Create a tropical dining room with palms, reeds and dwarf citrus trees.
Eclectic styles aren't for everyone. However, for those who love having a home that's atypical, the dining room presents an open canvas of eclectic possibilities. The key is to select a theme so that despite the unabashed decision to do the unexpected, there's a "method to the madness" in your selection of fabrics, furnishings and wall d cor.
HRH Royal Dining Room
Design a dining room that makes guests feel they should be greeted as his or her royal highness (HRH). Explore antique stores for a long wooden dining table and chairs befitting royalty. Consider chairs with ornate arms and velvet upholstery as you'd see inside a church. The chair styles can all be different to give each dinner guest their own "throne." Decorate the walls with thick tapestries, murals and replicas of paintings by the old masters. Hang an ornate chandelier from the ceiling. Set the table with an old English lace tablecloth or one made of a rich brocade fabric. Use gold-rimmed china and a full silverware service for each place setting. Add a bit of whimsy by putting tiaras and crowns on the dinner plates.
Safari Dining Room
Turn a dining room into a space straight from the wilds of Africa. Upholster chairs in black and white or brown and black zebra stripes. Cover walls with a textured neutral beige wallpaper to coordinate with brown and black zebra stripes. If you go for black and white stripes, the walls can be white or gray and the moldings and baseboards can be painted black or white. Find prints of lions, elephants and exotic animals to frame for artwork. Add large containers of palms and ferns to give the room a jungle effect. Go for a white or beige linen tablecloth, depending on the color of zebra stripes you select for the chairs. Choose a color pop, such as red, pink or turquoise for plates if you have a black and white theme and earth tones such as sage or sand for plates in a brown-toned safari dining room.
Stars and Stripes
If you have a home that's decorated in a country or Americana style, take it a step further and create a stars and stripes dining room. Paint a main wall with red and white horizontal stripes. Make vertical striped blue and white curtains to accent the horizontal stripes, and repurpose a flagpole to serve as the curtain rod. Add Americana artifacts such as weather vanes. Use French country blue and white patterned plates for the table setting. Frame pictures of the presidents for artwork along with a copy of the Declaration of Independence.
TV Nation Dining Room
While it may not be viewed as proper etiquette, watching TV while dining is a pleasure many people enjoy. If that's your preference, create a dining room that celebrates viewing while dining. Install a big flat screen television. Frame posters of TV classics like "I Love Lucy" and "The Honeymooners" on the walls. Add a touch of kitsch with a vintage soda pop machine or an old-fashioned popcorn stand cart. Dining chairs can go 1960s retro with molded plastic or vinyl-covered chairs. Add a shag rug to make the room cozy. "Up" the eclectic factor by considering TV trays instead of having a dining table.
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