What a beautiful space! I agree with what you want to paint. I would do only that and then see how it looks. I am sure it will be beautiful.

I agree, beautiful spaces! I have a similar problem with living room/dining room/entry woodwork. I'd like to keep some of it stained but paint some and just do not know where to start and stop. However ! With your space I would paint the family room, leave the sun room as is. Paint the side of the french doors that are in the family room, put sheers on them so light comes in but you won't notice the difference in painted vs stained as much.

I would paint it all and did exactly that in our first house. I have stained kitchen cabinets but all my trim, doors, crown, etc. are painted white.

I normally don't like stained wood but in your sun room it looks just right. In the family room I would paint everything because there just is no logical place to stop and I think you'll really like that look. Anything else would look patchy and odd. When you have windows without curtains like in your sun room, the dark wood gives it a warmer, friendlier feel.

Although it looks good for stained wood, I'd paint it. And do NOT get rid of the french doors. :)

I love the French doors.

I wouldn't paint the Sun room at all. Nor the sun room side of the French doors.

You could go either way in the familyroom, keep it wood, or paint it all - optionally keeping both sides of the French doors unpainted.

I like the idea of doing bits painted and see how it goes. We have a 100 year old house with lots of massive dark stained trim. I thought I wanted to paint all of it, but started with painting some and also painted the walls a clean white and it is enough to give the look I want, but keep the warmth of the wood at the same time.

I agree with others above to not get rid of those beautiful doors. You have a gorgeous home and all of the plans suggested above would look nice, but it sounds like you aren't quite sure yet, so I'd do small changes and see how you like it.

You know I love the look of french doors, and I will never argue that they aren't beautiful. But if you don't have the space to open and close them, they can be a pain. They make pocket doors that look like french doors which you could switch to if it was possible and within your budget. I had those in an apartment once between the foyer and the living room. Loved how I could have them open all the way, closed all the way, or half open in any number of combinations.

Very interesting question.

While normally I do not prefer stained trim, here it seems of a good quality, and mostly-well considered..I love the french doors, the window frames in the sun room, the fireplace..You could do just bits like baseboards/crown molding, and see how is it going, but as Ingrid I'd be wary not to end up with a look that's too chopped..

It also seems like a major hassle to me. Okay I'm the least handy person out there..but it is.

I'd go a different direction first. I'd look for a color for a walls that's more saturated..the wood will seem less heavy and will become even warmer. The same way older people starting to smile when seeing kids..:)

Or: brighter white, as on justerrilynn's pics..but it seems to me you're a person who prefers warmer, more muted palette..

I might think also what I can do with the backs of the bookshelves to bring some interest and make them look "fresher"-sometimes just a little bit of something different is what really needed. I heard you can take foam board, cut it to size, envelop it in fabric/wallpaper it/ grass-cloth it-you put it in the backs of the bookshelves, having a different look without going through a major work, and you can also change it as soon as you get tired of it.

And now if you're reading this and thinking "NO"-well that's a sure sign you want to paint and then that's what you should do:)

Nothing helps to get to the decision as an advice that feels wrong to you.

Just one thing: if you decide to paint this french door-do both sides..or leave it stained both sides..

Paint the trim in the family room white (baseboard, crown, chair rail and paneling). Treat the built-ins and fireplace as furniture, leaving them stained. Leave the French door and sunroom Windows stained.

Your rooms are beautiful.

Thanks to all who have commented. This is my first post and I am really impressed with the speediness and thoughtfulness of the replies.

I am inclined to do as suggested by several of you (aktillery9, justerrilynn, daisychain01, aprilneverends, tuesday_2008) and start with painting the basic components that outline the family room. If the built-ins and fireplace carry the look as individual pieces of furniture, I'll leave them stained. As Linelle noted, this is "good" stained wood which will hopefully carry the look.

If, as Ingrid suggests, that end of the room looks too patchy I'll go further with the transformation. I really like aprilneverends' idea to back the bookcase with inserts. I had wondered about painting the back or the bookcases, but your idea would give them some pop without committing to painting.

So glad to get positive feedback on the french doors. I'm inclined to agree with artemis_ma to keep both sides the same...unpainted for now. I love the idea of the french pocket doors, Ipinkmountain, but a portion of the wall they would have to recess into is an exterior wall which isn't workable. I am also limiting my budget for this project since I'm still finishing up a renovation elsewhere in the house.

I will definitely leave the windows in the sun room stained as is. I agree with comments that another wall color will freshen the look.

So grateful to have the help thinking all this through. I also found many photos on Houzz with stained/painted combinations, so I've got some good examples of where it worked. This project probably won't be started for several months. I'll try to remember to post photos of the finished project.

Any additional input is welcome!