Pinterest -- Dining Library Spaces pin board

10 years ago

For a Friday Eye Candy and Inspiration:

I did post this link on another thread -- but after really looking through all of these wonderful photos -- I HAD to share this with the whole group ....

There are SO many decor styles shown in these photos -- and SO many truly inspired ideas ....

Anyway -- I hope you don't mind a double posting .... but I hope it helps hereabout with a few ideas .....

Here is a link that might be useful: Pinterest -- dining room library pins

Sort by:Oldest

Comments (10)

Annie Deighnaugh
10 years ago
nice! great way to make a small space do double duty. I saw one many many years ago that mary gilliat did where she used a round oak table in the center which she covered with like tapestry materials...it was gorgeous.
bird_lover6
10 years ago
I absolutely love the idea of a library/dining room, but we escape to the dining room for a bit of tranquility. Unless the books were all perfectly matched and organized, I fear I would feel restless, which is weird, I know, since libraries are generally peaceful places. :) All that "stuff" might drive me crazy. LOL
Related Discussions
Unused dining room -- what would you do with this space?
Q
Comments (21)
We have a similar space just inside our front door. We put bookcases, storage cabinets, and a table. Right now my kids (6 and 4) use it as their art room, but it will be the homework room as they get older. I love being able to leave projects out and not have to worry about clearing the table before every meal. And I will love having a computer where I can keep an eye on them when they are older. We have a separate office, but that's mine and DH's space. We wanted a similar "office" type space for the kids. I would also extend the entry wall on the dining room side to match the office side. You can place a bench against one wall and hooks on the other. I would even consider closing off half that opening. That way that room won't be the first thing you see when you come in. I'd also keep the doorway to the kitchen, especially if you are going to be using it as a kid space. Much easier to see them in there. And I'm a fellow Minnesotanite, although I'm from across the river in St. Paul. :) Now I live in a small town in Southern MN.
...See More
Blank wall space in dining room ... revisited
Q
Comments (65)
MizGG! I used to own that very piece! Well, maybe not THAT very piece, but one exactly like it. It's gorgeous but my ex retained custody of it, darn it all! I wish it was larger and would fill my library wall. I would buy it in a heartbeat if only it were a bit wider. Well, a lot wider actually. Thank you for thinking of me! I really am enjoying the dining room window with only the little succulent I brought home yesterday. It seems to add enough of "something" that makes the space feel more alive. I could bring in a couple more small pots of herbs and also use them to cook with. At any rate, that one simple plant has worked wonders to make me feel that the space is not so bare, as strange as that probably sounds!
...See More
Library Ladder for Kitchen
Q
Comments (23)
Hi! Practigal just linked to our kitchen before and after. Here's our experience (and my DH is a big guy at 6'4" and no problems with the ladder): 1. We talked with the people at Rockler before putting in our order and talked through various questions. They were super helpful. 2. I acted as GC for this project but had a retired contractor friend who did the cabinet install, carpentry, and generally helped me manage this beast. He built "boxes" of 2" x 3" (I think that was their dimension) to lay on top of our upper cabinets and attached to the wall. These were then covered with filler pieces for our cabinets for the finished look. These boxes are rock solid and nothing's going anywhere. 3. The brackets were attached to this filler piece (3" was the minimum, the only thing I'd do differently is maybe make this piece an inch or two wider/taller). This allows you to open the "upper-uppers" while on the ladder. 4. The ladder weighs about 25 lbs, which isn't light nor too heavy to manage. I don't lift it other than to hang it on rails. I'm pretty good at rolling it upright on the floor to where I need it, then lift it. ;) 5. (Additional edit) We store it on a wall so it's out of the way unless in use. With kids, this may still be a temptation, but since it's a rail just for the ladder, at least they couldn't try to fly across the floor on the rollers! If you have more questions, feel free to reach out. We love having the storage up there for the infrequent items (that fondue pot and the heart tart pan, among other things...).
...See More
A couple questions on this cabinet from Pinterest
Q
Comments (8)
When you say "behind my U-shaped kitchen" do you mean in another room - like a dining room? No, I mean it's a straight run of cabinets behind the main work area of the U, its purpose being two-fold: 1) to hold dishes; 2) to provide a "setting down space" for things that would otherwise clutter the main work area; for example, a cake or a bowl of fruit. It would be part of the kitchen. Imagine the blue rectangles are the main work area ... the white box is a pantry (it actually goes farther back, but I just fit it in nicely here) ... the circle is a breakfast table ... and the red box is the cabinet in question. But it does depend on what you want to store. My platters, for example, did not fit in those cabinets. I agree with that. However, I'll have a large pantry with space for large items such as platters, punch bowls (why do I have three?), and crock pots. I think 18" might be too narrow. I'd go buffet size and do 21" deep. As for drawers or doors, that's personal, but remember as you age, bending down to get into cabinets gets harder. I'm thinking that if I go deeper than 18", things would start to get "cluttery". I mean, with 18" you're relegated to one single row of items ... but with 21" it'd be possible to have small bowls in the front and larger bowls in the back, bringing us to the need for drawers instead of cabinets. I don't intend to serve from this area. I think I need to LOOK at 18" vs 21". I'm very much a visual person. As for bending down and aging, I'm all about that ... but isn't the bottom drawer at the same spot as the bottom cabinet? I can see a difference between reaching into the back of the cabinet vs. being able to pull out the drawer, but I'm not sure I'm on board with this train of thought. I have shallow cabinets one one wall; the center area is 13" deep and the tall pantry cabinets are 15" deep ... I find the depth great. Nothing gets lost. We don't have drawers or pull-outs. That's exactly the type of function I'm considering.
...See More
Sueb20
10 years ago
I have a library/dining room and I actually like looking at all the stuff on the shelves -- books, mementos, kids' clay creations -- but I can understand why it wouldn't appeal to everyone. Wish mine was as lovely as some of those photos!

