Dining Room Ideas

Like any great dinner party, the best dining rooms spark conversation. Jewelry-inspired chandeliers & pendants, a textural table, sculptural seating and abstract artwork leave a lasting impression on guests. Go big and go bold.

From open concepts to breakfast nooks, the dining rooms of today are designed to blend into border-less kitchens and living rooms with ease. That said, there are still ways to give it personality and maintain the flow. A rustic wooden farmhouse table pops next to an all white kitchen, without creating dissonance. Chandeliers and pendants are an opportunity to pull textures and tones found in nearby countertops and artwork, tying adjacent rooms together while creating a unique dining environment.

When it comes to dining room chandeliers and pendants, mimic the shape of your table. Linear suspensions should run the same direction as a rectangular or oval dining table, but make sure the size is right. You want a minimum of six inches of breathing room between the edge of your fixture, and the edge of your dining table. For round tables, consider round or sputnik pendants. If your table is large enough, a cluster of two or three pendants should do the trick.

Making a statement in the dining room can be as simple as mix-and-match seating and multi-light pendants to bold upholstered dining chairs and artfully installed suspensions. General rule of thumb: More is better. Ample seating, ample storage, ample lighting; it's better to have leftovers, than not enough to go around.

Much like a powder room, the dining room is a great place to play with color. Patterned tablecloths, vibrant upholstery and saturated wall coverings can help brighten the space. Of course, don't forget about the lighting. Not only can you bring color in with a light fixtures materials, but the color temperature of your fixtures is crucial, it's the real secret ingredient. Dimming is a must in any dining room, and technologies like Warm Dim and Tunable White take it one step further. With Warm Dim, you can dial from a bright 3000K or 2700K down to 1800K reminiscent of candlelight - the perfect setting for any romantic dinner. Tunable White gives you even more control, allowing you to dial up to a crisp 4000K or hone in on a blazing 2000K - a color reminiscent of the coveted Golden Hour.

Of course, not every dining room remodel can include an electrician. Consider a plug-in pendant or plug-in wall sconce when you want to upgrade your lighting without cutting into drywall. Whether creating a formal space for large dinner parties, or a more intimate, everyday dining room, the key is to create something that reflects your personality.