How do I make this dining room look complete and inviting
I am having trouble pulling this dining room together. We had been looking for a dining set but did not like any. Finally found this table that we liked and thought it would be easy to find chairs to match it. I was wrong, After spending hours and weeks,decided to go with these. I like it but feel there is too much going on. What are your thoughts?How do I complete this room. Where to start?? What kind of wall decor, rugs, furniture, window treatment would go so that this formal dining looks inviting.
Comments (24)
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How do you mix and match dining chairs and make them look 'right?
Comments (12)I've always liked the use of mismatched dining chairs and have collected lots of pics of rooms where they've done this, BUT, and this is a huge BUT, it depends on the rest of the decor whether it will work if the chairs are quite diverse. It only works IMO in a casual, cottage, eclectic, even funky room or if the chairs are reasonably similar in style. Trying to use mismatched chairs in a more formal traditional dining room will just look like you didn't have enough chairs and borrowed more. The only time it works, again IMO, in a traditional formal room is when the chairs at the ends of the table are (usually) upholstered and the other chairs are not, but of a similar style. Painting mismatched chairs all the same color is another possibility to create unity. If you find chairs with simple clean lines I think it can work. In my casual dining area, especially when there are more than 6 people, I use some black painted chairs. The 6 chairs are oak and part of my DR set and the black chairs are painted the same as a sideboard in the adjoining kitchen so it's almost as if there are 2 'sets'. Works for me in my casual home. Check out the link below to see most of the rooms are casual, cottage, and/or eclectic altho there are a few modern and European rooms as well. Here is a link that might be useful: mismatched dining room chairs...See MoreHelp make my dining room look more inviting and calm
Comments (12)I noticed that it looks like the chair cushions are flat and worn and dark. I'd redo those seats with some batting and a pretty solid color fabric. It's not hard to do and would make it more welcoming. Check online for how to do it. Usually the seats lift out by unscrewing the four screws from the underside. It's an easy and cheap upgrade. Speaking of chairs, try eliminating the black ones. Then take two of the dining chairs and put them over where the black ones were. Give them a little more space away from the dresser under the window and see how that looks. I would gather all the photos and candles and stuff and put them all in the built-in china cabinet. If you can, try to get various heights going by putting some of them on top of canvas storage boxes (Target. Joanna Gaines collection) or whatever you can find to use as risers. Then find online some battery operated white "fairy lights" to arrange loosely around the photos and shelves to light them up. They are harder to find when it's not Christmas. Read the directions. I have some that go on at the same time each evening and then shut themselves off. They are so nice inside a china cabinet to light up the photos. It sounds hokey but it's not. Try swapping the bookcase over to the left side of the patio doors so you don't have everything busy on the right side. Move and angle that white cabinet in the corner on the right side of the patio doors. Try to find something like a fairly large basket or two to put on top of it. You really will benefit from getting some taller perceived mass in the room. Right now everything is basically the same height and low at that. If you like the way it looks, think about painting the bookcase white or some nice color. A golden color looks good with hardwood floors just so long as it doesn't look like another wood color. I think you need some height and mass on the dresser too. Check out the same Joanna Gaines Collection at Target online. Maybe a lamp? Or a large vase. Something. You could also put a mirror just barely above the dresser to add to the mass. And consider painting it light blue or whatever you like. Find something like a towel or a piece of clothing in blue and drape it temporarily on it to see if the color appeals to you. Try removing or just pushing to the side, the curtain above the dresser. If you can find a real or fake plant, try one or two up there to diffuse the light but open that space up. Another plant somewhere else would be nice too. The table looks sad and lonely. Maybe a tray. Or maybe a runner. Or a stack of pretty placemats in the center. A plant? It will add some interest and color. Do check out the Joanna Gaines collection just to see what you like. You could order online and if you don't like the stuff, you can return at the store rather than shipping things back. My thinking is that by trying some different things, even if it's not exactly right, you'll get a sense of what your eye finds welcoming and calming. By the way, I love the kiddo table and kitchen. It's cute and sweet that your little ones are part of the space. The blue storage piece that laughable moments posted would be so perfect in place of the dresser. Check out craigslist and search on "storage cabinet", "dining console" and words like that. You can probably find something you'll want to paint. But by moving and adding some easy stuff to what you have right now, you'll definitely get an idea of where you want to go with the room. And it's a manageable, not overwhelming way to start the process. I know how overwhelming it can be. Down the road, you'll probably want new and fuller drapes on the patio door. But you'll figure it out after you try some things with the rest of the stuff. Not sure that you need a rug actually. I have floors like yours and I have an oriental but it's pretty busy. I do have a seagrass looking rug with neutral to golden colors and it's very calming and pretty with the floors, so maybe check out some rugs like that and see if they appeal to you....See MorePlease help me make my dining room inviting
Comments (23)Woah celerygirl!! That is awesome! Thanks. Ok a few questions. I like all three mock ups. Where do I find the curtains and rug in the first photo? I like the black and white art in the third photo but I think the first photo makes the room brighter. I have a couple days off work so hopefully I can go shopping play around with some of your ideas....See MoreHow can I make this bathroom more inviting?
