Hi there! Congrats on the new home. There are a lot of different variable that come into play. What is the budget? How is the room used? What is the rest of the home like? Will you be entertaining alot. If you can anser the questions...then it is like a road map. Right now as I see it I would like to see an easy path to the slider and seating for optimal tv viewing. I tend to put neutral on the walls and color for the furnishings. i am seeing a more transitional look: elements of contemporary with some traditional lines.

Thanks! It will be used has a family/TV room. A place where we can cozy up to watch movies until we re-do the basement. The pic is how the people who own the room now have it. I pictured the same as you are describing, but unsure how to accomplish that on a minimum budget. we do intend to entertain as much as possible down the road.

hoping some lighter furniture and a rug could do the trick... The TV seem in an odd place, but may still be the best place. Also those curtains will be gone. There are shelves built into the wall you can't see. as i mentioned, hate to paint wood, but wondering if a cream on the walls would make the ceiling and the floor pop?

I don't mind the wood wall, especially if you add a sleek console beneath the TV. Once you remove the bulky and outdated cornice and heavily patterned Oriental rug, the room has some great features. Use a beautiful area rug as the foundation for your furniture and accessory choices, draw your seating in closer to the fireplace and add a generously sized coffee table to fill up that large void in the middle of the room. Lots of potential!

Thanks! all great suggestions!

HI -- I would keep the wood wall , but I would paint the ceiling a soft color and paint the beams - white. I would hang your TV in the same place - but a little lower , then have a white glossy long low console under for all the TV stuff. A modern 3 seater sofa facing the TV -fireplace wall and then have two matching modern swivel chairs. All sitting on a large leather bordered textured area carpet or a new shag carpet .A framed mirror or painting on the fireplace I think the mantel board should be removed. White or off white textured drapes that fill the wall ,ceiliing to floor and wall to wall on a black rod.

The placement of the beams on the paneled wall is awkward. Also, you have the fireplace literally with its nose at the window! Ordinarily I would keep every architectural element I can squeeze out of a room, but I just can't justify it this time because of placement problems. So, I would paint the beams in a white of your choice and the paneled wall as well.

As for treatment of the room and what to do with the TV, etc., it would be so nice to have other shots of your room (from adjoining areas) and another shot from the TV area into the kitchen?.

Nice space and can be a beautiful room. You just have to wipe out the obvious builder flaws. Good luck!

Congrats on the new house. Looks like a nice space for a family room, but just in need of a makeover. I know you are reluctant to paint the wood, but you could try liming it (I have done wonders with lyme wax). It lightens the tone and lets the grain show through. I would research how this is done, but you need to sand first and then apply the wax. It gives a wonderful patina. I would do this to the walls for sure and paint the fireplace brick in a similar tone. Paint the beams on the ceiling the same color as the fireplace. Hang your tv so that there is a console underneath it so it feels more centered/grounded in the space.

I love a sofa that is a solid, transitional arm (not overstuffed) and a pair of swivel chairs. Add a large leather ottoman that can serve as a coffee table or additional seating. Voila, you have a nice updated and more sophisticated space.

Keep the wood wall. The wall color and TV color are similar so the TV blends with the wall. If you paint the wood a light color the TV will become a huge focal point because of the difference in color between it and the wall. Consider painting the fireplace brick a solid color to give it a more contemporary feel. If budget allows consider refacing it with either a stone or tile. Remove the cornice over the draperies. Is an formal look. Paint wood beams same color as ceiling. Add texture with a light or bright colored rug.

The fireplace is the rooms most dominant and static feature and should therefore set the tone for the room. I feel that the mantle is dated , I would loose it. The fireplace screen that is pictured is making the wall look awkward.I would look at having a custom made screen that would fit your decorating style, if that is traditional maybe a stunning wrought iron design that would incorporate the outside view with a nature theme. If more contemporary maybe a sleek silver tone surround and take out the hearth finishing the wall flat with the salvaged bricks. Either way the screen should be fixed and not a floating add on. A custom screen built in screen would be costly but may well be the best use of money to give you a stunning focal point.

