I like the mock-up very much but am wondering about the ceiling....might be a little much with the planking on the ceiling...can you add the other side of the room with the planking around the gel fireplace you have planned.

I really like the planking up the stairs and behind the sofa, but think it might look too busy on the ceiling. I agree it would be nice to get rid of the swirls on the ceiling. Is their another option to do that? I like the height of the planking behind the sofa except that from the picture you took, I don't like being able to see the top of the front door. Is that just from the angle of the photo? If not, I think I'd like the wall a few inches higher so you don't see that. The shelves are a nice touch as is the new chandelier. The only other thing I might change are the curtains. The new chandelier has that pattern of circles going on and I think the squiggles in the curtains are competing with it. I'd probably try a solid orange or a dark orange plaid that pulls in the other colors from the room. Even a pattern like your orange and white pillow would work. The orange has more punch/weight than the white background in the mock up curtains.

I like the mock-up of the panelling except for that on the ceiling. Re: seeing the front door - depending on where you are standing or sitting in the LR will dictate whether or not you see the top of the door. If you raise the divider to hide it from where you are currently standing and then move a foot forward, you will see it again. You can't keep raising it so that you don;t see it.

Thanks for the replies, I agree the ceiling may be too much, but I thought it might be better than the swirl alternative or a ceiling tile alternative as far as looking more casual.

I would love to have smooth ceilings, but unfortunately it would be 4 rooms worth of ceilings because they are all open to each other, which is a lot drywall replacement (not really one of our DIY strong suits). I think paying someone to replace all of it or smooth it out wouldn't be very budget friendly, but I need to look into it. I was hoping that planking the ceiling wouldn't look too busy considering all the plain smooth walls that are visible with the four connected rooms.

Doing a mock up of the fireplace wall is probably a good idea to give me a better idea of what the space might look like.

COunt me in as liking the planking on the walls very much but not so much on the ceiling. Great job w/ everything!

I love the planked ceiling and am going to suggest something completely different. Why not plank the ceiling and do a different look for the half entry wall? There is a ton of inspiration here to pull from. You could do a simple box molding on the half wall or something like that. Here are a few examples ;)

Here is a link that might be useful: Images of Planking on Ceiling

Ellen that was SO smart. I totally agree that the planking would be great on the ceiling as long as it is not also on the walls.

I also agree with Chickadee that the proposed chandelier might be too much with the curtains.

I'd keep the wall as low as possible. You can hang something nice over the front door to draw attention away from the door. Or if it really bothers you, put something on that end of the wall to block the view (open shelves might be nice). Personally, I don't mind seeing the door, especially if it is a special door. And I'd like to see the area remain as open as possible.

But Roobear, I've seen this living room in dozens of homes and I think this is a brilliant use of space. The bookshelf is genius. You'll need a step ladder to access the cabinet closest to the door of course, but storage is storage!

From what I can see, there won't be much "boring" wall space left in these areas once you add a fireplace, the bookshelf, and crown. And if you are still bored, you can always make some of the walls look different with paint.

Thanks guys, all good thoughts and I appreciate all the feedback :).

Ellen, all good ideas and ones I have been considering for a while, the planks seemed to fit the entry area more than doing a board and batten style or picture frame type style. The planking just seemed to fit the long walls of the entry and allow a way to create a little interest without a cluttered look of trying artwork or a framed gallery design etc. for the very small/tall walls of the room. It can be a difficult space to hang pictures or paint because of it's height and narrow space.

The mock up reads gray, but I was actually thinking the planked entry walls should be white, all white with a stained wood front door, steps, and baskets in the small shelving between the cabinets. Something about a light fixture with interesting dark lines with just the white planking behind it, appealed to me as a simple, yet interesting look.

Planking the ceiling is something I'm more on the fence about than the entry walls because it may make the ceilings feel lower. In pictures of rooms with planked white ceilings, I didn't like how they looked when put with medium or dark wall paint colors, they looked great with white or very light walls but seemed to have too high a contrast (at least for me) when put with darker wall colors.I'm not sure I'd want all my walls a light or white color. Still considering all of this though...LOL.

The lighting, curtains, and other decorative items were just put in there to "fill" the room as I was putting it together. I think I went with curtains with some white in it to pull the white from the entry into the living area on the window wall because the window frame is stained wood and I thought it might be nice to keep them stained wood instead of painting the window trim white. However if I do a white planked fireplace on the opposite wall that will bring the white in to the living room anyway.

Cindyloo, thanks, I agree storage is storage, and I could really use the storage. The new front door is great, I love it and wouldn't mind if it shows, once I get it refinished.

Curious on your thoughts on making the space look different with paint, you mean like stencils/faux painting techniques or different wall colors? With such an open space, I'm not sure how I could create "breaks" for different paint colors between the living room/dining room/hallway/entryway and have it look natural.