Pick a color from the dining chair, armchair or rug colors. My preference for a calm atmosphere would be olive, but that might be too dark for your taste. More pix are always better. Just comment on your own thread and use the Attach Images button to add pix.

olive is one that I love too...you could you use different colours to create zones, looks like you have a breakfast bar or something over there? You have to be careful not to overdo it, or it could become too busy...if you get it right it will pull everything together nicely. Interestingly, the photo is showing the walls with hues of reflected light (pale terracotta by the big windows and light olive on the left): you could use those as inspiration. More photos definitely helpful!

I think a Latte color would be a good color. I have it in my house and you can use any color with it. It is really modern looking.

I think I would go cream in a flat paint.

PS..No more tropical prints..you have plenty.

I would paint all the walls........Benjamin Moore, pale daffodil...it is beautiful like sunlight going to candle light.

It's a very pale orange....

beautiful room, but definitely needs some color!

What direction does your natural light come from? We are moving to Florida next year and the one thing that I already notice is that all my Snow Bird friends keep decorating in warm cozy northern colors as per Barbara's reference. Definitely go with lighter yellow not gold unless you face west then I would go with an aqua/rust/olive combo. Just stay very pale but not white.

Considering the furniture selection,you are tending to a Mediterranean theme so any of the lighter shades of maroon,olive,yellow should work out just fine.

Honey you are in Florida, brighten things up, if you are asking then you are not happy with the white.

if you are serious about up dating... you must paint the walls. Olive is too dark. Although I like Latte, it goes better with neutral tones, not yellow. Here is 4 things I would do that will update and unite your space. 1) Recover the LR chair to a solid color or subtle print that is not flowers, that is pulled from the dining chairs, I like the green but not olive, something more bright. 2) If you can get the same fabric as the chairs or something in a different print but same colors for luxurious curtains (you might find some silk big two tone stripes from O.com) to help the windows pop (these are just dressing, you will probably never close them) 3) If there is a light tangerine or yellow that matches both the dining chairs and the Living Room Rug, that would be a nice wall color, ligher will warm the room, a little darker is exciting. I would get sample of a few shades and paint different sections of wall against window and step back and see what you like. 4) switch out the rug. It looks too manufactured and draws all the attention to it. It should blend with the room. You need a contrast with the leather, or Sissal would be perfect. Perhaps a monotone tropical leaf or fern type design, or a handmade wool that incorporates your main collors in a more subtle way. O.com has great rugs and I blow up the pics on my computer screen to match color with my room and always comes out perfect. This is the one I would choose from O.com: Handmade Ancestral Tree Ivory/ Green Wool Rug (8' x 10').Oh, and a 5th thing for fun would be to paint the wall under the bar something very bring and constrasting, burnt orange is my fave, or a burnt red it that pulls from anything in your dining chairs.

Since I will be moving to Florida and redecorating everything (we are buying my sister's place), I am finding this thread very interesting. I am thinking the room is already too warm. It is hot and when I come in I want a cool, tranquil repose. Since it is already so very warm, I like the idea of the Sisal rug (make sure it is very golden) and think the wool is too heavy, but I could be alone on this. I think a lighter rug will draw attention to your print chairs. Be sure it is synthetic so that it is insect resistant. Beetles love wool. All of these are synthetic and totally different styles.

Beetles, bugs? I've lived in FL 29 years now and have never had any bugs. I think with the colors you like, a Mediterranean color would look good. It depends on your style of furniture and what you love. A warm tangerine would be nice and a big color for 2014 Very florida. and Teal is a good color for Florida. I woudn't keep the white that's for sure, or go too dark. A deep cream is nice. Just make sure everything in the great room has at least 1-2 colors that blend since it's a total of 3 rooms in one which all share the space. It should come together nicely. A lot of Northerners bring their old furniture which really doesn't go well in a warm climate. Take your time and look around, eventually you'll find something you'll like. You can get paint samples and try them before deciding too. I would recommend doing that. Good Luck!

My sister and brother in law spray every year. They live on the coast in Sarasota. Google it, there are lots of different types of beetles in Florida but they probably have local names also like June bugs etc. I really do agree that the Northern furniture just can't work well in Florida. Fabrics that make you stick and sweat, etc. It is a completely new mind set and so looking forward to the challenge of making that switch.

Example of a little color. I could not find a color to replicate a natural looking rug, but with the prints you have with your chairs, I would look for natural, fairly neutral rug(s) to lighten up the flooring. Also painting the walls a color that compliments the colors in the dining room chairs would look wonderful.

