Seconding Sabrina who has given you some great ideas for livening up your living room. The problem isn't the fireplace but the lack of pattern and lighter colors to contrast with a sea of tan and browns. You don't need to change out your furnishings, but you could get a lot of mileage out of art, new rug, coordinating pillows without quickly going out and buying furniture.

You have a great expanse of wall behind the sofa, which the knick knack shelf breaks up with the small shape and items. Consider a large, horizontal piece art work in a subject and style that you like. Look for colors that link the sofa, walls, gray fireplace surround, and golden floor. This palette for example. Then get some patterned and solid pillows in grays, browns, and golds to echo whatever art work you choose. This will brighten the expanse of your brown sofa.

Pathway Art · More Info

Locks Gold on Gray Pillow · More Info

Blazing Needles Floral Throw Pillows in Ivory with Gold Beads (Set of 2) · More Info

--Get a great rug in brighter tones of whatever palette you go with. It could be grays, tans, golds as suggested or blues, grays, browns. Pattern and color in a rug, pillows, and art work will transform the room.

Not these rugs necessarily, but rugs that pull together your givens: gold floor, mantel, gray fireplace, tan sofa, walls, and whatever art you pick.

If you're not confident enough to buy art yet, A horizontal mirror with a golden wood frame would reflect the nearby window.

Love the ideas, we do need some color! Do you think the rug size we have isgood when shopping for a new one? Our kitchen cabinets are blue, would a rug like one of these work since our living area is also open to kitchen?

i Have to say I have never bought any art, but I also like that idea. And mirror idea. this is a lake house on wooded lot, I bet I can find something nature like to hang. I like the tree picture.

The blue rug is lovely. Look for some others as well that will have more tan in them. What you want to work for in rugs, art, accessories is tying together the colors of your sofa, floors, fireplace, walls.

Art that would echo your rug with a bit of gold/tan of your sofa, wood floor, mantel, and a spot of gray. (I usually start with art then get pieces that harmonize with it. But many people go the other way. It takes awhile to study art and find what speaks to you.)

And personally, I’d like to see furniture not smushed so close to walls.

Ditto to all above comments. I have a couch same color and it is amazing how pillows do add life. Re furniture: you could do anything here, but I would keep the sectional. You can get new chairs and paint the dining table or keep table as is. You could also paint the little cabinet, or add colored art/ mirror/ colored family pic frames above. Do you like traditional like the table and chairs, or transitional like the coffee table? Do you like red, gold, blue? Do you want light/beachy/white or rich wood? I would like to see rest of this great room esp. the blue kitchen. Blue is a good color to carry through. You might also consider furniture layout where sofa faces TV more--floating in the middle, or move the tv.

Not a Pro.

Not sure you have room, Once you move the sofa from the window side to wall and dining side, maybe consider a narrow sofa table behind the sofa on the wall side. You can then add lamps and art. Then add chairs to the window side.

Some inspiration:

Pleasant Valley · More Info

I like the idea of pulling the sectional forward and away from the wall...adding lamps...end tables...curtains. I like your area rug:)

Yes, way too much brown/beige/tan. And a few of the suggestions for art and accessories are only slightly less more of the same.

You can go with a more colorful rug (I do like that first blue one, but it might be too busy for a smaller space), or find pieces that pull out the colors in your current rug - red and ? pale blue. I think pale green or blue accents would be nice (Sabrina has shown you some good blues) but don't be afraid of mixing red in with other colors. Pick 2 compatible colors and a light neutral to work with.

For example:

You do need lamps, so that is one place - try to buy one in a color or, at the least, a nickel or brass (to bring more sparkle) instead of black. Curtains can be ivory or pale blue. Replace the brown woven container with a small, more open design, table (look at Target, hobby stores, and so forth - used furniture shops, thrift stores and tag sales also often have attractive vintage tables that can be painted). Pillows of course. Ebay is a good source for artwork -- think about what you would like (style, colors, size, subject) to narrow down the overwhelming selection!

I like transitional, I’m not a fan our of kitchen table+little cabinet but hubby likes them. They are very dark and little ornate for me, but gotta keep them. We have moved couch around pretty much every direction. With back of larger couch to dining space, it feels very small and interrupts flow. And def not enough room for a little behind table. Here’s another pic to show how close to dining

Great suggestions for color. But. I'm wondering if there could be a furniture arrangement which would pull the sectional away from the walls, while moving the big chair over by the windows?

Oh, and I would not stain the fireplace surround charcoal. I think that would just turn the wall into a dark hole instead of making it "pop". Have you thought about painting that a light color?

The problem is not with the dark table and cabinet, it is just that everything is in that color zone.