Our plan has a formal dining, but we are going to use it as a piano/reading room. Instead we're going to use what was labeled as a hearth room for our dining area. It's plenty large enough(19'x15') to accomodate a big table for our family of 10 and is totally open to the kitchen. I like that I'll be able to be working in the kitchen with my older girls while my younger ones are in plain eyesight/earshot at the table doing schoolwork/crafts. We are informal, casual people, and having a separate, really formal dining space just isn't us, nor is it our friends and family. It's still under construction, but here's a shot of our future dining area(the "hearth" room). The original house plan called for a fireplace to the right, but we nixed it as there is one just around the corner in the living room and instead opted for a big window that looks out over our pond and trees. I'm planning on a hutch between the 2 big windows. French doors will lead to a grilling porch and the other door will lead to a deck.. eventually ;-).

Hi, Sarah.. I am coming into this thread late in the game but I did read through all the posts. I wanted to share a couple of thoughts and experiences but I am short on time so I will apologize in advance if I sound short or harsh. I have a red dining room and I have grown to hate it. My wood is a medium to dark oak and I think it does nothing for it. I think it will do much less for your darker and more formal wood. My sister just did her dining room in a blue (leaning towards teal) and it looks smashing with her dark wood. I am the LAST person to choose blue.. it's just not one of "my colors" but I have to say I think it works very well in your room. I tend to green and I still prefer the blue mockups over the greens. You keep referring to this as the "formal dining room" but the southern living elements you are wanting to decorate around are much more casual to me. I think you need to stop and take a breath and think about whether you want a formal dining room as your furniture suggests or a casual family style dining room like your bowl suggests. If you want the formal dining room then I'd use the tuscan bowl and the other southern living pieces in the kitchen. Whether the dishes in the china cab are valuable monetarily or or personally, they are on display for a reason, I'd presume? Are they family heirlooms? I would never suggest that you store them away-- if for no other reason, because they work much better with your furniture and with the gorgeous shutters. I strongly recommend that you look at pictures in the gallery and review the ones shared in this post with similar furniture and see if you can find a style that is cohesive and approaches what you see in your minds eye. I don't mean this disrespectfully (because I have been there myself) but you are going in the direction of a real mish mash of styles and your furniture is such a strong element in the room I don't think it's a room that will gracefully accept the eclectic look. I agree with all others on the shutters-- love them! They look beautiful as they are.

I have a white ceiling with dark wood beams. Dark wood flooring. My trim work around Windows and doors is white. The furniture (sofa and loveseat) are deep red. I need a paint color for my walls. I thought a light beige maybe. Oh I am putting white bead board on the bottom of the walls. Help with suggestions please....

I don’t think the new color is doing much for what looks like some very beautiful wood tones here! Chair seat fabric is easily changed so I guess the rug is the biggest decider in this space! I’m not usually a fan of cutting colors in half; you loose something in the translation! This just looks drab to me and that’s not what you want in a dining room!