I like your room. Try colour in accessories, whitewash the walls.

I love the floor color. Just learn to love your swifter!

Hi, Angelina. Thanks for the quick input. Oh, Yes thinking of light color flooring like in the hickory side. But I'm concerned with my stair color which is darker than the floor I have now which I hope I can get away with it.

You guys are awesome. Thank you for liking my room. I will also get rid of some stuff. . Too much little things i have around the house. Well, my husband mops the floor everyday.. love him. ..

It's fine the way it is, but lightening the floor will lighten the whole room. You do have a lot of dark furnishings. I'd suggest recovering the DR chair seats in a bright print (picking up the colors in the art above the sofa.). If the chairs have wood seats, consider bright cushions. It will soften the amount of dark on that side of the room. Also vary your accessories - not so many pairs of things - in the hearth room area.

Redoing the floor seems an extreme solution. Some less work intensive options might include a lighter coffee table, lighter dining chairs, ( or cushions) nickel lighting and drapery rods, painting a white rectangle behind the painting to frame it, and additional lamps.

I just love looking at these houses here at this site. With that being said I don't even know what my preferred design is anymore. I love the modern clean look , the bright color homes. ... my problem is I end up settling for something (pieces in the house) because of the price. .I don't like to spend much on things. ...if money is no object to me, probably my house will be completely different....

I don't find your place any dark at all! I would say it's very warm-looking and inviting. If I changed something, that would probably be the sofa table (maybe a glass one...?) but I don't think you really need to change something to make the room lighter. I don't know if it would be an option for you but where I live there is this kind of tile which looks like wood floor, and that's super-convenient for houses with pets:

We have the laminate flooring that is really thin. . Any little thing you drop makes this annoying sound. I think you call it the cheap sound. .. I'm a newbee in this discussion site and really happy with the response. Thank you all. ..

Love your room. The only suggestions I would make, is to get new decorative pillows that show off your beautiful art and remove the metal piece over your mirror in your dining room. If you want to lighten the color of your walls, BM slate is a beautiful greige but I think your walls are okay the way they are. One thing that might make a huge difference is a tufted ottoman. And one more minor change, I think your draperies are hung too low. If you can raise them half way between the top of your window and your ceiling it would make your ceilings look taller. Good luck

You have a beautiful home! I actually love your flooring. Have you thought about getting a robot vacuum? We have the Neato and it does a good job on hardwoods. You can set it to run daily if you want.

wow! that ottoman is nice... it looks expensive though... I'll look into it. oh, i had the Scooba and didn't like and returned it. But, I was thinking of getting the no water version the Roomba I believe. Neato- I'll google it.... Hmm, unless i'm cleaning (or my husband) these floors the wrong way. I see marks all the time, especially the high traffic areas.

Try light cleanable cushions for the dining benches and an indoor/outdoor carpet under the table for a lighter touch.

Hello,
I like your room. I got my daughter a Roomba (pet series) because she has two big dogs and lots of dog hair. She sets it to run automatically while she's at work. She loves it! The new one I think you are talking about is Braava. I looked at it at the store the other day. I thought it just dust mopped???

Here's a link to a similar tufted ottoman on overstock that's not quite so expensive.

https://www.google.com/shopping/product/3280984890966719052?q=tufted+square+ottoman&safe=active&sqi=2&biw=1366&bih=706&ei=1cGSUpPoKYS6kQfMwYCIDw&ved=0CL0BEKYrMAQ

Janeinfo, thank you. .. you're so sweet. .. Yes, great price.... :-)

Room is lovely, I would make some minor changes such as the pillows (too frilly) and the floral lampshade is competing with your artwork.

I feel as though the art over your fireplace is too large. You might consider a different curtain rod, a single rod, and hang your curtains closer to the ceiling. Your iron work, whilst lovely is a touch overwhelming. Lovely home.

how about changing the lighting?

Think your furniture looks lovely. The flooring compliments it. If pet hair is a problem for the wood floors, how does that white rug work? I think your lighting changing, perhaps by adding more sources, would provide some of what you are striving for. Ideally it might be some recessed lights perhaps and a couple of lamps, making sure everything has dimmers. Carpet under the table could be great. A couple of orientals in bright colors could add color and interest with pillows coordinated to work with them, maybe in a silk fabric for contrast and highlights. If that seems too traditional, you could use some contemporary designed carpets in complimentary colors to each other.
If the painting were a landscape or a large abstract expressionist one, it would open up the room as well. You want to take the eye out and away, which is the opposite effect of the large blown up flower which takes you "in." The shape of the painting should be rectangular and slightly larger. A frame in silver copper or gold leaf would add a little sparkle-which plays up the light. Also a picture light might give you another path to illumination.
The good news is, I think several of the biggest elements like the floor, walls and furniture are fine to build off from as they are. Also, the more polished the floor is, the easier it is to keep clean since smoothness deters dirt from sticking. Also shininess has the net effect of making it lighter.

Thank you so much for all the inputs. I have to run figures for these suggested changes. I appreciate everyone's input. :-)