Dining rooms have returned
sideboard has found a new life.” Soften it up. New York designer Katie Ridder said window treatments and carpets are important in a dining room: “There are usually brown tables, chairs and sideboards. That’s a lot of hardwood surfaces, so it’s nice to soften it with carpeting, curtains and, maybe, a wallpaper.” Pay attention to light fixture height. Chandeliers are often hung too high in dining rooms. Washington designer Thomas Pheasant said he likes lighting 30 to 36 inches above the table: “You want to sit across the table and not have the fixture in the way, but you want to bring the light and attention down to everyone’s faces.” Install sturdy seat covers. On traditional dining chairs, it pays to use indoor/outdoor fabrics. Burns said she often uses Sunbrella or Perennials for young families. “There are so many great options now that are soft and don’t feel like the slippery outdoor fabric of days past,” she said. Additionally, you can take any fabric and get stain treatment applied before upholstering chairs. Up your chair count. If your dining room is small, but you want additional matching chairs available, you can display the chairs in other rooms. Ridder said: “Buy extra chairs and, if you want, do different seat covers for them so you can use them for the living room, family room or bedroom, yet still bring them in for a large dinner around your table.” Liven up brown furniture. Hildreth updated the traditional mahogany china cabinet at his mom’s house by lining the back with a neutral grass cloth that has a bit of coral in it. “It lightened the whole look up,” he said. Because china cabinets are going for very affordable prices in auctions and vintage markets, he suggested buying one and lacquering it with a bold paint color. Supplement lighting. Ridder said she advises clients who are renovating a dining room to add down-lights around the chandelier. “It’s nice to have light pointing down on the table as well as chandelier light and candlelight,” she said. Mix it up. Don’t be so matchymatchy. A different look for the host chairs at either end of the table can make a statement, Burns suggested. Instead of the usual chandelier over the center of the table, try two pendants. Make it pull double duty. Urban clients like having separate dining rooms but may be short on space, Pheasant said. “What do we do if someone will only use their dining room two or three times a month?” he said. “We might create a library there, using a center table and lining shelves with books and photographs.” Rethink your china. If you have a glass china cabinet or hutch crammed with porcelain and crystal, separate what you really use from what you might want to de-accession. Display only a few special pieces; it will give the room a cleaner look and feel more modern. And don’t be afraid to set a nice table with your best china and cloth napkins, even if it’s just for a weeknight family dinner.
Pheasant said, “Use your good stuff and enjoy it.”