One of our readers recently wrote us with this question:

I’m wondering if you might weigh in on a debate I’m having with someone about whether to paint these funny closet doors in a bedroom…The color thought is a darkish brown.

Absolutely, we can weigh in! This is a perfect job for a Mochi Home visualization. Our reader had originally been looking at a Fuller O’Brien paint chip book. Unfortunately, paint chips for this brand are not easily accessible online. We picked some Benjamin Moore colors, but they could be easily translated to other brands.

Here’s the current room and the closet doors in question.

First, we painted just the closet doors a dark brown, as requested. This is Van Buren Brown from the Historical Colors collection. This already adds a little interest and definition to the room, but it doesn’t totally hang together yet.

With a little more effort, we think the brown doors could be a really nice feature. We added a classic chair rail, with the lower half in a neutral brown/gray called Smoked Oyster and the top in Pampas grass.  This nice palette of warm neutrals works well with the hints of red already in the room.  To really tie it all together, we found a modern rug from West Elm, which includes all of the colors.

Along the same lines, here are the closet doors in a lighter shade, Rockies Brown. We paired it with a wall in Sea Froth. Finally we removed all traces of red and replaced them with dark browns and neutral blues. A fun rug from 2modern does a nice job of tying it all together.

What if you are into the red?  Try something a little unexpected and paint it on the doors. We matched the red of the duvet cover. We recommend bringing some paint chips home to match your accessories or you can bring any item into the paint store and they will match it for you. These red doors are fun and little shocking, but…

We painted the wall that rich Van Buren brown and turned that plain wall in to the clear focal point. We love how the rich colors are outlined by the bright white trim, making them even bolder and crisper.

Lastly, I thought we could leave the doors white and just paint the wall instead. This shade of Gravel Gray is modern and sophisticated and goes great with the red accessories. The bright white closet doors suddenly look crisp and fresh on the dark back drop. I couldn’t resist adding this quill rug from CB2, a pillow, and some white vases on the dresser to add some height in the corner. To finish off the look, the curtains have been replaced by wooden shades, which I snagged from Hunter Douglas.

Hopefully we’ve given our reader a visualization of their ideas and some new ideas they hadn’t thought of.  Don’t be afraid to paint doors, walls, or even both! This plain wall can become an exciting focal point or an elegant backdrop. Good luck!

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