A round table arranged in a small dining room adds space.
Arrange a small dining room to look larger. With a few twists to the room design and several calculated additions, you can create a spacious dining room. Pick furniture that does double duty as storage to eliminate pieces, and calculate traffic flow before furniture placement. Increase seating with a round table, a banquette or bench in the room. Draw the eye upward or bounce light around the room to give a larger appearance to the room.
Instructions
1. Remove all the furniture and artwork from the room. Take down the curtains and the rods. Thoroughly wash down the walls, vacuum the carpet and start with a clean palette.
2. Paint the room a light color to trick the eye, as light-colored rooms appear larger. Install white bead board to the bottom two-thirds of the room with the top half a light yellow or peach, or consider painting one accent wall a lighter shade of the color used for the other walls.
3. Take the measurements of the room. Measure the width and length of the furniture pieces. Cut the furniture sizes out of newspaper or paper bags. Choose a round table with a pedestal and chairs without arms, if purchasing furniture, as these items give more space within the room.
4. Place the largest furniture cut-out on the dining room floor. This is usually the table. Add the cut-out chairs next and pull them out as if you were going to sit in them. Determine if the chairs hit the wall when pulled or block the traffic way when seated. Walk around the table and chairs and revise the design of the table and chairs until they allow a natural flow.
5. Use all space within the room. Slide a buffet cabinet in the corner to add storage and a place to display crystal and china. Run a bench or banquette seating along one side of the room for extra guests. Allow the banquette top to open so it can double as storage, or place decorative wooden boxes under the bench to store dining tablecloths, napkins and seasonal items.
6. Examine the lighting sources of the room. Determine where the natural light from the windows falls. Look at the placement of the and wall sconces, if any. Drop the ceiling light to above the table, if it is a chandelier, or move it to the center of the table if ceiling mounted. Place mirrors, or reflective surfaces, on opposite walls from the natural light to reflect the light around the room and give the appearance of a larger room.
7. Bring the eye up to create height. Run a shelf around the room at about 6 feet from the floor. Add one piece of large artwork to a wall, or in a gallery format, such as a straight line. Hang lush-flowing plants in the corner or add a wall storage design, such as an ornament cabinet.
Tags: dining room, , round table, around room give, ceiling light