I like the way open-concept homes look but I prefer to live in a house with separate rooms, and Victorians are certainly known for having lots of rooms. Ours has the entryway, double parlor, and dining room all open to each other with wide doorways (the pocket doors of which are nearly always open). If you sit in the center of our teal sofa, you could see all four rooms, and into the kitchen too.
I like thinking about the design for the first floor as a whole, since you do see multiple rooms at once. The dining room will likely get Fornasetti’s Chiavi Segrete wallpaper once we can afford to do it. (The nursery and second floor renovation is getting top priority right now.) It would look a little something like this.
Now that both parlors have been painted and I know what’s likely going in the dining room, I’ve been trying to decide on a color for the entryway. The window and door face East, but the porch and large tree out front block a lot of the light for much of the day. And there’s a whole lot of oak paneling and trim. I’ve had it in my head all along that I want to bring in more teal to that side of the house to reference the sofa, but I was going to do it through accessories and keep the walls neutral. Maybe teal on the walls is the way to go though?
Another option is Sandberg’s Raphael wallpaper in dark blue.
I have a sample and it looks perfect, but it doesn’t work with the other wallpaper. I think that between the two, I’d rather go with papering the dining room — which brings me back to teal for the entry. I’ve been playing around with my design boards in Photoshop (you’ve seen them in various stages on the blog before), virtually rearranging things and trying out different combinations. I shared this screenshot on Instagram the other day.
I would probably go a little deeper and darker than the paint colors in that BHG palette above, but not so dark that it competes with the black in the back parlor. What do you think?
Mara
July 23, 2014 at 11:42 amWhy not use the Sandberg Raphael paper in the dining room and paint the entry?
Making it Lovely
July 23, 2014 at 11:44 amI prefer the other wallpaper for the dining room. The Raphael paper gets a little dizzying on large expanses, but it would work in the hall because the walls are broken up by trim and paneling.
Laura @ Rather Square
July 23, 2014 at 12:09 pmI’d probably paint the entry. And go with teal! That way you can jazz it up with patterns in the accessories and decor, with less chance of clashing with the dining room wallpaper. But then again, I’m terrified of wallpaper – we’ve still got some ugly stuff in a few rooms that needs to be torn down, and I’m not looking forward to it. Paint seems a safer thing to change up down the road, should you want to.
Making it Lovely
July 23, 2014 at 2:00 pmPaint is always the less scary choice. I do love wallpaper though!
Kim
July 23, 2014 at 12:10 pmI say embrace the dark entry and make it teal! I think it will mesh so well with the rest of your house – plus your library is such a bright, airy pink that I think any other light color (white/cream) in the entry could make it look a bit fleshy.
Making it Lovely
July 23, 2014 at 2:02 pmAnything too light in a room that doesn’t get a lot of natural light tends to not work well. If I went with a neutral, it would be in a mid/dark tone, but none of those were feeling right. I think teal could be it.
Sarah
July 23, 2014 at 12:13 pmI adore the teal! I love a rich, saturated jewel tone, and I’m excited that you said you would go a little deeper and darker. Gorgeous.
geo
July 23, 2014 at 12:21 pmChoose a wallpaper that has some teal in it so the colour on the main floor flows. The green is a bit much.
Making it Lovely
July 23, 2014 at 2:04 pmAw, I love that green wallpaper! I’d like to bring more green into the library, so it’s not like it would be a complete outlier.
Erin
July 23, 2014 at 12:29 pmThe teal would be beautiful! ON my screen, your samples are showing up on the blue-side of teal. I think a green-sided teal would be prettier, personally. And if you decided not to do teal or wallpaper, a cool grey would be a great palette to unite wallpaper, light pink, etc.
Making it Lovely
July 23, 2014 at 2:05 pmI’m aiming for something right in between blue and green. A cool grey sounds pretty too, though!
Kristen
July 23, 2014 at 12:30 pmGo for the teal! My dining room is teal (Galapagos Turquoise), and I love it with our woodwork. Love the paper you’ve picked out for the dining room too!
v.j. kohout
July 23, 2014 at 12:58 pmHate the paper, love the teal. I am not a designer.
Making it Lovely
July 23, 2014 at 2:32 pmHa! Which paper? Both of them?
Kara
July 23, 2014 at 12:59 pmI don’t keep up very well. I miss the greyscale wallpaper from awhile back. Can I vote on that. lol I love every thing you do, but I am not feeling the green.
Making it Lovely
July 23, 2014 at 2:33 pmI would do the clouds if we could, but it’s far too expensive. I do love the green wallpaper nearly as much though.
Sarah
July 23, 2014 at 1:04 pmWhat about doing the teal paint with some sort of stencil pattern that would play better with the dining room wallpaper?
