I love your dining room......I am moving in that direction and love that you have a china cabinet. I no longer feel like the Lone Ranger....but I like the fabric on the bigger bench but think some thing bold like that on the smaller bench will be a better scale....if you wanted to umph the design factor maybe a small chair for lessons and a gallery type wall of wreathes etc over the piano to fill the staircase wall.....very lovely and chic!

PS what is the paint finish on the navy blue wall?

I wondered about the scale. We love our china cabinet. The lighting in it is beautiful and really gives off a great ambiance. My husband would not let me get rid of the china cabinet even though thats what people are doing these days. I did wonder about the scale of the bench too. Thanks! Paint color is Benjamin Moore Newburyport Blue but I really wish I would have went a little darker with Hale Navy.

If these are the 2 choices the shorter one is better but I do not like the upholstery at all and IMO the fun upholstery does not suit your home at all. Since this is right next to the DR I would probably choose a fabric with at least some of the color from the DR chairs.

Your style leans more traditional. So, the longer bench does not work with your home. I would choose the style of the shorter bench.

If you can't find the length you want in the blue tone you want, choose a longer bench in a nuetral tone. There are many other ways you could draw in the wall color in the dining room. For example, in a piece of art.

I wish they made the short bench in the fun pattern!

Love the longer more fun design! Injects a little playfulness into your traditional style without compromising the look. Great find.

I feel like maybe I should show other photos of our home. we are overhauling it all and starting to get somewhere. We are young but do lean more towards the traditional but I love fun prints and textures. We are changing out the chairs in the dining room but havent decided exactly what yet. I have also been considering a large sign where the mirror is that says gather. Chandelier is changing out at some point too.

I am going to take a few pictures when I am back home later today.

Thanks Joyful. That is good information that you are going to be making changes. I had taken a look at your ideabooks and even those look very traditional. Adding more photos here of the new direction would be very helpful.

The smaller bench is more proportionate for the space but the fabric on the larger adds some interest. But for practical reasons the larger would suit your needs.