Technically and "traditionally" speaking I agree with Natalie about the sofa. But, I'm looking at your space with more of an eclectic design. You have contemporary, traditional, antiques and modern in your spaces - with lots of color. (blue, red, raspberry, green, gold, browns, teal). So, I'm thinking go all out with the eclectic style and keep the sofa. Hence, adding more fun color/pattern and even add the totally unexpected (and seemingly wrong color choice) red in your living space. (Since you have red in the dining room). A contemporary floor lamp, or whimsical design lamp between the sofa and chair would be a fun addition. NOT all of these pillows, but your choice. :) Keep the solid blue pillow. It looks great. Needless to say, you have to like eclectic to appreciate it.

Another vote for blue. Love the chair pillow.

It looks like the rug may look great moved to you dining area. You may want to move it and get a different rug for the living room. If $$ is any issue (it always is for me), then you could easily pull in the blues and greens from the rug into solid color pillows. I would stay away from the pink. It's a great rug and a very nice couch.

I love the dinning area its fun and colorful and very rustic refined, I think that the rug does not go with the sofa at all and the sofa overall goes with the entire feel of the house from what I see so far, so I would stick with the sofa and ditch the rug replace it with a solid colored rug, and throw some red pillows on that couch to match the doors, it will tie the room together and will be easier on the eyes when you stick with a set color palette throughout the house.

The wood floor lamp with the red shade shown by "Darzy" is a winner. That lamp placed between the chair and sofa would do wonders for the room. i agree with everything "Design Inspired by You" wrote.

Oh my... You have some work to do! I can see by the photos that you live in a period home (told by the gorgeous floors and woodwork!). First off, go to your big box store (Home Depot) and get a can of Wil-Bond Sander Sealer in the paint department along with a gal. Of Behr Best Quality Ultra White Semi gloss paint. Bring it home, roll up your sleeves and clean the risers that someone has painted blue followed immediately with the new, crisp, bright, appropriate white riser! This is no place to be adventurous.... Nor making a 'statement'.... Stick to,white!

Next, if possible, return the rug. Take a look at the attached link. This would be far better choice for your room, space, use. a http://t.homedepot.com/p/Mohawk-Frise-Shag-Starch-8-ft-x-10-ft-Area-Rug-166380/100549418 get a color that matches the occasional chair. The present rug is just too busy and this should be a relaxing space.

If you cannot return said rug, you can try it in a bedroom.... Yours, a daughters..... A daughter would be so happy with this as the centerpiece of her room. Paint out the walls either pure white or a soft celery green (one of the medallions appears to be that couple) and paint all trim crisp semi-gloss white! Get all white linens for the bed and windows with just 1 large accent pillow for the bed. If no daughter then do the same for your bedroom!

Back to,the living-room.."I would then use a warm 'tomatoey' red to bring some 'pop' into the space. Return the other pillows and find some casual red ones. Then get same color red chair cushions for the dining room chairs to connect the spaces. OK to leave the blue credenza in dining room as it appears to me soft shade of blue. Look for a tomato red large square/rectangular try to set not nice leather ottoman to set up useful division of space.

Re-think where you have your wall art. The bottoms of the art should not be more than 6" above whatever is below it (ie., sofa, credenza etc). As what I can see doesn't seem to be too significant in size you may need to group some items together to create a focal point.

When your budget allows get some white tailored drapery panels to use on either side of the windows ( hang substantial rods ( dark wood, oiled bronze) high above top of window frame and to the outside of the windows in both rooms, and to just a 1/2" above the floor. (remember, you need to treat the two rooms as one!). These don't need to be operational.... This is to bring light, style, and height to you space.

This is a pretty large 'order' but I can feel,your desire to bring some life into,the spaces. stay calm, in control and never throw away your receipts! Bring home anything you might like to be the 'jewelery' but remember the adage... When you are all dressed up for a big evening out and think you look just dazzling, look into the mirror one more time before stepping out on the town and remove one piece of the 'jewelery'. Don't over-do.