Do the beams blend with the rest of the house? If so I might not be so quick to paint them without first making some other adjustments to the room. The rug pictured is to big and overpowering in its design. The floor underneath looks great and I would showcase it more and then decided on the beams. Again depending on your style the darker floors with maybe a large hide rug or other design element that would highlight the great floor. I think the beams just look bad with the current decor. The paneling I am unsure about, I understand the other posts about the current trend towards a wood element but again your furnishing style will dictate if that will work or not. The trend leans more toward a contemporary design I feel and the wood less of the seventies paneling that you seem to have. I wonder if you could update to a more modern wood such as a sleeker bamboo or other if that is your style something that would be less blended with the floors maybe if it is to be a feature wall.

I think if you added some updated lower wall built in shelving that incorporated the fireplace and gave the wall a more finished and cohesive look with a TV above would like nice and would help the fireplace look less off center and more connected. It is a great room with super outside views that should be showcased and enjoyed. I for one love the fireplace ! Good Luck

Something is up with their furniture layout that I can't really tell from the photo. I wonder what the builder and architect's intent was for seating with the fireplace over there?

Maybe a pair of swivel chairs in front of the FP, a sofa where the green chair is and then another pair of chairs where the sofa is, all in light neutrals on a super textured neutral rug and the TV much lower.

I am a big fan of the low tv, for your neck's health and for the room. Right now it's at art level and that's too high IMO.
perhaps this kind of feeling to calm things down a bit and let the outdoors be the star.

Since the furniture, tv etc are not yours, before deciding, I'd take everything out...remove valance, and take curtains off (save 'em, you might need them depending on quality and if a Westerly window).
Now that you have a clean slate to work with, it'll be easier to make the decisions on what to paint and what not to paint. I think if you paint the room, walls (not the wood walls) and ceiling (NOT the wood beams) a soft creamy (barely) yellow (Sherwin Williams Jersey Cream). (I like flat, not matte) It would give everything a bit of glow and lighten up the area.
I also would not place any furniture back's to the fireplace.
Good luck! I hope you post pictures of the room when you finish!

The house was bulit in the 60's so I have no idea what the architect's thoughts were. This picutre is taken from the doorway of the room. behind the green chair are built in bookshelves. The floor in this room is my favorite part, the floor is stunning, and the wood used for the beams is gorgeous, i can't imagine runing those with paint. The difficulties i have with this room are the fireplace and the wood paneled walls. The bookshelves are lovely, but not shown. I don't have any other pictures. I appreciate all the feed back. So many different opinions, i am not sure which way to go! :) The seating in this room is a challenge due to the fireplace, placement of the TV, and the shelves. I think i need a way to showcase the gorgeous wood but need to brighten the room at the same time... I don't know if i can just do that with furniture, or painting the fireplace, etc.

debbie, i like your suggestion... but all the walls are wood :( not sure how that changes things.

Have you looked into how much removing the wood wall and drywalling that is? Then you could really make the fireplace the focal point. But I would definitely suggest a lighter rug, curtains, and a cozy couch with one or two chairs instead of like huge number of weird scattered chairs. If there are built-in shelves back there, is there a spot to put the TV elsewhere in the room. Having it off the side of the fireplace there does create two focal points in the room, so I would try to avoid that all-together. Good luck!

