As a sideboard?

I thought there was an opening on that dining room wall. Give up the idea of a sideboard in there. You have no place for it.

For the bedroom don't look at anything tall. You already have an armoire. You don't need another massive piece.

Look at these. Solid wood, clean lines. Houzz says they're $299, but the Ikea site says $229. Can't beat the price.

Thanks, Groveraxle!
I need your help again :) this time it's about rugs. It's for the living room. Since we are thinking of orange and blue, here are some orange rugs I found:

Any of the above is fine? :)

If you like them and they go with the other pieces in your room, I'm sure they'll be fine.

Thanks, Keesee! I like the Chevron but just not sure if the gray and orange combination is ok since I'll be doing blue and orange.

Yes, I think how you incorporated the color red worked perfectly! I wouldn't change anything!
-Fratantoni Lifestyles

If you like the Chevron, go for it. Every piece does not have to have both colors, but gray is a terrific accent with orange and blue, so it shouldn't clash with your other decor choices.

Got it! Thanks, Keesee!

lmagno, sorry I'm so late here, but your Friday question about the rugs didn't appear in my feed till today. Anyway, concerning the rug, I wouldn't buy one until I had selected the art. Those will be your two largest purchases for that room, so it makes sense to coordinate them.

Hi Groveraxle! Thanks! Right now we have two art that are considering to put it up the wall. One is Van Gogh's Cafe Terrace at Night (about 48"x60") and the other one is San Francisco Bay triptych which my husband really love.. However, the triptych is long but not enough height (20"x20" each piece). I love it too but it'd be small height wise. Any suggestion?

If there's a way to make the triptych work, we'll use it. If not, we'll use Cafe Terrace. And please let me know which rug should be used for each art. Thanks!!

I'm not really sure about the Cafe Terrace one...I like these better if the triptych doesn't work.

Or this:

Which do you think would work best in our living area? The 2nd picture is a set by the way, 40"x40" each.

lmagno, I'm probably not going to be as much help as usual this week--I'm in a painting workshop all day every day--but all your art choices have great color and composition. The real question is size. Get some painter's tape or butcher paper and mark out the canvases on that wall.

If the wall will have only art, then it needs to be big: more than 1/3 the width in a square format at least. The triptych MIGHT work if you have a console under it to ground it. However, the console would need to be wider than the art, which would make it verrrry long. You might put a very long floating shelf on that wall under the triptych. Ikea has one that's over 6' long: http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/50282182/

Any of your art choices could go with an orange rug. Of the rugs you posted, I like the first one best because the bit of gray in the pattern tones it down a bit.

Thanks!!! As for the floating shelf, there are 3 colors: white, birch, and brown-black. Which color should I choose?

And have fun in your painting workshop!

The rug that you like best among the orange rugs I posted is out of stock. :( I should've ordered it right away. 2 others are also out of stock. Found these but not sure if they're ok:

When I return from my morning appointment, I'll do some renderings of rugs and art, lmagno. In the meantime, here's an image from the instructor--Larisa Aukon--in my painting workshop. Perhaps you'd like one of hers on that wall...

Hi Groveraxle! Thanks! We bought the San Francisco Bay Triptych and it is small ( it even looks smaller on the photo). But hubby really likes it. I rearranged the living room furniture a bit but not sure if it helped. I guess I'll just let hubby enjoy it for now and then later I'll replace it. I really like the painting that you just posted but I bet it's over our budget of $500. There's a quadtych that I like (see pic below) which is 28"x28" each square, unfortunately it's out of stock as well (have to contact the company if it's gonna be available again)

Oh well. Just finished Photoshopping art and rugs. I'll post them anyway. It's more of a montage since I couldn't get the art wall and the rug in the same pic. Here they all are with the orange rug from Overstock.

And here is what I would do instead of the orange rug (because I think you're going to be sick to death of it within three weeks). I'd bring in the color pop with accessories instead of the rug. A little orange goes a very long way.

http://www.overstock.com/Home-Garden/Hand-Woven-Matador-Blue-Stripe-Leather-Rug-9-x-12/8084012/product.html?refccid=NLHQPMVA2NHL6BCN45JCGOIWGM&searchidx=219

http://www.overstock.com/Home-Garden/Hand-tufted-Dixon-Geometric-Diamond-Wool-Rug/7512119/product.html?refccid=NXBUM5TVXVDZHDCBMYIRU3H5PE&searchidx=43

Thank you, Groveraxle! Really appreciate your help as always.

I have a question about choosing a color palette. Let's say the wall art has mainly blue and some white, does that mean that you can only choose blue and white? Or would it be okay to add a different color that's not on the wall art? I have black and white wall art which I'm planning to hang in one of the rooms, in this case, can I choose any colors for the color palette in that room?

Thanks!

Imagno, that's right! Your art should not limit your color scheme, but complement or add to it. Choose the colors you love for your space. Black and white photos can look good in almost any room.

For these wall art, can I still use the blue and orange combo or not? Thanks.

Thanks Keesee! I didn't see your answer until after I posted the pictures.

As long as you like it, you can still use the blue and orange combo. I think it looks great in your space. Don't feel like your art or your rug need to limit you. Choose the decorating piece that's most important to you first, then coordinate everything else with that.

