Beautiful home! I also say to stain the mantle/shelves to match your floors. I think your light furniture and walls ensures the room doesn't get too dark. Another option might be to do a white/cream paint stain on the mantle and shelves. Good luck! :-)

I would paint the mantle and the shelves the same white as your trim, or just a tint warmer. I think matching your trim color would lighten and help bring the space together. Keep us posted!

What a beautiful home you have! :)

What about staining *just* the mantle in the dark ebony, and leaving the shelves and mantle supports in their natural (current) shade? You might also try adding a white frame around the TV.

If you decide to stain the shelves to the sides of the TV in ebony, I would caution you against painting the back walls in a blue - I think it will take away from any contrast you already have, and make the whole section feel too dark, especially by comparison to the adjacent white book shelves. You could, however, try painting the back of the wall white (or another light or bright color), regardless of whether you choose to leave the shelves as they are or stain them ebony. Just consider they way your shelf accessories may look against a colored wall before painting - I see some darker items on the shelves that I think would disappear against a dark wall.

I also see that the kitchen table appears to be more of a medium stain (sorry, I am terrible with the names of wood stain colors...maybe medium oak?). If the shelves and mantle aren't already very close to that (can't tell from photos), you might try taking them in that direction. I think it could provide the contrast you seem to want, without going all the way to ebony.