The Struggles of a Rustic Color Palette

I've got a bit of a color struggle here.  One of my favorite things to do when I have some down time is to visit all of my other blogger friends out there and see the awesome projects they have been posting or catch up on the latest design/tool/pattern/color trends. 

I see so many things I'd like to recreate in my own home, but one thing stands in my way.  The color struggle.  Our home is not the bright white, clean-line filled with natural light type that is seen on most DIY blogs.  Don't get me wrong, I love that style.  I heart it a lot!  But my husband and I both tend more towards the warm, rustic, north woods theme and with that comes more natural wood, yellow/earthy tones and to make matters worse, the windows that let natural light into the main living space are on the north and south sides of the house.  We all know the best natural daylight is on the east and west!  So there is a lack of that beautiful lighting.  Plus, did I mention that our home was built in the eighteen nineties???


When I see a design method that I want to bring into my own home, I often battle with the color differences.  It just doesn't turn the same result when you don't have the white trim, gray walls and gorgeous natural daylight!  I've got ugly tan carpet (like, the industrial type) and our trim is natural pine (which I LOVE).  The walls were repainted last year in colors that I love, but we're still missing the beautiful daylight. 

Here's what' I'm talking about.  See this incredibly lovely bedroom? 

(via)

It's so beautiful. That striped ottoman, I want to reach into my monitor and take that baby home with me! 
This bedroom perfectly demonstrates what I'm talking about.  Gorgeous lighting, clean lines, and lots of versions of white.  Yes, I certainly could switch over to these colors.  Except I have dogs.  And a cat.  And a hubby who work in the construction industry and does outdoor/fishing activities in his spare time.  White isn't an option.  This gorgeousness isn't an option for me. 

To give you a better idea, here is the basic color palette of our home:

We've also got some sagey greens going on in the living area, however Wordpress decided not to acknowledge the colors I choose and turned them lime green upon loading.  So... yeah.  No lime green here.
I have yet to find more DIY blogs that host the same taste as we do so I can follow along.  But it's a bit of a dance around the internet!

The trending geometric patterns that I see floating around right now are wonderful and I heart them.  (Chevron and Damask are my favorites!)  But they just don't merge that well with black bear, moose and knotty pine. 

I won't give up my search for blogs with similar rustic tastes!  And in the meantime, I'm happy to enjoy the bright white folk, even though I have trouble replicating their gorgeous ideas.