So cool how you manage to put tht into the picture! Would you go with a dark shade instead of a white shade? Should the shade match the curtains? I think I need a new rug and drapes too??

Why not add some simple shades to the candles? Not sure the contemporary feel of the drum pendant matches your furniture.

I think the crystals on the fixture in Dytecture's photo make it work with the more traditional furniture. But I think a plain drum shade pendant would work too. Either would help move the room towards a more modern eclectic/transitional look.

I think Dytecture's solution is spot on! A simple drum might feel a bit too contemporary. The glass or crystals give it a more traditional feeling and help it blend with your existing pieces. There's nothing in the rule-books that says the shade should match the fabric in the drapes. In fact, a white shade wouldn't allow the crystals to stand out as much and could feel stark. I think adding darker drapes or panels would help balance the room but only if it's in the budget. Maybe a dark tie back or something to pull the eye around the room.

I agree, WDS. There's also that blank wall that would look great with artwork in dark colors or with a dark frame to balance the shade. I think your existing rug and drapes are just fine, unless you just really want more new stuff!

I love the look of drum shades, but they don't work everywhere. I like some of the chandeliers at Ballard Designs. The two I've attached offer an update to traditional. If you have a Christmas Tree shop nearby, you could purchase some chandelier shades (1/3rd the price of anywhere else if in stock) to use on your existing one to see if you even like the look. You can always return them. Good luck!

And how about a mirror on the back wall to pick up the sparkly light from the chandelier?

Definitely Dytecture is right here. The drum shade feels a bit modern for this room, but a modified drum with interior crystals would work. Consider also some wallpaper for this space. I love wallpaper in a DR and it would look great with the wainscotting. Would be a nice backdrop for the new drum/chandelier. Good luck with your project. Charmean Neithart

I disagree with the suggestion to hang wallpaper! Never again will I have a house with wallpaper, because it is too hard to change...It is a design choice that comes and goes and stripping wallpaper is a major headache. Often you are left with unpaintable walls.

Possibly an Asian Flare, you could add some asian elements to the walls
and create a whole new look and feel.

tim
http://barscigarsandbrew.com/Pagoda-Chandelier-in-Antique-Painted-Finish

If wallpaper is installed by a professional paper hanger it won't be difficult to remove should you choose to make a change. The walls have to prepared properly before paper application and then you won't have a problem removing it. Wallpaper is a great alternative to enhance any space.

not feeling the drum shade for this room, and I do love mixture of styles, but it has to look great and make sense or complement other items in the room. Simple shades to the candles and a nice cover for the chain would make a world of difference.

I've been out looking for drum shades myself recently and have seen some great shades with cut out designs on them that look great when lit from within. I was particularly struck by a red one which looked stunning and only cost $100. I am mad for colour at the moment and this room needs it IMHO. I'd buy a red shade and pick up the colour in a brightly coloured large modern print on that far wall (hung off centre) and maybe a table runner in the same red or another colour from the print to pull it all together.

I love the drum shade with the style of the chairs! More homeowners want a style that is their own - go for it! You just need to add the accessories that will pull it all together! Maybe spray paint the chairs black add one large art piece on the wall, large graphic print rug, drapes -add a black ribbon down the side edge - I think it could be striking!!!

I don't think the drum works here at all. Try a iron black or circular iron type AKA pottery barn. Or try a more modern carpet and drapes and something bold on the wall. At the moment the room is too traditional to throw a modern chandelier in. It won't make it transitional, just out of place.

I would put color on the wall first and then decide. I personally like the concept of shades but that is just my opinion.

Your room is a blank canvas - bringing in a mix of styles would be fun and will make it all work - love the drum shade - I will put together a 3D elevation for you to see.

Thank you all so much for your comments!! It is definitely a work in progress. We are trying to update the house in little ways and neutralize it in preparation for putting it on the market in a year or two. I will post pics as I add to the room.

As many people you ask, that's how many opinions there are! I love the drum shade idea, with or without the glass bead "bling". I think it can be white, but I would not match the window treatments. I love mixing styles, so would consider painting the walls a strong color, change out the chair seats to a colorful print/weave, and even think about changing the rug to a less traditional one. Priorities can be decided by you - and as you move into the changes, think about banding the window fabrics - a wide colorful band at the bottom could be an inexpensive pop of color to bring it all together.

One more suggestion...have you considered an inverted bowl-type pendant? Perhaps a Tiffany style with several colors? I recently installed a fixture like that in my dining room, and I can tell you, it transformed the room and is now a focal point. Think about it, you add color, light and focus all at once! Also, if you choose an style that directs light upward, when seated at the table the light is not glaring down. Since this type of light looks better when lit, it adds something to the room.

I would take the drapes down, completely. I think you need something substantial for the chandelier to draw the eye up. Something wrought iron and black, perhaps. The room lacks "oomph." I'd take the rug away, as well, and let the light wash over that beautiful wood floor. The flowers in the back of the room also lack color. Instead, maybe a beautiful, tall palm or ficus tree in a beautiful, colorful Asian vase. The pop of green from the leaves and the color from the vase would tie the room together.

Here is a little 3D - use the white drum shade for the hanging light. As you can see, I put in only one major color - You can do this with any color.

I would put in a graphic floor rug a two tone - didn't have time to put that in. Have fun and good luck with what ever you decide to do.

First, you need to decide how you want the room to be different. If you are trying to get away from a hardcore traditional look, then introducing a drum shade is one way to go about it. I love rooms with an unexpected element. However, I would not make the drum shade fixture the ONLY modern/transitional element. I would add a piece of modern art, or switch the rug for something geometric. I like Kelli's suggestion to paint the chairs black (or white or an accent color). On the drapes, they need not match a light fixture - they can be an accent color or a compatible neutral. Whatever you use, I would raise the curtain rod a few inches higher, and get something that can go on rings for easy opening and closing (whether pleated at top or not), and not the tab top which is too casual for this room. Consider a darker wall color for more drama.

