What Makes A Dining Room More Comfortable to Eat In?

What elements of design make some dining rooms more inviting than others? When having dinner with friends, the majority of your time is spent in the dining room or kitchen, so let’s talk about how to make an eating area more comfortable.

Table Shape

The dining room is often one of the first rooms your guests will see when walking into your home. For this reason alone, it is important to make a great impression. Figuring out if a round or rectangle table is right for your space is a great place to start. If your room is more of a square shape, a round table is usually the right fit while a rectangle table will obviously fit well in a rectangular room.

Furniture Size

Make sure you buy the right size table for the room that will allow for a nice walking space behind all chairs. I recommend leaving at least two feet. This gives your guests one foot to pull out the chair and one foot for those walking behind.

Upholstery or Wood?

When deciding on upholstered or non-upholstered chairs, first think about the majority of your guests. Will there be many kids? If so, you may want to go with a wooden seat for easy clean up. But upholstered chairs add an element of comfort that lasts long after dinner is served.

Keep the Eye Moving

Rooms that can accommodate buffets or china cabinets offer a stunning effect. Having items for your guests to look at while spending time in your dining room will make their eyes move throughout the space, keeping them focused and awake after a big delicious meal. I recommend placing colored glass, intricate china or vibrant accessories on top of the buffet or inside your china cabinet.

Window treatments

Window treatments can be helpful in more formal dining spaces by adding splashes of color that can be repeated in the china cabinet, buffet, artwork or rug. When walking into the space, the window treatments will soften the look against the hard wood table and give off a comfortable feeling.

Flooring and Walls

It is a smart idea to keep the walls a neutral shade with colorful artwork. Rugs always look great under dining room tables. However, if you have a beautiful floor underneath, rugs may not be necessary. A rug can make sliding chairs in and out difficult and could collect stains. On a positive note, rugs will absorb sound that may carry out of the space and disturb others in the home.

How have you created a comfortable space to dine in?

How Do I Make that Oriental Rug Work in my Home?!

Often we have a love-hate relationship with oriental rugs. They are comfortable, add an eclectic pattern to dull areas, but can remind us of our Grandmother’s house. So, should you go with the oriental rug or not?

First of all, look at the color. Many antique rugs are in fashionable colors we can still use today – black, burgundy, green, navy, gold, plum, etc.  I would recommend getting rid of the light blue, mauve, and pinks from the 80’s and early 90’s. Most often, the areas in the home where oriental rugs work best include the foyer and hallways, dining room, living room or study.

Foyers and hallways are often simply decorated. Naturally colored walls or grasscloth are most commonly used in today’s homes. If any furniture is placed in these areas, they are often large casegoods and decorative chairs. There isn’t much of a chance to bring in pattern and color, so oriental rugs are a great pairing in these environments. They add interest, color and cover up the bare hard surface flooring beneath our feet. Florals, artwork and accessories are a great ways to repeat the colors found in the oriental rug throughout the space.

Another perfect spot for oriental rugs would be the dining room. Large wood or glass tables are the focus of this room. Secondary to the table would be the dining chairs, which may have upholstered backs and seats; this is a perfect opportunity to repeat the colors in the rug. If a buffet or china cabinet is found in this room, placing dishes, glassware or linens in or on these pieces with colors from the rug will move the guest’s eye throughout the space. To add the finishing touches, repeat the colors on the table centerpiece, in the artwork and draperies.

We often find oriental rugs in living rooms and studies. If you would like a more masculine feel to this space, I would recommend pairing the oriental rug with leather sofas and heavy, dark wood furniture. What better way to pop the solid leather color and wood than with a busy rug? Repeating these colors in the artwork, pillows, accessories and lamps can tie the room together with a dramatic effect.

Do you like the look of oriental rugs? How have you added them into your home?

Using Dining Chairs Throughout Your Home

How many of you find yourselves with extra dining chairs at home? Or are you walking through a furniture store or antique shop and see one lonely beautiful chair but do not have a clue what to do with it? There are many ways to solve this problem! Dining chairs can be one of the most versatile pieces of furniture in our homes today.

First of all, might I suggest having an eclectic dining room set? Find a dining room table and look for chairs that might coordinate with it. They do not have to match! Or you could make some match, but not all, and try to tie the chairs together by upholstering the seats in the same fabric. Since single chairs are often on clearance or cost less, you may even save money in the process!

Many areas of the home are used for entertaining and we often find that there are not enough seats. Do you have an empty corner in the living room to tuck a chair in? Or an odd space where you can angle the chair in front of the wall so it just offsets a large chest or bookcase?

Layering furniture can have a dramatic effect on the room. How about in your foyer? Do you have a console that a nice chair would coordinate with and your guests would have a place to sit and take their shoes off? The same idea can be used in a large upstairs hallway. Pair the chair with a chest and you will even have extra space to store sheets and towels!

Finally, I recommend perhaps finding a place in your bedroom. A perfect spot might be with a vanity table to sit on while applying make-up or doing your hair. Or what about angled in front of a dresser? Now you have a place to sit while putting on your shoes or pantyhose.

The best part about finding odd places for chairs is that you can always pull the chair up to the dining room table or into the living room during parties. No matter how you look at it, you just can’t go wrong having extra seating! How have you utilized space and seating in your home?

Finding the Right Dining Table

Everyone has some form of “dining area” in their home. Whether it be a countertop in your kitchen with a bar stool or a 12’ dining table that seats 10, we all find a way to eat and perhaps be social in and around the topic of food. Traditionally the dining table has been the daily social meeting place for family and friends. Sometimes these tables serve as multifunctional gathering areas for homework, an additional mail sorting table, or laundry folding area to name a few.