Good luck and take your time getting your home right.

I like your colors and I think all you need to do is straighten the side chair and bring the rug back toward the couch. I learned on the site that the furniture legs should be on the rug so the rug isn't floating in the room. Add some blue and a red toned pillow to the couch to pick up on the rug colors. Lastly, center the ottoman. I have the same one with the same style couch. I know why you have it pushed over, I did the same thing, but after a few tries, I found that it looks best centered with the couch. You can always move it around when you have people over and need it to be closer to the other couch. A couple of small adjustments I think is all you need!!

Teal and cream

Change out the carpet for something more subtle, then bring in textures and patterns with the pillows.

I like the blue pop with the rug. I'd put two blue ones on the couch and try to find two more with blue and red subtle pattern. Have you tried putting the couch at an angle? Maybe green on the walls. Your house is really cute

Not saying you should ....but would love tooooooo see your rug
Moved over tooooo your dinning area ....against that blue chest of draws ...
But then I guess that gives you the dilemma of choseing
Another rug .....

Way tooooo go
Someone who is not afraid of COLOUR .....
Loving your blue chest of draws ..along with your lamps ...
Indeed a cute room ..

What about this...what if you move that beautiful, colorful rug into the dining room and put a solid colored, maybe a putty or off white rug into the living room. You have some colorful furniture pieces in the dining room that might relate better to the colorful rug than your sofa does.

A solid, lighter colored rug in the living room would lighten up the space. Also, you could keep all the light colored pillows in the living room, including the blue and move the two dark ones to another room.

A light colored throw on the ottoman would lighten it up. (Maybe a light color from the colorful rug to help it relate to the dining room.) You could put a tray on top of that and move in front of the sofa as has been suggested and use as a coffee table.

I do agree with some of the other suggestions...I think white curtains would be too stark.

If you don't like my idea about the rugs, then I agree that a sofa slipcover is a good idea, but I don't think I would use fuchsia, nor would I use stark white.

Good luck and have fun. :)

I could see the bright blue pillow on your chair. But I would tone down the brightness on the coach to a navy blue with a throw
also! It would tone down the bright color, and bring out the fabric
on the coach also. You need to pull color out of coach too blend.
Too much bold color would be bad!

I'd use the blue and green colors from the rug, which are compliments to the brown and red you have elsewhere. That will make the colors pop.

Go ahead and add the fuchsia color and keep the blue. Since you already have a lot of pattern and eclectic pieces in your room, stick with a color block pillow with blue and fuchsia or a solid with texture. I do agree with the comment on painting the risers white as the blue competes too much with everything else going on in the room and will allow your other colorful elements to stand out more. Nice space!

I would use yellow and red pillows

Use the light green to match the rug on the couch and keep the blue pillow on the chair. No other colors.

The mossy green in the rug would look great. Not a fan of blue.

keep the blue pillow on the chair and slip cover all pillows(seats and back) of the sofa in the green color that's in the rug. Now you don't need any other throw pillows on it.

Hello K Muska, cute carpet! Like the blue in your room!
Pillow rules 2:2:1 2 plain, 2 printed & 1 different print or plain!!
The common colours in carpet & kitchen being black, red, blue could be the fix!

I think using the jewel tones from the rug. I also think the color is just part of the equation. I would stay away from *all* solids on pillows. Embrace a little additional pattern. The scale should be smaller than the area rug pattern that is large. Agreed that window panels would also help move color and texture around the room.

I agree. You need some pattern. Love the blue and sage green in your carpet!

Great idea from gustaruygers to cover the couch cushions seats and backs in the green color

I was thinking of color in my first comment. The rug is way too small for the space, and will look even smaller and pinched if you place the edge under the sofa legs. You need to move it a little farther from the sofa or get a larger rug that's at least 8'x10'. The current rug may be too small for the dining area, as well..

