Dining Space Needs Help!

5 years ago

last modified: 5 years ago

We recently purchased this house and I'm stuck on this space. We will be putting a large wooden rectangle table in the center of the room and getting rid of all other furniture as it does need to serve as a dining space, but what else can we do? It just doesn't feel like a fun, cozy, home. What should I put on the bookshelves? The fireplace? These are the previous owners belongings, so everything is going.

Help please

Featured Answer

IdaClaire

5 years ago

I think you can easily create a warm and inviting place to dine in this space. Definitely add a rug beneath your table. That will help immensely. Can you share photos of the room from other angles? Can't really tell what that vaulted ceiling is like. Will you be able to add a chandelier over your dining table? What style are you envisioning for this room? You could either remove the bookcases or leave them and fill them with books. I've seen dining spaces that did double-duty as a quiet place to sit and read, and they were lovely. Is that a slider door, and if so, will you need to cover it for privacy?

Comments (12)

PRO
Sina Sadeddin Architectural Design
5 years ago
There's a lot of wood so you need to break that up. If you're using a wooden dining table, put a rug underneath to create some contrast. I would actually take out the bookshelves, it's an odd place for them. That awkward hanging fireplace should be addressed eventually but that can wait.
Beth Jones
Original Author
5 years ago
Thank you so much! I love the idea of a rug and removing the bookshelves. What would you do with the fireplace? Thank you for the guidance.
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Beth Jones
Original Author
5 years ago
Here are a couple additional photos, keep in mind none of the belongings are ours, the room is just empty now
Beth Jones
Original Author
5 years ago
Beth Jones
Original Author
5 years ago
Beth Jones
Original Author
5 years ago
It is a sliding patio door, but it does not need to be covered as we have no backyard neighbors
IdaClaire
5 years ago
That's really pretty. It has a ski lodge look about it. I wonder if you were to place your dining table a little towards the staircase (not right up against it, though, as the current setup) instead of centered in the room, if you'd have enough room for a comfortable upholstered chair - something along the lines of a wingback, perhaps? - on either side of the fireplace. You could think of this room as more "keeping room" -- a place to dine and cozy up by the fire. You could use the dining table for games as well as meals, perhaps read in the chairs by the fireplace. A large piece of art over the fireplace would be nice. You don't need a lot of stuff in here, as there's a good deal of architectural interest already.
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Randy Trainor
5 years ago
What does the rest of the house look like? Here are some ideas from a design we did for a client that you might enjoy depending on your style.
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housegal200
5 years ago
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Get a great big pine table with comfortable modern chairs that will make family and friends want to linger in the space. Put books in the bookshelves. Nothing is cozier and warmer than real books you've read, want to read, want to lend to guests. How many lodges have books for guests? Most of the ones I've stayed in

On the fireplace wall, look for a beautiful huge landscape, abstract or representational to bring the outdoors into this space--something with this wilderness feeling only horizontal. Put a big basket of logs on the hearth.
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Add an amazing rectangular chandelier or a pair of them over your table.
Betsy Cain
5 years ago
Perhaps a rug with pattern and warmth such as these:
https://www.grandinroad.com/fringe-rug-collection/1105536
And if you don’t need the storage, I would remove the bookcases and hang curtains on either side of the glass doors to add more softness.