Am I a lost cause? Sad.

What do you use for lighting in this room? I only see one small lamp, which doesn't really seem to match the style of the space. I'd suggest bringing in some accent colors through the use of draperies, pillows and wall art. You have a blank canvas at this point, and color would surely add warmth. Colors that I'd use would be browns, or deep reds - you also need patterns, either in the pillows or curtains, to add interest.

The room has a good base to work with. What colors do you like? Do you have any mementos packed away to feature in the space? Seashells from vacations? Mexican pottery? Quilts? Something you love? Any other rooms in the house finished?

Beautiful home! And of course you're not a lost cause! What color is your sofa? It looks greenish on my monitor. It's very pretty! I would paint a warm color on the wall and bring in any accent colors that you love in pillows and other accessories. Some tables and lamps would be great, too. You really have an clean slate to work with! Find colors that you LOVE and bring them into the room. Maybe some textures, too. It's going to be gorgeous!

Thank you for the encouragement. I think I just need to START somewhere. I have BM Cameo White on the walls and I really like the color. It feels so calming to me. Everything just seems bare to me.

The couch is a greenish khaki. It almost has a sheen to it, which the camera picks up a little more than it is IRL.

I need something larger in place of the antique sewing machine with the out-of-place lamp. You're right. It just doens't fit. I saw it though (and another) and bought them. Now I lost the receipt and the sticker fell off the bottom.

I also have a quilt that I'm going to drape somewhere to add color. and, and, and...

What a lovely room, like everyone is saying, you have a great blank canvas! It just needs some eye candy! Find an inspiration piece with colors that you love. You mentioned that you love the fresh breezy colors, which leads me to believe you lean towards the cooler side of the color palette, why not add some pretty aqua blue and chocolate brown pillows to your sofa? Or to make it easy, if you don't have an inspiration piece, pick 3 colors that you love, the first being the white tones on your walls and just keep repeating them throughout the room with accent pieces, photos, pillows and your drapes.

I think you need area rugs in both the foyer and living room. They would add colour and also ground the floating living room.

You have great bones in the room (paint, furniture, carpet are all great) you just need to add some accessories. I'd start with rugs and window coverings.

Beautiful room and furniture. Love the color of the couches. I would start by focusing on art work for the walls, and build out from there. Good Luck.

I'd start with rugs for the foyer and living area. This is a great way to introduce colors. Then look for window treatments and art. Then get a coffee table and a bigger end table (it looks under scale). You have nice things and are definately off to a great start!

The first thing I would do is rearrange the furniture (LOL, some would say that is the first thing I ALWAYS do). The huge chair and a half and the couch are creating a barricade from the front door that says 'don't come in'.

If possible, and you don't care if you can see it from the kitchen, I would move the tv and console angled in the corner where the Little Tikes bb net and small table and lamp are now.

Then put the couch on the long wall where the tv is currently. Place the chair and a half and ottoman down by the french doors, back to the doors and ottoman in front of the chair. Place the dark leather chair against the railing, to the right of the couch once you place it on the long wall.

You need tables and lamps for the space. For now, use the little table by the chair and a half, and use the larger cabinet and lamp between the couch and the leather chair. Down the line, I would like to see larger end tables of correct height. A standing floor lamp could work nicely as an alternative by the chair and a half.

For accessories, I would start with the entry hall. An oval rug with some color and design there would be nice, and would echo the shape of the glass in the door. I would think about a great upholstered bench up against the railing. Nice place for guests to toss a coat or other belongings, as I don't see a closet in the entry? Colorful upholstery would bring more color there. On the wall of the stairs, I think you could do a collage of family pix in similar frames.

In the LR, pillows and a throw will be a great color booster. Art on the wall over the couch, perhaps a pair of larger canvases, or even a grouping of metal art to bring some texture to the space.

I wouldn't do drapery panels, but rather roman shades on the windows and the french doors. Leave the demilune windows uncovered. The romans could be in an interesting fabric to bring color to the walls there.

This pillow from Pier 1 might be a good starting place. It has some color, but is not so strong that it is overwhelming, and is contemporary enough for the furniture style. Then you could add a couple of solid or stripe pillows to go with.

floral leaves pillow

This stripe pillow would work, perhaps in the brown tone pillow in the middle paper stripe pillow

Then add a colorful throw on the dark leather chair.

Maybe this rug in the caramel colorway for the entry. It picks up some of the colors in the LR and the Pier 1 pillows, and will bring some color and pattern against the dark flooring in the entry.

seasons rug

This would be a great lamp standing by the chair and a half:

linden street lamp

Go to art.com and look for some great posters and less expensive things that you can love but still afford, to bring interest to the walls. Buy it unframed, and take it to Michael's or Hobby Lobby- they have 50% off framing in their ads or weekly specials quite often.

