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Large open floorplan, all my paint colors look the same!!!

12 years ago

Please help, oh gurus of paint color. I mostly lurk here but love to read the advice. We have a large open floorplan home and I'm trying to figure out paint colors for the family room, dining room, and kitchen, which are all open to each other. I have chosen three different colors (dark brown for one large window wall, mid-tone camel for family room other walls, and creamy goldish lighter neutral for the kitchen. But because the floorplan is so open and flooded with north/south light, they all look the same, or not different enough!!! I really wanted to differentiate the window wall from the rest of the family room, and to accent other arches, etc. But I'm not sure what the secret is. Do I have to go really dark? I am not brave enough for actual colors, like blue or green or red - I prefer warm neutrals on the walls but I would rather they look different.

I would love to post some pictures but I can't figure out how to embed them into my posts...

Thanks in advance!!

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Comments (6)

User
12 years ago
Would love to see pictures. Here's some instructions that can help you.

Go to www.tinypic.com, the upload screen is the first thing you'll see. Adjust the size of photo you're going to post to message board size so everyone can see it good.

Then click the browse button to find your photo:

Hit upload and this security box will pop up. Copy the words and hit upload again. If you can't read the words, click the button with two circle arrows at the left to bring up a new words.

Once your picture uploads, copy the HMTL code:

And paste it in the message box your typing your post in:

Hit preview and your photo should be there.
catlince
Original Author
12 years ago
THANK YOU!!!!

[IMG]http://i55.tinypic.com/mmgd8j.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i55.tinypic.com/15ek0tv.jpg[/IMG]

so this is a picture of the family room, with another where you can see the kitchen/breakfast area. I'm thinking of painting the tall wall with windows the darkest brown, the rest of the family room a camel color to match the drapes, and the breakfast area a lighter gold-toned neutral...
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abundantblessings
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In one house, we did something very similar to your plan. The window wall was not very dark, but discernibly darker than the adjacent walls, and the windowless kitchen which was behind the family room was a lighter neutral. I liked the effect of the darker tone on the glass wall (french doors topped by second story windows) as the natural light was plentiful. I would have felt the kitchen was too cave like had I not gone with a pale color to bounce the light as much as possible. You don't seem to have that problem as the entire area seems bright, but as long as the undertones play nicely and flow I think you can shift colors. Since I'm a light freak, I'd probably do the window wall 50% of the drape color and go lighter from there, but you may well enjoy the more saturated colors. Good luck!
colorblind1961
12 years ago
Here's a pic. of my FR, which is open to my kitchen and foyer. The main color is "Caramel" but I used "Moss Grey", which is actually a dark green as an accent wall. My foyer is painted "Tavern Tan"...very similar to "Caramel" but just a tad lighter.
catlince
Original Author
12 years ago
Thanks for your reply:) I had originally thought of going lighter, but we painted the dining room (which is also open to the family room) SW Latte, which is a good 4 shades darker than the builder's original color, and you can hardly tell we did anything.

Here is a pic of the dining room, with the formal living in the background with the original color... the contrast is actually more visible in the photo than in real life. This kindof shows the problem I'm having:
catlince
Original Author
12 years ago
very pretty, colorblind...i love the entry stair color.

so i visited with a good friend who is much better at decorating than I am today, and she thinks i should go bold in the kitchen - either a blue or a red, to pick up the colors in the family room rug, which is the Brandon rug from pottery barn.

Would anyone want to give me an opinion on using BM Azores? It's very out-there for me, but it's a "happy" color, which I need, and warm, and it would pull the blue/green from the rug..

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