Making it Lovely
July 23, 2014 at 2:34 pmI don’t think I want pattern in both rooms — just one or the other, and the dining room would benefit from the added interest more than the entry.
Rebecca | Seven2Seven8
July 23, 2014 at 1:04 pmI’d do the teal paint, but darker – almost (if not *as dark*) as the darkest shade in your lovely DR wallpaper. If you want a bluer or lighter teal instead, I’d likely go pretty far in the other direction and/or add a lot more gray than in your samples, but I also freaking love gray-based paints (hello Ben Moore, and thanks). Dusty green-blues wouldn’t be too dark, would call to your sofa and paper, and would be GORGEOUS with all of that oak. What about?
Mediterranean Teal or Aegean Teal
Appalachian Green or Covington Blue
(all Benjamin Moore)
I know whatever you pick will be just lovely. Cheers!
Amelia @ House Pretty Blog
July 23, 2014 at 1:06 pmI love the wallpaper you’ve chosen for the dining room and I think teal could look great in the entry. At least the teal would only be paint, so it’s not a huge deal if you decide repaint it later, though I realize I’m saying this to a pregnant woman…maybe it’s a slightly bigger deal with a newborn around :)
Jo
July 23, 2014 at 1:14 pmI really like the idea of teal mixed in with everything you’ve shown.
Laura
July 23, 2014 at 1:20 pmI like the teal – if I were you, I’d go with a medium-dark teal to bring out the natural wood tones. If you’re set on doing a pattern, maybe you can do a stencil or something.
Gretchen@BoxyColonial
July 23, 2014 at 1:32 pmWe have BM’s Newburg Green in our master bedroom and nursery….it’s my favorite paint color in the whole world. It’s a very dark teal…almost navy in some lights, but you can definitely see the teal….especially when you spend as much time staring dreamily at it as I do ;)
Rachel
July 23, 2014 at 1:55 pmGah! You are a photoshop wizard! I think a deep teal will look great “with” the forest green wallpaper. :)
E E Faris
July 23, 2014 at 2:28 pmI think the teal, esepecially a very dark teal, would make the woodwork sing. Good idea.
Cheryl @ The Creative Me and My McG
July 23, 2014 at 3:05 pmWe have teal in our kitchen and hallway – smoked turquoise by CIL paints – it’s lovely and dark – I say GO FOR IT!! We love it!
Jamie G
July 23, 2014 at 3:13 pmNicole- this is a brilliant use of Photoshop– I will be stealing this idea from you for future home projects :) Teal would def work, but I love that wallpaper!!
Nicole M.
July 23, 2014 at 3:45 pmI have always LOVED the Raphael wall covering and truly believe it would make for an amazing entry and first impression when walking into your house. I vote using a wall covering in the entry! But, not sure what you would then do for your dining room to make it more “interesting”…
kara
July 23, 2014 at 3:57 pmthis is TOTALLY UNRELATED! (love the deep teal idea, btw, as well as the idea to let the grandeur of the house speak for itself in the entryway, and let people ease into the depth of the awesomeness of your house by introducing wallpaper further in :) (although i have not followed that advice in my own entryway, thank you chenonceau by schumacher for stealing my heart), but did you see the CB2 “victorian modern” collection emailed out today? thought of your blog! nice being ahead of the trend! (or maybe helping to create it?)
Suzanne Fortescue
July 23, 2014 at 3:59 pmI am loving the teal idea and I agree darker would be better. I am also hunting for a teal for my bedroom. If I find the perfect one I’ll let you know.
The leaf wallpaper is very original and I can’t wait to see that happen for you.
Would you share with me how you do you floor plan? – what program? – looks so nice!
Suzanne
Sarah
July 23, 2014 at 4:21 pmI love the idea of teal! You are brilliant! I can’t wait to see pictures of the library and the parlor together! :)
Dajana
July 23, 2014 at 4:35 pmI love the Fornasetti wallpaper. LOVE, dude!
We live in a 1950s semi-bungalow which also has a lot of rooms. It does present some decorating challenges, but I wouldn’t trade it for an open concept home for even a gazillion clams. I like cocooning in our intimate rooms.
P.S. The teal’s good, too.
Tina Slocum
July 23, 2014 at 5:06 pmDoesn’t the Fornasetti come in gray? I think the green is going to be the bane of your existence in a year or two. The dining room would be a lovely spot for a more neutral palette and then bring in the colors of the other rooms with accents.
Virginia (The Heartographer)
July 23, 2014 at 5:35 pmI painted my office a teal-y turquoise when we first bought our house, and I have no regrets! I think it’s brighter and a bit lighter than what you’d go for, but you can get a sense of that for yourself if you peek at pics. The best shot is the one on my About Me page. I’ve never regretted that bold move, personally!