One other thing. The light over your kitchen table seems to be hung VERY high. Is there a reason that was done?

It sounds like you don't know where to begin and are overwhelmed. Check out the photo galleries here to see what real people have done with their homes. Also go online and look at finished rooms done by professional decorators. Take note when you see a room that really speaks to you. You will find your pattern of interests. Decide on what you want before you set foot in a store. Painted wood, dark stained, light, ect.? Victorian? Country? Contemporary? Have a plan. Decide on a color. Do you have a fabric sample from the couches to take with you when you go shopping?

This will keep you from making impulse purchases - things that are cute but do not fit your home and overall plan. Don't try to do eclectic when you are just starting out. Take measurements of the space so that when you go shopping you know if the piece is the right size for the space. Things always look different in a huge store with those high ceilings.

Do you share the home with another person? They make have some ideas or suggestions on what they would like to see in the room. This can take some of the burden of making all the decisions off your shoulders. If you can't decide what color you want maybe they have a fav color and you can work with it? Or there is a list of colors they hate to narrow your choices.

Read the archived posts here. Do searches on specific topics like 'Shades or Curtains'? 'Lighting?'

Go slow. Don't let the salespersons sway you when you shop - if it really is the 'last one in stock' there will be something else just as good or better tomorrow. Save receipts. Don't be afraid to shop estate sales and resale shops. That's often where you'll find your inspiration pieces.

Here is a link that might be useful: GW Photo Galleries

Oh, wow. Thank you, everyone, for responding. let me see if I can answer some questions.

Les - I am very open to rearranging the furniture. I definitely don't want a barrier to my LR!
If possible, and you don't care if you can see it from the kitchen, I would move the tv and console angled in the corner where the Little Tikes bb net and small table and lamp are now.
*this is do-able, i'd just need my husband to drill holes for the cable :)

Then put the couch on the long wall where the tv is currently. Place the chair and a half and ottoman down by the french doors, back to the doors and ottoman in front of the chair.
*So the chair and a half would be right in front of the french doors? or angled in that corner?

Place the dark leather chair against the railing, to the right of the couch once you place it on the long wall.
*the white stair railing? It's hard to see from the pictures, but that would completely block the hallway back to our dd's room and the guest room.

You need tables and lamps for the space. For now, use the little table by the chair and a half, and use the larger cabinet and lamp between the couch and the leather chair. Down the line, I would like to see larger end tables of correct height. A standing floor lamp could work nicely as an alternative by the chair and a half.

For accessories, I would start with the entry hall. An oval rug with some color and design there would be nice, and would echo the shape of the glass in the door. I would think about a great upholstered bench up against the railing.
*i LOVE this idea. I never thought of having a bench against the railing. I love that.
Nice place for guests to toss a coat or other belongings, as I don't see a closet in the entry?
*There is a picture above that shows the coat closet. It's a little out of the way (more in the LR), but it's purpose is for guests.
On the wall of the stairs, I think you could do a collage of family pix in similar frames.
*Love this idea too!

In the LR, pillows and a throw will be a great color booster. Art on the wall over the couch, perhaps a pair of larger canvases, or even a grouping of metal art to bring some texture to the space.

I wouldn't do drapery panels, but rather roman shades on the windows and the french doors. Leave the demilune windows uncovered. The romans could be in an interesting fabric to bring color to the walls there.
*Demilune = the arched windows? I had originally thought stationary panels on either side of the french doors and in the breakfast nook. I'm a sucker for panels. Privacy isn't an issue, since we live in the middle of nowhere.

This pillow from Pier 1 might be a good starting place. It has some color, but is not so strong that it is overwhelming, and is contemporary enough for the furniture style. Then you could add a couple of solid or stripe pillows to go with.

floral leaves pillow - *LOVE IT

Then add a colorful throw on the dark leather chair. *Done

One other thing. The light over your kitchen table seems to be hung VERY high. Is there a reason that was done?
*We hung that up high during the move with every intention of moving it down. And you can see just how far we got with that :)

**I don't have internet at home, so I didn't read these responses until this morning. However, last night I had to do *SOMETHING* to get the ball rolling. I decided to use some furniture that we already have to at least get a better sense of scale in the room. And so this is what I came up with last night.

You need WT's to warm up the room, it appears stark and cold as is...
then accessories come easy.

I Love the space! simply adding some beautiful wall art, coloured pillows on your sofas and/or a throw, and definately window treatments will all add that warmth you're looking for.
Laurie

Everyone has such great ideas, I can't think of anything to add.

les, I love the Linden Street lamp - great looking and great price. (And I think they're offering free shipping on orders over $49, so that would really be a steal.)

