The dining room may be the centre of family activity or the hub of social gathering. Whether you're redoing the entire room, or just adding stylish accents, bring the look together with a design theme.
The dining room is one of the few areas in the home where you can really go to town with your wildest decorating ideas. To begin with, it's one of those rooms that only need a few pieces of practical furniture, namely a table and some chairs.
However, it is also the place for tea parties, dinner parties and of course lunches for special occasions.
Imagination is the key to a well-designed dining room and choosing a theme around which you can base your furniture and decorating ideas is a great way of doing this.
So which theme do you choose? Be bold, be brave and go for something that perhaps reflects your personality or brings back happy memories, maybe reminding you of a good holiday or another country.
If you want a dynamic-looking dining room, why not try a gothic theme?
The colour scheme could be a blend of deep reds, purples and even some black if you really want to push the boat out. Large metal ornaments can look classy and very much at home in this kind of environment.
If you prefer more of a minimalist look, with clean lines and absolutely no clutter, it's best complemented by light colours. Heavy curtains or blinds should be taken down in order to bring as much light into the room as possible.
A rustic or South American look is another theme worth exploring. Heavy tables, sturdy chairs and a log fire (or one of the gas imitations) will give a real country feel to your home.
Whatever theme you choose you will always need to consider the necessities.
Floorboards or an easy-to-clean carpet are ideal for the dining room, as this is the one place where food and drinks are more than likely to be spilled. Placing the table and chairs on a washable rug may seem like a good idea because of this, but with people moving their chairs in and out, the furniture may catch which could cause accidents.
Lighting is also an important feature to consider.
If you're planning on having a grand looking dining room, then perhaps you could hang a chandelier over the dining table. Candles are also a nice touch, but should only be used in addition to regular lighting as they can be knocked over easily. A few sticks in the centre of the table, set in elegant holders, are very decorative. Dimmer switches are also handy in the dining room to help create atmosphere.
Art works are often a good talking point and ideal to stimulate dinner party conversation. However, you don't need to fill your room with old masterpieces. Instead pick pictures, paintings or other decorative features that complement the style of your dining room and your own particular taste.
Finally, for those of you who may either live alone or are unlikely to have many guests around for dinner, then buying a table which can be folded away easily is often an ideal option, as are chairs that can be stacked up.
This will help to create some extra space in your room, perhaps for a study or a home gymnasium - the choice is yours!
The dining room is one of the few areas in the home where you can really go to town with your wildest decorating ideas. To begin with, it's one of those rooms that only need a few pieces of practical furniture, namely a table and some chairs.
However, it is also the place for tea parties, dinner parties and of course lunches for special occasions.
Imagination is the key to a well-designed dining room and choosing a theme around which you can base your furniture and decorating ideas is a great way of doing this.
So which theme do you choose? Be bold, be brave and go for something that perhaps reflects your personality or brings back happy memories, maybe reminding you of a good holiday or another country.
If you want a dynamic-looking dining room, why not try a gothic theme?
The colour scheme could be a blend of deep reds, purples and even some black if you really want to push the boat out. Large metal ornaments can look classy and very much at home in this kind of environment.
If you prefer more of a minimalist look, with clean lines and absolutely no clutter, it's best complemented by light colours. Heavy curtains or blinds should be taken down in order to bring as much light into the room as possible.
A rustic or South American look is another theme worth exploring. Heavy tables, sturdy chairs and a log fire (or one of the gas imitations) will give a real country feel to your home.
Whatever theme you choose you will always need to consider the necessities.
Floorboards or an easy-to-clean carpet are ideal for the dining room, as this is the one place where food and drinks are more than likely to be spilled. Placing the table and chairs on a washable rug may seem like a good idea because of this, but with people moving their chairs in and out, the furniture may catch which could cause accidents.
Lighting is also an important feature to consider.
If you're planning on having a grand looking dining room, then perhaps you could hang a chandelier over the dining table. Candles are also a nice touch, but should only be used in addition to regular lighting as they can be knocked over easily. A few sticks in the centre of the table, set in elegant holders, are very decorative. Dimmer switches are also handy in the dining room to help create atmosphere.
Art works are often a good talking point and ideal to stimulate dinner party conversation. However, you don't need to fill your room with old masterpieces. Instead pick pictures, paintings or other decorative features that complement the style of your dining room and your own particular taste.
Finally, for those of you who may either live alone or are unlikely to have many guests around for dinner, then buying a table which can be folded away easily is often an ideal option, as are chairs that can be stacked up.
This will help to create some extra space in your room, perhaps for a study or a home gymnasium - the choice is yours!