I like the white walls with all the dark brown and the beams. I'd change the dark brown drapes.

The Honeydew in the kitchen is really beautiful. Since you like color, though, how about Behr Exotic Honey?

I agree about changing the drapery panels. Have you considered painting your kitchen cabinets white? I think that would look fabulous and end up brightening your entite space!

I think the Honeydew and the Gem Turquoise go well together. Very cheerful. And I think the turquoise would also look great with the brown.

My kitchen is Behr Pear, which is very close to Honeydew, but a bit more yellow (runs more toward neon). So I am totally with you on the bright color thing.

Before you paint the living room get new curtains. Maybe that will be enough for you. I like the Bicycle Yellow but painting a room a darker color than the white you already have seems to conflict with your goal of getting more light.

Have you seen Susan Sargent's books? She uses bright, happy colors in many of her spaces. You might like to sign some of her books out of the library and spend some delightful time looking at what she's done. Her spaces are cheery and fun. Here are her books on Amazon.

I understand that you want color, but I actually love your light walls, especially with the beams. I'd get drapes that extend beyond the windows, an area rug, cushions, art work, plants.

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Check Benjamin Moore 'Fresno' - It's my kitchen color, and, while not shy and retiring, is the most cheerful color I've ever had. (Kind of a coral orange - I love it.) My living room is very close to Honeydew, and I like the way they look together, at least in the light that our house gets.

I have to paint the walls and ceiling even if I go with the same color. The roof leaked a few weeks ago and now we have a big water stain (can't get it fixed until spring so I can't paint until then), and my 2 year old is an artist who keeps finding pens and drawing all over the wall by the windows. Yeah, every picture I've seen with dark wood beams has nice bright white walls. I think the winter is just getting to me. Theres no light in the living room and I can't get outside because temps have been in the negatives with and without the wind chill.

What color curtains would you go with if I got rid of the brown? I was just trying to find something to match the couch. And, can you use an area rug on carpet or does that look weird? I would love to get rid of the carpet, but thats going to have to wait a bit. We just put new carpet in two of the bedrooms upstairs, and now my van needs probably $1000 to fix it so money is tight.

I have thought about painting the kitchen cabinets white and getting new doors for them. I was worried about it being too much though. The counters are beige (eventually want to replace), and the floor is beige. And the floor is new. I hate it, but my husband really wanted tile and I just couldn't talk him out of it. The kitchen still isn't finished. Lights over the island need to be put in, the wall by the washer and dryer still needs to be finished and we need doors to hide the washer/dryer. And the island needs a new top.

My husband is driving me nuts. He's wanting either grey or a slightly darker blue. I don't want dark, I want light!

I also have no idea how to decorate that fireplace!

Plenty of colors that go with brown. I personally really like blues and turquoise, but you can also go with yellow, coral, patterns, etc. And, yes, you can put an area rug over carpet.

I'd look for curtains at IKEA, West Elm, Urban Outfitters.

You will get there! I know how frustrating it is when you have so many ideas and so little budget! Most of us have been there. The cabinets do not have to be "white" but something much lighter. I would try painting first before going to the expense of replacing doors. Also, if you do paint them you should paint that dark door beside them. To my eye those areas suck the light from your home.

Lighter color curtains will make a world of difference!

I love those curtains that laughable posted.
With a 2-year old around, I can't fathom having time to paint kitchen cabinets.

Paint the kitchen door and the stools, or better yet, just change the seat covers on your stools and dining chairs.

Maybe a fun light fixture over the dining table. IKEA's are neat and not expensive -- and depending on your kids, not so easy to destroy. (My kid broke a lamp with a spoon....)

Love the "exploding" lamp by David Wahl for IKEA

I think simple white panel drapes are elegant.

How about Benjamin Moore Lemon Sorbet for the walls.

or Lemon Sorbet (BM)

Oh, my, I love those birdie curtains :-) I kind of have a slight bird theme going upstairs in my room and my daughters room. Love the soft yellows too. What if the beams were painted white or another color? My husband would probably freak and so would my mom, but is that a bad idea or a good idea?

Honestly, I think you have a very nice room going there. I'd start with a rug, curtains, some throw pillows, bigger art work, maybe new seat covers in the eating area.
I have a living room in BM Windham Cream, but I like your off white. I really think new curtains would make a huge difference, especially if hey extend past the window.