Hi Imadden: I did some design work on a room similar to this. We used two barrel-style swivel chairs facing each other in front of the fireplace, which could also be turned to look out into the back yard in the summer. Or, do you have room to float a couch (or even a sectional), centered on the TV/FP wall? You could add swivel chairs on either end to complete a seating area (one end more TV centered, the other more FP centered). Either a very flat or a nicely textured rug (even a shag) in a lighter color would look good under the seating, leaving the wood floor showing behind. Just a suggestion: turquoise looks very, very nice with this woodtone (you could either put it on the couch, the rug, or simply use it for accessories like lamps, pillows, etc.) It looks like the operable sliding door is on the right in the photo; if you float the major furniture, then you would still have a straight shot to the door. Perhaps there would be room for another small game table or reading area against the wall where we see the black chair. And where is the entrance into the room - between the two couches shown in the photo? You could go mid-century in here, or kind of an eclectic mix with some contemporary pieces, if you are looking for a design direction. Unless you feel like you need some sun control or privacy, I would not use curtains at all. If you do need them, use a modern sheer so that you can open them as far as possible and so they don't feel too heavy in the room. I would leave the paneling and the beams, but what I would do is paint the brick in white or cream; this will immediately brighten the room and clean it up visually (that brick is kind of busy). Then either get rid of the mantel or have a new one made that goes all the way across the brick and paint it in. Depending upon how far you want to go with this, you might eventually want to redo the entire fireplace area to make it more contemporary (drywall? slate? getting rid of the arch would make it look more contemporary). As others have suggested, add a modern console under the TV for storage. You could even have this made (to run the entire length of the paneled wall), and then paint it to match the brick - this would look very cohesive, would extend the color across the long wall (instead of bisecting it, as it does now) and would kind of "frame" the wood paneling. Good luck and post your "during" and "after" photos!!!

Imadden: The wall w/the window or sliding glass door is sheet rock(?)...I'd take out the slider and put in windows (w/small window on bottom to open for fresh air) on each side of french doors.

I would suggest painting the ceiling (not the beams) , the walls and the paneling the same color, maybe a shade that is in the brick fireplace and would also compliment your furniture keeping it light to highlight the woodwork.I personally prefer unpainted bricks they have a warm ,natural and more organic quality . Does the TV have to stay on that wall? Could it be housed in the bookcase's?

kathryn - so are you saying to put the chairs in front of the fire place and couch in front of the TV place to make it more like two seating areas? Need to make sure i understand. Would i paint the new mantel the same color as the brick? The dorway is between the white couch and the green chair. would "floating" the furniture make it hard to move through the room? the room isn't very large... can't find the dimensions right now of course.

i believe the wall with the windows are also paneled. I love the idea of french doors! Jasuda: i thought about moutning the TV in the corner opposite the fireplace. But not sure if i can swing that...

room dimensions are 16x14

would a curved sofa help ? here is a link that show a more traditional sofa but the curve may work for you http://www.sherrillfurniture.com/catalog_image_display.php?id=181&size=Fullsize&brand=SHERR

http://sherrill.microdinc.com/roomPlanner.aspx this is a room planner site that will likley help you with furniture layout.

jasuda, i agree about the wood panels in your ealrier post. These are not contemporary walls, they are 70's. so you think painting over the wood panels would be a mistake, and leaving the fireplace as it is? I thought a flat creamy wall would pull out the beautifull floor and beams...

Imadden, thanks for providing dimensions. You will have to shop the furniture to actually see if this can work in the 14' dimension. I think that, in order for it not to feel too tight either physically or visually, you would want to leave at least a 6 foot clear walkway behind the sofa. If you go in this direction, you could either do two distinct seating areas, i.e. a couple of chairs in front of the FP (with an ottoman) and the couch/sectional floating area in front of the TV, OR a long couch with a swivel chair at either end, creating ONE seating area. This last option, where the couch is actually centered in the room, might be a good place to use a curved couch as suggested by jasuda. It would feel less boxy. Or how about this: an "L" or "C" shaped sectional on the back wall where the couch is now - this would give you views of the TV, the FP (to some degree) and the back yard. In front of the FP, I would do 4 large, comfy swivel chairs with a large ottoman in the center. If the chairs are not too heavy, you could have some flexibility in moving them over to the couch/TV area (you could even leave it this way most of the time: 2 chairs with the couch, 2 in front of the FP). Perhaps on either side of the entry you could add bookcase/storage, if you need it. If you go with this layout, I think it might be fun to go with a large round or oval rug under the couch area, so that you have something soft underfoot, but also so that you don't have a distinct line which will - once again - cut the room in half visually.

Have sofa facing the TV with fireplace as atmosphere in background.
Close to slide doors create a reading area with two comfortable chairs and a standard reading lamp. Shop sales at quality stores like Pottery Barn where you get a 10 percent discount if you bought a new home. Also catalogue stores like Ballards and Frontgate.
Accessories and family photos would personalize the new home. Good luck .