Last thought: what about painting your big windows black, then framing them with curtains? I just painted an interior door with SW Urbane Bronze, a warm gray black brown and love it.
There are other ideabooks with this idea. Try searching " colored trim".
https://www.houzz.com/magazine/accent-a-room-with-colorful-trim-stsetivw-vs~23706331

The Pottery Barn Estelle lamp

cisco - love the Estelle lamp from PB! I may have to go get that! I read thru that post about painting interior doors. I would love to try that in my house. I bet the Urbane Bronze looks fabulous. You should post a pic! I like all of the paper options as well. Waaay back before I even starting posting on Houzz, I was going to do the bottom 1/2 of the walls in the DR (under the chair rail) the Simute Sisal Grass cloth in Slate. But I'm also liking that soft, muted look of some of the other papers we've mentioned and doing the focal wall instead.

These pictures show what I'm wondering about for your windows re: painting the window trim black. Are your mullions inside the window. Both these photos show painted mullions. I also like the shutters in the dining room. But I think curtains would also dress up your windows and room. What do you think?

I see now what you are suggesting! I was thinking you meant the woodwork all around the windows which I thought would be too black and heavy. Yes, the mullions are on the inside. That looks like a sophisticated touch....very pretty.

Ha! Well, I've suggested goofier things. All part of getting those creative juices flowing. How about this? I was looking at the turquoise ideabook on todays's homepage. What if you paint your buffet aqua/turquoise and use a tone on tone wallpaper behind it?

Also, did you ever track down your coral rug? PB has some gorgeous new pillows that reminded me of that rug.

Cisco mom, great ideas! I think the two windows are too close together for draperies, tho. Romans or shutters would look good.
Cs, do you need to keep the leaf extension in your table at all times because of frequent use or size of your family? Just wondered if you only need it occasionally, the room could accept those hostess chairs more easily if the table was without the leaf.

Cindy, I was just looking at PB's patterned romans, very pretty. You don't think cs could get a panel on each side of the windows? Just curious, since this is all hypothetical on my part. cs hasn't expressed any need for window treatments. I thought I'd try and talk her into these. :))

I would not do window treatments on small high windows. Unnecessary and too fussy.

Were the RH chairs too expensive? I'd rather spend money on good chairs and then go someplace like HomeGoods for pictures and accents.

The RH chairs are on sale right now. If they are still more than you want to spend, fine. Don't be shy about telling us. These are personal choices and we can't help if we don't know parameters.

Ramona, I was looking at the double hungs in the little nook thingy looking outside to a ...porch?..., not the high windows.

cisco mom, oh, I wasn't sure where that picture came from. sorry.

No problem. Can I ask which RH chairs are on sale? I'll scroll up too, seem to remember some pretty ones you posted.

Never mind, the Bennett? Love those.

OK, just for laughs, went to the Target site to look at wallpapers. The first three are actually Peel and Stick, removable. The second is probably too dark for an accent wall, but it said it had gold in it and just kind of felt like your chandelier to me. The third comes in a pretty pale aqua, as well. (I used it in the back of my corner cupboard.)

Parsons chairs with a skirt would be nice too. They have a slim profile and seem like they would go well with your side chairs.

And from houzz products: love this one, look closely:



And for something totally different - from anthropolgie.

I love the RH Bennett chairs. Would buy them in a heart beat but they are a bit on the high end of what I want to spend. When I put in the parameters of fabric/color/etc, they are around $550 each. Would love to spend that as a total instead. I found a couple options on Craig's List....but both responded and said they didn't want to split up the host chairs from the set. I thought I could recover the floral chairs and love the West End leather chairs too. Posting pics.....

oh wait...maybe I didn't save the photo of the tall gray leather host chairs from West Elm but you probably all know what they look like. The other linen chair (photo on the right) is from a local shop near me. Never been there but may go and look at these?? They may not be tall enough.

ciscomom.....would totally do those panels on my windows. I love the last two wall paper options in your group of 4 photos. Stampede is kind of fun too....what's up with the horse craze in home décor lately?? cindyguent - I don't necessarily need the leaf in the table all of the time. I was planning to take it out when I found my host chairs to see if I like it better without the leaf.

cisco.....that rug I loved is around $7,000! UGH! Remember when you asked in this very long thread about how I felt about more of a beigier rug, that's totally the direction I'm trying to go. I love that look. It's soft, neutral, can introduce some other colors while also looking pretty with my gray. Just need to find the rug. I've been scouring PB, Home Decorators, Ballards and West Elm. Just not finding it yet.

If you like them, watch for a super sale. Register on site and try for coupons, etc. Switch to the cotton duck fabric. Those are $459 right now.

You can also get the same chairs without arms for the price you want in duck.
http://www.restorationhardware.com/catalog/product/product.jsp?productId=prod2710534

If you're going to reupholster chairs, I think they should be a shape that isn't as common as the floral swoop. It isn't a budget solution, but is worth doing if you love the piece's shape or can't reproduce the quality. These chairs have a really contemporary shape ( minus the skirt) but it would be an investment, not a money saver once you reupholstered them.
http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/hnp/fuo/4587683966.html

Keep trying craigslist, someone will break up their set. :)

$45 each. Savage.

http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/dak/fuo/4552806210.html

ciscomom - don't really want to reupholster but thought it might open up some options for a solid made chair but just needs updating. For some reason I cannot find the post you sent this morning asking about that one photo with the cloud painting. My first reaction was I LOVE the chairs! It's a very pretty room. I like the subtle touches of the vase on the hutch that ties in with the chandelier and examples of those things throughout all of the photos. It's official, I'm returning that mirror. After looking at it for two days, it definitely overwhelms the space. Art work is the answer :) Now.....where to find it.

