Butting in to say that the main tile isn't extremely earthy, so the gold butter color seems fine -- and the floor is amber.... the upper left of this neutral seems that color...

Marilyn Hageman 'Classical Horse' Canvas Art, 35"x35" · More Info

Alphonse Marie Mucha 'The Precious Stones: Topaz, 1900' Canvas Art · More Info

So I actually like the little tile. A good tile person would be able to cut out those tiny tiles and replace them….but if you could find someone that good, they would not be interested in such a small job! I think the real painter will be able to faux those little tiles so they completely blend.

I think a small container of craft paint would work fine. Try to match it to the tiles.

You can definitely use a sponge and match almost exactly the tiles that are there. There’s a place where you can buy really small sample sizes of paint. Flo knows. Samplize ?? Anyway get some paint chips for the matching and at most you’ll need two or three colours I’m guessing an off-white and then some kind of a beige/brown. It’s going to be tricky with craft paints to get your right combination although if you’re an artist or know anything about colour mixing it would not be that difficult. Unfortunately I can’t help you very much with colours on a computer screen.

You can put a deeper brown/tan/beige and then the most important thing would be to emulate the grout lines - “paint in” the grout lines.

This is very rough and not the right brown - but hopefully gives you the general idea.

In any case, I really wouldn’t lose sleep over this.

Late to the party, but I love your coral accents. They bring life and rhythm to the room, especially with all those gorgeous plants, and I hope you give them anither chance (perhaps wirhout those non-functional-looking drapes?).

Hobby lobby has craft paints in small containers that would probably work. Dabbing with small sponge pouncing brush would work. Also, for the accent wall if you feel Dark Night is too dark there is another color you might try. SW Really Teal.

Thanks all, I've obsessed enough over the dumb black accent tiles! I'll leave them covered for now with my other tiles and re-paint them later. Got bigger projects to tackle first, since I finally met with my painter today and decided to:

• Change main orange accent wall to my primary Oak Buff color.
• Change the fireplace wall from Oak Buff to SW Dark Night.
• Change the orange accent wall behind my extensive built-in loft shelving (which I've never shown in Houzz pics) to SW Dark Night.
• Change the orange accent around kitchen window to Oak Buff. Before, this, I have to decide what to do with the ugly backsplash and baltic brown counters, which are the subject of a separate discussion that I temporarily tabled.

Next up: Art to replace the mirror above the fireplace, or a more interesting mirror. Been haunting Craiglist and found a couple of interesting mirrors, but no art. Looking online, I found some art, but none that's affordable that seems right for my space. If I get something new, it needs to be BIG, and work with the piece above the sofa, the new dark teal wall it will be on, and my various coral/red and lime accents....I think. All that's a pretty tall order for very short budget, so I might just be sticking with a mirror. After that comes the torchiere, which I've also been on a hunt for, with no luck so far.

Very exciting!! Can’t wait to see done! I will keep my eye open for big art over your fireplace!

Sounds wonderful! I probably sound like a broken record but you can paint tile...the backsplash too.

@Flo, I love the dramatic effect of the Dark Night and some of the other really deep teals that I looked at. Regardless of which one I pick, I think I'll want to light up the wall by using tall columnar or conical torchieres, or maybe wall sconces that cast light both up and down. Or some sort of spot from the floor or from the ceiling? Sheesh, I can't stop rethinking everything!

@Partim, I thought about repainting the backsplash, but don't think it would work out. It's a ridiculously busy design and an awful lot of surface area. See this post for that discussion: https://www.houzz.com/discussions/6195302/lighten-up-busy-looking-baltic-brown-travertine-kitchen-on-a-budget Somewhere in the middle of that long discussion are a few posts about painting the travertine.

I love the Dark Night too. And your room has much more natural light than most. So I think it will be awesome! Your area has amazing items for sale on Facebook marketplace and others where you might pick up great lamps for a song. Art too.

Cool, thanks Flo!! I’ll start checking Facebook marketplace. I’ve never used it before.

I just checked out your kitchen on the above link and have to say I think it’s lovely. It may be somewhat dated, maybe not the choices you might make today, but it’s tasteful and looks expensive. I see no need to replace the travertine. Once you paint that orange wall and get some new white accessories I think it will be just fine.

If you are really unhappy with the kitchen and need a relatively inexpensive update, I think a white subway tile would really bring the kitchen up to date. I would not even consider a dark backsplash.

You really should be able to remove those 3 little tiles quite easily. Scrape out the grout around them and gently tap them with a cold chisel. I had 2 cracked counter tiles and I did it without much difficulty and I had never done it before

I love your screaming orange walls! I would keep those and change the curtains to a lime or aqua. The rattan furniture is giving me a tropical vibe ... bold drapes could amp up that theme.

