Decorate A Modern Dining Room With An Antique Dining Set

Use a piece of art glass as a centerpiece.

Creating a modern dining room doesn't mean you have to use exclusively modern furniture. You can mix antique pieces into the room, or even use an entire antique dining set. The keys to making the antique pieces fit into your modern decor are making cosmetic updates to the furniture when appropriate and accessorizing even the most traditional pieces in a modern way.

Instructions

1. Paint or wallpaper your dining room walls with a bold color or modern pattern. Paint the woodwork and molding with stark black or white paint with a high-gloss finish.

2. Lay a patterned kilim or soumak rug -- antique or reproduction -- on the floor to tie old and new together. Their geometric patterns have a modern sensibility while remaining traditional enough to suit your antique dining set.

3. Paint one or two pieces of your antique dining set with glossy paint in black, white or a bold color, unless the furniture has significant financial value. For example, paint the dining chairs and buffet, but leave the table and china cabinet in the original finish.

4. Reupholster the seats of your dining chairs with new fabric in a striking pattern. You can opt for a 1960's-inspired geometric, a bold stripe or a hand-dyed ikat.

5. Line the back wall of your china cabinet with your chair-seat fabric, or with an intense solid fabric that contrasts with your dinnerware. Display a sparse selection of your dinnerware in the shelves, perhaps mixing in a few modern ceramics, candlesticks or wine glasses.

6. Hang a drum-shade chandelier, a series of pendant lights or a single light fixture with an art-glass shade above your dining table. Add coordinating wall sconces if your dining room is large. Replace your wall switches with dimmers so you can adjust the light.

7. Top your buffet or sideboard with a stark contemporary lamp or flank it with a pair of sleek, stylized candelabra. Hang an abstract painting or print above the piece. Use a large piece of art glass as a centerpiece, or arrange flowers in a contemporary vase. Complete your accessories by placing a dramatic, abstract sculpture atop a sleek, mirrored or lacquered pedestal.

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