I like the stripe ones. Second choice is the pecan. Match the wall if you want them to blend in, different if you want them to stand out.

I think they would look stunning. Lighter colors will enhance your chairs.

With your color pallet, I think the stripes would be a little busy with the pattern of the chairs. I would choose between the solid Pecan or Coffee.

i like both the pecan and coffee!

budge1: I also considered RH drapes for my living room, but due to size constraints ended up going custom. I do love the quality of their silk taffeta drapes and think it will go well in your space. Depending on the style drapes (how they hang) will make a difference in how visable the stripes appear. With the inverted pleats (which is my favorite style of theirs), it's very subtle. Best to check out the styles in person if you can before finalizing your choice. You can also order fabric swatches free of charge from the RH website or purchase from the store for $4/ea (and then return after you make your selection). I would definitely like to see a swatch next to your chairs before casting my vote. I remember a long time ago liking your previous wall color and then when I saw it at BM it looked like a totally different color than appeared on my monitor; but based on my memory of seeing the drapes at the store, I do like the goldenrod and pecan; but I really like the sangria. It looks like it would match to the flowers in your chairs and make them pop. Order the swatches, though, and take some pics of them next to your chairs.

Looked at your chairs, even thyme would look good, depending on what else is going on in the room.

I love the pecan! I also love their goldenrod but in your room, I like the pecan. As Valinsv pointed out, the colors do change in various light conditions and rooms but the pecan is such a good rich but not overpowering color that I don't think you have much risk in them not working. That is not true of the goldenrod or sangria.. if they are wrong, they will stand out and smack you in the head.

I would avoid the stripes-- they are beautiful and tonal so I don't think they'd be too "busy" for your chairs but they do reflect light differently and I think that would be distracting. I adore your chairs and they should remain the "ahhhh" element in that part of the room.

Lovely room.. I smile each time I see those chairs. :)

Hi Budge, I think I like Pecan, but I'm not sure. Don't you wish you had a panel of each that you could hang up and stare at for a few days and THEN decide??

I 2nd guess myself all the time...right now trying to choose a stain for a media cabinet. I wish I wasn't this way! It's a pain, lol.
Susan

I would not do the stripe because of the conflict with the pattern you already have in the chairs. The pecan would be the most workable, although the other colors suggested would also look attractive, if the shades were off at all it would be very noticeable. The pecan is more neutral and should go well.

Okay so I'm counting more votes for pecan. Funny, I thought the Pecan would be more of a colour, but you all seem to be saying it's more neutral. Neutral is good.

Mpwdmom, I sure do wish I could do that, but living in the middle of nowhere just doesn't make this possible. I keep saying I'm going to quit checking with you guys over every single decision, but it seems I can't stop second guessing myself.

Funkyart, thank you so much. We love the chairs too, but they are a much warmer tone than I had planned on and I'm having real trouble adjusting to the way they really look and how I imagined they would look and in turn how I'm going to decorate the room.

V, thank you for the push to order the samples. I know I should I just keep putting it off. I'm quite sure the pecan will go (I'm also looking at catalogue pics), but your right I should be sure. Waaaay too much dinero to be guessing.

sheesharee, I like the coffee too, but I think it will be too dark and I worry at night that it will look black or not quite black esp. next to the black cabinet.

Jerseygirl, you are the sole dissenting voice, but I'm always open to argument. Why do you think the lighter colour will be better with the chairs? And when you say lighter, do you mean goldenrod?

Thanks again everyone. I'm sure you'll all be pleased I chose a mirror and wall art for the feature wall on my own (small steps).

I am usually the sole dissenting voice. LOL I guess it's because my tastes are not traditional but usually more transitional and eclectic. My eye seems to be a little different but I have always been known to be tasteful in my decorating style.

The walls seem light which would make dark drapes stick out like a sore thumb. Your question was specific and I still feel your original choices would be fine. I've seen the drapes at RH. If I am reading the fabric correctly on the monitor, seems to be a little green in it too? If there is, celery may work also.

I really like simple WT's (period...). Especially with beautiful furnishings. To me furnishings are like art. WT's should be part of a rooms frame not a focal point.

If you notice rooms done on HGTV by Candace Olsen (she is one of my faves), the WT's are pretty plain and monochromatic in nature. The furniture displays beautifully.

If it was my house, I'd be trying to make the persimmon work, as it would really make those chair, pardon the expression, pop.

