I'm not great on design archaeology, but if if you - for example - were to see American Craftsman in today's kitchens, then chronologically the next era is the 1930s and 1940s. Deco makes a reappearance now and then. It was big in the '80s, although mostly in the form of ugly pink and black ceramic statues of pumas and skinny naked women. Very intentionally kitschy. I went to an astonishing Art Deco exhibit at the MFA a few years ago (bought the book, got the CD) that included some of the originally pieces from the 1925 Paris exhibition. The "real thing" is flat-out stunning and still quite modern today. I'm putting a lot of Deco touches in my house here and there. My TV sits on my mom's hope chest from the '30s, with great Deco trim. I just ordered a couple of reproduction 1930s metal tables. Over my couch, I've got a cool book plate of a French flapper beaning her boyfriend over the head with her umbrella in a park. I will say, though, that my efforts to do a real vintage bathroom made me rethink my commitment a bit. I've got a repro vintage toilet (not one that someone would recognize as weird, t hough); old fashioned flat mini subways; that typical Art Deco double-line of contrasting-color tile; etc. But I find that going vintage can be a real uphill battle. Every single contractor, salesperson, designer, whoever you deal with, will be fighting you ever step of the way. That means, rather than helping you achieve your vision, they'll keep raising unexpected new objections and yammer in your ear until you back down. Plus, sourcing just isn't very easy. You have to have a fair amount of time, money or both to go vintage. If you're in a hurry on a budget, it's a lot harder. That is why so many renovations are so clearly time-stamped. The easiest thing to do is always what everyone else is doing, too.

The rug is OK and I am loathe to tell someone to spend extra money when they just asked about curtains, but if you have an alternate spot for the rug or don't mind donating it to charity or something, I think you could do better with a different rug. The rug you have is nice, but very geometric and a whole different color palette than the couch. They kind of fight for dominance in the room. You might be able to find a rug that plays nicer with your couch, in terms of color and design. Maybe just work on the curtains, not worry too much about the rug, but then after you get the curtains, keep your eyes out for a better rug that "ties the room together." (Esoteric movie reference from "The Big Lebowski.") Use the floral design from the couch as your color palette when making choices for the room. Don't worry about the walls, they are pale enough to fade into the background once you get the curtains and some art up on the walls.

Any of the blues are nice with the orange. Your idea for just using a window treatment with the blue is also nice. I like the window shade Paul used, and also look on Etsy; there are some sellers there with really unique items. I think a plum/eggplant color in your space could also be amazing. I think someone further up in the thread showed a room with that color combo. On an unrelated note: Is anyone else having problems with the site? I can pull up discussions but cannot access the comments, and cannot post new comments. I can apparently comment on posts I’ve previously commented on, and read comments on these posts. However, I can do all of this only if I access it through my Houzz “Activity” menu, and only if I am on Desktop mode on my iPhone. (Which all I use of late is an iPhone and I don’t use the Houzz app.) I’ve never had this issue before, so not sure if it’s site related.

Hi, I would love to see more of your space, maybe a layout? I'm guessing the sectional was put in the space the way it was because you want to separate the kitchen and the living room but it look big and takes up a lot of space maybe moving it would be better for your home. The color of it is very neutral so you won't have a hard time choosing colors, I would keep the kitchen neutral but as someone mentioned maybe some green accents throughout your home would look nice. Also will the tile stay or are you thinking of changing something? It's not a large kitchen so I would definitely stick with lighter colors.