I LOVE LOVE that rug in there. The blue is awesome in there.

Can't advise you about the color, but I love the sofa. I've sat in several like that and find them to be very versatile and comfortable.

Incredibly, we have similar LR's and similar rugs in that they are large, colorful and very THERE. When I laid the new rug after moving in, the rug man observed how beautiful he thought it was and told me not to worry about furniture -- just "sit down and eat on him". I have spent 10 years trying to get the rug to accept fabric on the upholstered furniture. My advice is to bring the bolts home and drape the fabric over the furniture and make sure to check it in all light and from all directions because the rug nap affects the color coordination. I thought a nice off-white or light taupe would work with my rug's colors, but it really didn't, especially with the white walls. I finally picked a solid damask in one of the minor colors. Funny you mention though, the rug does play nice with other rugs.

I don't know if this is a harbinger of what's fashionable, but I was browsing the Robert Allen upholstery fabric for whites, and many of the whites have been discontinued.

I do think that if you go for white, you would be well off to have some texture in the fabric, like the following:

White would get grungy pretty quickly, especially velvet.

With that rug, actually a blue (dark, medium, or light) would look good -- or even a taupe/light brown as in the sample picture.

I just wantd to say that I love your room. It's beautiful. I actually like the color the sofa is shown in. It looks like a color in the rug to me. I really think I'd think twice about white. I think over time just the oils from your skin could discolor the fabric.

Why not get a sofa with a fitted slipcover in white that can be washed? The underneath fabric could be a beige velvet but a slipcover would protect the sofa from every day wear and tear. When having guests you can reveal the velvet. Just a thought.

My MIL had a white living room sofa for decades. I think it was a damask. In her case, the room was only used a few times a month. Eventually the sofa ended up in our daily-used living room, and I don't recall it getting dirty. Come to think of it, the sofa was really ivory or winter-white.

As to what other colors, have you considered a warm gold?

ps I think white walls can be wonderful when the rest of the room is interesting.

I would consider a gold velvet, which will give warmth to the room and go well with the color of the wood floor, in addition to being a formal color. A shiny fabric in that color might seem too old fashioned but the velvet would definitely make the feeling more au courant. It's a lovely room.

It's rare to see such a gorgeous room as this. Your house looks like it was built in the thirty's. But I think you said it was new, no matter.

I think you should go with the white it will look stunning. I don't think there is anything more gorgeous than a room that is white with all sorts of different textures of white or cream or both.

Not just any room can do this, this one can.

You say you want this to be a formal room. What kind of antique's do you have?

I have four sofa's in my house. Two of which are cream (which I consider white) and I only wish the other two were, no regrets here. Of course I don't have any children or pets.

There are so many white fabrics you could use in that room. The question is what type of sofa's do you want?

You have stated that your rug has a lot of blue in it. Do you collect blue transferware? It would look stunning hanging on your white walls along with your white sofa's.

Have you ever seen any Chesterfield sofa's? You may want to check them out. Although I do like the sofa above only in cream or white.

Good luck with your choice and have fun decorating that pretty room.

Zip over to Joni Webb's blog Cote de Texas ... and check out her home with its gorgeous white-slipcovered furniture!

Jan at Rosemary Cottage

Here is a link that might be useful: Cote de Texas blog

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My last sofa, a white damask, did very well with 2 inside dogs, no children. I sprayed the heck out of it with two cans of Scotch Guard the moment it came home. We had it for probably 8 years and would still have it if it would have survived our last move. Don't even ask, let's just say we had an accident...

My mother on the other hand has an older pair of dark velvet sofas that have held up remarkably. She said that she researched the velvets and had an excellent staff advising her before she ordered.

Either way, if you go with quality (or Scotch Guard it like crazy LOL) and it should perform well.

Teacats is right Cote de texas is a must read, I love her blog and taste.

Check this room out Vicki, is this gorgeous or what?