I don't like the shiny texture with the casualness of the rest of the room. The Belgian linen--in Henna--would be my choice, as the heft of the fabric seems to go with the furniture. The silk, while very pretty, seems more formal and French.

Here is a link that might be useful: Belgian Linen

I am going to be another dissenter. I don't see the silk in the room that you are creating. Seems too 'fancy' for the warm, casual elegance with the modern twist that you seem to want. I am also thinking that it would be good to have some other color and pattern in the room besides the two chairs. Your couch has the neutral slipcover, and everything else is a solid either painted or stained finish.

To bring in a more modern vibe, I could see these from PB. The high stripes will bring the eye up in the space, away from the heating vents but also bring some color up in the room that compliments the chairs; overall still has a lighter feel.

multistripe ribbon drape

I also think these from JCP might be nice, in the root beer stripe to pick up on the chairs :

elliot in root beer stripe

I think this one in the tuscany stripe would be great, too

raynier stripe

I think these in either stripe, tho I lean toward the leaf colorway:

harbor stripe

Gosh, Silk can be used anywhere. They use it for underwear. People wear silk with jeans. They made silk t-shirts. LOL No rules for it's use. It's how you present it with the rest of the furnishings and the rod you place it on. Live on the wild side. LOL

Yep, jerseygirl, you are correct. Silk can be used anywhere! And silk drapes are certainly the common choice these days.

But not all silk looks the same, nor are they styled the same. I have clothing that is silk or contains silk - none of it is full and shiny and formally styled that I wear with casual pants.

The rod doesn't matter so much, imo, but the rest of the room and the furnishings do, which is why I don't see it in her space.

But, as you say, there are no rules, and if she loves it and it works for her, then she should use it.

Jerseygirl, I am completely with you on the eclectic. Not quite sure what it is, but traditional this room is not. I'm still calling it modern cottage, but I've just picked up a book on urban country and it seems to fit there too. The celery may have been perfect actually - if I hadn't painted the ceiling a greeny/blue that would clash horribly with the celery (painting it white is not an option - see past whiny post if you really need to know :-)

idee, I can see the persimmon looking just amazing, but it is just not me. I can admire a beautiful red dress on the right woman, I just can't wear one. I had originally thought I'd do the linen drapes too, but they (I know this sounds odd) look too formal to me. They hang too straight and don't have the body of the silk.

And les, just like the red that idee suggests, I can see those modern stripes looking great, but they just aren't me. I really appreciate your posting the links because I have been known to change my mind (once or a hundred times). I've considered the alternative fabrics, but the only thing I've seen that I've loved is a narrow black rod with small black rings and a silk panel a few inches too long ballooned out at the bottom very casually but (then I get carried away) with an elegant simplicity.

But since the vision in my head and what things look like in real life are often very different, I think I will buy the rods and rings this weekend and experiment with panels of fabric from my sewing room stash.

Thanks again everyone.

ok, I see some talk is going on about silk. I was going to say that the dressy silk doesn't sit right in my cottage mind. Maybe a rougher textured raw silk, not shiny?

Anyhoo, here are the gold and pecan colors, somewhere in here, amongst some other values and color types. Personally, I really like the deep, very brown red. The whites are hard to play with, as your wall color is off and I don't know what it is, other than white. It actually looks gray from here. I also like a nubby textured, warm white with your chairs and room, though (fourth from the bottom), if it were to work with the walls.

I think for the simplistic, monochromatic look, I'd stay with a brownish color (rather than gold which gives you a pronounced color scheme and makes things look more complicated). Your pecan seems to work that way, I like it because it's more subdued. This particular gold just seems too bright (I did tone it down). I think #5 down is a subdued earthy gold (or maybe I lost the muted golds somewhere : )

HTH!

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Thank you so much squirrel! I think you must have more pictures of my house now than I do.

From what I can tell, the RH silk is a dupioni which has a very subtle sheen and somewhat nubbly texture. In the picture the room has a very stark quality, but IRL it is much warmer and I'm really sure the silk will go (she said with a bit of doubt in her voice). We also need a rug, but that will have to wait for future funds to magically appear. I could afford a jute/sisal right now, but not sure about wear or whether it would go.

