Lots of ideas....couldn't resist adding my two cents. i copied your photos and did a little cut and paste- it's messy, but hopefully gets the main idea across. i'd put your sofa in front of the large book case, chair by the fireplace, tv on the stand on the wall opposite the fireplace - so you can either look at the fire or the tv. Someone suggested using frames of one color for your photos - an inexpensive way to do that would be to spray paint them all a dark color-black goes with everything. Since your shelves are a medium tone wood, display things that are dark or light so that they contrast against the wood. Limiting your display items pallette to a few values usually helps to unify things. (I think that's why so many people want to paint the shelves or put inserts in the back to help your nice things read more clearly...some get lost). If you want to "splurge" -you may consider having a carpenter make a few solid tall cabinet doors to provide a visual break in the shelving. I'm showing 3 doors - 1 on the right side of the fireplace and 2 on the left to leave two open vertical shelves for display on each side - with things arranged to frame the fireplace as the focal point. To add some height to your big vases, consider stacking some books beneath them. Enjoy experimenting untill you get something you're happy with - good luck!

Thank you for your suggestions and ideas! I love some of the more daring/colourful ideas, but I don't think I'm, personally, bold enough to go with such a contemporary look. I'm going to stick to a traditional/modern style and use large (4" x 8") white subway tiles and dark grey grout. I'm thinking of using a dark grey paint around the kitchen walls and then a lighter shade around the rest of the room, with maybe the dark grey on the wall behind the TV too. Will be a few more weeks before that's all done, but I'll post a picture when I eventually get there. Thanks again!

Ooh Darzy I like your thinking. Actually the curtains are taupe and a nearly mint green - not stripes more they blend into each other (see pic). But if I got some art picking out those 2 colours that could work. I love teal but not sure about it on this wall. Maybe coral could be nice or is that too on trend? I also have an old chair I need to get reupholstered and was struggling for ideas for that. But a floral pattern with the green and taupe from the curtains and a third colour that matches the art could work well - ideas, ideas, ideas!Thank you Houzzers I knew you'd help me to look at this differently.

It is a gorgeous room with lovely features. I would second Minnie's colour choices, I have Farrow & Ball Pale Powder in my bedroom and it is a gorgeous colour - like an Eau de nil but changes colour throughout the day and is very soothing. I have dark wooden floors and dark brown leather sofas like you and I think I'm going with Farrow & Ball Borrowed Light when I come to decorate to give everything a lift, a pale rug is also a great idea. The cabinets you mention I would choose white to go with your existing bookcase and also to keep things light against the walls. This is currently my inspirational living room pic, the walls are borrowed light.