It would really depend on how the brown in the carpet reads . Some can trend purple or pink and would be more of a problem, but doable with a cooler color paint. If it's a nice warmer brown she would have more options.

Just reread and guess my dislike for pinky or bluish browns is showing. Sorry.

BM Manchester Tan. It's a nice warm cream that would look great with all her elements.

I think a gray-brown linen color would work--it is especially good with reds, creams, browns and black. My DD's apartment is in those colors, too! She has a red and cream mattress ticking upholstered sofa from Pottery Barn, a black iron table with glass top with black iron chairs (rush seats), a red bench-type coffee table, cream colored TV stand and distressed brown wood end tables. Art is all black and white photographs... we purchased her wall color at Lowes from a card of whites. It was either Gilded Linen or Pirate Coast, I remember her trying to decide between the two. Both are very nice and not terribly expensive, which was important to her as she is renting.

The brown carpet is not quite chocolate but would if it leaned toward anything would be a red brown. Not sure how else to describe it and I am color challenged!

Arlos Mom: What color for the ceiling with the Manchester Tan please?

The Manchester Tan is light enough that you could probably use it on the ceiling too if you wanted. I'm a white ceiling kinda girl, so my ceilings in the whole house are BM Swiss Coffee.

Thanks for the suggestions. I never paint without posting here for advice and haven't gone wrong yet.

White ceilings are nice but hoping the painter will charge less if all the same color.

(Best color yet was SW Quietude for our bedroom and still love it a year later).

I would consider a taupe for the walls. Find a shade of brown similar to the rug on the color strip and then go several shades lighter for the wall color. So, for example, if the rug is like BM chocolate truffle, then choose cappuccino or light mocha. If the rug is more sienna, go with Georgia pink or titanic rose.

I love the red and white with taupe and black...very contemporary color pallet

tinker, to post pictures here upload your photos to a free site like TinyPIc. If you use TinyPic resize to Message Board size. Then when your picture uploaded TinyPic will give you several codes. Copy the HTML for websites and paste it into your post.