Considering these other functions is just as important as selecting your style and the size of the table. Here is a rough idea of size to keep in mind when you begin shopping – a 35” x 70” table will generally seat six people, or maybe eight for a squeeze at Thanksgiving.

The location of the table legs can be an important aspect to watch for. Where are your legs going to be if the table is often seating eight? Will your guests have to hover around a table leg? Consider a pedestal table which provides stability and more leg space.

Often times wood is considered a popular selection for a dining table. It is durable, can be resistant to staining and heat resistant (ask those questions before purchasing). If the table has a wax coating, it may have difficulty resisting the pan of lasagna that you just pulled from the oven. Glass surfaces can look great, but their transparency can be awkward for diners, as you can see beyond your plate of food into the laps and legs of your guests below. Children often have a tendency to leave mucky finger prints on the underside of the table, making this a constant effort in your cleaning regimen.

When it comes to shape, rectangular seems to make the most sense, especially if you plan to move to a new home at some point. This shape will be likely fit in most rooms. Round and oval tables look great, but often times require a large room to have easy traffic flow to navigate around the table. I personally have always wanted a round dining table to seat 8-10. When I draw that into a plan, and factor in the chairs, the room needs to almost be twice the size in length and width. Maybe someday…

Check out Canadel’s dining collection. Customize table tops, legs and finishes to create your very own custom look! ( Just be prepared, the lead times are 12-14 weeks and it ships from Canada. Well worth the wait!)

What type of dining room table do you just melt for?

Dining Chairs – Comfort, Function, Style

Most people know that dining chairs can take quite a beating, especially in a family environment. People lean back, children rock in them supporting only the two back legs on the ground…etc. We exert weight and force on the rear legs and frame. The point is that it is important to look for durability as well as style when shopping for new dining chairs. Some designs that I like are by Philippe Starck, who tends to design beautiful chairs that are molded out of plastic seats and metal tube legs. They are practical, modern and great to look at. They are also multifunctional and double as desk chairs, stackable for storage, and great for outdoor use!

Chairs with arms work well at the head of a table. They can be awkward and cumbersome if the arms do not slide under the table, so I recommend checking the dimensions before purchasing. I also really love the idea of mixing the style of chairs used at one dining table. Whether it’s the design of the overall style that is different or just the fabric selection varying from chair to chair, thinking creatively will enhance the character of your room. I recently had a dining room project for a client who happens to have four young boys. We decided that a quick cleanable leather seat might be the best option for their four seats and introduced a coordinating fabric on the backs of the chairs. Mom and Dad’s chairs located at either end were the exact opposite – fabric seats and leather backs.

If you are planning to select different styles, it might be effective if you select your six favorite designers and represent a chair style from each collection at your table. You may also consider purchasing two additional chairs to have on hand for the occasional guest or two. The two spares can generally be used elsewhere in your home, like a desk chair or a corner chair in a spare bedroom. Have fun with the chair selection process! They don’t always have to be part of the same collection as your table.

Creating an Organic Feeling Environment

Organic, Natural, Environmentally friendly, these are all the buzz words we are hearing today. But what can you do to bring the organic look into your home? In the ideal world, a large open area with lots of windows would be a great way to bring in the organic look.

Now some of you may have this and some of you may not, so let’s start with the background color. This can make or break the overall feeling in the environment. Make your color scheme consistent with the colors of nature; beige, brown, white, light blues, light greens, stone, and grays. I recommend picking one of these colors for the paint on your walls. Possibly light beige, a color that might remind you of sand. Now, what to do with the rest of the room?

For a dining room, I recommend light colored or painted white woods. The area to pop the other “nature” colors might be on the seat fabrics. Bringing in light greens and blues mixed with white and browns are ideal to make the room pop. Try a beautiful oil painting of a water scene over a buffet or on an open wall. Keep the window treatments light and airy; possibly not use any at all! Soft linen drapes in a white might be a perfect solution, but do not use this color if it is the same color of your walls because a soft contrast is needed here. Repeat the soft colors used in the room through the dishes, glasses and/or vases. And most importantly, don’t forget the table centerpiece! Some soft greens foliage, a bowl with sea shells or stones, possibly even candles may work perfectly here.

As for the bedroom, I would recommend light colored wood, painted white wood, bamboo, or wheat board for the furniture. The bedding would be the perfect opportunity to bring in the beautiful blues and greens found in nature. Texture can also add to the feeling such as using linen or soft cottons. Wood, bamboo, or tile floors would look great in here with a sisal rug. Wall art should be simple with a skinny frame or even frameless, but don’t forget to make sure there is some color! Keep the lamps light, possibly with a glass base and a white shade without any details. Simple picture frames, greens, or candles would be the perfect finishing touch for the nightstands.

Finally for the living room, always look at the largest piece of furniture you will need. Typically this is the sofa and is a great start to building the atmosphere of your room. A beautiful crisp white sofa will bring a light organic feeling to an environment. Then placing colored pillows in blues, greens, beiges, stone or grays is a great start to bring in the colors of nature. For the coffee, end tables, and entertainment console remember to keep the wood light colored or painted in light colors. Simple accessories that remind you of nature are great for adding to the feeling to the room. How about some large coffee table books with photographs of the ocean, lighthouses, or the outdoors? Simple candles can be placed in a large charger with stones or shells covering the bottom. Bowls are a great place to add natural textured accessory balls. Finally, finish off the room with a beautiful seascape painting, photography of outdoor places, or flower prints.

Enjoy your Organic Feeling Room!