Wellllll... don't you have a fainting couch in a floral?

I don't see it. But if YOU loooooove it and can't live w/ooooooout it, who are we to say, nay?

I'll be honest and say that animal prints just do nothing for me. Just can't do animal skins in my clothing or my home (and yet, I do wear leather!).

If it is a fab price, go get it or it might get sold ! Is it gold? It looks like the pattern is very minimal so I would not think you'd have to get a solid drape by any means.

Are you going for a Hollywood Regency look? I am clueless on styles. Whatever it is, I like what you have!

Is that really a leopard pattern? If it is, well, to quote one of your posts a while back, it seems a little bit "whore decor" to me.

As for drapes (since you kinda-sorta-halfway asked LOL) I would love to see a Morris print in an unfussy shape like plain tied-back panels behind the couch. Scout eBay for fabrics, since it's hideously expensive new - I'm still kicking myself years later for not snagging an entire bolt of Morris drapery fabric for $150! I am braincramping on what other colors you have in that room but there are Morris patterns that have only tiny traces of red, as well as monochromatic patterns where you could bypass the matching-the-red issue entirely. Vintage Morris curtains pop up fairly regularly, especially if you're willing to purchase from the UK where it never really went "out". That might give you more colors to work with for a rug without fighting with the red.

There's also a potentially daft thought that just flashed through my mind when I was looking at a couple of Morris fabrics at Charles Rupert... what about finding a fabric for pillows or something that has multiple shades of red in it? Do you have a scrap of the upholstery fabric you could haul around to some fabric stores just to check things out?

johnmari: ROTLF!

I must say I agree though with johnmari, if it's an animal print, I really cannot see it working with what you already have. If you are having problems with the red, how about working with a different color where the red is used as more of an accent color. The sofa is so DROP DEAD GORGEOUS any more red on the floor only detracts from it IMHO.

Sorry, it looks like an inexpensive rug to me, and I have to second the 'whore decor' thought. Plus the color seems way off for your room. Your furniture is elegant - seems like a more traditional oriental or persian rug would be a better fit.

Thank you all! When I posted I and saw the pics together (that really helps) I started thinking "nah." So I'll let it pass.

My plan so far is to find a "persian" type rug in beige tones. Or? What would you do?

With that sofa, I think you need to lighten up the window treatments -- no solids and definitely no heavy fabrics. What about something sheer?

Syllabus,

Yes, I the fainting couch is reupholstered in a pattern. It looks a lot better in person than in photos, sorry -- IRL the braid trim doesn't stand out, it blends in. After you asked me this, I took this pic:

{{gwi:1609525}}

I'm quite sure I can live without that rug. :)

Anele,

It is a stupendous price, but Les is probably right that it looks cheap. Hard to say in the pics. I'll let it pass. I don't know what name my style is, honestly, but thanks for your kind words. My furniture in that area of the house is all antique, but the house screams late '70s, so does that make my style eclectic? It's not easy to try to pull off an antique look in front of a huge picture window with a modern fireplace and a popcorn ceiling - lol! I'm just winging it here, with the help of all you terrific folks.

Interesting that you mention Hollywood Regency. My daughter is doing her LR in a British Colonial with touches of Hollywood Regency. Sounds tricky, but my bet is that she's going to pull it off. She is in an older home with the divided windows and old glass. I can't wait to see how it looks when she's done but she's teaching in her first year in a new Montessori school, so that's keeping her too busy to work on it right now.

Val,

Thanks for your kind comment about the sofa! I'm very pleased with the way the mohair velvet plays with the light on the sofa and matching chair. I think you're maybe right about red on the floor competing too much, plus it would be so hard to match the sofa, so that's why I've been thinking of beiges. It's hard to figure out what to do around that sofa and chair, and the fainting couch. I can find Victorian decor photos, and other decors, but very little on Victorian furniture in modern homes to inspire me.

I dunno if it's whore decor or not -- I've seen animal prints as accents in some really scrumptious top end rooms, but I do think it's a fine line and we need to be careful with it. When it works, it's spectacular, and when it doesn't, P.U. That's usually the realm in which I find myself decorating, going for some prety brave stuff and walking that thin line. I guess it's the artist in me.

Les,

I think you're probably right about a more traditional rug, which is what I've been thinking too. I just wanted to run it by everyone to see what they thought as the price on it was soooo good, so thanks for your honest comments.

Sarschlos,

I already purchased my window treatments back in about November. I got what Les suggested. However, although I placed the entire order at once, the rod JUST got here a few days ago. I will need help putting it up and I'm hoping I can talk my son into it tonight when he comes over for his b-day. "Happy birthday -- now get to work!" I've already asked him if he could please take a few minutes to see why my driveway lights aren't working. Bad mommy.

Once I get the new curtains up I can see if I want to keep them or return them to JCP. JCP makes it somewhere next to impossible to save an image from their web site, so this is the best I could do:

{{gwi:1609526}}

That gives at least a general impression. I purchased the floral and striped panels, but not the Roman shade. For across the room at the sliding glass door I just ordered the matching topper, as my dogs go in and out that door all the time. It has vertical blinds that you don't notice when they're pulled aside.

