We painted the living room a rich slate blue with white trim. The mantle was painted white as well, and turned out beautifully.
The floor is made of wide pine boards that have been painted a rich, and ugly, shade of burgundy. Recently, on a historic house tour, we saw a house nearly identical to this one with refinished floors. They were beautiful, but it's *so* much work.
When we got to Villa Villatrolla, the walls of the living room were covered with painted wallpaper. This was the one room of the house that we had real trouble stripping the wallpaper, and it was horrible. In the end, a strong ammonia solution worked.