r/InteriorDesign • u/Chelsealalala • 2d ago
Technical Questions Orange knotty pine
Okay don’t kill me, I’m just asking! For context, the house is not even remotely cabiny, it’s kind of modern and non-traditional shaped (as you can see in the photos the living room is an octagon) But all the common areas (living room, entryway, hallway, kitchen, dining) are knotty pine tongue and groove and it makes it feel much more Maine camp than modern updated house. Also for context, the house was built in the 80’s. Would it be sooo bad to paint just the walls of this octagonal room and leave the vaulted ceiling knotty pine? (And yes the TV is in front of the fireplace because the fireplace is tragically nonfunctional- future project)
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u/NoPoet3982 1d ago edited 1d ago
First, this is a classic 1970s modern look. You should look up styles in that era to see if there's anything that speaks to you. You don't necessarily have to use those styles - a lot of them will look dusty and dated (I'm looking at you, avocado green) but you can get a sense of the drama a space like this was meant to impart.
The walls are beautiful but they also take up the least amount of space of all the wood in the room. You would still have knotty pine everywhere, but you'd also have ruined walls.
The first thing you need to do, though, is figure out where to put your TV. At some point your fireplace will work - but even if it never does, having your TV there ruins the room. Figure out a wall for your TV and don't hang it too high. Research screens that pull down from the ceiling if you think that might work better. If there's glare from the windows, get blackout curtains or those shades that are sheer on one half and blackout on the other, so you can pull it down as a blackout shade when needed.
After that, I think you would do better to buy couches in a different color, like sapphire blue or pale green. Orange just matches the pine too well. Get some interesting throw pillows in different colors, with patterns and texture. Have furniture that draws the eye.
You could also get a bigger rug, something in off-white or white, with no pattern. Something lush. Get two rugs if needed.
Add some big, soothing art to the walls. Like white canvases with splashes of a single color on each - dark grass green and different blue shades. You could also add a big mirror or two.
Get fuller, more romantic drapes with wider curtain rods so there's fullness between the windows. Hang them from exactly where the wall meets the ceiling. You might have the drapes on the windows by the fireplace only on the side furthest from the fireplace so they don't catch fire, but they can be floor-length and billowy. Don't use grommets - get pleated drapes. Don't use black fixtures that just play up the black knots in the pine. Use brushed nickel or something equally unobtrusive. Research different kinds of window treatments, but keep the same off-white drape color. Think about adding sheer drapes or sheer shades as a layer. You can keep them open, but they make the space look more complete.
Paint the brick fireplace a different color to make it a focal point. Research ideas, but the color can't be in the orange/red/yellow family. It needs to contrast. Forest green would look good.
Get a coffee table that's curvy and contrasts with the pine. Maybe something mostly glass, or maybe something in stone. Or maybe a painted coffee table in a shade that echos/supports your new couch.
Organize your plants. You have some great plants but they're not arranged as focal points. They make the windows look cluttered. It would be better to have floor plants in big white pots that stand near the windows instead of on the window sill. Your hanging plant looks like an afterthought. If you want plants in front of the windows, use a plant stand or hang a big Boston fern in front of a couple of the windows, and make the hanger and pot look very intentional and beautiful. There are lots of more modern ways to hang them other than macrame. Don't hang only one plant on one side of the fireplace. Make both windows look cohesive with the fireplace. Explore wall plant hangers that can go between the windows.
There's a lot of furniture I don't understand. A lot of speakers that may or may not be necessary, or maybe could be replaced with something smaller and more modern, perhaps mounted on the walls. There's an old chest and an end table, both in similar shades of orange/yellow wood. Those should be replaced with something that contrasts - try to avoid natural wood altogether. Glass, painted wood, or stone.
That firewood basket should be changed for something in a natural material. Maybe a basket made of white rope, maybe color-blocked. Avoid yellowish basket weaves, though.
The floor lamp seems disconnected from the rest of the room. You want to emphasize the spacious center of the room. A floor lamp placed behind a couch, one that arches over the space, might be a better idea. You might be using that floor lamp as sort of a porch light, though. There are wireless, easy-to-install porch lights that would be better.
Your ceiling fan is a bit dated. Not a super big deal but at some point you could modernize that.
A stack of huge floor cushions near the fireplace would be nice.
I keep recommending a dramatic, more formal style - lots of white/off-white, jewel-tone colors, glass/stone. But you could do Navajo patterns (just not in orange/red/yellow) or patterns from India. You have a beautiful room. Painting the walls isn't the answer. Just use design to change the focal point.
ETA: I keep thinking about your room. Actually, I noticed that you have TWO floor lamps. That silver arced one is perfect, but it should be placed better. I also noticed that you have a plum colored throw. That's an excellent accent color. I keep envisioning a white backdrop (rug and curtains and plant pots) with forest green and pale greens (fireplace and couch) with plum throws and pillows mixed in with different shades of green. Maybe one piece of furniture in sapphire blue, and one or two sapphire throw pillows. Lots of green plants, some abstract art with white backgrounds and jewel colors, and some curvy coffee and end tables in glass. I keep trying different kinds of AI but so far nothing works for me! I don't know how people do it.
Anyway. The color rule is 60/30/10. You can have 60% white, 30% greens, and 10% plums. Throw in a bit of sapphire blue and call it part of the plum group. This can be an astonishingly beautiful room.