Thank you all for responding. I am going to look into having some chair covers made to give some bulk.... anyway, its a beautiful Ethan Allen dining room suite that wasn't cheap and just can't bear to give it away, and certainly won't get any money for it.... so sad....

Personal choice and you'll get different opinions. If you are in an area without snow and you have a mat outside, you could go without. Also, consider a "no shoe" policy. That would cut down on noise also. Finally, you might consider a larger rug that fits most of the living room and sort of continues to the front door area. Again, it is based on circumstances, etc. Some people would never go without one.

I don’t know if you ever finished your kitchen, but in case you did not, and in case others come across this thread, I thought I would tell what we did. We remodeled our kitchen using a 24 year-old high end kitchen from a kitchen charity reseller (Green Demolitions). It had a huge island that I could fit into our space if we did not have a kitchen table. I have lifelong knee problems and could hardly rise off a regular chair height, so moving to 24” kitchen stools sounded like a solution. We went with the island, with space for four to comfortably sit. It turns out that my knees don’t much like sitting on stools, either. We are a family of two and take our meals in our recliners, anyhow. The issue became how to have people over and sit comfortably. Then I discovered convertible furniture of Italian design! They make coffee tables that rise up on scissor legs to dining height with tops that swivel 90 degrees and open like a book, doubling their size. There are other designs as well, all creating full size dining tables. We found a leather sofa at Macy’s that has a seat height of 20” and we keep our old dining chairs in the basement to bring out when people visit. Our family room is now easily and quickly converted to a dining room with banquette seating. Here is where I got our table. If you live near NYC there are local choices, too. https://expandfurniture.com

when I first saw the pictures I thought you need to bring the sectional closer to the fireplace and TV.... then saw it was a step down from the dining area. kind of dangerous to do that. maybe you could find a taller bookcase or 2 to place on the lower level and serve as a sofa table, bar and buffet when needed blocking off the step down and getting more storage and flat surface. I think in this case you do need a rug to get some color in the room. make sure it is large enough so that when you pull the chairs away from it that they are still on the rug. pull your favorite colors from the painting to bring somehow into each area (kitchen, dining and living room). looks like you already have some red in the kitchen picture. it should be repeated throughout the whole area that is visible in an open concept area. the pictures are just to give you an idea how just small things in each room repeating a color help make it interesting, unified and keeps your eyes moving in the room. you have so many choices to pick from. what is your favorite? I think changing the rug in the living room would also help. 2 rugs don't need to be the same but should complement eachother.