You could go for a more modern chandelier if you update the drapes and carpet as well. Then you are bringing an eclectic feel to the room by carefully combining modern with traditional. I wouldnt go stark white though on the fabric since the furntiure is warm colour.

Add a drum shade but do it in a darker color to contrast the lighter walls...it will stand out more. Change the drapery to a darker color pulled out of the rug. The drapery panels could use a modern element as well by using a grommet ring top to bring in the transitional look. Add a set of artwork framed in a dark wood on the back wall using colors from the rug to bring everything together.

Also, remove the silk flowers in the back corner in the glass vase. Add a centerpiece to the table.

If you are planning on selling your home soon, why buy an expensive lighting fixture here? The next owners will probably want to change it anyway. For NO money you can take down that fixture and spray paint it flat black. That will give it the wroght iron look that 'sasfaf' suggested. Lengthen the chain to lower the light to about 36" above table top. Buy chandelier shades and a chain cover to match. Hobby Lobby has theirs 1/2 price real often. If you don't like the look when finished, take it back to Hobby Lobby and you have been out nothing but part of a can of spray paint.

This looks like an unloved room that no one uses. Start eating in the dining room as often as possible, then you will know what you want surrounding you.

They do say the best bang for your buck is paint--a slightly more dramatic or warm color.I don't like the idea of the modern light fixture with the oriental rug. If you got a different rug then go with the fixture with crystals. What about the blank wall you see coming into the room? That should be your accent wall --could the small buffet go there? Then add a mirror and swome matching sconces on either side? And whoever said to paint the chairs white or black --yes! Cover chair cushions with a geometric print. Curtains are too thin and light--may need silk(rayon) solid color just the panels though--don't need them to go aross the whole window. Also don't leave the top of the table empty --need a low long dish or set of candles, vases,etc to draw your eye into the space. Make sense?!

P.S. you are dealing with a frech provenial dining set--why not go with the whole black white theme--for real drama?

Oval shape over a table that sits six or eight would be nice.

http://www.interiordesignpro.org/designingideas/dining-room/photo-1285

I have not been able to bring myself to do anything with this room yet. I am not sure I like the wall color which was just painted two weeks ago. (Actually I don't like the color, but am trying to get used to it). Whether I keep it or change it impacts everything else I would do with this room. Still thinking. Thanks for all of the ideas!! Keep 'em coming.

Don't settle for a color you don't like! Paint is the least expensive decorating tool! Trust your instincts! Re paint!

Little bit of progress. New rug. (yes, very cheap from Lowes)

Perhaps paint that is the same dark shade as the green in your new rug to make the room pop and show off the white in the room. Also that pretty gray/blue that is in your rug up on the walls might work as well. As Mishi mentioned, paint is cheap, and it should appeal to you right away.

When you walk into my house from the front door, you are standing in a two story foyer. The living room is on your left and the dining room is on your right. My living room is kind of an olive green so I wanted the dining room to coordinate with it. I do really like the blue/grey color in the rug, but I worry about having too many color groups to deal with when you walk in. The foyer is my first attempt at tan (lambskin by Benjamin Moore). Thoughts?

Take the rug back to Lowes. You do not need a rug in there. It looks like too much furniture all trying to fit on the rug and it makes the room look smaller. It will look bigger and crisp and clean without a rug. The curtains are nice and bright and the curtain rods are silver. I would spray paint the chandelier silver to match. Then you can just get some linen shades for the chandelier and add some decorative accents on your table. Get some glass hurricane jars with some candles in them from pottery barn for the table or something decorative for the table to keep with the light clean crisp look. A nice table runner from restoration hardware in a linen fabric maybe? With some candle sticks on top and have them sitting in some kind of cool long rectangle tray. First step would be to forget about the rug......

I think you need an area rug that has a much darker field and would ground the room better (Lowes web site -- similar to this Mohawk Multicolor Select Versailles #176843). Also, a beefier curtain rod and a drapery similar to what I've attached in a pattern that is complementary to the rug or simply one color, would give you a more sumptuous look, especially if you can see the room as you pass through the front door. I think it would make the room look yummy and sumptuous. Also I suspect it would make your floor pop as well.

I disagree about returning the rug...a rug in a dining room warms the space, softens sound, and "grounds" the table. As to the paint colors, it is not too much color to have three differing shades visible from the foyer. I think you did well to do a tan in the foyer, and the dining room would look nice in a soft greyed blue - as long as it balances with the olive color in strength. Do you have a rug in the foyer? (Please do not match the DR rug) Do keep in mind when you buy an inexpensive rug it lasts as long as it works for you. Since you didn't pay a lot, don't get too attached. Replace it with another when you want to make a change or a better rug presents itself.

I love the idea of a rug in this room but I think I would take this one back to Lowes and swap it for one that is not quite so busy. I have seen this one in person and they have some that are much nicer than this one for about the same price. If you like lots of pattern, just keep it more subdued. The rug littlemissk shows is nice. There's lots of pattern but your eyes aren't 'confused'. If that makes sense. What was wrong with the one you had in the first pics? I couldn't tell the colors from the pic.

I don't agree that this rug is busy - it is a matter of personal taste. with the lack of pattern in the room so far, this works fine in my view. As a matter of fact, I would add a strongly patterned fabric as new chair seats - to balance. Chair seats are amazingly easy to recover - with a minimum of fabric, and a maximum of impact.