In my area, so many people are adding on big family room/kitchen additions to older homes and the dining room sits unused for about 350 days a year. I love using these rooms for multiple functions.
nosoccermom
10 years ago
I absolutely love this idea and have been thinking about this. My problem, however, is that there's only one long wall, on which I have a china cabinet. Maybe ditch that, but then where to put dishes/glasses, etc.?
PRO
Diane Smith at Walter E. Smithe Furniture
10 years ago
Two of my favorite things combined - eating and reading. That was fun to look through. Thanks teacats!
Holly- Kay
10 years ago
I have been considering using my small library as a dining room. We never use the library because our main sitting area is in our lr/dining combo.

If we make the library our dining room we could use the smaller part of the l/r d/r combo to put a small game table there. My dear grandsons would love that. Or I could use the dr part of the combo for my home office and regain a bedroom that I could then use as a dressing room.

Thanks so much for posting this.
geokid
10 years ago
I am kind of doing the opposite right now. I'm changing my formal dining room into a library. But I'm still keeping a dining table so I can have the option to use it as a dining space. It makes a wonderful spot to host my book club! :)
pps7
10 years ago
Nosoccermom,

Could you may maybe do something like this?

Books on top, dishes underneath.
Annie Deighnaugh
10 years ago
GF took awhile to come around to my suggestion of using her DR as her LR and vice versa, but now that she's been hosting the family holidays with up to 50 people (yikes!) she is making the switch and it's coming out terrific. She now calls her old dr the "parlor". She's in a trad'l colonial style home with the old LR running from front to back, full width of the house, so it is huge. She will still have some wall space and they are big readers. There's no room for a bookcase in the smaller parlor, but there may be in the new DR right next door, so I will keep that in mind for her...
kkay_md
10 years ago
When we remodeled our house, our architect suggested bookshelves and a window seat in the dining room. She also planned built-in bookshelves in the "gallery" (front hall) and the "lounge" (upstairs). I very much enjoy having books around me and this spot gets as much use as a reading nook as it does a dining room.

Pinterest -- Dining Library Spaces pin board

Comments (10)

Annie Deighnaugh

bird_lover6

Related Discussions

Sueb20

nosoccermom

Diane Smith at Walter E. Smithe Furniture

Holly- Kay

geokid

pps7

Annie Deighnaugh

kkay_md

COMPANY

BUSINESS SERVICES

GET HELP

CONNECT WITH US