Comments (17)@NorwoodArchitects makes a great point about lighting, and the actual bulbs, etc. Also, what type of light fixtures do you have? Cannot see them in pics and that is a big part of room design, a major element. I also agree with Karen Mikolainis, above. Bringing in color in towels and accessories is a great way to do it, and a small plant on vanity, maybe a succulent plant, could lend a nice organic feel. You could also go the ‘spa’ route with plush white towels, and just have your color in art, for example. Many ways you can go. I don’t know if these are your style, but I think they are fun - soap dispensers....See More
housegal200
3 years agolast modified: 3 years agoBefore changing out the rug, which you could actually do without, add a large art work in blues and white, plus another color--something to gaze at while sitting at the table.
Oliver Gal "Mi Alegria" Canvas Art, 43"x43" · More Info
Put up ceiling to floor curtains, one large pair to frame the windows. Curtains add texture and possibly pattern to the windows--again in white with a bit of blue.
EZ Living Home Zebra Window Panel 84L Turquoise on Cream · More Info
Is the chandelier a keeper? If not, then one with a warm bronze finish, or wood, would warm the lighting over the table.
6-Light Rectangular Island Pendant · More InfoMore art work. These are in large sizes:
Extra Large Abstract Tree Painting on Canvas Modern Acrylic unstretched 40x60 · More Info
Large Abstract Painting on Canvas Modern Acrylic Skyline, 36x36, Blues and Blue · More InfoJane23 thanked housegal200jck910
3 years agoLove the blue walls. The room is traditional, the table farmhouse and the chandelier contemporary. Then you add in 2 different styles of seating. Can you return the 2 black chairs and the bench? The rug need to be larger. It should be at least 24" wider all around than the table. It should also have some of the blue from the walls in it. Panels on the windows. Huge art on the wall.
Art can be found at local galleries or minted.com art.comJane23 thanked jck910njmomma
3 years agoNot a Pro.
I may be the only one who thinks the wall color does not work with the chairs. I would do a lighter wall paint color and go a little more casual like the inspiration I posted earlier. Lighting changed to a linear look. Do away with the area rug if does not fit the dining set, or replace it with something that does.
Here it is again.
New England Home Feature · More InfoJane23 thanked njmomma
Sammie J
3 years agoAll the proportions are a bit off, but close! I'm not sure all these are possible - but if so, here's what I'd do. First, turn the table and center it under the fixture (if possible, get a more transitional chandelier - like njmomma posted). Get a larger, slightly patterned rug to pull all of the room's colors in. Center the bench under the two windows. Buy two more chairs to replace the bench (return the two you have, and get some that are larger in scale if possible). Add a large, square, colorful piece of art on the empty wall. Add a centerpiece.
Jane23 thanked Sammie Jeld6161
3 years agoJane23
3 years agolast modified: 3 years agoHU-187528210
3 years ago
Lizzie Borden
3 years agolast modified: 3 years agoJane23
3 years ago
Kate
3 years agosalonva
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decoenthusiaste
3 years ago
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