What about this curtain design, I think it's perfect. for your room:
http://www.cheerycurtains.com/qyd297nl.html

I should think some beautiful linen panels at the windows and not meant to do anything except enhance your furniture and unite your rooms will finish them nicely along with the right shade on the walls (not whitea) and with the sisal type rugs shown above. When I moved from a small beach town on the west coast of southern California to N.E. Florida south of Jacksonville none of my furniture or fabrics looked right. I even had trouble with things I brought home from stores! The light is so different in southern California and I preferred its light to that where I live now. Of course I hadn't thought of this when I paid thousands to ship so much furniture across country but there were many things about the whole relocation that were part of a learning curve one had to simply deal with. Just like the humidity for my native southern California husband and the big beetles which freaked me out and which he wanted to call roaches, their proper name he thought. Boy did we meet our local pest guy fast!

White walls are definitely not boring and actually quite modern. You shouldn't feel like you need to paint the walls a color just because the color they are painted is white. I think they look great in white. you can add additional color in your art, window dressings and accessories. Books make great pops of color.

A palmetto bug by any other name......EEKS! to me it's a roach. At any rate, as a designer I have never understood the pervasive regional style that seems so often out of sync with Florida's climate. Mediterranean roots I get, but the heaviness in decor that so often pervades these homes? That I just don't "get". I would need my space lighter, fresher, airier, and it does seem there are enough palms outside, without adding them inside....but that may just be me.

You have so much richness in the color of your furniture. I think I would leave the walls white. But I would do some panel drapes. With your heavy furniture you need some window treatment, but open to let light in.

I agree with Jan Moyer--I am a native Floridian and we don't understand the tropical theme/heavy on the palm decor either. Depending on your house's orientation, you will want to pay attention to where you place darker fabrics because the of the potential for fading if you receive a lot of direct sunlight. Just a word about bugs: it is a warm, humid climate (but you will run your AC to combat that inside) and you can expect to have to use regular pest control in whatever form that takes. Some people use a monthly service; I prefer yearly for less disruption--but with that I see no inside pests.

We had a flood in our FL home last year and took the opportunity to remodel. We used sheets of wainscoting on all the walls going in a horizontal direction and had it pickled a slight white. It now looks like a Cape Cod cottage and we love it. We did the same thing with out Upstate NY home in a vertical style in 1987 and we have never once had to paint again as it never shows fingermarks or soil. The pickling has 3/4 poly and 1/4 white paint and that prevents and warping.

I'm going to weigh in on the side of pale colors, something with a soft yellow or even peachy yellow undertone. Anything else I think will feel too 'heavy.' I would gradually tweak your color scheme from the autumnal earth tones to lighter, spring-ier versions of those hues. Switching out a dark olive piece with something yellow-sage, for example. And bringing in a few touches of white, even if just in a lampshade or ceramic piece. Just not white on the walls; it doesn't usually sit well against dark, traditional furnishings. Look at something like SW 6378 Crisp Linen or 6371 Vanillin, or more towards a neutral with a peachy gold undertone, like 7572 Lotus Pod.

Look at SW 7554-Steam Milk-7571-Casablanca. 7573-Fragile Beauty, I just painted my wall with the Fragile Beauty and love it.

Pale yellow, soft sage, or at a minimum, a deep off-white like the color in the rug.

I also live in Florida, and personally, olive doesn't exactly scream "light and airy" to me. I also think anything with a tropical print looks like you're trying too hard, and is somewhat outdated. If this were my house and I were going for a light and airy feel, I would get rid of all the heavy, ornate furniture and stick with clean lines, light but bright (not bright like neon, but bright like light reflects off of it) paint colors on the wall, and bright and cheery prints. Chairs with upholstered legs and seat backs weigh down the dining area. I would also install a curtain rod high and wide over your patio doors with some white, flowy curtains that would move with the breeze when the doors are open to the lanai.

The sun in Florida can get scorching hot, and you have a lot of doors and windows. Dark colors are going to make the space seem hotter than it is. When we moved into our rental house, the walls were a pale but warm yellow, with a dark royal blue accent wall. I hated it and painted it a light sea blue with a greenish tinge, and it visually cools the space down, even with my dark brown furniture.

Slipcover your dining room chairs in white. You said you wanted a light and airy look but you've really got quite a busy look going on. You may have too much stuff.

