Thursday, February 19, 2009

Hey, All you Interior Designers....

HELP!

I have hung my huge fantastic mirror, and I love it, but I don't much care for the reflection... Both of the mirrors I just hung now reflect empty walls and my super boring mantle.


I did have a nice large picture over the fireplace, but it was a Judy Blume and was feeling a bit dated, so I took it down and I haven't found anything I like to replace it.

And then I have this empty wall. I've thought about getting old ceiling tiles and hanging them here, but I'm not sure.. and I haven't found any old ceiling tiles that (1.) I like, and (2.) Are in my meager budget for home furnishings. Do you think this wall needs color?? If so, what color would you suggest? I'm leaning towards a brown?

Another view of the empty wall and the kitchen so this living room area really needs to flow with the red and white and black in my kitchen. Yeah, that's me... Heeeey..


This reflection view shows my entry table and another blank wall. I kind of want to leave this wall because it's actually behind the front door when the door is open and I'm worried if I put anything there, or hang anything it might get damaged when the door is swung open a little too forcefully by an overly excited child trying to escape.

Anyway, I'd love to hear your thought and recommendations. It would be very helpful. :)

10 comments:

Heather Carringer Lemon said...

Your decore looks way better than mine. I would say though that painting a brown wall next to a theme with black in it wouldn't be my first choice, but it is hard to say since you kind of have to see the "big picture". Good Luck I think it all looks incredible.

Emi said...

put up a picture of me.
bam.
problem solved.

Amber H. said...

It's kind of hard to say without having ever seen your house, but I'm kind of with the person above. A brown wall next to a black and red kitchen might not flow so well, unless you choose a brown with a lot of black in it. I might go for a green or blue (or even a greenish blue color like the flowers on your blog paper if you are looking for more bold colors)if it was me. I think the old ceiling tiles would be an awesome idea but they can be pretty expensive, although on ebay they are cheaper than anywhere else I've looked and they have some really great ones. You can find some good art pieces at Ross for cheap and ebay has a lot also, it just takes a SUPER long time to sift through all the pictures. Or, you could just take some great pictures outside, turn them sepia or black and white, age them out, print them out big, frame and mat them for above your fireplace. That is probably what I would do. Good luck! can't wait to see what you do!

Kim said...

I would suggest getting some fun - yet color pallet flowing - fabric. Get some canvas boards of different sizes, or cut some thin wood and cover with batting first, and cover them with the fabric. Then, be creative with how you hang them!

Either this, or you can make some floating crown moulding shelves and put some pictures or fun things on them.

Good luck!

Kristi M. said...

Now that I see that mirror above your piano I can really see the size. It is even bigger than I imagined. A couple of weeks ago I found two ceiling tiles at a thrift store. One was marked $2.99 and the other didn't have a price. I didn't ask. I just handed them to the guy and he charged me as if the price included them both. I was so excited. I have yet to figure out where I want to put them. I am with the others on the brown wall. The fabric on canvas is a good idea. Easily interchangable when you get sick of it too.

Camille said...

I'm so disappointed! I love the idea of brown... Like a taupe neutral brown... doesn't anyone want to back me on the brown?

Shawna said...

Yeah, I will back you, but I think you need more than a color, you need some sort of texture to break it up. Stripes. Yeah I know, not the easiest thing to pull off, but tone-on-tone vertical (one in an eggshell, one in a gloss) about 12-14 inches wide on ONE wall with an accent wall, say the fireplace wall in the darker of the 2. The colors won't fight with that dominant red, but will balance it with the subtle texture. Also the mirrors will pick up the stripe effect and throw it around the room without having to paint stripes on every wall, which would be overwhelming. theres my 2 cents.

Shawna said...

OK, so I woke up this morning with a better idea. Here it is. Instead of stripes (chic and cool, but might bring a little circus feel in the wrong setting) I think you should do a stencil of fleur de lis, about 5 inches high, and stencil it in a pattern, tone on tone, of course. Classy. So there you go, turns out you get my 4 cents worth!!

Anonymous said...

yeah I know, you need to fly me over so I can have a personal look at the space and come up with something brilliant. Okay, so I can't guarantee brilliant, but I'd be good fun! :)

Amanda said...

I'll back you on the brown. Red and brown are warm colors and will compliment each other. Go for it.