Tips for Designing and Decorating a Dining Room

Many people are horror struck when they find that they've purchased furniture that is too large for their dining room. Or, perhaps they've painted their dining room too dark, too light, or they simply misjudged how the paint color would look once it was up on the walls. It can be difficult to decorate any room in your home, especially the dining room. Fortunately, there are many tips and tricks that you can use to create a dining room that is both aesthetically pleasing and function. After all, what good is a dining room if you can't use it?

What is the Room's Function

Before you start choosing a new table or throwing paint up onto the wall, it's important to stop and consider how your dining room will be used. "Oh, for eating, duh," is likely the first through that's come to your mind here. Of course, it's a dining room so it's assumed that you'll be eating there.

However, will other tasks occur at the table? Think about it, will your children be doing their homework, will you be playing card games with friends, paying bills on your laptop or bonding with your grandkids while decorating Christmas cookies? Many people don't stop to consider these things when decorating their dining room. This could cause you to choose a beautiful antique table, that only gets ruined because of high usage that you weren't taking into consideration.

So in short, choose dining room furniture that can withstand the use it will receive. After all, it would be a waste to purchase an expensive antique set of chairs with the original upholstery, only to have your two year old spill his sippy cup all over one of them.

Dining Room Size

The size of your dining room can also be important when choosing both furniture and paint colors. Though you may be in love with that 12 seater table at the showroom and can imagine all the wonderful holiday dinners with relatives or entertaining friends and family, will that same table fit into your 8 by 8 dining room? Probably not. Therefore, it's best to stick with furniture that fits your space, rather than furniture that is oversized (or undersized.)

When picking paint colors, you can make a room feel either larger and more open or smaller and more intimate. This can be vital when trying to make a small dining room feel open and inviting. For small rooms, lighter colors, like a shade of sky blue, can really open up your space. Meanwhile, darker colors, like plum or burgundy, can help an oversized dining room feel more comfortable, cozy or elegant.

Decorative Items

Decorative items should be kept to a minimum in a dining room that is going to be used frequently. Though a single vase or a few candles on a table isn't generally an issue, larger decorative displays involving multiple items can become a hassle whenever they need to be moved just so that the table can be used.

If there are items you wish to display in your dining room, consider installing shelving or purchasing a buffet or credenza on which to display them. That way, they're still on display but they're out of the way and don't run as high a risk of getting damaged.

Source(s): Personal Experience