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How about a white Crypton fabric

This is a white chesterfield sofa. I think it belonged to Joni of Cote de texas. I don't know what the fabric is however.

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Thanks everyone for all the comments. Andee, your advice on viewing the whole bolt of fabric was great, I think it really will help with making sure the wall color goes with the furniture.

And Newdawn, thanks so much for the link to the cote de Texas site, gosh, I'm still drooling--so many of the photos there are so much the look I hope to achieve, if only I had the design talent! I Love all the white upholstery.

I thought I'd post a few more photos, to answer the questions about what sort of antiques are in the room(s), and also to show better how the rugs in adjoining areas may play-into color choices in the living room. I feel that I need to pick something that will be workable with all the colors in the adjoining areas. The photos I posted earlier were from the previous owners. We've since painted, and moved part of our furniture over. The rooms are still mostly empty, but most of the rugs are in place, so you get a feel for the look.

I keep coming back to white/off-white/ivory for the sofa in the living room. Gold could work, too, but I do love the white. Let me know what you think seeing the neighboring rooms that can be seen from the living room.

I'll try to organize the photos so you get a feel for walking into the house:

First, the entryway...

As you see, the rugs we brought from our previous home are mostly lighter, and in the pinks and beiges.

Then you come around a corner where you begin to see into the living room. We call the big hallway outside the living room the gallery, and the two rugs there are also from our previous home, one in our pink/beige colors, and the other we had in our old dining room, and it has some blues and blacks (I think makes a nice transition to the blue rug in the living room.):

Once in the gallery, if you look right you see into the den, which is directly across from the living room. The rug in there has my favorite pink, plus some black:

If you look left, you see into the living room:

(Looks a bit like a rug store in there now, I know--can't wait to get the rest of our furniture moved over..)

Here is a shot of the living room, which has an adjoining conservatory, which I've done in beiges (I plan to add an Ivory color settee in there also..):

Here's the conservatory with beige rug up close--you cannot tell from the living room photos, but you see this rug quite well from that room:

Looking back into the living room (view of the dark side of the blue rug):

Aclose-up of the living room rug colors:

Close ups of the other rug colors:

A close shot of the living room fireplace (which has brown marble (emperador dark)):

Here is the dining room, not visible from the living room, but just down the hall. I have a table and chairs coming, the fabric is a green damask, and we will be getting a rug once the table arrives.

I'd love to hear opinions on the sofa color for the living room. I'm still leaning toward white, but would consider other options, so please weigh-in on what color(s) you think would look best. Also any advice on fabrics or decoration in general for these rooms would be greatly appreciated--as you see, aside from the rugs, I have a largely "blank slate."

I'm probably going to float the sofa in the living room, facing the fireplace, then put a few chairs on the side, and plan to put a very elegant chaise in front of the window in the gallery, and a large ornate mirror over the console there. In the den, I'll do a sofa, (no clue what color yet), and two black leather club chairs (gotta keep hubby happy amidst all my fussy stuff). Also an ivory loveseat in the Conservatory directly opposite where you enter the room. Beyond that, I'm open to suggestions. Any advice is appreciated! Thanks.

OOps! sorry teacats/Jan--Thanks for the link to Cote de Texas. Love that site. Also I checked out the Linen and Lace blog linked to it, some great stuff there too! Thanks again for a great resource!

No problem -- and never worry about those kind of things! I'm just glad to help out -- and trust me! Joni is SO good about answering questions on her wonderful blog!

Your home is GORGEOUS!! And the chandeliers are truly yummy!

Here's a handy link to a great site with some wonderful sofa styles -- including ones with slipcovers ..... JUST examples -- mainly for discussion points here too!

I'm still voting for a linen sofa -- but slipcovers would be wonderful for change too .....

Jan

Here is a link that might be useful: Mitchell and Gold sofa styles -- examples

Here's another site for inspiration (get comfy and grab a drink! LOL!)