I'll have to see how the drapes look when I get all the pieces out of the packages (other than seriously package wrinkled).

Oceanna,
Do you see me smiling? Because you are an artist, you may see a different picture than some. There is nothing wrong with brave especially in decorating.

The red sofa would be great with a leopard pillow. Animal prints are not whore like at all. Well, I guess I'll have to prove that fact once my living room is finished since I am planning on an area rug banded in leopard.

Anyway, a leopard rug would be great but not that one and not with the drapes you purchased.

Jerseygirl,

Haha! I already got a leopard pillow... but it's so soft with my back hurting me right now I'm sleeping with it between my knees. It's rather dark and didn't even make a statement on that sofa -- the gorgeous velvet steals the show there and the pillow are supporting cast.

I can't wait to see your finished living room! Yeah, I do like a touch of animal prints in a room, kind of like a touch of black. I should call into evidence GeorgiaGirl with her gorgeous gracious home, and she has many touches of leopard very tastefully done. However, this rug may not be tasteful. Oh well.

The drapes are still on the "iffy" list till I get them up and see them. I'm thinking they might look great, but I'm not sure yet. I just remembered I need to get rings for them too -- a whole lot of rings for four panels. I got a double rod. The outer drapes (the subtle floral) will remain open, and the striped layer will be on the inner rod and will pull closed when needed, and otherwise will hang straight just showing a little behind the floral. IF I keep them.

Oceanne, leopard is not "whore" it's "hoochie." That's what my sister's grandaughter calls her leopard shoes and purse. LOL I love animal prints, but haven't gotten up the nerve to use them anywhere. Hopefully in the new house I'll find a place for a pillow, rug or something.

Brutuses, maybe they should put you and I in a bag together and shake us, huh? Then we might both come out with just the right amount of decorating bravery.

I dive in and make mistakes, which can get expensive and time consuming. Eventually I hope I get it right but it can be by trial and error. It's sure easier to see it when it's someone else's space than when it's your own, isn't it? We get emotional attachments to our stuff and to what it took to get that stuff, or that job finished.

Your friends will tell you your room is nice but can you always believe them or are they just being kind? We post our pictures here and someone will say, "Move that vase" or "that chair is too big for there" or whatever. Ultimately we can save each other money, work and grief with the advice we give here. I like that.

"whore decor" made me laugh - I called my son's girlfriend's shoes she just bought " Hooker Shoes" - now thats a bad mommy! Didn't you just paint your son's place? That should be worth a lot of points - even if it was for his B'Day!!!
I actually like the rug with the sofa - if it was a very good quality rug. I do not like it with the table top. It would have been the unexpected in your room for sure!
oceanna - OT - I still owe you the name of the algae eater for your deck - I haven't forgotten- between bad weather - contractors here - and a neighborhood house fire - the house burned to the ground within minutes - Thank God no serious injuries - it was a true Miracle - I am behind in everything!

"Whore decor" is much easier to say than "the Addams Family meets Victorian bordello" which is what DH refers to decorating style in my parents' very period Victorian home.

No, a leopard pattern - even a leopard rug - by itself is not "whore decor". A leopard rug with a fancy red velvet couch and a marble-topped table with heavy carving is edging into that territory though.

I think a beige rug would get lost on the beige-y carpet with the light-brown table on it. (Utterly random aside: have you thought about refinishing that to a darker tone? It looks a little bit "naked" and doesn't seem to fit with all the dark furniture. It would make the marble top more dramatic as well.) A beige-gold-dark brown one might work, since your curtains look gold - since they're a little on the fussy side, I wouldn't go too crazy with the rug pattern. (I didn't know you'd already purchased curtains!) It's hard to tell what colors are in the print on the fainting couch but picking up colors from that for the rug might work very well too. Hmmmm... if that's slate blue I see in the fainting couch's fabric, I think something sort of like this might work:

Oh, and it's not hard at all to save a photo from JCP's site, although you'll think I'm crazy because it's a slightly circuitous route. :-) Open up the "larger view". Then take a screenshot by pressing the "prt scr" key which should be at the top right of your keyboard. Open Windows Paint (which is under Accessories) or whatever other image editing software you like and paste the image into the workspace. Crop off all the junk, bring the margins in to the edges of the picture. Save as a .jpg file and upload to your preferred photo hosting site. It is NOT as difficult as it sounds, it is quick and easy once you get the hang of it.

Here is a link that might be useful: link to the drapes

With the fainting couch I could not see that rug or even any patterned rug working. If you are going to keep the WTW carpet, I might just not worry about any rug right now. It might end up looking too heavy with all of the other items you have. I'd work on tying in the pieces you currently have-- esp. that coffee table (I like the style, but the color wood might need to change).

I think I'd keep everything else in the room simple but classic, and work on ways of bringing in accents to tie the colors of the sofas together.

I totally understand what you mean about having the furniture you have with the house style you have. That is my problem, too. Every time I see a home I love, it is an OLD home with the little touches that just don't exist today. Mine is just a retro home from the late 50s-- a lot of hard angles, the big picture window, barely any trim, etc., so I find the space very difficult to work with.