Looks like the villages to me! I'm moving there in 2 weeks. I used a very light mocha on the walls and will do feature walls in a pale aqua. Tile throughout is cream/grey with a tiny pale yellow and blue. Using sisal to define areas. Everything is cream, grey, sand and pale aqua to accent. Be careful about too much more color - I'd use cream on the walls.

No one mentioned the leather furniture as being too heavy and hot, but for me it does not look cool and inviting in a Floridian Home, it looks out of place. Not sure what your budget is or how to make it look less hot...and maybe it's just me. The rest of your room looks very Florida.

And you also have too many patterns going on so it looks busy and not very cohesive.

Something like this would be very nice:

While this style is really not for me (at all), I have to say, you've done a great job of embracing Florida (ie blinding white light that visually bleaches everything, so you need lots of patterns and things to look at)--while not going overboard a la Golden Girls (I still can't look at rattan). I find the area rug in the foreground a bit much, but overall, I like. And LOVE the tropical fabric dining chairs, very fun!

(And I know, I've not addressed your question at all, sorry.)

What about a couple of tropical fans?. I would paint the walls light brown with a bit of rusty orange, but not all the walls of course , just the focal point. Red is another color that goes fine with tropicals. The space looks a bit overcrowded...do you need all the stuffs you have in there?. Look for a focal point, all the rest should only be there. Rugs is a good idea, don't forget to add more lights too. And above all...enjoy !

Having lived in Florida for 25 years, I would like to interject a remember that we get very warm and humid here. Visually, you might want to stick with cooler colors like teals, acqua's, and little touches of yellow and coral for brightness. Too warm or a heavy a color scheme is going to make you (visually) warmer feeling. Think of the islands, the color is frequently on the outside vs the inside starting out bright then fading to some georgous colors. There are some wonderful ceiling fans that can really upgrade the tropical effect. I'm not a huge fan of white slipcovers. They look great but one visit from a less than immaculate guest or family member and they are dingy.

Look for a light-colored woven wall covering for some interest. and dimension to this room. Place a few samples up and look at them throughout the day and night light. I think you'll be pleased!

I would pick a shade lighter than the background of the dining chairs for the walls and possibly paint the nook wall 2 shades away from the wall color. I would recover the heavy rust chair a lighter shade, get 2 light rugs to put under the table and replace the one you have and get a coffee table that is the same feel as the rest of your tables.

I would suggest a warm buttery tone....maybe BM Hepplewhite ivory or something like that.

Having lived in South Florida for 40 years and having been a designer for almost that long, there are many ways to approach your situation. Yes, if you were looking to redecorate and update the comments above miight be great ideas. However, if you are just looking at ways to work with your existing furniture for the time being at least, then paint the walls a light gold....it will give the room a glow .... Since you are going for a bit of a tropical feel, then add a woven bamboo valance over each window and sllider flanked by simple linen panels. You can band the panels with a tropical print but I would probably just pick up your accent colors of olive and rust in solid bands. I do like the idea of painting the wall under the bar in a deep rust, too. Good luck!

We live in South Florida and we chose Glidden Granny Smith Apple green for our Great Room and have been thrilled with the effect. We also chose blue furniture for the room, which is a bit strange, we know, but we really like it a lot.

You have a lot of dark heavy furn, for Florida climate. If not on budget get fabric instead of leather. I like color on walls over white. But keep it very light think pear green. Area rugs a sisal big 8 x 10 in living rm. or keep the one you have and work around it. The grays an peacock shades would work. Change hang lights to tropical look fans. Loss the crystal look. Think tommy Bahama. Very sheer light weight panels on windows in white ends only. Keep fabric on furn light use color in pillows, and bold big art on walls. Go tropical, palm trees beach scene etc. add potted palms to fill areas not furn. Keep room simple and not cluttered.

You do not need or want wool rugs in Florida. Sisal is look. And do not put in every area like they do in north. You are going for a airy look. So need to get more light colored furn. Use a lot of glass in tables. . See my other post.

Cheery curtains. Sample to heavy for FL. Need a sheer white grazy look.

Take advice from Marsha, a person who lives there. I know it's hard to make big changes. Think of it as a new beginning. Change is good.

Hi! First off, let me say that you have a wonderful space. For your living room, I think it's aesthetically important to highlight its rustic qualities. Paint your walls with a neutral hue. A light gray or an eggshell white shade will do wonders. It also gently reflects the sunlight.

Leave the walls white and maybe choose only one wall to have an accent color; Your floor and furniture is dark and there are already lots of different textures and patterns. Keep it simple. Live for some time in the space and only then change something if you feel the need to. Remember that British Colonial style more than often have white walls and dark furniture.