Jan

Here is a link that might be useful: Phoebe Howard design website

Your rugs are gorgeous, I think I'm going to pass out ;-)
White would look wonderful on a sofa, and I always think something with a nap (such as velvet) hides smudges much better. That being said - I can't imagine owning something that pale that couldn't be washed. You could have a really form-fitting tailored slipcover made.

Are you sure you are not my mom? In both of her current homes, almost everything is white - upholstery, carpeting, marble, cabinetry, drapery, etc. She is an amazing housekeeper, has no kids or grandkids or animals there to worry about. She also has her rugs cleaned twice a year at least, and most of the upholstered pieces go unused most of the time. Of course, you are not going for the all white look as she has, and has been posted here.

You home is lovely, and your rugs are wonderful! I am wondering if you are planning drapery in the LR? That choice might affect how I would see the choice of a couch color. What concerns me is that you have very rich and colorful rugs, but plain white walls and ceiling, and adding white furniture might make it feel as tho all the color was on the floor. Now, if you are planning color in the drapery and your other upholstered pieces have color, then I can see a white couch in the mix.

I think a high-end velvet in a warm white would be fine. Just resign yourself to perhaps having the piece cleaned yearly, and not allowing anyone with dark denim to sit there regularly.

Me? I would likely pick a coral color, or a pale blue. Maybe something like this:

hypnotic mango

Thanks again teacats--another inspiring link. You must be a big fan of white furniture also. Very cool to see lots of photos in one place. It took me awhile with my decor magazines to recognize that many of the photos that "spoke" to me had lots of white in them. On the links you sent, almost every photo has that "wow" factor.

Thanks for the kind words, Jenny. I had not thought of a slipcover, but I was considering having an extra cover made for the seat cushion--sort of like those men's suits that come with an extra pair of pants-ha ha!

les917, I wish I was bold enough to do the "all white" thing, though I do still have young kids, so that's not an option for now. My biggest struggle is that I love a formal look, and it is a real challenge trying to achieve that without losing the liveability factor. We have always had a family room with leather sofas, so the kids can run wild in there without too much concern. We use that room for tv watching and casual entertaining. In the past, at our old house, we used the living room only for formal entertaining. I vowed that in the new house, we would use the living room more. I want it to look beautiful, but be useable and comfortable too. I have a friend who has a motto on that--she's british, and entertains formally often. She's undaunted by parties of any magnitude, and almost always includes the children of everyone she invites. I asked her once if she didn't worry about her furniture, and she told me her motto was "use and recover." I suppose if I choose white upholstery, the "recovering" might come up a bit sooner!

I like the coral idea. I'll have to find a swatch and see it with the rug. I am thinking about window coverings, but, as you might'ave guessed, white silk is what I was leaning toward! I was thinking that the rugs are so bold, to go with less color elsewhere--but your comments got me thinking, maybe having more color elsewhere would actually make the rugs stand out less.

In fact the more I think about it, the more it make sense, as in our old house, which was fully furnished with lots of color, the rugs seemed to be more in the background, whereas here, (where we've been living mostly "furnitureless" for awhile--as the balance of our furniture is still staging our old house) those rugs seem to be screaming for attention, just because there is not much else to look at in the rooms.

I was planning to bring in some color with the other furniture pieces, maybe some pinks and pale blues to compliment the rug, and I would probably put some pillows with color on the white sofa. We also have a lot of wall art that is not moved in yet, so that will break-up the walls a bit also.

I hope it all comes together okay! If anyone else has any experience living with white upholstery, I'd love to hear how it has held-up. Also, anyone who has pic's of what you've done with a blue rug, or pale blues in a living room, and are willing to share the photos of your design, that would be great. Thanks!

I had a really luxurious white sofa for close to 15 years. It was a Marge Carson piece -- fabulously well made. When we remodeled last year we sold it, only because it had no "place" in our new layout (we re-purposed our living room to a formal dining room and do all our "living" in the great room). It held up fantastically. I sold it on Craigslist for $500, full asking price.