PS - love the painting!

Sounds like you’re well on your way to having a plan. I’m just lurking here! I’ll look forward to seeing the changes with the orange wall gone and the introduction of the dark teal blue. I agree I would put off any other decisions until you get the painting done it may change the way you feel about other things.

I agree marketplace is a great place to look for bargains but if you’re looking for something really large over your fireplace are you thinking abstract? You could buy a large canvas or get one stretched and do something yourself…. Just a thought.

How large are you thinking you need? There’s a lot of abstracts out there.

@Amanda Smith and @JM thanks, but I'm tired of the orange and the backsplash (and the Baltic Brown).

The orange ended up harsher to my eye than I'd expected when I chose it 11 years ago. Been thinking of toning it down to a softer coral ever since, but now I just want a bigger change.

Similarly, I always regretted making the backsplash so busy, and I don't think adding white kitchen accessories would help--there's no white in Baltic Brown and I think the travertine would look dingy if contrasted with a stark white. However, we'll see what happens after I paint.

@liasch -- Both Flo and a designer I consulted 2 months ago said the art above the fireplace needs to be 32" wide by at least 60". I have ZERO artistic talent, so wouldn't dream of doing my own painting, abstract or not. I have an abstract exactly like the one that Flo showed in my travel trailer and love it there, but want something a little less abstract for the fireplace. Hoping to find a piece with a discernible image of sea coral, waves, sunrise/set, women in tropical setting (like in the other painting) that works with the Dark Night background and my other images, and that is a bit softer than the example abstracts in this discussion.

@everdebz -- Not sure I understand your intent in your last post. Was the art you showed intended to suggest similar art, or just to illustrate the color needed for the black tiles? I've seen some of your posts elsewhere that show many beautiful, soft elements that I love, but I think most of them are too soft for this project. They'd definitely work in my bedroom, if I ever get around to redoing it.

HOUZZ usage question -- I've just learned I can precede someone's screen name by an ampersand (@), and then pick that person from a list, which inserts a web address with that person's name into my post. E.g. https:// www.houzz. com/ user/ everdebz (without the spaces). Aside from this link, is there any ramification of doing this, such as some sort of notification to the user that I've mentioned them? Apologies in advance if this is a bad thing to do. Where the heck is the Houzz HELP option? l love the site, but often encounter usability issues!

Really looking forward to pictures of your teal wall!

So happy Flo is on the case. She can really help you!

I love your screaming coral accent color, but agree it maybe too much going up so high. That means you may need to paint that wall to match your other walls. The patio cover repeats the coral, so keep that as is. I would look at patterned teal drapery panels with some coral included, reaching just a bit higher than the sliding door frame. If you need privacy, let the drapes be wide enough to cover the sliders. Add a bit of coral near the fireplace.

Once the orange paint is gone, you might feel differently about the kitchen. Replacing the backsplash is probably the least costly change you can make to give you a more contemporary feel. I would go for a white subway tile.

Or more the colors of your sofa art? :)

"Lithosphere Orange Blue Gray" by Hilary Winfield, Canvas Art · More Info

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"Lithosphere Yellow Blue Orange" by Hilary Winfield, Canvas Art · More Info

@everdebz, thank you but the fireplace wall will soon be a dramatic dark teal, not the current buff color. I like hour fourth piece but it doesn’t come in a large enough size. I’m kinda hoping to find an original oil or maybe an acrylic that has colors and style similar to the piece above my sofa, which is an oil painting not a print. So I might just opt for an interesting big round mirror.

Oh.. ok I do recall that now. Best to you Debi, from Debbie :)

[I often think that posting an artist's work might interest someone enough to search online to see more.]

I’ve searched until I’m ready to drop lol. Wish I could find the artist who did my piece. I talked with him for a couple of hours when I bought it, but his store shut down not long afterwards.

That's too bad.... [please don't drop, but I really get it, and do it too.]

Would you ever consider moving your favorite art to the fireplace wall and finding something different for behind the sofa? I think it might look really nice on the SW Dark Night background and also could be viewed from closer up. Thoughts?

32 by 60… with 60 being in landscape mode going across, or up and down? I think a water theme might be nice with your house. However depending on what a mirror would reflect when you put it there, I could see a mirror working very well.

@MJD232 and @liasch - I want a large TALL (portrait orientation) for above the fireplace. The art above the sofa is too small, even for where it's at, although I did try to "pad" its width a bit by flanking the sofa with floor lamps. I used to have candle sconces on each side of that art, but took them down.

