This Week's Questions
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We installed a beautiful oak floor in our new family room, which also has nice traditional details like a chair rail and dado, plus wood shutters at the big windows overlooking the patio. Here's my dilemma: the shutters and woodwork are painted off-white. The walls are greenish beige. Our sofa and chairs are upholstered in a matching beige with light green palm trees. To me, the room looks bland. Suggestions, please!-Mary Lynn
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Cool and warmth: commodious chairs in brilliant blue velvet punch up a neutral scheme of rich wood tones on the floor and painted wood blinds and mouldings. |
| PHOTO Michael Grimm |
Answer 1:
You've put your room on a fat-free diet, dear Mary Lynn. You need a little schmalz --that's German for fat - but also for fanciful. The answer to that deprivation is color.
You've created a handsome background with your hardwood floor and off-white woodwork and shutters (all room-warmers), and balanced it with your greenish beige walls (a coolant). Now consider adding a strategic injection of some brilliant hue to bring the room to life.
Obviously, your beige upholstery's not doing the trick, so think about slipcovers in something jazzy, say, the extroverted sapphire blue that animates the chairs in the room we show here. Borrowed from the pages of a smart new book ("Speed Decorating," The Taunton Press), it comes as close to your situation as we could find, with its wood shutters and glowing wood floor.
Author Jill Vegas, who is a professional house stager, agrees that "Adding color can be the fastest way to breathe new life into a room."
By the way, professional color and fashion forecaster Patricia Bouley tells us that "True Blues" are coming on strong. At least, that's what she saw at the recent, trend-setting Maison et Objet trade show in Paris. Other hot color options, Patty says, include shocking pink - not for the faint of heart - "Power Red," and yellow greens (save for chartreuse, probably not energetic enough for your needs).
Question 2:
We are renovating a very old home (1863). Of course, the kitchen is dark. I would like to brighten it up as much as possible and was thinking lighter cabinets would help. We have already purchased hickory flooring, on the darker side with black accents, which will run throughout the house. I am not particularly fond of white cabinets....Do you have a suggestion (or two) for what color would work well with hickory?-Sue
The right color choice relies on many contributing factors. For example, what's the architectural personality of your old home? Built in l863, it could well be Greek Revival, farmhouse, cottage, or early Victorian,? Do you want to acknowledge that time-frame in your décor, or are you interested in updating? And how formal or informal is your family lifestyle?
Keep these factors in mind as you evaluate my (rendered sight-unseen) color suggestions. Cherry cabinets in a clear or light stain would be traditional and a bit on the formal side. Pickeled oak cabinets could be either country or sophisticated. Ditto for cabinets painted a sage green. For pure sophistication, consider enameling your cabinets silver-..For sheer fun - and compliments on your daring - cabinets painted bitter green, orange or red would be thrilling, fun, and informal.
My best advice: photograph your kitchen as is; sketch or PhotoShop-in cabinets where you want them, then try on actual samples of whatever colors you are considering. Seeing is believing what you will - or won't - love living with.
Two more tips: click on "Species Guide" on this website to see "cherry" in a variety of stains intensities. Ask your paint store about small color samples, available from such top manufacturers as Benjamin Moore and Sherwin Williams.
