Wow. That's a beautiful room. I love the sofa and the wall color.

You can probably pull off an orange, so long as it's like a "blood orange" orange, a deep, blue-based orange.

Otherwise, I'd try a deep magenta/wine color.

Very pretty room. I think you could do orange. But I think it would work best if you spread it around the room. So the radiator covers, but then also a pillow on the sofa and a vase somewhere, or something like that.

Thanks tibrix. I will look into blood orange fabrics that is a good way to pull together the blues. burgundy wines are a way
I had not consider yet and it may help tie my dining and living rooms together!

I might try looking at various oranges with the rug. If you get an orange that works with it, I think it will work with the room.

Love your room.

You can always buy a swatch of the fabric and live with it for a week and see how you like it, no?

I like the fabric, but while it may be too predictable, I also like the color of that book on the side table (coral, pink)? What colors are in your carpet?

Really lovely as is! On my screen the upholstered pieces look off- white. Must be a very pale aqua? A splash of orange.....oh, here's an idea: go to Homegoods, Marshall's ,etc. they have lots of splashy pillows, and in similar patterns to the one you like. Buy and try out before you spend time and money on custom .
I love your room as is. It reminds me a bit, if you squint, of this inspiration pic posted here recently. Elegantly restful to my eyes.
Marti

To keep your room feeling harmonious, decorators usually suggest using a color at least three times. I can't really see the colors in your picture well on my monitor, but I'm assuming you have a shade of orange in your rug, you have the orangish brown of your armoire, so adding a bit of orange to your benches/rad covers should work. However, I think you need to stay away from bright orange and look for a muted shade.

Thank you for all you kind words! I think everyone is right that the orange in the fabric I show is off. The sofa is alot like 1980s seafoam just a bit greyed down, it is called lagoon. The rug, which I have had for ages and I know a more modern and similar color to the other objects would most likely really improve the room but I am very fond of this one, has navy, red, olive and an yellow orange color in it. The yellow/ orange is very similar to my wood floors. I will maybe look for more of thar tone orange rather than a true orange.
Nosoccermom I love coral and do have a few accessories , the old book, bowl and a throw in it so I will source fabrics with those colors too.
Thanks everyone!
oh here is a close up of the rug, the velvet is still showing lighter than it is in real life.

I agree with martinca..............no orange. It's a classically styled room, that doesn't need your eyes drawn to the radiator covers covered in a pattern that doesn't seem to complement the room

Maybe capture the soft gold in the border of your carpet.

I think it is too strong a pattern for such a quiet room, and pattern in areas I wouldn't want to emphasize so much.

Ok I have let go of that orange fabric. Is it just that particular pattern and color that is too loud for my quiet room or would ones with more complimentary colors be ok?

This was one of my first choices, My DH was not sold on it but it ties many of the colors and shapes in the room together. Would this pattern be ok or should I begin limiting my search to solids?.
Thanks again for all your thoughts and opinions I am at a road block with this project.

This post was edited by roarah on Tue, Jan 28, 14 at 16:27

I quite like your rug and think it adds a lot to your room. If you had a more graphic contemporary rug, the room would have a completely different feel. As for the bench fabric, I think you can use a print, but make sure the pattern is a different scale from the rug and avoid high contrast between the colors of the pattern. In fact, I think the overall feel of the fabric should be darker in tone, so that the horizontal planes of the rooms have a consistent feel. Alternatively, you could choose a solid neutral that blends into the woodwork.

I agree with the poster upthread who suggested that the best way to tell if a fabric will work is to buy a yard and try it in the room. You can always use it to make pillows or a table runner if it doesn't work for the benches. Also, I don't know how much sun those benches will get, but you might want to consider an outdoor fabric made to resist sun fading.

Something like this would be stunning.

Here is a link that might be useful:

Don't go with a solid fabric because that is taking the easy way out. The gold/yellow would be nice, using your floor as a jumping off point. It would be easier to layer tones of yellow and gold than oranges in this room.

Choosing between blue and orange or golds really is dependent on how you want the room to feel. If you want to liven it up a bit then try the orange or golds but if you want it to stay restful and a little more sophisticated then try blues. That's just my 2c worth.

Thank you Fun2behere, I will hopefully receive some samples by the weekend and I will be able to hit a local fabric shop later this week I will post pics of the swatches in the room when they start coming in:).

Yayagal, I love that fabric it has the color of the sofa and curtains with the warmth of orange! I am on a google search now to source it. I only need four yards so cost is not a huge concern:)! Thanks I do love that pillow!

I'm looking forward to seeing what you decide. :-)

I love your rug.

And MartinCA, Love the room you posted. I always have loved rooms like that.

Roarah - I've always loved this room. I'll keep peeking back waiting to see sample pics.

I love your room! Some cry out for some pattern but I don't feel that yours does. I also agree with Fun2Bhere that the key is your rug. Have you tried a fabric with a paisley type print? That could provide some interest without distracting the eye.

I think orange would definitely work. I would sprinkle it throughout on the sofa pillows (in a pattern that is not solid orange) and in the rad you mentioned and maybe a couple of accessories.

Your room is gorgeous! I love it and also adore your current rug. Can't wait to see more pics!

Again thank you for all your help and kind words. Our house has been hit with a stomach bug so I have sheets all over the furniture to protect it so I can not take a picture of the sample in the room yet, but I think I found one that I like but I still need to source more fabrics and am really hoping to be able to find one similar to what yaya linked. The one I got today has a gold that works well with the floor and rug and a grey that works with the walls. here is a pic of just the fabric it is pretty close in real life.

I love it!

I had to laugh at the sheets comment. That bug has been here twice since two days before Christmas. 5 out of 6 of us got it, me included. It sure was a fast hitting vicious thing! So today I grabbed the last sheet on the sofa and washed it. Put the last bowl in the dishwasher. All of us had to carry bowls. heh. Just take it easy!

I like your old rug but I also like the other one you showed. I can see how the lighter rug would really brighten up the room, and let you add more color to it. I get the feeling you're ready for color. I'm going through the same thing right now, changing up things I've grown tired of.

I also think orange would look nice in there.

After living with samples for a few days, I took Fun2behere's advice and went with the darkest of my samples. It was the one that felt right and like the rug it seemed to ground the room. It is a tapestry weight fabric with a dark grey background mixed with lighter greys and yellow. It has been snowing quite a bit so I have been home a lot more than usual so I was able to finish one radiator cover and make one cushion this week. I hope to complete the second one by next weekend:). Here is a picture of the final choice fabric. And thank you to everyone, all your opinions and advice really helped me finalize my choice. I think it feels like it was here forever so I think I might have chosen well:)>

This post was edited by roarah on Wed, Feb 5, 14 at 15:45

Nice!!! What a great choice!

Very pretty, as is your whole room. :)

Gorgeous! Perfect!

How about pillows in that soft yellow/gold that's in there, rather than the sofa pillows you've got on there now? That might give your room that splash of color you were looking for, and would look great against the shutters.