What is the flooring, and what is the furniture like in the space? I think I would be inclined to do all one color in the room, but it might depend on whether you need the two shades to help balance furniture, etc. visually.

Flooring is wood - red oak stained walnut. The furniture is espresso color. This is the dining room furniture I have (complete with white fabric on the chairs):

I'm starting to see a pattern here - everything is brown. Walls, furniture, floor. Hmmm...

I think all one color would go better with your furniture. Very pretty and sleek!

Try hard, I think you are starting to answer your own question. If the room has no windows, the floor is dark, the furniture is dark, and you do totally dark walls, I am not sure you are going to be happy. Everything will become flat visually, because it will all be the same color and just kind of meld into, well, a pile of melted chocolate!

It might work if you added a rug that has a lighter field color, a light fixture with some sparkle, a metallic finish (silver, copper?) on the ceiling, and some great mirrors and lights washing down the walls.

I would do all the same ....or.... if you have a traditional space and white trim, perhaps consider doing some picture box molding below the chair rail and painting the whole area below the rail to match the molding to give the illusion of wainscoting?

{{!gwi}}

What colors are in the furnishings in your other rooms?

creekylis - Is that your house? Just wondering what color is on the walls?

Laurie

HI, I did a color on the top half and white on the bottom....I'm happy with how it turned out~ Hope this helps!

Here is a link that might be useful:

I love white on the bottom (esp w/ the moldings) and color on top, or I also love a darker shade on bottom & 2 shades lighter from the same chip on the top- my parents had a color consultant do their dining & living room & she used about 4 shades of the same color for the different parts of the wall, trim & ceiling & it turned out beautifully.

What other colors are you using in your house?

I think I would want something to offset the dark floors/dark furniture - even thou you will use the room at night with lights. You still have to walk by it everyday and it might look like a cave.

What about a pretty silvery color or a coppery metallic paint?

Smiles:)

For the most part, my furniture is casual and neutral. The room next to the dining room (but not visible from the dining room) is the family room and it will hold a brown leather Ethan Allen sectional, muted orange wingback-ish chairs, and a rug with muted green, brown, gold, and orange squares. However, the orange chairs are in storage and due to some issues we had with the storage unit, they may not come out in usable shape. So the rug and orange chairs might be replaced with any variety of items in any variety of colors.

Regarding metallic paint - that's not really in keeping with our style preferences.

DH wants the dining room to be a dark room but I agree with johnatemp that I won't want to walk by a cave all the time. DH also had the same suggestion as creekylis -- to have the wall under the chair rail painted with the white trim paint to give the illusion of wainscoting. And I'm open to that. The walls are flat so I think that would look okay.

As Les917 suggested, I think we need a rug to lighten the room a bit.

I've been going through magazines and catalogs in an attempt to find a great room I can mimic but haven't stumbled upon anything that I love. But I think that we'll have a good result if we use the trim below the chair rail, chocolate brown above the chair rail, a sparkly chandelier, mirrors and lamps to create some light, and a good rug, we should be okay.

Thank you, everyone, for your advice!

try_hard
...

I would echo the vote for a lighter lower half of the wall, but only if you put in the faux wainscoting; which can be done with boxes made out of trim placed under a chair railing. We did that in our DR and it made the biggest difference; it was an instant hit. Also, have you checked the Dining Room thread in the Gallery? It is an incredible collection of photos and there could be an inspiration photo there.

{{!gwi}}

Good Luck!

Jjam: I didn't know there was a Dining Room gallery but I will definitely check it out tonight!

Your wainscoting looks terrific - you built that yourself? Are you a seasoned handy-person or a beginner? I'm a beginner so I'm a little intimidated by a project like that.

try_hard
...

Oh, how I wish I were so handy! We were lucky enough to find a good trim carpenter who is reasonable, and he did the frames. It really wasn't that big of a job, though, he did it in one afternoon. If you do it, I would recommend using the thicker trim pieces for the frames. It really adds some weight and makes them look more substantial. Cost was a little more for materials, but labor was the same.

Thanks for your kind words.

Jjam, did you put flat wood up first? Or did you sand off any texture on the walls?

Oceanna,

The frames were applied directly to the drywall. (Chair rail and baseboard were already there.) Then we had the whole lower portion of the wall painted with the same oil based enamel that was on the rest of the trim using a sprayer, and it turned out great.

Sorry to go off topic... but Lori your dining room is simply gorgeous! It is so airy and light and everything is perfectly arranged. Can I come over for brunch? ; )

Amy

jjam, what is the color on your dining room walls? It is gorgeous. I have been looking everywhere for a gray-green or sage green that doesn't look too cheap or depressing for a dining room. Yours looks perfect!