I love my white couch and it's held up well after 10 years. It does not get daily use, but I probably sit on it (or nap on it) a few times per week. One thing I'm happy I did with my couch was to use fringe as cording; around the pillows at the back and around the seat cushion. It kind of makes the couch feel cozy, and is actually very practical as white cording is often the first place you see the dirt and wear. The room has had three different rugs over the years and two different wall colors, and the couch looked great with all of them.

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And.....your home is truly a gem. It's full of elegance with great space and light, and I think the white couch fits the vibe perfectly

While white would certainly convey the formal look you love, I would personally feel it a bit too formal. I love your rugs, your ivory walls and your windows. The antiques are lovely. But for me, I would feel a bit ill-at-ease being asked to sit down on a formal white velvet sofa. I think the taupe/cafe au lait in a velvet, and certainly in the lovely lines of the sofa you chose, would be more appealing. For my own guests, I want them to feel a sense of invitation and comfort when they enter. And even if you don't have a 'put your feet up on the coffee table' sort of room, or house, you can still make the room approachable with your choice of fabrics and the arrangement. Perhaps the one fabric in the warmer colorway isn't quite right either. I would have to see it. You definitely don't want to go too dark in that room for the look you want. I am even thinking something in a very soft grey, or a greyed beige?

Red

Well, I'm another White Lover and my entire house is painted various shades of white/cream. Granted, the walls are all exposed adobe brick, and white or cream is one of the few colors that look good on these bricks, but I'd probably paint them cream even if they weren't adobe. We have brick instead of hardwood floors and lots of Oriental rugs on them (both common here in the Southwest). My two living room sofas are a beautiful cream linen and I love them! I've had them now for going on 16 years and they still look great. I have them professionally cleaned every few years. I don't think they'd do so well if they were in our family room, which gets a lot more use, though. We bought them before we knew we were having another baby, but they've weathered 15 years with DD. She did draw all over them with pen once, but it all come out . . . thanks to a professional cleaning company! If my dobie was allowed in the living room, he'd get them dirty because he loves to lean against things when he's sleeping. So, small kids and dogs don't do well with white/cream sofas. I also would advise you to look for a different fabric than velvet. I think that the nap on velvet does attract more lint, dirt, dust, pet hair, etc., and it's harder to clean.
That said, I love the beauty of our cream colored room with it's cream colored sofas. Everything you add to it, is set off so beautifully with a white background, IMHO. I use dark tapestry pillows on my sofas and have many pieces of original art in there. Although I know many people here dislike the idea of white or cream walls, I can't imagine another wall color that would work so well for us. BTW, our MBR is cream on cream, too, and we think it's wonderful . . . and very romantic!
I hope that you stay with cream colored walls. I'd love to see more of your beautiful home as you settle in there.
Lynn

Gorgeous and elegant! Love the white for the sofa. What color white did you paint the walls and trim? Love to see some pics of the outside of the house as well. Best wishes in your new home.

Thanks for all the nice comments and advice. And thanks to all for sharing photos of the beautiful white sofas. Lynn, the white camelback is lovely!

I do not have any good shots of the outside of the house yet--sorry.

On the white walls is my own custom color, that I call "IFR" white. I have someone near and dear who is a pilot, and in the world of flying, IFR stands for "Instrument Flight Rules." It refers to when you are flying using your instruments to guide you, (as opposed to "visual flight rules" where you use your eyes.) I named my color IFR white, after numerous failed attempts to get the same color white I had at my old house, using my eyes. The colors and lighting were just so different in the new house, I'd have what looked to be a perfect match at the old house, only to bring it over to the new house, and it would look wrong. Finally I had to have the guy at the paint store mix my color by just adjusting the formula in the mixing machine--using "insturments only," despite how it looked to my eye. Hence the name. (Yes, the paint store guy thought I was nuts, but he already figured I was crazy after I made him view paint samples in his bathroom, which was the only place in the store with incandescent lighting--but that's another story...)