A couple of the pictures aren't showing up on my screen for some reason, but I can tell that the golds are definately out. I just rec'd the linen fabrics I ordered online (if you remember helping me choose from another thread) and the stripe has a really nice red in it (same as in the chairs). Your pictures are making me reconsider the Sangria colour. Could I live with red? Hmmm...

Thanks again squirrel.

Oooohhhh, there is a set of Sangria in the right size on ebay right now. Expires in 3 days and of course no time to get sample sent by then. Someone break my bidding finger before I do something stupid.

Here's a sangria from ebay, the last set is the stripe taffetta as I don't know which one you're after.

Is that the Romantic Overtures stripe of your sample?

{{!gwi}}

budge1: I think the sangria would look good. The other color I like is celery, not thyme as I mentioned before. I checked the website and seems the colors have been updated, and thyme is now celery, but pretty much what I was thinking of. Regarding the suggestion of a less shiny silk, consider the Thai silk by RH. I've seen it in person and it would look fabulous with those chairs and does give a less formal look. It has the less glossy, nubby texture that squirrelheaven suggested.

Here is a link that might be useful: RH Thai Silk Drapes

Huh?? Isn't that what we've been looking at all along?

Thanks to squirrel's most excellent services, I know I like the Pecan the best, but the Sangria is a close second.

I guess I'm hoping you'll paint the walls a color, even a soft color would add a little something IMO.

les, I really like the PB drapes, and am now considering them for my red DR! So, thanks.

prairiegirlz5: budge1 was considering the Silk Taffeta drapes which are a shinier silk and give a more formal look. The Thai Silk, also by RH, comes in the same colors and on their website it does look like the same stuff. So basically, whatever color she likes, she could get in either style. But, in person, they do look different as the Thai silk has less sheen and is more nubby--why it's so important to look at these drapes IRL.

Budge1, are you near a RH? At the RH where I live, they have panels up of the majority (not all) of the drapes which you have been looking at. There are differences not only in terms of the sheen, but with the fullness as well--some are interlined others only one lining. If you get any type of stripe, they show differently depending on the pleat/rod style you choose. With stripes in the pleated styles one of the colors would be much more apparant than the other.

Thanks val~ the Thai Silk are the nubby kind? Or is that linen? I ordered chenille and was surprised when they looked like sofa fabric. I should have been paying attention in Home Ec instead of writing my name and some boy's five hundred different ways, LOL.

Thanks for the clarification val. The thai silk is what I've really been looking at, but as things come up on ebay I get distracted. Unfortunately, I am flying blind with no RH anywhere near. I think the stripes are a no go and am looking at a darker solid colours. I still like the celery too, but I don't think it will work with the blue ceiling.

Thanks SH, the sangria is not what I want. I have to keep kicking myself back to the original goal of plain and monochromatic. Every time I veer away from that, I'm unhappy with the results. I also showed DH the pictures you did (I like to let him pretend he has a say in things) and he likes the pecan best. He also likes that they are on sale right now.

prairiegirl, I swear the wall colour is wonderful in person. That shot is the worst. I've got to post a pic of the fireplace wall so you can see how lovely it is.

Budge1,
Go with your gut. Please post pictures when you have them up.

Good to keep reminding yourself of the original plan : ) Here's the pecan, with the sofa and some other things I know you liked (crimson stripe, sisal, chandy, ceiling). Not really monochromatic, but quiet with a lot of neutrals. Meant to get a closeup! Let me take another shot in the room.

I don't know why this is being autom resized, but this is a bit more of a closeup.

Now we can see the blue ceiling. I think pillows with pecan would look great on the sofa. If you can find a multi color strip with a little blue included, you would be able to tie all your colors in.

OMG!! Squirrel, you have made my mishmash into a room! The thing that jumps out at me is how much I need a rug. What am I dithering about drapes for when I should be looking at rugs? The sisal looks great. Hmmmm...

I also love the way you've got the chandelier shade over the torchier lamp. I think I'll look for a shade to throw on that lamp.

Jerseygirl, you must be psychic. I just received the 2pieces of fabric I ordered for pillows - one is pecan and cream and the other is a multi-colour stripe!

Now, how do I get aktillery to do a nice little painting for me?

Figerred it ouwt. Had changed my capture to .bmp files.

Love the neutral pillows in pecan. I actually was hanging the chandy, alternate floor lamp : ) but it probably wouldn't work hanging, with the fp too. And yes, that painting is perfect in there!

Your kitty is sooo looking forward to all this : )