It's much more difficult to consider several different options (art, rug, pillows, etc.) all at once. But if you start with the most important, and nail that down, it will narrow your other options as you go. Then, once you nail down your second most important piece, it will influence your other decisions and narrow your options more.

If you start with the most important piece and work down, it's much easier to decide which decor than having several ever-changing options. Focus on one decision at a time, and make sure that each pieces fits the atmosphere and style of the room as it continues to develop. You have a good eye, you just need to trust yourself!

Ok. I was finally able to convince hubby that the San Francisco Bridge wall art was small on our living room wall. And this time, I found the art that I really love. The problem is, there are 2 of them. The 2nd one will definitely change my color scheme. Which do you think would look the best in my living room? I really love both (hubby likes the autum tree best). Please help. Thanks!

And both are bigger -- 28"x28" each square.

I must admit I am not a fan of those pictures they take and cut in pieces. They do it because it's cheaper to ship. Anything over 30" or so has to go by freight, so they just cut art up willy nilly and ship FedEx or UPS.

The size is right, of course, but so is this:
http://www.art.com/products/p17371867037-sa-i6675001/steve-vidler-golden-gate-bridge-with-mist-and-fog-san-francisco-california-usa.htm?sOrig=CAT&sOrigID=0&dimVals=534331-207272&ui=72701F0E3B724B92B1EF0C3E5A4A3C21

Another option would be to find a large painting, something original if possible, and if the shipping is too much for you, you can get it unstretched and then stretch it locally. If the art is not too expensive, you can stretch it yourself if you are a bit crafty. We bought a few years ago two large pieces (about 6'x4') from ebay and my husband stretched them. They were $100 a piece, so pretty cheap for what they are. If the piece is more expensive, then it's worth having it stretched by the artist or whoever does it for him/her. We have a 9'x5' painting that was pretty pricey so we had the artist stretch it and he also helped with finding a shipper( the S&H can be expensive for large pieces; ours was about $1000, which was a lot better than some art shipping companies quoted us).

Thanks Printesa, but Groveraxle just found me the site where I can order big wall art without breaking the bank!

Groveraxle, thank you for finding me that San Francisco Bridge wall art, unfortunately, 72" won't work because it will overlap on light switch on the wall. We could hang it just above the switch cover but the art would be higher. :( And I don't want to do that because I know it'll bug me. I'm looking for something that's 54"x54" and I'll post the ones that my hubby and I love and help me decide which one would look best.

Thanks!

Groveraxle, my hubby and I can't find something that we both love in the 54"x54" size. All the loft art that both of us agreed upon are 72"x48." Question: is 47.5" from the floor a bit high for the bottom edge of the art to be sitting on or hanging on? Either that or the art's gonna be 1" off from the center of the wall if the bottom edge of the art is hanging lower than 47.5."

By the way, these are the loft art that we love (we still love the San Francisco Bridge but since we already have the triptych, we chose something different):

There's one that's 54"x72":

Which of the above wall art would work best? Thanks!!

Yes, 47.5" is way too high for the bottom edge, and it really needs to be centered on the wall. The last one you posted--the vertical one--would look good in that spot and take up most of the wall. But do you love it?

There are a couple other options. I believe the loft art is shipped rolled with stretcher bars and instructions for stretching it yourself. You could buy your own stretcher bars and stretch it to a length of 70" instead of 72".

Another option is to move the light switch. I would move it in a minute if it interfered with my art. And don't let anyone tell you you can't do your own electrical work. The hardest part of the job is patching the drywall so it doesn't look lumpy when you're done.

I just priced stretcher bars and moving the light switch would definitely be the cheaper option. ;-)

Thank you! Sorry just came back from camping.
We like the 4th painting but not as much as the 1st three. We love the blue car the most. It'd have been easier if hubby liked abstract. Anyway, he says he'll try to move the light switch. Hopefully everything will work out.

Update: Bought the painting that we love and here is our wall in the living room:

The 72"x48" wall art made a huge difference in the space. Now, I just need a rug and a few throw pillows. Groveraxle, I need your help again in finding the right chairs to replace the La-z-boy rocker recliner love-seat. I rearranged the furniture in the living room so some suggestions would really be helpful. Will post pictures tomorrow (or later since it's past 12 am now).

That's a great painting. The blue car is perfect, interesting, unexpected. Will look for your posting of the updated furniture arrangement.

Maybe try switching the black planter for a white one. The shelf seems very heavy with mostly dark ornamentation. I really like the red though, good job stepping outside your comfort.

Groveraxle, here are the pictures:

Groveraxle, I know you already posted some rugs for me but just need your opinion one last time. Would it be better to choose a solid color or one with a pattern? The first picture is one of the rugs you chose which I really like. The other pictures, I want your opinion on them. Thanks!!

1 more (I included this because it says it doesn't shed):

There's also a gray version of it:

Sorry can't resist. These too don't shed and they're shag rug. I'm not sure if the colors would work. And is a 5"x8" ok size or should I choose a bigger one? The one that you picked, Groveraxle, is a 5"x8" but it doesn't have any reviews. I guess I just have to take the plunge if that's the best fit in our living room.

put a much larger mirror.. the sconces are not correct in height for that mirror.