Hi, you have a yummy house! What I'd do first is make a choice of colors based on either a 'cool' or 'warm' palette (blues/greens/purple, etc) or red, yellow/caramel, orange, browns. It will be important to sort out bluey purples from reddish lavendars (or mauves) and cooler yellows from warmer goldy types. Just doing that alone will almost 'blend' whatever colors you have rather than finding an orange suddenly clashing with a purple, etc. However, I DO think that window that you call mauve doesn't go badly at all with the yellow - I kind of like the 'surprise' of it and it isn't a turnoff at all. Both colors, after all, are in the palette that redheads would wear (if you're into the seasonal color trend thing for clothes). Once you know what you feel most comfortable with (cool vs warm) then you can almost do any colors within each range for any rooms that connect as long as the tones (soft vs bright and intense) match up. Maybe do the upstairs in the opposite color range for a more relaxed and serene feel, using ... aqua/tourquoise in the bath or something for a little punch.

Have you seen this website? It was compiled by someone who posts on oldhouseweb.com. You'll go nuts looking at the victorian decorating.

Here is a link that might be useful: Victorian Decorating

Oh thank you lucy and kec01 for your responses. Kec, what a great site! I am going to read the whole thing when I have time. Lucy, I like the point you made about cool versus warm tones (something I just went through with the kitchen...)I would love to be able to keep a lively color scheme, so I'm glad no one suggested painting it all beige, LOL! I will pay more attention to the color tones and complimentary shades this time around , though...and try to incorporate some green - I love green.

If you look at a William Morris tapestry, you'll see an interesting balance of jewel-toned colors with drabber colors. You have such beautiful furniture and accessories, plus that stunning stained glass window by your stairs, why not let them be the jewels and paint some (not all) of your walls in drab colors? Especially the stairwell/hall area; it would be a good get-along neutral color next to other, more vibrantly painted rooms. I know it doesn't sound very appealing, but it looks great.

Northampton putty or richmond gray might be possibilities; I can't recommend them unreservedly since I haven't seen them in your room.

I have Farrow and Ball's light stone in my dining room; it's a drab putty color, and I love the way it makes the woodwork pop, and how brighter room accessories (like a colorful still life painting) play off of it.

Here is a link that might be useful: william morris tapestries

slateberry, that is an interesting idea. Particularly in the front room, I'd love a color that shows off the woodwork as well as the stained glass without detracting from it. Do you know of any greens that can be considered neutral (or drab for lack of a better word? :) I'm thinking something in almost an olivey-tan color - am I describing taupe? (not great with color names). Do you think something like that would work well?

Victoriajane, I love your house, it's beautiful!

kec01, thank you so much for posting that link, it's amazingly helpful.

Victoriajane, we have a 1898 home, not as fancy as yours, but I've been hemming and hawing on colors as well. Our small stained glass is similar in color to yours, our larger one (will put photo below)is similar in that the dominant colors are flipped.

Most Victorian colors were earth-toned, but with that, I think in the 1890's it was really almost anything goes, so it gives you a bit more licence to do what you'd really like.

I would suggest sitting with paint swatches right by the window and pick 4 that you really love that go with each other. I second slateberry's drabby color suggestions and would put those with the right "feel" of light- read lucy's warm- cool suggestion, next to the appropriate windows. Then would maybe "pop" the dining room and/or parlor with brighter jewel tones.

For the wall around our larger stained glass in the hall, I wanted a warm neutral (yellow-brown) to pick up the yellow light that comes through the window, also to make the cooler blue and cooler pink to pop. Here's what I have (forgive the quick paint job, I am indecisive with paint and need to live with it a bit before committing):

the paint color is SW stonebriar (which is close to BM Shelburne Buff, also close but yellower is Chestertown Buff):

In our livingroom, I wanted something deeper but classic and neutral enough to go with my red velvet and gold brocade victorian furniture. I think I'm going with SW Bunglehouse Grey- it's a arts and crafts color, but since that's an offshoot of Victorian, I'm not too concerned. That's close to BM Kingsport Grey and BM Nantucket Grey. It's actually not at all grey, despite the photos:

Again, please forgive the lousy paint job, it's not the way it will look! Let us know what you choose, I'm still totally undecided about the dining room and would love to hear what direction you went in!

yes, I definitely like your olivey-tan idea. that's a pretty broad category. here are a few suggestions, all bm, but please check with your lighting/woodwork:

light khaki (most similar to my "putty" dining room color)
crown point sand
richmond gray
brandon beige

Plus these, but watch out for too much green:
sag harbor gray
providence olive
clarksville gray
baffin island

I recommend something with an almost undetectable green. It will be obvious when you do the whole room. If the green is easy to see in the color chip, believe me, it will hit you over the head when it's on your walls.

If you have a Lowes in your area they have these great brochures put out by the Olympic paint brand. The palettes in each booklet give a wonderful sense of what goes with what. I brought them home and laid them on the oriental rugs and in front of our stained glass . It was most helpful in picking colors. I then had the colors made up in BM matte.

I was able to look at the colors in different light, very important, and then I got larger swatches of the ones I liked most. I put my art work on the floors with the rugs and then moved things by the glass windows. All of it goes together from room to room. I love standing on the morning room and looking into the foyer and on into the piano room and each scene plays to the next. Lots of jewel tones too. We have an 1890 Bungalow but all of my art work is Native American and my rugs are all Persian. I am from N.O. so it was a challenge to blend all that I love !

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