I should qualify as an expert on dealing with paneling, because my house had it on some or all walls of every room except the bathrooms and the master bedroom. I've painted the pressboard paneling in the two rooms added in the 1970s. It is not that difficult to do. In one room I used primer tinted to 75% of the intended finish color, and just one coat of paint (SW Optimistic Yellow). In the other, I used white primer and painted it with Kilz Casual Colors in Cashmere White (many colors of Kilz Casual are guaranteed to cover anything in one coat). Some of the paneling, in the original parts of the house, is solid wood, and I'm not changing any of it. One small bedroom is paneled on all four walls and has only small, high, windows, so it tends to be dark. I use the room as a home office; while I use it mostly in the evening, I do use it some during the day. It helps a lot to break up the dark walls with things that are lighter: a large poster with a cream background, floor-length curtains in white or natural muslin, etc. One wall has track shelves, and even the light jackets of most of the books contribute to the lightening effect. So if you like the paneling well enough to leave it as it is, you could consider decorating predominantly with white or cream. What is the tone of your furniture? That is, does it stand out from the walls or tend to blend in? And remember the dictum from Kim Myles about dark rooms that I quoted recently: "They make things for that. They're called lamps." On the other hand, if you really don't like the paneling, go ahead and paint it. You do not have to paint it white! To my eye, painted paneling is lovely in any color. If a midtone or deep color suits your taste, don't hesitate to use it. But do keep tinted primer in mind, as it will probably save a coat of paint and you ought to prime regardless of the finish color.

When I had the master suite created in my DH's home up north, it was crowded for bedside tables too. So I got two wooden tall plant stands, with 12x12" tops. They fit perfectly fine. Then swing arm wall mounted lamps for each side of the bed. Enough room for a book on the shelf below and a glass of water or whatever. I never just use an end table when there is an option to have a small chest beside the table. That works even in a small room with limited storage space. Every item has to WORK to make the cut when space is scarce. And, in the bedroom in Alabama, I am going to be sorry to leave it for the BACK bedroom, which will become an ensuite master, because it is beginning to look SO comfortable. It is a west-facing bedroom, on the street. It has two PAIRS of windows, and the closet and entry to the bedroom are on a third wall. That leaves one wall which has no windows and no doors or other obstructions. However, I did not want the bed to be sideways in front of the entry door, so had to put the bed first diagonally in the corner between the two pairs of windows. This worked fine for a while, with the wicker chests I use for bedside tables centered between the windows. However, it was hard to make up the bed. So I decided to center the bed in front of the windows on the street wall. I closed the blinds to block the high heat coming through those windows anyway. And then I found some floor/ceiling grommet drapes at Tuesday Mornings! That is when I got DH to install crown molding wide enough to mount the double drapery rods, and I started planning 3 layers of curtains...grommet drapes wall to wall on both window walls, sheers on the second drapery rod, and finally the top-down roman shades using 90% shade cloth and Thermasuede fabric as a liner. I am almost done with the curtain project, but even with the shade cloth pinned in place on the west wall, the difference in heat gain is significant. This room is 12 x 12 give or take an inch. We changed out sliding closet doors for 2 pair of Jeldwen bifold shutter doors which I painted to match the crown molding and base boards and other wood work. The wicker chests are on either side of a full sized bed, with lots of breathing room. There is a rocking chair near the closet. There is a third chest between the closet and the door to the hall, and a wall mount TV is above the chest. So now I've ordered the Hudson queen size storage bed from Room and Board in cherry. It should arrive this month. I can hardly wait. It is a platform bed with no footboard, and no box springs, and it measures 60 x 80. A full bed is 54 x 75, so only a few significant inches of comfort which I look forward to having. But when the contractor finally comes, and bumps out the master bath for a tub and a long walk in closet, we'll be moving this new jewel to the back bedroom. This current bedroom will convert to a nice study/guest room. Only we seldom have over night guests, and may just put desks and bookcases in there until we move the contents of the up-north house. It seems to me that we have plenty of space in the 12 x 12 bedroom. Since we've repainted and made the room so peaceful, I will now take a horizontal break to meditate or read or chat on the phone. It looks good in natural or ambient light all times of day since northern exposures give true light, and the shade cloth gives a sense of separation from the street. Keeping active pursuits out of the bedroom is conducive to rest and separation from the cares of life.

Any ideas for warm wall colors that aren't yellow? Maybe in the warm white family? I prefer to keep my bedding dark as I have 2 black cats and 2 messy boys. The hallway just outside the bedroom will be Gray Owl. I have been looking at Palladian Blue but many online sources are warning me away from cool colors. This bedroom gets mainly northern light and I am located in MN.

I like the last 3 - though still not what I'd do. Too much going on in them, and we tend to have too much clutter to add business to the walls. I wish I could keep things cleaner but we're fairly useless. Hopefully with these movements we'll be able to shed some crap. But I've been pretty bold lately... pained one room white (mascarpone) and teal... and we have a living room painted in mascarpone and cayenne, and the dining room is mascarpone and Adriatic (if I'm remembering properly - it's a deep blue). I think if we do something interesting with the closet doors (with color) then I'll leave the small wall white - but otherwise, I may paint. I'll leave the glass bricks open - that's the only "natural" light that comes into the bathroom.