Anyway, "IFR White" is about a 50/50 mix of two C2 paint colors, the darker one is called "Cocoon," and I do not recall for sure the lighter shade's name, but I believe it was "Pearl."

I did not use the C2 paint though. C2 has some great colors, but was not very durable, and was tough to work with. We used a Miller product called "Evolution." I got a recommendation on that from Michael over in the paint forum, and it is an awesome product.

I'll post back as things evolve, and share some photos as my rooms become furnished. Thanks again to everyone who responded to my post!

For me the choice of the white/off white is how much use the piece/room will get. Will I walk past the sofa 100X per day to see the smudges and stains? Will I have to have a regularly scheduled Tuesday wash of the slipcover? I don't let my kids sit on white sofas when we visit others' homes. In fact I would probably tell them to stay out of the room. Maybe I am wrong but unless the homeowner says it is washable/slipcovered it's a no no for us.

I would pull out some of those gorgeous blues and what appears to be salmons/pinks in your rug. They will pop against the white walls. Or maybe something piped in the blues?

Beautiful house/rugs!

Lovely rugs.
We have an oriental with a white field in our living room. It gets a fair amount of traffic, yet the white is still white. And we've had it there for 25 or so years. I say, if you want a white sofa, go for it, as long as it's more a creamy white with pinkish or gold undertones.
You didn't ask, but I'm envisioning a black leather chesterfield in the den.

In the past we have used the living room mostly for formal entertaining with just adults. When we include the children at parties, we usually do something more casual in the family room, where we have totally kid-proof leather upholstery.

Also, we have always had our den/office area set-up as a sitting room rather than an office, and I'm thinking of going for a darker, sort of english-men's-clubby look in there.

For some reason, my big fear is dye transfer from blue-jeans, more so than the daily-wear-and-tear thing. I have to kind-of chuckle when I think of deciding which room to invite guests to sit in based on their attire..

I was thinking I could have a pretty throw on the white sofa for the occasional family member who might wander in to sit with a book or something.

Also, the room is large enough that there will be other seating, in darker colors, so anyone with apprehension about sitting on the white will have options.

Do I sound like I'm trying to talk myself into it? I suppose because it seems to me that white looks better than any of the other lighter-colored options, and also, I wonder if the concerns with stains/dirt/wear would be much less, say with pale blue or gold, than they would with white? I do not see a very dark color in that room, so the colored options are almost as light as the white.

Funny, I heard a comment on "The stagers" on HGTV, where the designer was using a white sofa, and made an aside comment that they "never recommended them for their design clients"--only for staging, as they would look grungy in a few months.

I thought when I posted this, that I might hear from people who had white, and then regretted it after living with it. However it's interesting that the people who responded who said they actually have a white sofa, all said they had no problems and loved it.

Any more white-upholstery owners want to weigh-in? (So far only 5 white-sofa owners have responded.) It would be interesting to hear from more--I wonder if I'm needlessly concerned about the white, as those with experience living with it, (so far) unanamously seem to love it!

Hi Suero--

We think alike--on the black chesterfield look. A slight twist though--I once sat in the Wallace chair and ottoman by Hancock and Moore, and thought it the most comfortable chair I had ever sat in. (Though at the time had no place to put one.)

That chair has a button-tufted back that is sort-of chesterfield-like, and I'm thinking of doing two in the den, in black leather,so hubby and I can have a reading retreat. (And so guests with newer blue jeans have a place to sit--haha)

I was thinking of doing a sofa in either a gold fabric or maybe a deeper tone, but something sumptuous, like maybe a damask. In our old house we had a gold velvet loveseat and black leather chairs with that rug, and the colors looked great, so I know they will work.

