I like the contrast of the new piece. It adds gravitas to the room.

You can mix wood finishes in this room. IMO the room requires a rug to anchor the furnishings.

I do love the idea of an area rug, we have small children however , so that might wait a few years ha! Do you feel that if we didn’t do the different wood tones, it would still look visually ok ( photo one) especially if we do add an area rug to help anchor the furniture as well as put a break between floor and table ?

I think the room looks better with the dark console. Having some contrast in the room makes it look much more interesting and sophisticated. A rug would be nice, but it could wait a few years if necessary.

I prefer the first photo with the wood pieces closer in tone to each other and the contrast provided by other things in the room, like your chairs and art.

But I'm confused. Isn't the new console going in the living room not the dining room? If so, you should post a pic where it will live so people can see if the dark works better in that room.

Here’s a few photos of the living room with the console... the living room is a bit of a mess (sorry) and the lighting is a bit dull at night since the Christmas tree replaced a floor lamp and we have yet to put in a chandelier ... so at night the console looks very dark which of course, I’m not a fan of

I should also note , right now we don’t have a wood side table however , my husband plans on building both the coffee table and side table out of all wood, similar to the tone of the current coffee table he built which is also similar color to the floors .

Here’s photos of the original console that matches the floors for comparison

I prefer the lighter one in the dining room but like the darker one in the living room. With so much white everywhere, walls, ceiling, rug and the dark furniture, I think the darker piece transitions between the light and dark elements really nicely. Either of them look nice with your coffee table, if the new one will be similar in tone. The floors are really a background element and with the large rug, not much of them are seen in this room.

IMO too matchy makes for a really boring space but I also think yu need a lot more furniture or what you have moved in a bit. The TV is too high and too small for this distance for viewing. The cabinet is too tall should be a lot wiader , bigger TV and the cabinet low enough to allow the TV to be hung at proper viewing height which is the center of the screen at eye level when you are seated. BTW your DR and LR need color and the drapes need to not be puddled and much fuller and IMO a color not white. Skimpy white drapes always look like sheets unless really full like 3x the width of the rod or more.I agree a rug in the DR could be a great way to add some color and also break up the woods so the matching will not be so much.

We typically have a corner chair with a lamp where the tree is , if we go wider with the console , it would be a tight fit unfortunately . The dresser that’s in the photo is actually the buffet in the dining room whereas the darker console is what we want to use for under the tv. I would agree we could move the tv down a bit. I’m always keen on keeping a space neutral in pallet because I change the decor / accent pieces based on season. I would like to buy some velvet emerald green throw pillows for the couch to add some more color for winter , possibly another area rug that has more grey tones in it versus predominately white . What color curtains would you suggest, would a light grey work? Once we have cellular shades installed to help with insulating the window area, the curtains will remain open as just to frame the window. Thanks so much for your critique and advice , as always ... I much appreciate it !

While the kids are little you can certainly consider using an indoor-outdoor rug in the dining room. There are so many attractive ones to select from these days.

Also I have turned your mirror vertical to give some lift to the room and added candle sconces to either side. Framed prints would be nice on either side of the fireplace.