I'd have 3 blue pillows (solid colors) in 3 different shapes. Just make it easy on yourself, don't overdo it and it will look really pretty!

I would do pillows in the couch trim, enough color.

I found this link in Houzz, affordable and mistake proof. Consultation with an Interior Designer.
http://www.blondiesloft.com

First I have to say that I admire anyone with the courage to invite all sorts of comments, many of which are not complimentary because the reader has a different taste and vision for the space. So, here I add my own perspective which may be way off the mark, so take with some grains of salt :)

My first impression when I looked at the larger picture was that it was a dark drab room. But then when I got the view through the dining area I saw the whole space quite differently. I love the dining area: the windows, the wall art arrangement and colors. It is very personal and appealing. The wood floors are great!

I also wonder what I would see if sitting in the chair or sofa. There must be a window on the wall opposite the stairs, as I see light coming from that direction, but I don't know what else is on that wall. Is it a TV, a fireplace? That could make a big difference.

To my eye, the rug, the ottoman and the beige chair seem jarringly at odds with the feel of the rest of the space. If it were my room, I would move those three items to another room. I love the blue pillow and to answer your question, I would keep that and use other pillows with patterns that include the blue and red from elsewhere in the room. I love the sofa, although if you are wanting to get rid of it, it may be that it is not in good shape. If it is worth the investment, I might replace the sofa cushions. I would experiment with changing the sofa placement. The black of the carpet background and the black ottoman seem too harsh. Perhaps an end table with a table lamp would help anchor the sofa. And you need bigger, more colorful pictures on the wall behind the sofa, or a grouping that includes some colorful plates or baskets or other mementos. I don't think elaborate window coverings are necessary. Perhaps a round ottoman in a softer or brighter color would be good. One or two chairs, not as modern in feel as the present one would make it a comfy area for visiting.

Well, those are my thoughts, take them or leave them, and keep up the good work.

You've had so many suggestions already that I'm not sure you're any clearer than you were to begin with but here goes. I wouldn't slipcover the entire couch. Possibly recover or slipcover the cushions but first I would get two pillows the color of that soft seafoam-ish green in the rug and put them on each side of the couch where the coral (?) ones are now. Then, yes, pull that fuschia out of the rug and pop it right in the middle with a pillow the same size as the one you have there now. Your proportions are spot on so keep that going.

I love mixing patterns but I think you'll be creating your own "pattern" with the pillows once your finished. I'm not sure whether the ottoman is in use for another chair or being used as a coffee table. If table, then center it more on the couch and the texture in it will add another element of texture to your "pattern". I love what you have done in your dining room and I would keep the rug in the living room. You've shown great instincts and have done a lovely job already. Just stay true to what you've started.

"Happiness is a warm home."

Please post a photo of your kitchen and dining room so we can see more of the details.

I think the living room, dining room and kitchen should be treated as one space with a unified theme and color scheme. To get a fresh, new look, I suggest deciding which piece in the three rooms is your favorite. Then I'd work your colors around that piece. Things that don't fit that color scheme or are not a neutral, I'd put in another room. If there is no other room where you want something to go, consider selling on Craigslist. Since you haven't painted your French doors yet, please wait on that until we see all the rooms. Perhaps a different color will work better.

What do you do in each of the rooms? For example, do the kids hang out in the living room, do you watch TV there, is your dining room used for homework, computer, handling mail and bills? How old are your kids? Do you have a family room elsewhere? I envision your sofa and ottoman being best in a family room and/or room where kids hang out.

Do you know your style? If you haven't already done this, go through Houzz and put things you like in Ideabooks. Then use those as inspiration for your home. If you post some of those photos, maybe we can help you achieve the look that you love.

What kind of budget do you have for this project?

Your question was about pillows. The beginning of my answer is that I think you have too many pillows. With kids, pillows get strewn around the house and look messy. If anyone in your home uses the pillows, then I'd have one pillow per person who uses one, and I'd have those only in the area that functions as a family room. As for colors, I think other questions should be answered first and then pillow color and pattern can be decided.

