Unique Ways to Elevate Your Dining Room Design

Looking at the dining room from a completely utilitarian perspective one can only see a room, with a big table, a few dining chairs, cupboards, sideboards, and maybe a few pieces of decor. But the dining room is so much more than that. For many families out there, it is the heart of the household and where everyone gathers to share a meal as they talk, share stories, memories, and enjoy spending time with loved ones.

This sentiment has changed quite a bit in recent years and many households found themselves being fragmented. Everyone either eats in their own room or goes out for some grub and rarely do you ever sit down to eat together. And while this may just be a natural evolution of our eating habits, it doesn’t mean that the dining room should be abandoned and collect dust.

But don’t make it an obligation for your household to gather in the dining room for dinner. Instead, try being more proactive and remodeling it with some charming dining room design tips, freshening up the interior. Before you know it your household will be spending a lot more time having meals together than they will be eating junk at their computers. 

Elegant Transitional Dining Room

The Simple Beauty of Transitional Interiors

What makes transitional design so attractive is how it seamlessly blends older design elements with newer ones, creating something entirely refreshing in the process. The transitional dining room design exemplifies the motifs behind this interior style and its popularity.

The elegant Wainscotting contrasted with minimal dining room wall decor, the ornate door and window frames juxtaposed by the muted, somber colors like beige and grey, and finally the basic solid wood table surrounded by silken dining room chair seat covers. These contrasts are the transitional dining room design recommendations provided by many interior designers. With its more subdued features, the transitional dining room will allow your guests’ visual senses to relax as they enjoy their food. Overdoing decorations and design elements in your dining room can actually risk ruining appetites, so less is more in this case. 

Dining Table Shapes and Sizes

Which Dining Table Design Is Right for You

The shape of a dining table is not picked at random. Size is typically chosen depending on the amount of free space that’s available. On the other hand, you can say the same about the shape or the form of your dining table, but there’s more to this than the size of the room. The shape of your dining table will determine how it is used and the kind of dining experiences you will have.

A rectangular and long table that you will find in more lavish interiors, like Gothic, Victorian, or Art Deco, tends to emphasize order, with everyone sitting across from each other, evenly spaced, and in single file lines. This can also work when creating an indoor-outdoor dining area since you will need a longer table to accommodate both the interior and exterior portions of the room. But then there are round tables, which are significantly more intimate. Round tables give you equal distance to everyone else sitting with you, meaning conversations are going to be more concentrated towards the center, contrasting the rectangular tables which are quite often divided. So depending on what you’re looking for from your dining experience, pick a table that will suit your needs instead of what simply looks good. 

Luxury Victorian and Gothic Accents

The Small Details That Make Victorian and Gothic Worth It

But if it’s not the food or appetite that matters to you and your guests and more so the conversations and the overall nature of the social gathering, then the luxurious Victorian interior design can work perfectly. Luxury dining room sets are not hard to come by and there are gorgeous chandeliers for dining room settings that perfectly accentuate the rest of the interior.

What makes Victorian and Gothic designs somewhat difficult to work with, is that they can stress out your visual senses with the number of details present on all the surfaces. So if you want your guests to enjoy their food instead of playing Where’s Waldo? on your wall, then use small details of Victorian and Gothic to spice up the interior. Wainscotting and crown molding are great for introducing some regality to your interior without causing a burden on the eyes. There are also color accents you can work with, such as burgundy or purple to pull off the dignified aesthetic. Keep it to a minimum and you will see that your dining room will pop out, but without causing an eyesore. 

Vibrant Colors and Mind Games

How Colors Can Influence Your Social Gatherings

While many homeowners opt for more subdued and calmer designs for their dining rooms as a way to help guests feel at ease when they come over for dinner, you may be interested to try more vibrant colors and accents. But the effect that color has on your room is not purely stylistic. There are some psychological factors you should consider before applying the first brushstroke.

So let’s play a few mind tricks on your guests using interior design elements. If you wish to make your guests even hungrier and raise their appetite for the food that you’re about to serve, then have some red and yellow accents in your dining room. These two colors have been scientifically proven to raise the appetite and watch as your dinner party ends with spotless plates. For those chic brunch vibes, go for pinks and oranges which really speak to the bright food that you’ll be serving. And for those coastal vibes, where you want your guests to feel like they’re on the beaches of the Mediterranean Sea, consider painting the surfaces vibrant blue. Your guests will swear they heard waves crashing outside the window, only to find suburbia waiting for them outside. 

Multifunctional Furniture for Multi-Rooms

Multifunctional Furniture That Makes Life Much Easier

Modern furniture has several advantages among which one of the most important is extended functionality. This is made possible with multifunctional furniture that is widely available. A common problem many homeowners face is limited space, so having dedicated dining room sets may not be an option for them.

One of the most ergonomic pieces of furniture for the dining room is a drop leaf dining table set. Upon first look, it’s nothing more than a standard dining table and can be designed in any shape and size. However, upon unlocking the mechanism below the table’s surface, the two sides of the table drop down and turn it into a sideboard that can be used for extra storage or a room accent on the side. Another clever multifunctional furniture design is a dining table that can be raised to one side revealing a small bookcase underneath. So, whenever you need the space for eating it turns into a dining room and when you’re done, simply raise the top and turn the space into a mini-library.