accent wall -which one - accent color??

13 years ago

I could use some suggestions for an accent wall color as well as deciding which wall to make the accent wall.

I painted the kitchen living and dining rooms BM AF-80 Jute -- which is really beautiful. But having just finished putting up the first coat I can see that it's definitely going to need some "pop" somewhere. I'm specifically interested in the living/dining rooms. The kitchen should be fine.

The floors are a natural red oak. Most of the furniture is in rich walnut wood but still pretty neutral. The trim and ceiling are OC-18 Dove Wing.

For an accent color i was thinking of a color 2 shades darker then Jute range/grey/green/brown. BM does not have tints for their Aura line so i just can't pick the darkest color on the swatch card. I definitely don't want anything bright or in the red, orange, yellow, blue or purple range.

Also I though wall B should be the accent wall but a friend with a very good eye suggested the wall outside the kitchen (wall A) should be the accent wall.

Just wondering what you guys might think?

Here's a picture of the layout and colors:

{{!gwi}}

Thanks

Featured Answer

Valerie Noronha

13 years ago

I agree with Alex's definition of an accent wall. I have one in my LR which frames my fireplace and is a focal point for the room. Another rule of thumb is that it is a single wall in a room and not multiple walls. However, the way you are describing just bumping up the intensity of the existing wall color I agree is not really an accent wall. With that in mind, my vote would be for A (but excluding the DR walls). What you have described reminds me a lot of my local Pottery Barn store and it is a very good look and does indeed add visual interest to a large and open floorplan without drawing overmuch attention to itself as would be the case with a true accent wall. You should also take into account the amount of light that your various walls are subject too--since that also has an impact on how the wall colors are perceived. In general the stronger the sunlight a room received, the more washed out a color will appear.

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Comments (6)

karezz
13 years ago
IMO wall B is best - the dark furniture would look richer on a darker backdrop. I like the idea of something subtle - just a few shades darker than the rest. For me wall A doesn't work as an accent wall since it is really 4 walls.
palimpsest
13 years ago
I would say B, or I might consider option C, the window wall in the dining room: the accent would really be concentrated and also a visual surprise when you turned the corner. A is too much real estate to paint an accent color, it would stop being an accent.
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alex9179
13 years ago
When you consider the purpose of the accent wall, to draw attention to a beautiful area that otherwise might be missed, the best wall is the one in the dining room palimpsest called C. The others don't offer the opportunity for that concentrated visual bang the accent is supposed to bring.
Wall(s) A are too cut up, wall B is really long and wouldn't be able to focus the eye as well unless you have some big pieces of artwork that would be featured all the way across.

Picture the view into the area with the deeper color, beautiful window treament, and stunning chandleier.
clwguy
Original Author
13 years ago
Thanks for the suggestions. I didn't even consider wall C but i kind of like the idea of a visual surprise.

I agree with Palimpsest about A being too much real estate to be an accent wall. But it got me thinking that I probably should have worded my question differently. In reality, it's not that I want to add an accent wall but rather that I want to add some visual interest.

I know that that can be done with artwork, accessories, window treatments, etc. but before I get there it feels like my dish is on the bland side.

Does that change your answers at all?
User
13 years ago
I'm going to throw this out there as an idea, only because by accident we ended up having to use two colors in our living area and it worked out well. Our living room which is larger and oblong was painted a Golden color (Behr Warm Muffin). Though pretty, it ended up being way too much bold and gold for me in that size room so I painted 2 connecting walls in the room Behr Raffia Creme and it's worked out very well.

So since you're really just trying to add interest and not an "accent wall" per say, I would do wall A with the darker color. If it's too much dark, just don't do the part that goes up the stair and use the lighter base color for that portion of the wall.

accent wall -which one - accent color??

Valerie Noronha

Comments (6)

karezz

palimpsest

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accent wall -which one - accent color??

Valerie Noronha

Comments (6)

karezz

palimpsest

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alex9179

clwguyOriginal Author

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