Thanks Carole, yes we are very keen to knock out that wall - I have to be restrained from bringing the sledgehammer inside until we get a proper load-bearing beam organised! Once thats done and the books are off the floor and on the wall opposite we will have to think of rearranging this space - I still like it split up by a couch, but perhaps we could put a larger dining table in the new space.

Hi everyone, we have moved in! We didn't manage to paint before we moved and think we will go for a staged approach - above the wood panels first in a warm white then decide on the panels. I'm having a bit of trouble working out what kind of sofa to buy and how at arrange the lounge. All furniture except coffee table temporary in photos and would love some ideas!

squeakerd - it is really hard to get a perspective on the whole area but if this is part of a much larger area then I feel you need to first decide just what you want as the end result. Do you just want your entire area to be one open plan or do you want to break it down into visually defined areas within the open plan. As you have the area now, I don't feel any cohesiveness between your table and the sideboard, I think I would move the sideboard to the end wall, it looks more like it would belong there, even just by the shape of the room. Definitely a larger rug will define the space better - just be careful of any trip hazard with the door nearby - but before you decide on the rug, consider window dressings and whether you want things plain or introduce some bold patterns and what colours look best in the area. Artwork can go where your sideboard is now, but again think colours and impact of design on the whole area. It is all very well to build a room around one piece, but you need to look at the impact that piece will have on other items and what limitations it could cause. I would suggest you set aside some serious time to look through photos on Houzz, especially if you can find areas similar to yours, till you find what appeals to you, put the photos into your ideas book and use that to build your room. I have found this invaluable in the past and it has saved me many an expensive mistake.

The subway sign is great - but it has the scale you need on the higher wall - and the black next to tv could have better balance .. .Consider . .I would center this under the beam on the big wall at the near end of the sofa - then you will start with better balance. The television is a big black square so might as well start with the black element across. Unless you can get a mirror across from the window to reflect something light and pretty, don't bother with a mirror here. Let's think about the wall with the small window and the black tv like a gallery wall - lots of black and white frames , contrasted with black and white mats and mostly graphic black and white art. Here's the way to do that on a budget. Visit the local thrift store and imagine frames they have painted black or white. Ignore what is in them, buy craft paint and paint them all. Ikea is also good for black and white frames. Perhaps one art piece would be an offcenter b&w blow up of that charming fellow who wanted in the picture - soften everything else back and highlight just the face and hand in a vertical mini-panorama format .. or another close cropped on the face black and white in an unposed moment like you caught here. Most of the rest . simple art. Picasso line art poster could be a big scale budget element. You might buy a bad painting at the thrift store or swap meet, paint soft pale gray all over it, then dry brush some white paint on to it. If you use color in the gallery art at all . . . use just one, and I suggest the either the blue gray / true blues / not blue greens that the chaise gives off in the sunlight. Or red. Or yellow. ONLY ONE COLOR. And, just a small touch. You can frame some objects that you've painted one shadow box frame with a real object in it. , some magazine pages, some calendar art, etc. (oversized frames), Look at potterybarn.com for gallery wall advice or on younghouselove.com in their archives .. they have some terrific posts. http://www.younghouselove.com/2011/04/its-done-and-we-heart-it/ If you can, eventually hang the television on the wall above the cabinet on a swing arm so it can pull out and angle but it can be put away flat and you can shift the media cabinet sort of centered on the sofa placement across so it isn't so tight in the corner. TV in corner pulled out good, media always there . . not so good. Now for walls - I love the window layout in here. Would you consider a large landscape oriented abstract canvas that expresses your color sense over the rest of the sofa? Take the arcing airplanes into the gallery layout. This is a great lounge!