You've gotten lots of very good, very wise suggestions so far. I especially like Dilly Dally's suggestion of doing some serious Self research before you even start buying anything more for this room.
(1) See what colors and accessories you really are attracted to in a living room.
(2)Next, think about where you can add them in your room (lamps, throws, pillows, accessories).
(3) Consider the seasons in your area of the country (I have no idea where you are). If you're attracted to beach type colors and accessories, and you live in an area with trees that change in the Fall and where it snows in the winter, you need to adapt that theme. Perhaps a darker/deeper version of the colors you like, instead of pastels. You could still use shell/beach accessories for Spring and Summer, but more Traditional accessories for the rest of the year.
I see you've brought out a Country style quilt for the room. Do you like that style enough to invest in more things to carry that look further? My point here is to think AHEAD, before you buy. If you're not sure what style you really like, buy Traditional pieces and accent with the more inexpensive accessories that are easy to replace down the line. Don't get caught up with a particular style just because you have a piece or two of it unless you can see yourselves happily living with it for many years to come.
Your room is lovely and has so much going for it already. Once you decide on accent colors, the only other suggestion I have is to buy some good reading lamps. That alone will help to warm up your room a lot. I'm anxious to see what you end up doing in there, so please keep us posted.
Lynn

The biggest thing I see missing.... nothing on the walls whatsoever. Curtains, pictures, etc. Pictures are an easy one if you're undecided. You only have to put them in the room. They don't have to actually hang on anything until you are sure that it fits and you like it. Try this one on for size after rearranging the furniture and adding a rug, pillows, quilts and other accessories.

You have gotten some wonderful advise here. This might give you some idea on how to decorate your room. Of course any color you choose. I would start with a rug. Do add some heavier wood pieces of furniture. Good luck with your project.

kbmason, I think you should use a separate Photobucket account reserved just for sharing decorating pics. You have way too much personal information available in those photos accessible to everyone on the Internet. People are going to be curious about the photos of the decorating in the rest of the home, and try to view the whole album. Not to be paranoid, but just to be on the safe side, do not mix family photos with them especially if they include first and last names, birth dates and addresses, along with architectural floor plans and photos of the surrounding area. Set up a account just for sharing room photos.

dilly dally - thank you. I just made my account private, and I'll create a separate one for decorating purposes. Thank you again.

Lynn - thank you for responding! I'm such a decorating schizophrenic. What I love is the Pottery Barn look. *gasp* Well...I do! I just like clean lines and uncluttered looks, but with homey accents.

The quilt was my great-grandmother's so it has sentimental value. The dresser in the corner was also hers, and the sewing machine (the tall, dark table) was my other great grandmothers.

I like white washed items, antiqued items, dark wood and pretty much any color except for red :) I much prefer pinks over reds, but don't really care for pink in decor.

I *know* that things will look more homey when I finally have things on the walls and curtains too.

I saw these curtains and like them. Otherwise, I found some fabrics that I also love.

I think you have found your *inspiration piece* with your grandmothers quilt. You say you love the Cameo wall color you have now, and the quilt seems to go with your furniture and the wallcolor from what I can tell on my monitor. It has sentimental value and you will get warm happy feelings looking at it rather than buying one of those factory made quilts they sell at PB. Is the quilt in good condition? You have very high ceiling and a lot of wallspace on one wall in the LR. The furniture does need to be rearranged a bit and maybe use the quilt as a wall hanging on the large wall? You want something on that wall to have big impact. Then switch out those pastel paisley and plaid pillows on your couch with some using the deeper colors from the quilt. Get pillows of different sizes and some with some texture and some that are matte to offset the shine of the couch.

I would start out using only solid color window treatments. Right now you don't know exactly which direction you want to go with things. Buying print curtains right away may limit you in what you want to do down the road as the room comes together. That is unless you just absolutely love-love-love those curtains. They are nice but right now in the room you do not have plan yet to work form.

I know I said not to try to do an eclectic look as a decorating novice but I think you will be able to work those lamps in nicely.

dilly - the quilt is in decent shape, but not wall-worthy shape. And I think I would rather use it as a throw piece to get some colro in there for now.

I am definitely going to get some throw pillows with some color in them. I love the pier one pillows les listed below.

I'm so scared of window treatments. My grandmother has always told me "curtains *make* the room." No pressure, right?! I don't love the curtains above.

I'll show you what I *do* love, but I just don't know if how it will work.

I *love* this painting. It's so nice and warm. But it's also unlike anything i normally gravitate towards.