, I would keep my family picture in the dining space because that is more "done" and do less personal art in the living room. Reclaimed or barnwood on the far wall / stair wall will be great in many respects as the wall will take abuse over time. Be sure to light the wall when you do it - aim a new can or hang some track lighting. Run it horizontally, not on an angle or vertically, for a true cabin siding feel.

My top three suggestions:

Move the ottoman to your master bedroom. Gorgeous but it won't last well here with boys and you can build that room around the gray and yellow that you don't have here. Or,replace this fabric and save it for the next go round of redesign when they are older. Cover with dark rust striped with gold and red to echo curtains and kilim pillows. Pick this fabric out and then go rug shopping.

Buy a rug in the same color family red rust gold - southwest but inexpensive -see Ikea. It will hide boy trouble well and save your carpet!

Buy some gallery template kits with black frames and beige mats. ORB spray paint all the black frames.
Use outtakes, turn them all sepia toned, add some hangable trinkets and last name initial and fill the tv wall with a gallery. Crop in close on kids faces, get them running at the park, unposed, gramma cooking, christmas dinner, opening presents at birthday, mom in college, dad before kids, dad with fellas, and so forth. Print them all in sepia tones = blow a few way up with cropping and kinkos. Since the other prints are warm, let this be monochromatic around the tv.

Look at PB website for some advice, and also at YoungHouseLove for things they include. you can do some homemade graphics, add your last name initial painted orb, and so forth. Fill the wall around your tv.

Finally, add some big soft pretty baskets for extra shoes and toys that migrate here. Get a living room colored throw that is so soft and so washable and so pretty that mommy will share with boys.

CMR Interiors & Design Consultations Inc. Hi, just an observation...Your chandelier over your dining room table is up too high. Its only supposed to be in the 34-40" off the tabletop to the bottom of the chandelier. Hopefully you have more links left from the installation . If not, call the company and order a strand of them.

Kelsy Van_Egdom Wow... alittle over-whelmed but I appreciate everyone's advice!! I will be tackling this design stuff one step at a time. I will start with recovering the ottoman in a different fabric and finding a good accent chair. Also, putting up the distressed wood on the wall is on the to-do. Thanks again and any more advice is welcome!
I want to add the bedroom so I can show my dresser and mirror and what to do.....

Pro-Pack and Shelly Patterson Design Hi, your entry needs a photo arrangement with your personal touches. I have added a great resource link to get you started and give you ideas http://www.hgtv.com/decorating-basics/how-to-create-an-art-gallery-wall/pictures/index.html?i=1

shaundaspell Your house looks a lot like the home my parents bought a few years ago. It was a messy foreclosure and this is how my mom and i fixted it up. Your place has great potential! I have a ton of suggestions, but i would probaby take up multiple pages. Good luck!

libradesigneye Put the large piece of art over your dresser and add a lamp and a decorative tray to contain the inevitable earrings, buttons, pocket change, receipts, notes, cellphone.
If what is on the wall is the mirror, and the one on the floor angled is also the mirror, then you just need one bigger floor mirror and you can use these in other rooms. One on the wall behind your entry door to bounce that light in, one opposite your front window along the hallway to bring more light.

kosterbelle I would put an inexpensive rug under dining table..yes, under dining table. Vacuum and spot clean as needed. I would then continue to build on what you've already got on the dining wall with more pictures, art pieces made of different materials like wood, metal, mirrors, shapes and mix and match. offset each art pieces and alternate sizes from the size of a book to larger pieces square, round, rectangle, faux tree branches, carvings, more framed pictures, etc. but try to keep a similar space between items, like 5 inches and eventually your wall will be filled and look really cool. Paint the wall an accent color that you pull from your family picture. That looks like an easy wall to paint. i would recommend spending more on a gallon of quality paint like Aura that goes will go on well in one coat. One day project.

