Living room- sage or cream?

[RosieRoww]

Hello,
I'm at my wits end. But please hear me out.

We have a fairly small living room with black leather sofa, walnut blinds and floor and with oak furniture.
Our fireplace have a white mantle with black stone inside.
Curtains are oatmeal natural colour.

The room feels quite gloomy during the day, which's why I wanted to go for a off white/ cream wall colour.

However we still do have a full unopened bucket with sage colour that we used for our dining room, it's a nice subtle pastel colour.

So now I'm torn in between those two.

Which one would suit the room better?

Cream and sage go well together?

Sage on the chimney breast and the rest cream, or sage on the chimney breast and wall either side and the rest cream. I'm a huge fan of Dulux Timeless white, not cream I know but a lovely white that goes on really nicely.

What colour is the room at the moment if it feels gloomy? and what orientation is the room, north, south?

@MiniTheMinx

What colour is the room at the moment if it feels gloomy? and what orientation is the room, north, south?

The room facing the north direction.

Atm it's yellowish colour.

Can you change the black sofa? That’s likely the main culprit.

Sage and cream but also change the curtains!

I have Dulux Just Walnut in my North facing living room, oak floors so sounds similar to yours. It's a lovely warm off white/neutral which really changes with the light, I think it works well in a North facing room.

Just cream. We have a sage hall, and it seems darker than necessary.

@Bluntness100

Can you change the black sofa? That’s likely the main culprit.

Oh I would love to- hopefully during the next year.

@Flossie763

I have Dulux Just Walnut in my North facing living room, oak floors so sounds similar to yours. It's a lovely warm off white/neutral which really changes with the light, I think it works well in a North facing room.

Oh that's a nice colour.

@Stopsnowing

Sage and cream but also change the curtains!

Well, but kind of colour for curtains then?

Another vote for timeless - it'll work with your N facing room

Can you exchange the tin of sage for something else?

My living room is dark, its painted in sage with burnt orange curtains and accessories which really ensure it up. I really don't like ack leather furniture. Would rather have a fa rich sofa in a bright colour.

Timeless made one of my North facing rooms depressingly grey and gloomy. Jasmine White has worked well and I think hints of colour in the warmer spectrum would too. I have overtly olive with oak in a North facing kitchen and it looks nice, but it won't brighten a room if that is what you want. A hint of warmer colours with cushions and accessories such as terracotta/rust should work well to help lift the room too.

This is a nice colour palette

If the room doesn't have much natural light you're not going to make it brighter by painting it a light colour. It needs light to bounce around. It doesn't create it.

The general advice is embrace the gloom and make it cosy by going darker.

@BonnesVacances

If the room doesn't have much natural light you're not going to make it brighter by painting it a light colour. It needs light to bounce around. It doesn't create it.

The general advice is embrace the gloom and make it cosy by going darker.

Hmm, that's actually quite interesting, because originally I wanted to paint the room terracotta colour, but my hubby think S it's gonna be too dark .🤔

@Shehasadiamondinthesky

My living room is dark, its painted in sage with burnt orange curtains and accessories which really ensure it up. I really don't like ack leather furniture. Would rather have a fa rich sofa in a bright colour.

Yes I hate our sofa dearly, however it was purely practical purchase years ago because our children were small atm and it seems to make sense to have something that I can just simply wipe down when needed.

@QuentinBunbury

Can you exchange the tin of sage for something else?

I dunno- maybe.🤔

I would be careful with any warm cream colours. Strangely using a light warm colour in North light makes the colour look gloomy, or almost grubby looking.

I agree with others who suggest embracing the lower light. Sage seems to work in both North and south light. I've always gone for cool colours in north facing rooms and it seems to work.