Michelle L:

I would pull the light yellow color from the pottery in the photo above the mantle and paint the entire section/wall that the mantle is on in that color.

mickey:

i cant seem to find the fountain pic……maybe its the very small one that i cant make out clearly.
I can see by the colors and decor you have chosen, that you have a liking for rich, muted colors and an almost monochromatic palette. the pics almost remind me of the lobby of an expensive hotel. I especially like that wall hung with an assortment of iron crosses.
I think part of the feeling of darkness or heaviness comes from the choice of accent wall color combined with those dark heavy window treatments. A wall color like that needs lots of natural light to look its best, so i think id change the drapery to a lighter and simpler fabric.
I think a great accent color to lighten the space up and harmonize nicely with the dark red accent wall and dark brown furniture would be a bright and cheerful salmon;
check out these Sherwin Williams colors: “Inner Child”, “Coral Bead”, “Jovial”, “Charisma”, “Dishy Coral”, “Youthful Coral”.
you could use any of these colors for accent pieces…cushions, vases, artwork, and maybe as one of the colors in a new window treatment.
another color idea would be a light pastel peach; check these out: “Avid Apricot”, “Surprise Amber”, “Exciting Orange”, “Papaya”, “Pizzaz Peach”, “Tangerine”.
the peach and salmon used together looks fantastic, and really brightens things up.
Another idea you might consider would be to paint the trim a less jarring white. i think the white is offering too stark a contrast with the darker colors and is actually having the opposite effect that you want it to have. A softer and warmer white would blend in much nicer. try these: “Nacre”, “Restoration Ivory”, “Crisp LInen”, “Muslin”.
Another idea that might be helpful would be to downsize a bit on the black wrought iron accessories, they are very dark and heavy. The tiles on the fireplace appear to be almost the same color as the walls and carpeting; I think you could replace them with natural multicolored slate, or maybe paint a geometric motif on each tile with a bright copper paint; just an idea to lessen the sense of monochromatic palette.
Something like a large wooden armchair painted in a very light tan/cream and upholstered in a bright salmon/peach satiny fabric would really do wonders to add light and cheerfulness to the space.