Congrats on your home! That is so exciting! I would do a few things: 1) get a large console, bar cabinet for that alcove where the bookshelf is and hang a huge mirror over it; optimally you could do a beautiful built in upper glass front cabinets for china/wine glasses; you could prob find a console type piece on craigslist and paint it. 2) I'd get a huge rug for the room--sisal is cheap! 3) definitely try to find a bigger table--tables are easy to find on craigslist. Enjoy and have fun!!!

Hi Christina!

Congratulations on the lovely home!

So let's dig into your dining room a bit. The space itself has a nice background of flooring wall color, curtains, and big chandelier. If I were making one change to any of those things, I might install a wider curtain rod to let your drapes expand some on either side of the window. That's a minor thing. You mentioned painting - are you not happy with the wall color?

Your rug feels a little out of place in this room as it is. The rug feels earthy and casual, whereas the space feels more refined and formal.

I like your abstract painting with the wall color!

Your furniture is all legs! That's a common issue in dining rooms since they don't call for upholstered pieces. In particular the dining set and the table by the window feel outmatched by the room size. The bookshelf is better and the buffet looks to be a good size.

So what to do? You've hit the nail on the head that you need a direction. Go on a treasure hunt through Houzz for dining room idea photos that you like. Look for rooms that have backgrounds similar to yours if you'd prefer not to make changes there. See what kind of side pieces, art, and accessories appeal to you. Look for the pieces that won't add more wooden legs - upholstered bottoms, solid pieces, ceramics, wicker, etc.

Here are some particulars you might try:

• See if you can find an inexpensive or used bench or storage piece that can sit under your window and is approximately the window's width. You can use it for plant display and also for cushions that could bring in more color and softness.
• I'd probably center the bookshelf in the alcove. You might see if you can give it more visual weight with wicker baskets or something similar on the bottom shelves.
• If you're looking for a quick visual fix for your table, you might try a tablecloth instead. Even one that hangs halfway down each side could give the table more visual weight and softness at the same time. With the colors you have going on, I'd probably pull the blue from the rug or the white from the curtains.

Hopefully that gives you some ideas! Best of luck,

Doug

Color is hard to judge on monitors, but I don’t think your rug/chair cushions really work with the wall color. Also, the rug seems too small for the room. Maybe either paint the walls, or recover the chair cushions and get a bigger rug in a different color. Keep an eye on Craig’s List for dining sets as I’m guessing you can get a larger set cheaply.

Also, you need more art/decor on your walls. Please no clocks or mirrors. I like the art I see in the room, but it looks small for the wall it is on. Congrats on your new house and enjoy!

I would look on Craig’s list etc for a basic dining room table to fill up the space. For size, you need three feet on all sides of the dining table for chair seating and movement . The table will fill the space and look balanced. Then you can start budgeting for the rest of the room. Get the basics first then add the sparkle.

PS: the object is to buy the things you love for the dining room so you only buy something once; space holders tend to stay forever as ‘more important’ things. One up! Lovely room to work with!

Nice advice Tori!
Applicable to any dining room when you cover all the design basics for a dining room. I am going to check them off against my dining room to see if I am checking all the boxes!

Since you mentioned you are willing to paint, that’s the first thing I would do and suggest the blue color in rug to pull the space together.

Consider selling your dining set so you can increase seating capacity, but will also look better from a proportional perspective. Second hand Is a great way to go. For instance, the set below on Facebook’s Marketplace in my area is $1,000Cdn for a solid wood table and six chairs (these chairs brand new are around $200 each)

If you can still find your same drapes, I’d double them and get a longer rod, allowing drapes to rest more on the wall for a much fuller feel.

You could remove the tall shelving and replace with something that is both useable, based on your needs, and decorative. I’d also relook at how you accessorize the other shelving

These updates will transform your room at little cost and it may be enough not to want to change it for some tIme.

@Susan Davis go for it ! 😊 Please feel free to reach out if you have any questions. Happy Decorating and send me your “after” pictures.

I would use your niche for console table and some decor on the top, wall art above. Nice idea to get a bamboo blinds and fuller curtains. Existing ones look skimpy for so big window. Move your shelves to each other on one wall.

I want to thank everyone for the great advice and tips!

I needed to stay busy after my initial post and decided to pull the trigger and repaint. Now, this large space seems even larger and all the natural light really makes me happy with the choice (Color is Eider White by SW). @Tori Black Homes - I now feel like scale is a bigger challenge with more perceived space to work with. And I do have a great oversize vase to showcase, when I can get the lighting up off the table a bit.

I found a second hand teak dining set that we fell in love with, when extended, adds an additional 20" on either side. Thinking about @RoominessTV's advice and adding a bench for under the window that we can use for additional seating when needed.

Next on our to-do list are lighting and window treatment:

We want to swap out the chandelier but have to repair the plaster in ceiling from previous fixtures. I was thinking

For window treatments, we have the window opposite the dining room that already has some bamboo/wood shade hung (last picture) and thinking about continuing that throughout the space.

I swapped the two bookcases I had, to make the bar/glassware more accessible to the kitchen, and centered it. And using the tall bookcase in the corner to showcase some artwork and photos. I might hang some of the art after we update window treatments. I'm still looking for a console/cabinet to fit well in that nook.

Continues to be a work in progress, any additional thoughts/ideas are greatly appreciated!!

Thanks Houzz community!

table extended

when extended, need additional seating on one side.

Just found a set of 4 of the exact chairs on Facebook marketplace! Lucky!

Thoughts between getting matching chairs or bench?