Photo Captures by Jeffery I agree that is a bit dangerous having the top of the stairs right in front of the entry way but about the only thing to place there is a child proof gate. That or some sort of picket fence type gate. Agree some artworks and photos to brighten up the walls. If you do place a rug under dining room table just make sure it is something that is easy to clean or cheap enough that if by chance there is major accidents it won't be as much to replace it.

cerulean77 I love your homemade ottoman. You are a creative person and will ultimately choose combinations that please you and allow you to feel comfortable in your home. Maybe a large Southwest style rug hanging on the wall in the staircase area centered over landing perpendicular to door. Three medium sized baskets (with flat backs, or not) mounted on same wall right next to door for storage, keys, mail. An entry type table pushed against stair railing next to/across from chair. Put a lamp on it, if possible. Tv area calls for entertainment center and another chair as others have said. Kitchen eating area is beautiful with that chandelier. Put some wainscoting up in color of you choice and keep adding to your photos, etc. A rug under the table might be a pain to clean with those little munchkins, but if you really want one, get one you love. Blessings.

the_misfit I agree about the rug for the dining room and lowering the chandelier. (And if you can swing it, I think an electric fireplace with the TV above would look awesome.) Regarding the living room, I wouldn't eliminate fabrics until you've brought more in and seen what can work together - starting with a lot more pillows and/or throw blankets. I would get an area rug to put on top of your wall-to-wall carpet, for the middle of the seating/TV area. Something like this: http://ak1.ostkcdn.com/images/products/P10084960.jpg? (Available here: http://www.overstock.com/Home-Garden/Flat-woven-Tribal-Wool-Jute-Rug-5-x-8/1717327/product.html.) Or this http://www.overstock.com/Worldstock-Fair-Trade/Indo-Kilim-Burgundy-Ivory-Rug-57-x-79/4087234/product.html; or this http://www.overstock.com/Home-Garden/Hand-woven-Kilim-Burgundy-Jute-Wool-Rug-4-x-6/2169638/product.html. Lots of good options.

Also, I'm not sure what you mean about the rustic plank wall, but with the open concept, I'm not sure how easy it would be to delineate where that wall should end (and I found it difficult to paint a staircase wall - I can imagine there would be more challenges in nailing boards onto one). If you have it figured out, of course, go to town. But a gallery wall of family photos (or whatever other frameable items appeal to you) would also work on that wall. I like the look of a gallery wall along a staircase, where it can be seen from a lot of angles. And I think it looks nice to have a lot of frames with little differences but all in the same finish (bonus if they naturally have the same finish and you didn't spray-paint them that way). Maybe something like these: http://www.worldmarket.com/product/grey-wash-cody-frames.do?fMb=1&green=E314D0B3-2AAE-5CF6-A360-7283EB9EBA74&clickid=mybuys_cat_cs?

With respect to the staircase - I tend to find safety concerns to be an annoyance when I am trying to focus on aesthetics, but the other folks may have a point. I would look on craigslist for a single length of (real, not the modern aluminum version) wrought-iron fence or gate with some ornateness to it, and then use that as a guard rail. It might impale visitors, of course, but I don't believe that's against code.

Good luck!

kparham104 Did anyone recommend paint? Find a nice earthy shade. Something with a dark mica tone. Think Arizona Desert. Nice, rich wall color would do wonders for your home.

Kelsy Van_Egdom Thanks again for your opinions... The past fews days I've been researching different styles and I feel like the southwestern theme is something I will get tired/bored with a awhile. I'm changing my mind constantly and I know my husband isn't thrilled with that style either. I've been looking at Potterybarn to get inspiration and this is what I'm leaning towards with the first picture. With that being said, I'm wondering if this pallet, distressed wood wall will still look good with the style I'm going to go with. Here is an example of what I like. I really want to add thicker/wider boards to make it kind of '3Dish' and have shelving to place frames and art work so i don't have to worry about hanging them. And now I"m wondering what style/print rug for the dining room for under the table... I get major anxiety about what style of rug to put there! I can't make up my mind and I'm not sure what kind of color combo I want in the kitchen/dining room. All my walls are beigey since all the rooms are open to each other.

Dan Daugherty I agree with the others who have suggested a gate at the stairway near the door and also I like the idea of Family Photo groupings on that large wall... But I have a very unique Sculpture that was designed for just such a place. It is a Hanging sculpture, Self illuminated and it is large enough to take up a lot of that space and at the same time, Illuminate the stairwell. It weighs in at only 21 lbs, so it won't be a problem. It reflects well off of any wall color and is an awesome Conversation piece. It features Remote control LED low energy color changing lights that can be set to flash, stay the same or fade. To install, one would only have to remove the existing light bulb and mount the hanger there and simply wire to the existing wiring. very easy job.

lepstein Why do you need a rug under your dining table? The wood is an easy sweep or wipe up, especially with kids. Love your chandelier, but agree that it should be lower.