You cannot ignore that pink/red color. It pops in that rug and has to be repeated. The pink/red, the blue and then that gold is what I would do for pillows. If you can sew perhaps the pink with blue piping, and then gold with blue, so that it all ties together.

Bring in the white and red with pillows.

Love the rug. I'd recover the sofa cushions in blue/green from the rug. I wouldn't introduce pink as a major color but would give a nod to it in some small way thru wall decor or flowers. Looks to me that the beige of the chair and sofa are in the rug. The color that jars me is the black in the rug and I love black backgrounds in rugs. So, as someone suggested, I'd put the ottoman front and center to help tie in the black. Might try to find some pillow braid with some black in it...not sure on that...would have to see.

I would try taking everything off the walls and moving them to bedrooms. I would take out all the lamps except the two in front of the dining windows. I would also move the red drawer unit and the large floor basket out of the dining room and into another room.

Then I would move the blue piece with drawers into the living room right corner where the end table and lamp were.

Then I'd move the buffet from the left wall in the dining room to where the blue piece was. Now the buffet is a beautiful statement piece that you see as you look in the dining room.

Decide if the lamps in front of the dining window should stay put or be on the blue piece ... or maybe one on the blue piece and one elsewhere.

For the living room windows, I recommend traverse rods and draperies that pull open and stack off the glass. This will make those windows seem larger. I would go ceiling to floor or at least so the bottom of the pleats are 2" above the glass. Use the same fabric and style in the dining room. Hang the top height to the top height in the living room. I would not hang anything else on those walls.

I think you either need blank walls or large pieces (in the 36x48" range). When you determine your colors and style, pull those in with your artwork.

On the wall where the buffet was, if you need storage, I would put pantries side by side to fill the wall. I'd use something that complements the buffet. On the opposite wall, is that a radiator or a buffet? If it is a radiator, I would put a front on it and doors the same style as the pantries. If you need desk space, you could build that into that wall instead. That's what we did. We have a pantry on the left that houses our printer, shredder, sewing machine, paper, games, boxes of photos awaiting scanning and/or albumizing. On the bottom, to the right of the pantry are two built in desk spaces with built in file drawers. Above are upper cabinets with doors. That's where we store our books. We did some pricing when we got our kitchen cabinetry (which is the same as our "office" cabinetry. We ended up with Kraft Maid through Home Depot and have been very pleased with it.

Agree that redoing the stairs would make them look really nice. I'd try to return them to hardwood.

On the topic of hardwood, your floors are so beautiful. I think your living room would look nicer if the rug was gone. It will also be cleaner and easier to keep clean. I like the rug but not in your living room. Try it in your daughter's room or your room as was suggested.

I think the end result of all these changes will be more storage, returning your home to the intent of the original builder and more of a WOW factor.

Wow. and I thought the question was just what color pillows.

Can't answer the pillow color question until we see what is and isn't in the rooms.

Fun hot pinks. Add a touch of bright blue

Wow, your space is fantastic! I think the real question is, what color of pillows would NOT work in this room?! You could do tons of jewel tones and pastels all mixed together, just whatever colors make you happy!

more ideas

more ideas! you can tell I love color :)

I saw these and thought of you. So cute!

Do you like any of these pillows?

Here's some more.

It's cushion heaven or hell
Whichever way you look at it
I wonder what K Muska thinks
Thus far ....
So much colour ....fab fab

I'm loving the painted stairs! :)

These might work.

I hate blue in the house and I'm digging the blue pillow for some reason....

LOL!

Bright blue sofas are gorgeous IMHO. Cover the sofa cushions in the rug blue. DKNY's floral and wave pillows are perfect and tie the red into the room. Add the red shaded floor lamp to also tie in the red and for a bit of fun.

What if you take off the rug and take those colors into de pillows... i would love to see that!