I had thought about a chesterfield sofa for a long time, but the style and height of the chairs is so similar, doing a chesterfield with the chairs would be too much of the button tufted leather look in one room. I do love that look though, and the black leather is exactly what I was thinking for the chairs.

Is this the chair and ottoman?

I looove it. I'm thinking about it - in black - for my DH.

As for your white sofa, get a large swatch of the fabric and test it out. Sit on it in blue jeans, put your feet up on it. Torture it and see how it holds up.

Have you considered a stripe?

That chair is similar, but I'm going for the big club chair. The one I "tested-out" years ago is the Wallace:

and the other option, which I have not sat in, is the "Saunders":

They are about the same size, but the Saunders is available as a recliner. With the Wallace, you need the ottoman to put your feet up.

I'm struggling with whether the size of two chairs (particularly with the ottomans), is too much for the room. I'm putting them in corners, so that helps, but they are big. I wonder if there is some "decorator's rule of thumb" about when big is too big for the room? I'm especially worried about how two chairs will look--whether the two (especially with the ottomans) will look like too much of the same in one room.

I do love the feel of the Wallace though, even though it is a stationary chair, when you sit with your feet up, it almost feels like a recliner.

Suero, if your hubby is tall, I'd check our the Wallace, it is so comfy. I love the look of the chair you posted, and considered that one, but I thought it looked more like some of the chairs I tried in the local store that had more of a feel of sitting upright, rather than the slightly more reclined feel of the lounge chairs. I guess it also depends on what kind of feel you want. My hubby is a lounger. (If they made "manly" chaises, he'd probably want one!)

That chair sure is beautiful, though--and you really cannot go wrong with H&M. I have a matched set of their "Reed" sofas in my family room, and they have held up beautifully, and are very comfortable.

Tough, I know, to find a big sampling locally to try-out. My local retailer no longer has the Wallace on their floor, and they do not have the Saunders either, so I'm going by my memory of the Wallace, and guessing about the Saunders based on how similar the dimensions are.

I don't know how you intend to use the den, but if you expect to have lots of blue jean wearing friends over, the ottomans do provide extra seating. The room certainly looks large enough to hold two chairs and ottomans and a loveseat. I think it will give the room a masculine, clubby feel. Is that what you're after?

Vickyw your home is gorgeous!

Thanks, dgmarie.

Suero--Yes, I'm thinking a bit clubby. In our old den, which had the same rug, similar woodwork, with two black leather bergere chairs and a gold button tufted sofa. The lounge chairs definitely have a more masculine feel to them than the bergere's did. I hope they look okay. I'm thinking that a fabric sofa will tone down the masculine look a bit, since some of the decorative items, light fixtures, etc. are more feminine/french antique-looking.

What type of room are you going to put your tufted chair in? You'll have to tell me if you have seen that chair in person, and tried sitting in it (or other Hancock and Moore chairs). I'd be interested in hearing any reviews. I've been thinking of starting a thread on that, when I get closer to purchasing the chairs. As I mentioned, my local retailer has little on their showroom floor right now, so tough to make a decision without trying the chair out. I've heard several people mention the brand on the decorating forum, so maybe someone here has some info.

The tufted chair is going to be a reading chair for my DH's media room/office.
I've loved that chair style ever since I saw it in the John Widdicomb decorator showroom a gazillion years ago, and it was very expensive then. It was also wonderfully comfortable.
Widdicomb no longer makes it, if, in fact they are still in business.
I despaired of ever seeing that chair again, but I was in (a very fancy) house a couple of years ago, and the owner had that chair and ottoman. That gave me hope.
Later, I saw another version of the design by Leathercraft, which has slightly different dimensions than the H&M chair, and I've sat in neither. I sure would like to be able to find a place that has it in stock.

Vickyw,

Take a look at the current Architectural Digest. There's a picture of two leather chairs with ottomans in a vignette of a den area, which should give you a good idea of how the two chairs you're considering will look.