I would go with the darker one so that it stands out a bit against the color of the wall. The tone of that one also seems to coordinate better overall.

I think you should look for a rug first if you are planning on one with a pattern. It will have the browns and beiges and then you can see what will go with the walls and the rug.

Another vote for the darker one.
I do not like the lighter one with that wall color.

Actually both work very well, it's a matter of preference. The light on light walls give a serene relaxed feeling and the dark gives a more moody feel. Each can use pillows for contrast. If it were me, I'd go dark as it's more practical even though I'm sitting on a light camel color sofa lol. I now know how hard it can be to maintain the light one. You're home is beautiful and you've made wonderful choices.

Thanks so much everyone! I really like the lighter one better, but everyone else seems to think we should get the darker one. It's definitely the more practical choice since we have young children: 4yo, 2yo, and 9month. The sectional will be floating in the center of the room- not against the painted walls. The rug I'm considering is the Gabrielle rug from Pottery Barn. It's an oriental style rug that is primarily light blue with a beige, tan, and brown floral pattern. Both colors match really well with the rug.

Thanks again for the opinions. :)

Personally I would never do a light or mid colored fabric with children unless I had the money to change the sofa often. Leather can be wiped down easily. Heck, I cleaned mine with windex and followed with a conditioner. It smelled good and looked good for years.

Good point jterrilyn. I personally don't like leather but maybe Mom23 needs to be sure that the fabric is highly stain protected.

The darker one gets my vote.

I prefer the darker one, but since you like the lighter one better, why not go with what you really want? It doesn't matter what anyone else thinks ... Buy what makes you happy! :-)

I think they both match. Is it microfiber? If so, you are probably fine with the lighter fabric. If it isn't, you should get the darker.

If you're not in a huge hurry you might want to check with your PB sales associate about whether there's a friends-and-family event coming up. A recent one had 20% off across the board (at least I think everything was included). A friend who works at our local store thought there'd be an evening event in November. She also told me that shoppers can save a lot by purchasing in-store as opposed to on-line due to extra fees PB imposes but I didn't ask for details or investigate. (She wasn't trying to get my business :)

The F&F coupon I receive is for in-store only. So, a sofa wouldn't be an option unless there happened to be a floor model. I'm not sure if the F&F sales mentioned above are any different?

Thanks for all the great advice. :-)

Lolauren- I think you're right about the F&F sale. Pottery Barn Kids just had that in their stores about a week ago. The salesperson told me that I could only get the discount on in store items, even the items that were on display but not in the back.

Lazydaisynot- the sectional is on sale right now. It's about 20% off so that's why I'm trying to decide now. Well, that and the fact that the sales lady at the store told me yesterday that these two colors wouldn't be ready until the week of Christmas!!!

Jterrilyn- I would love a chair or two in leather, but I don't think a leather sectional is quite what I want to snuggle up on. I need a soft fabric. The fabric we're going to use is micro suede. Our current family room furniture has that fabric and has held up amazingly well. Well, up until the face/hand wiping on the armchair on pasta night that is. Still need to take deep breaths over that one.

We ran over this evening to see the fabric in different light. DH now says he likes the darker fabric.

Ahhh! I just made a million decisions building this house, and now there are more. I just need to get a few big items then I'm done. I think our walls can go bare for a bit. Lol. I want decorating to be more fun and less stressful!

Ah, you guys are way ahead of me and way more knowledgeable about the sale details. Sorry about that. Looks like a really pretty house!

I much prefer the lighter one- it is more in line with the popular, ivory sofa look and to me, more current.

I think they both work, I would probably choose the lighter one myself, but the kid factor must come into play.. and having young children, I'd have to pick the darker one. If it was leather however - I'd probably go with the lighter, since you can clean it easier than microfiber.

I know how you feel Mom23Es! We are also finishing up on building our new house (hoping to be in by Christmas) and and I am just so ready to be DONE with making all the decisions!! I think I'm pretty much all done with them now....just a half bath vanity and sink top to pick out yet...and I can't find one I like ANYWHERE! LOL.

Your house is beautiful and I like the choices you've made so far. I don't think you can go wrong with either color for the sectional, especially paired with the rug.

Thanks so much everyone! The decision has been made. We're going with the darker one. I think both would look great but the kid factor won out. Plus, DH is convinced we're getting a dog next summer. Yikes.

Get a dog the color of the sofa...heh heh!! We have a light colored rag doll cat & had a teal rug in fam. room...disaster. I just ordered a light colored area rug from Overstock, which I hope will match Ms. Mazie, our kitty.

Forgot to add...I envy your sectional choice. That's exactly what I want in our fam. rm., but that would mean selling our caramel colored really cute leather loveseat, AND my DH's navy Lane recliner with mission style arms & he loves that chair. It's a hard room (small tv rm adjoining our kitchen), and I should have fought for the sectional when we bought the house 6 years ago!!! Oh, well, maybe the new round rug will make me smile with that room.

Will you post photos when you get your new furniture & rug, which I also love, btw, as well as your dark floors.

I hope this question makes it to you Mom23Es, how has your sectional worked out? We are thinking of purchasing the Pearce sectional and I am curious about wear and tear. Any regrets?