i would paint the walls a silvery grey, try dor a medium grey sofa . i have seen grey "sandstone"wicker,and pillows that have a brown -grey-white-blk design, also you can find a rug in those colors. for secondary accent colors,throw in a littleblues... good luck...debi g,

Congrats...looks like you were celebrating. I would go for the gray. You can modern up an old Victorian but still leave the character. What were you thinking for the pipe along the ceiling?

Hey Sarah-- So beautiful! Congratulations! I'd go with gray. Gorgeous floors.

I think the grey tones( not too dark) would be gorgeous contrasting the beautiful moldings you have. Try switching out your drapes with a white sheer and to give it a bright fresh feeling.

You have such a lovely floor I think grey could work, but I feel would be nicer to go with warmer colours - such as a sand like Benjamin Moores Fennel Seed or Camel Back. These would add a warmer colour to your home but also work with grey... you can add creams, golds and then darker greys for accents

Speaking of warm floors-- I have a quick question. My floors look like this-- very warm-- and when I was picking out some fabric for a sofa a couple of years ago, the designer at the fabric place asked me about my floors. When I showed her a photo, she immediately said that I should go "cool" (as in cool gray, for instance) with all that warmth. She said to stay away from warm colors, because of the floors. I would have thought wall color should have been taken into account, too, but she sure sounded confident on that advice. Any thoughts on that? I ended up going with gray, because I liked it, and it does look good-- but just curious.

Hi Diana - in decoration there is always more than one choice. Of course you can choose greys. Grey looks very good with a warm wood floor and it is very common and on trend right now. I was trying to suggest a different direction which I believe would also work well.

I think grey would look fantastic.

And as far as the couches, I think a grey couch would be a great way add enough contemporary decor to highlight the historic features. I'm a huge fan of historic homes (I just moved out of a 1809 farmhouse that had a huge addition added in 1870), and you can still honor and feature the historic qualities while using contemporary decorating choices. A home that has that balance will have so much more character and charm then one where you feel tied down to certain colors. A rich, darker gray would look fantastic against that wood mantle and a lighter gray couch would be great on the floor.

AVS Interiors: Thanks; I was just curious about that, because it never occurred to me to move away from the warmth of the floors(?)-- so I did both in various parts of the house, and they look equally good. I like what you suggested.

You can paint the fireplace wall with dark grayish or pueter (silvery dark gray) and a lighter virgin on the other walls about the gray couches don't worry this color like beige will never be out of style

Thanks so much everyone! The comments were SO much appreciated and very helpful. I like where many of you were going with the gray - validation it'll be okay -- thus, I went with a very light, airy and somewhat gray wall color -- Benjamin Moore Sonnet. As I compared things this past weekend , I stopped in at Pottery Barn. While not exactly what I wanted, their floor model of the Hampton sofa was on crazy sale. I negotiated down the price a bit more and purchased that one. The color is a tan/camel (I think?) -- I actually wanted more of a light stone color, but I actually think it's going to work with the new wall colors, the rich fire place, and to throw some color in with rugs and pillows. I couldn't resist being a bit more budget friendly and I can splurge on some other things and it will hold up a bit more than a more discount furniture shop. Hopefully it will be balanced. I'll post pics soon. My sincere gratitude to you all!

you will be happy with the couch. a lot of stone colors go pink when they fade, and then paint gets really tricky!

In the most successful of interior designed space, you should find your inspiration point first - it could be a piece of art, a granite countertop, a fabric selection with all your favorite colours in it that goes with your current hardwood and fireplace mantle.

THEN pick your paint and new furniture fabric colours - don't start buying anything until you have your inspiration.

I've compiled some images of what I think you have purchased, along with a more traditional rug - which you need to purchase - with the traditional pattern - and modern furnishings, you will make the age of your home and the interiors come together by mixing the two.

Good luck with your new home -

Gray would work fine. What is that ductwork going around the ceiling in the room? That is what will present a bigger problem for you I think. But grays, browns, creams will all look beautiful. Congrats on your new home. Have fun with her.