Have to go back and catch up but .......

Guess What Peeps.... I've been BLOCKED from the 'Gaudy Rococo' thread!. Can't open all your comments? Might be my last comment?

CS if you find a great deal on a set of chairs on Craigslist, but there are too many, you could buy them and sell off the two you don't need. I have done this before if it was a good deal. Sometimes I even sell off what I don't need for enough $$ that the ones I keep are free to me.

http://minneapolis.en.craigslist.org/dak/fuo/4552491141.html

Not you, LB all of us are blocked. Was probably that Susan person who complained.

I'd add color. Maybe orange! I love the wall color! In love!

[houzz=]

tall enough, $ 300 for pair

What's this Gaudy Rococo post and why would you all be blocked out?? I'm so curious??

way off topic but would love all of your opinions on this rug for my LR? I may start a new thread for it too. I have a twead gray sectional and two dove gray leather chairs. I would like to introduce some soft beiger tones with a touch of rust and golds. Not sure about the amount of light blue but thought this rug from PB was pretty. Your thoughts?

oops....forgot images:

if you want to see it on PB's website it's the Malika Persion

http://minneapolis.en.craigslist.org/dak/fuo/4555833868.html $20 for the pair

http://minneapolis.craigslist.org/hnp/fuo/4593437286.html. 2 wingbacks being used in dining room

Rug is pretty, but traditional? Before you go forward, perhaps you might want the ottoman or coffee table you would use with the rug chosen, even if not bought.

oohhh....those chairs are pretty cool. I wonder if they would be too overwhelming (big) in my DR? I know that cindyguent suggested taking the leaf out. I'm going to go look at them. I agree the rug is traditional. I like a little mix of traditional/contemporary but not too drastic or polar opposite. UGH...so now I need to be thinking ottoman or coffee table. Okay, agreed. I'll start looking for that piece first :)
What would you do coffee table or ottoman?

Well, its impossible to tell their size, mass from her posting. Have you tried pulling your living room chairs in there just for a visual? Since you know their size, it might give you an idea of what might be too big or might work?

The rug IS pretty. I couldn't see it with the sectional on my e-reader but loved it with your floors and I thought its tones would be very nice with the cabinetry. The only reason I mentioned picking out the ottoman/table kind of together with the rug is because the rug's colors and pattern narrow your choices. You just want to have seen enough options you like that you are assured that something that works with both the sectional and rug is out there. I'm guessing, maybe incorrectly, that you'll find a wood tone coffee table easier to find than a fabric that works with both. So, if this rug means a hard time finding an ottoman, and you really want an ottoman, you'll have thought that through. Make sense?

the wingback craigslist chairs look like a good deal to me, but you should have them reupholstered which is not a big deal. I did great on craigslist with a pair of MGM chairs for $80 and had them reupholstered in an Ethan Allen neutral zebra fabric.

Zebra! Who would have thunk, Ramona? lol. Agree about reupholstery...that could be real fun with a fabric cs loves.

CSLund, if you get the chairs reupholstered, they can adjust the dimensions of the chair frame to suit your space. So do not worry too much about its size, if the basic shape is to your liking. Many people do not realize that even sofa arms and back shapes can be changes fairly easy.

You mean they are not in your car yet???

ciscomom....that totally makes sense about the ottoman vs. coffee table. I agree that an upholstered or leather would be much harder to make work with my sectional, rug and gray leather chairs. I am leaning towards a mix of maybe a wood tone coffee table and maybe glass or something different for a side table between the two chairs. Then I need a fun floor lamp and hopefully I can move on to my powder bath :)
I've been emailing with the CL person and hope to go look at those chairs today. Hope they work...great find cisco! Ramona - I looked at the neutral zebra fabric on Ethan Allen's website...wouldn't that be fun for the back of the chairs? I'm wondering if that's too much black in that room? One of my favorite fabrics from waaaay up top was that black and white feather chair.

No black on mine

[houzz=]

Yay!! Fingers crossed. They remind me of something the queen of hearts from Alice in Wonderland would like. Maybe shouldn't share that? :))

Pretty, Ramona!!

ohh.....I love!!!

could I do that with my zig zag rug?? Or would my guests go cross-eyed??

cisco, I like whimsical, so Queen of Hearts it is. Karen says MGM chairs are tippy top quality. Be careful. Even though they were a bargain, the material and upholstery were not cheap. They were difficult to do whereas the chairs above would not be. I'm not sure about the rug would need to see them closer together, but I have a trellis pattern and they look fine.

I would definately do something with the windows. There are so many nice panels you can choose from that would add color and texture to your room. The panels do not have to be very wide. If you choose colored and/or panels with a pattern, I would add a nice soft paintaing between the windows. If you choose panels with no patterns, I would add a paintaing with lots of colors. Choose a paintaing that you love and will start a conversation around the table. Instead of a paintaing, you can choose a different piece of art that would add depth to your room. I would not add wallpaper if you go with my suggestion as this would make your room too busy.

If you don't like panels, you can add nice shades; I give an example here... http://houzz.com/photos/1245907




http://houzz.com/photos/1245907

This is how wallpaper and art can work together. The relationships between wallpaper and art need high contrast. Either with color or pattern. One needs to be less busy than the other and they can work together. And patterns need to contrast in density and size and/or color contrast.