Ashly
July 23, 2014 at 6:10 pmI’m crazy over the moon for the Milo Baughman 1188 chair. Whatever room you put it in will be glamorous.
kim
July 23, 2014 at 6:20 pmLOVE the Raphael wallpaper for your entryway. High-impact, cool, and so much more sophisticated than the leafy key pattern, IMO. I like that the way the pattern itself feels modern but the repeat gestures to the past. The leaves, on the other hand, just feel plain modern to me.
I’m sure whatever you choose will look great!
Lianne Raymond
July 23, 2014 at 6:25 pmYour combos remind me of this picture – the darker teal wall, the green cushion, the dark wood and the hits of pink and other colours:
http://www.styleathome.com/decorating-and-design/flower-arranging/bold-and-beautiful-spring-blossoms/a/34648
I like it.
Justine Lemmon
July 23, 2014 at 6:29 pmCaught you, that is not photoshopped! You already did the Fornasetti.
Cassie Moore
July 23, 2014 at 7:28 pmI had a home with dark wood work. I painted a dark teal and it looked amazing with the wood! Made it really pop. It would tie in with your sofa and if the dining room wallpaper is green it won’t be crazy looking. My dining room was dark teal but my living room was green and the one was open to the other. I got so many compliments! I say go for it.
Lizzy
July 23, 2014 at 7:39 pmFor the foyer, what about teal stripes – wallpaper or painted?
drey@bijoukaleidoscope
July 23, 2014 at 8:20 pmnic! your rich green and rich blue is the same exact scheme i’ve chosen for my living room and master bedroom!!!! furthermore, both those wallpapers are in my top 5 for each room! :) great minds, huh? xx
Amy
July 23, 2014 at 8:25 pmLOVE the teal paint for the hallway…
But not feeling the green wallpaper at all… I think bold wallpaper like that is usually best in a smaller room like a bathroom. It’s “a lot of look” for that huge dining room wall and the kind of thing I personally would be squinting at to make “work”…
Kerry
July 23, 2014 at 8:58 pmHa, when I first looked at your drawing, I thought, “is this my house?!” Our room layout is so similar. We’re having almost the exact same dilemma with our entry and have been debating going teal or maybe a bright blue. I’m anxious to see what you decide. I know whatever you do will look fabulous!
Katrin
July 24, 2014 at 8:02 amI LOVE the green paper for the dining room. Please please don´t let the naysayers get to you, it´s perfect for that space. And teal for the entryway would be a good choice I think! Your house is so unique, and I love what you´re doing with it.
deb
July 24, 2014 at 10:15 amJust painted our dining room teal/navy. We have original wood trim but i am painting it white because it looks like its 80 years old (because it is)…. We painted it Dark Harbor (BM). I tried a couple other colors like Cascades (SW)… too green… and a few others that after a couple swipes of the sample i was more “meh” then YAY! But Dark Harbour is dope. i found it via design-crisis.com.
Ellen
July 24, 2014 at 1:52 pmI love the Chiavi Segrete paper! The green is stunning, but would it pair well with teal in the adjacent space? If it’s not up yet, maybe one of the neutral colors of that pattern (or the teal?) might be more harmonious with teal paint in the entry? Also, are you going to keep the kitchen wallpaper? If so, do you think the kitchen paper plus the green leaves paper plus the teal, pink, and black paints might look a little crazy town?
I notice you say entryway and not foyer. I can’t bear to say “foyer”, especially when pronounced “foy-yay”!
sandi m
July 24, 2014 at 2:16 pmI vote for the teal paint. As you know, if you don’t like it it can be easily be repainted vs hanging expensive wallpaper that may end up not looking right. I like the wallpaper for the DR, but wondering if you would get tired of it too quickly – I think I would with all that greenness. But maybe not if it’s just on one or two walls.
Are you planning on getting those chairs for the DR? Love, love, love them. My sister just bought them over the weekend at a shop not all that far from you (and me). I want them and still trying to decide where I could put them in my GW Georgian. Decisions, decisions!!
shavonda@ahomefullofcolor
July 24, 2014 at 11:42 pmI love homes with separate living spaces too. We are moving from a new home with the open floorplan to an older bungalow with smaller separate spaces. I love the teal wall idea. It will look great:)
Kim // Yellow Brick Home
July 25, 2014 at 9:49 amTeal, teal, teal!
I’ve been finding myself drawn to darker entryways lately – so dramatic and unexpected. And what better space to do that in than a space you don’t hang in 24/7?
Kate
July 25, 2014 at 1:01 pmMy living room is Hosta by Martha Stewart (her Home Depot paint) and is pretty close to a few of the darker teals you posted–three years later, I still love it! It somehow looks perfect in every season: pool-like and cool in summer, cozy in the winter. It even looks great with red Christmas decorations. Everyone thought I was crazy when I chose the color but it worked out great, highly recommend it!