I think you should:

1. Leave the wall color as is
2. Get rid of those curtains, they are a dark, drab color and insubstantial looking as well,

1. Get curtains with a white background with an interesting pattern of turquoise, brown and oranges, then coordinate pillows to those colors for the sofa.
2. Hang the new (heavier fabric) curtains from rings clipped to the curtains or inserted into pleats. They will hang better and look more substantial.

While I love color in general and greens in particular, that color green doesn't do many favors for the other elements in the kitchen (wood tones and floor) and would fight violently with the stone fireplace in the living room. Also, you might want to think about where you are going with your redecoration in terms of a plan you can implement over time. That will save both time and money.

As far as painting the beams, you have to ask yourself how you want that room/your house to FEEL. If you want it warm and cozy with a heavier feel, leave the beams as they are. If you want a more airy, contemporary, beachy feel and look, then yes, paint them.

However, it's a major commitment since once done, it is very difficult to undo, of course. Also, I think if you paint the beams white, you should paint all of the woodwork white, stairs, trim, etc. It will completely change the look and feel of the house, IMO for the better.

I also think white trim would be much nicer with your Honeydew paint in the kitchen and another fruity color in the living room (hence the Lemon Sorbet and Lemon Ice suggestions above! Lol (just noticed I repeated lemon sorbet on both colors. The top is BM Lemon Ice and the bottom is the BM Lemon Sorbet.

Pic of Lemon Ice with White trim. Lovely, no? I really like the Lemon Ice. Windham Cream (BM) is also a really nice creamy yellow color.

I'd start by taking down the curtains and leaving the windows bare for a few days. This is an easy, no cost way to see how much light the room gets. If there's plenty of light, then I'd leave the ceiling alone. If not, then I'd shoot for the best possible timing and wording for deliberations with DH, probably with pictures of rooms with painted beams to show him what it could look like. It would be tough to go back to wood once you paint, so really think this one through.

We've been living with an exposed ceiling in our living/dining room for the last 6 months since the plaster was ripped down from it. So above our heads are the wood floor joists and the underside of the pine planked second floor. This is in a beautiful room with a nice bay window facing the south (so technically it has lots of light.) Yet it's dark in here almost all the time. The dark wood "ceiling" is absorbing much of the light that the old plaster ceiling reflected around the space. We are majorly looking forward to getting the ceiling done and getting our light back. We know what we're missing out on because it used to be a lot brighter in here. So I think I understand how you are feeling about the ceiling being dark in the room.

But, changing the curtains is where I'd start to see if it's "enough" before broaching a project like painting the beams. They do look nice with your stone fireplace, and they work well with the dark moldings throughout the house. Your couches play well with both the stone and the wood.

If you need privacy for your windows during the testing period, Home Depot and other stores sell those cheap temporary paper shades that you can stick in the window frames and clip up during the day. I reversed them and made them bottom up shades by putting some stickers of velcro on them and on my window frames at the height I wanted to block out views and just folded them, clipped them together, and laid them in the windowsills during the day. They worked well. Redi Shades at Home Depot

If changing the curtains doesn't do it for you (and I agree with everyone saying to hang them farther to the sides of the windows so you can open them all the way), then I'd start looking for inspiration pictures to see if you'd want to do the beams a color or white.

I like that picture, Tibbrix. I was thinking colors along the path of a fruit salad: the honeydew in the kitchen, a cantaloupe color in one room, and maybe a watermelonny color in another, LOL.

Yep, laughable. The Fruit Salad house.

I'm not usually a fan of yellow walls, but I really like that Lemon Ice. Very soft and cool and creamy.

I like you idea of leaving the windows blank for a while. I have no curtains on any windows and I love it. The only time I've ever seen curtains look good is when they are custom made, and they are soooooooooo expensive. Personally I think no drapes is better looking than store-bought drapes. I know that sounds snobby. I don't mean it to at all. But I much prefer inside mount window treatments, blinds, shutters, shades, even lace curtains…

and yes, the Redi Shades are great. The "cloth" ones are even better than the paper ones, but also more expensive. Worth it, though, as they keep their shape much better and are better looking.