Hm…even trickier. I have worked in that size but it’s less common. I can see why it’s a challenge. What about a sculptural wall piece.

If you wanted an ocean theme I could see some schools of fish done in metal maybe 2 or three groupings. You could probably even find somebody local to do it for you.

Metal art or a mirror over a fireplace are really better options than paintings - unless the fireplace is never used, or unless it is electric without a heating element being used. In art preservation circles, displaying paintings over a heat generating fireplace is actually considered to be one of the worst possible placements.

So the idea is: If you never use your fireplace - not an issue. Electric without heat - not an issue. Anything else, for sure I would suggest not hanging any paintings of any significant sentimental or monetary value over a heat generating fireplace.

I know you are in CA, and in San Diego it doesn’t get very cold. But when I lived in Los Angeles, I used my gas fireplace all the time; I loved it for ambience, and I used it with the AC going. And sometimes it does get a bit cool at night in LA. Nothing like my home town NY - but cold is a relative thing.

https://www.fireplacedoorsonline.com/hanging-art-work-above-a-fireplace.html

Still thinking the surfboard (and possibly a companion piece) would look awesome over the fireplace (vertically hung — I’ll bet it’s close to 32x60) . . .

I thought about hanging the surfboard over the fireplace as well but if it’s used… That would be a bit inconvenient. Otherwise I think it’s a great idea.

Li, Freedom, N Johnson -- Great thoughts, thanks! Neither a painting nor the surfboard would fare well above a fire. I haven't had a fire for several years, but am home a lot more these days, so would welcome the ambiance and extra warmth. Just gotta do something about the built-in screen to make it safer and less ugly--it's currently hidden behind an external screen that's a bit too small.

I think the surfboard would be super cool above the fireplace, and it would be easy to take it down and put back up before/after my fires, if I get clever with the mounting hardware. Heavy artwork definitely would not work.

A metal wall sculpture is also fantastic idea! I have a pair of C. Jere copper palm trees that I could use, but am not sure how they'd look with the Dark Night wall, or how I'd arrange them. Here are pics...they're currently on separate walls in a bedroom, but they can be kind of nested or overlapped in various ways to form a bigger piece. They're both over 3 feet long and I originally had them above my sofa.

I'm leaning toward the surfboard idea, although one designer discouraged it a couple months ago. It just seems easiest and cheapest, and it doesn't leave my bedroom walls empty! Thoughts, anyone?

The metal art is nice, but it doesn't look "substantial" enough for that fireplace wall. Is there a chance you could lean the surf board up in the niche and move your favorite art to above the fireplace? We could add some elements perhaps to it so it has better scale?

Flo, sorry, but what niche are you referring to?

https://www.houzz.com/hznb/photos/endless-summer-design-in-carpinteria-ca-beach-style-living-room-santa-barbara-phvw-vp~170138716

In the photo above, they used the surfboard and a smaller art piece.

I meant the area behind the sofa. Where your favorite art hangs. It looks like it is set back on upper part of that wall? Hence my word “niche”. Lol

Aha, I see what you mean Flor. The beam above the sofa gives the illusion of a niche, especially in photos. I had this art sitting on the mantle, leaning against the wall, for a while, but prefer it behind the sofa. If I moved it, I'm not sure how I'd pad it to scale better or what I'd put behind the sofa to take its place. Seems I'd still be in the position of having to buy new art, but a big landscape instead of portrait-oriented piece. And I just incurred a big unexpected financial hit, so really need to try reduce what I'd planned on putting into my updates. Going to start with the paint and then take it from there. Thanks!

I started another "discussion" to ask if anyone has bought household stuff from RushMarket.com but am not sure I posted in a way that will get any attention, so I'm hijacking my own thread here to see if any of you are familiar with the site. They have great prices. Apparently they find and re-sell a lot of open-box and demo/display items. For example, check out this lamp: https://www.rushmarket.com/product/17A1FFDDF6C/open-box#aaid=1354596. 

Oh sorry. Financial hits are never easy. Bummer. But I appreciate your description and now I better understand the space. I am not familiar with the site you mentioned above.

Sorry about the financial hit, Debi. But I think your kitchen appears to be in great shape and quite nice….I see no urgency to make changes there.

Ughhhh… I totally understand! At least paint is relatively inexpensive and easy fix. Your house is really lovely! I wouldn’t stress too much about other changes.

Thanks, Flo, Amanda, Li. Paint and a bit more lighting, which I've always needed and will need even more with the dark wall, will be the end of this update for now. Always knew I'd probably be stuck with my Baltic Brown "amoeba" kitchen, but I sure wish I could get the image of amoebas out of my mind!