Designing Your Dining Room

Dining room design doesn’t always get the love that it deserves. You might not use your dining room as frequently as others but that doesn’t mean your dining space shouldn’t be as stylish and unique as the rest of the house.

But there’s more to a great dining room than just finding the right table. With a few simple tricks, you can design a dining room that’s perfect for special occasions and everyday life.

Before You Start

The good news is that designing a dining room usually isn’t as complicated as designing for other rooms of the house. It’s really just a matter of finding a few key pieces of furniture that fit your space. 

When designing a dining room, you have the benefit of purpose to inform the space. In other words, everyone knows what they’re supposed to do in the dining room - sit down and eat! Dining room furniture only needs to facilitate the dining experience. 

The biggest question is whether you’re designing a dining room for daily meals with the family or for a few special occasions throughout the year. When designing for everyday dining, you should look for furniture that’s comfortable and easy to clean. When designing a dining room that’s mostly for special occasions, you can get away with sacrificing some comfort in favor of looks and style.

Regardless of how you intend to use your dining room, there are some main pieces of furniture you’ll need:

• Dining table
• Dining chairs
• Hutch

Design to Scale

The size of your dining room is the first thing to consider. Do you have a small dining room with a low ceiling or a large open space? 

You should choose a dining room table that fits the dimensions of the room. As a rule, the larger the room is, the larger the table should be. The smaller the room, the smaller the table should be. 

If you have a long dining room, it’s a great opportunity for a traditional dining room table with lots of seating space. But that’s not to say a small space can’t make a great dining room, too. You can try setting a smaller dining table against one corner of the room while adding a secondary seating area or home bar in another corner.

Illuminate the Space

Besides quality furniture, lighting is arguably the most important aspect of dining room design. The amount of light your dining room receives can dramatically affect the mood of the space. Unless you have an especially low ceiling, you really can’t go wrong with a chandelier to illuminate the area. 

But you’ll also want to add some supplemental lighting in the form of sconces or lamps. A bright, warm dining room will encourage guests to stay at the table longer. And as the night goes on, you can always turn off a few of those accent lights to set the mood for cocktails and dessert. 

Store in Style

A hutch or sideboard affords you the ability to store extra dinnerware while seamlessly blending into your dining room design. Giving your plates and cutlery a dedicated storage space ensures that you’ll spend less time darting back and forth from the kitchen. It’s also a great way to display your most beautiful glassware, trivets, and plates. 

Define the Area

There’s some debate over whether or not to incorporate an area rug into a dining room. After all, spills are bound to happen, and it can be heartbreaking to watch red wine stain your gorgeous carpet. But adding an area rug to a dining room can help to define the space and make it feel cozier. 

An area rug can help to distinguish the dining space from the bare floor. Generally, it should be large enough not just to fit the table, but also to accommodate dining chairs when they’re completely pulled out - about two feet of extra space from the dining table. Just try to find a rug that’s easy to clean, like wool or hair-on-hide. Avoid thick-textured carpeting and try to find a machine-washable rug if possible. 

Mix and Match

Don’t feel obligated to match every piece of furniture in your dining room. A bit of contrast can invigorate the space and showcase your design philosophy. For example, you can decide on one style of dining table and choose different materials or colors for your dining chairs. You can even incorporate dining benches and other types of seating into the mix. However you mix and match your dining room furniture, it’s a good idea to design for comfort rather than style. 

Add Some Character

Finally, you’ll want to add some art to your dining room to complete the space. You don’t want to distract from the dining room furniture itself, so don’t hang any artwork larger than the length of your dining table. But there’s plenty of opportunity to hang a gallery wall of smaller photographs and artwork to give some character to your dining room. Some other decor options include:

• Framed mirrors
• Patterned wallpaper
• Display shelves
• Hanging or wall-mounted plants
• Any combination of the above

At Watson’s, we have a wide selection of dining room furniture for you to choose from. Whether you’re looking for dining tables, dining chairs, or complete dining sets, you’re sure to find the right furniture at the best price. Stop by in-store or online to experience Watson’s amazing selection, incredible value, and personalized service for yourself.