Banquette Inspiration

Absolutely LOVE this one! Looks like they're working with a similar dining footprint.

Not a fan of the color scheme on this one but love the concept! If it were lighter and brighter, it would feel very similar to our current dining space.

Love the feeling of this one! I big on how a space *feels*

The table is longer and can seat 3 people along the side, should we try to for something like that? instead of squeezing in a chair at the end of the table which is what we currently do. Our existing table has additional leaves to lengthen it.

A bit too modern/hotelish for my taste but the room layout seems very similar.

One thing you might consider is changing from a sliding door to french doors that swing out. Putting the "dummy" door along the wall would allow you to use more of that space towards that end of wall/that corner. Additionally, you could put roman shades on the french doors for privacy when you need it! Also, instead of a rectangle table you could look for an oval table that can extend. The oval ends would help with traffic flow and minimize bumping sharp corners. We have a small enclosed dining room (larger than yours but still small) that is a thruway from one part of house to the rest. We ended up finding a vintage table (from the 60s I think) that goes from 40" round (we would never have it that small) to 80" long with both leaves inserted. We have one leaf in (60") all the time. All that to say it might be worth looking into vintage tables that might fit your space dimensions and usage needs simultaneously. I found all the new tables I was seeing were just too big/not the right scale for our needs. A banquette- particularly one whose seat lifts up for additional storage- would be perfect there and great for stashing extra kitchen tools or staples, table linens, or those frequently used but cluttery things that go along with having young kids (art supplies, play doh, placemats, etc)!

ETA- a pedestal table like you have currently would be a must!

@Hope Stewart I love the idea of french doors because I really love the look of them, but its our budget that is limiting us right now. Especially when we're saving to do the kitchen remodel.

I adore round tables and kept one for as long as we could and if we had an alternate space for school work and other activities I would totally have one. Alas, the dining space isn't large enough to suit one big enough for our family. The oval idea is good, just a matter of coming across the right thing. I love this table which isn't oval but the corners are rounded nicely.

Yes, storage would be a plus. Would you run the banquette the full length of the wall or just in the center where the table is? Do you have an opinion about the walls be the same on both sides of the slider?

100% agree about the pedestal. Previously we had a similar size table but with regular legs. It felt like they were always getting in the way, so I picked up what we have currently on marketplace.

Thanks for your input!

@decoenthusiaste That's a great idea for squeezing extra storage, but since we're doing the kitchen remodel sometime this year, we don't want to spend money on stuff we wont be able to use in the future. I'll check out the link you shared. Thanks for posting!

The built in banquettes look great but you're very limited for space. I'd look at trying to maximize every inch with stand alone pieces. Using a narrower/slimline dining table with legs or a center pedestal that allow chairs to slide completely underneath, and an armless cushioned settee/bench which can also slide underneath will help keep the aisle open. The corner banquettes need extra space for the corner and loading a lot of people on the bench seating means that if someone in the middle has to get up during a meal, the people next to them also have to scoot out.

If fewer than 6 people are using the table on a daily basis, you may be able to tweak the spacing and either slide the table closer to the wall if family is choosing chairs or tuck the side chairs in if the end chairs and bench/settee are favored.

You have some beautiful inspiration pics - most of the table legs help the design work, one definitely doesn't. One has three chairs but it looks like the bench can be accessed from only one side because the table is so close to the window. Count every inch of the furniture or built-ins you plan to use, and allow for spacing when in use so you'll know how much you'll have left over for the aisle and how challenging it might be to get in and out of bench seating.

You're on the right track with your inspiration photos in similar spaces EXCEPT FOR PILLOWS--not practical for families (or spines). An upholstered, armless dining bench is the most comfortable, attractive solution, which will leave a pathway through the room. Dining benches are available at Wayfair and other sources. Add four chairs--one at each end, two across from dining bench.

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I'm not sure I understand what you are asking about walls on either side of sliders- do you mean how wide the wall is on either side?

Re your other question- It depends on how long your wall is that banquette will go on and also how long your table is... but it appears that you have enough room that something like this could be really nice. No matter that you don't have windows on that wall- functionally it seems it'd work well and would provide good storage. Again, though depends on your wall length. Also, generally you want banquettes to be longer than the table for ease of getting in and out.

ETA- Here is an IKEA diy hack for something similar... but in your case you would probably want longer banquette and narrower cabinets on either side.

I love that blue one housegal just posted.

also like the idea of something on the side of the fridge. You really need a fridge surround. it will look cleaner and give you more storage.

They are pretty easy to DIY. this one is plywood (which you would then paint) with some open cubbies above.

many diff ways to construct it. open area above w/side cubbies

Or this wider spot above

or go a bit fancier and enclose the upper portion. you have enough room on the side for a shallow storage shelf or broom closet

or even something like this.

To give yourself some 'L' seating, have you considered removing the slider and just doing a 32-36" door?

otherwise, you're just going to have to work w/the space you have

a settee and sconces like this always look nice

@Hope Stewart Yes, I was asking for thoughts on whether or not I should keep the wall space on either side the same width? The fridge will only be there for a few more months until the remodel and I can't decide if I should steal some of those inches for the kitchen or just leave it as is to keep some balance.

The dining wall is 8.75 feet long so not very long at all, and our table is 5 ft long.

I LOVE both of those banquette ideas with the cabinets flanking the bench, however I think it would feel awkward and closed off walking in from the mudroom. The mudroom is our primary entrance so I think it would feel weird to walk into the house and have a "box" directly to my right. It would close it off too much.

@housegal200 The pillows always look so nice in photos, but I completely agree they aren't practical, especially having littles in the house. Upholstered will for sure be the route we go, just so long as we can find some super durable fabric. Our 4 yr old is rough on EVERYTHING. I actually do have an upholstered bench currently it's just in the living room right now for extra seating. I'll move it to the kitchen tomorrow and post a pic to see what you think.

The chairs we have now are currently only a set of 4, that dang 4th chair was missing and they're super comfortable. We're open to other chair options as long as A. we can push them under the table, B. At least the seat is padded, and C. the tops are not taller than the table.

Any other decor ideas for how to decorate the dining wall or sliding glass door are welcome too! I threw that chalkboard and shelf up there just to have something and hide all the holes in the wall left from the previous owner which I didn't feel like patching at the time. The kids have actually had a lot of fun with it and I decorate it for all the holidays. I would eventually like to add sconces on that wall for ambiant light, but the switched seem to be in the way.

Also, I love the inspo photo you shared! My dining wall isn't quite that large, it's only 8.75 ft but I think it would work.

@JT7abcz Thanks for the feedback! We usually only have 2 people sitting on the wall side, maximum of 3, so people having to slide out so others can move isn't much of an issue. We cannot do a corner or L-shaped banquette due to the window, I shared that pic more for the *feel* of it.

I do have an armless bench/settee that's currently being utilized in the living room (same issue there, small space so we needed to get creative with extra seating) I'll pull it in and share a pic of it tomorrow.

@Beth H. : Thanks for the input! We are remodeling our kitchen in a few months so we're not concerned about the fridge being framed out. (See pic above, for future kitchen layout) Ideally, we would like to work with the space we have and I would love to incorporate sconces!

L-shaped banquettes are lovely, but I'm not sure if that would be an option. Our home doesn't get a lot of natural light due a 6 foot front porch and 14 ft screened in patio. We would like to keep as much natural light by maintaining the integrity of the windows/slider. One of your inspo photos I already had pinned!!! Maybe we could have a single door and a window to the right? That would be quite an overhaul though. Wondering if it would be worth it or not?

You have a lot of great ideas. I think the banquette is the way to go. My SIL added one and she can really pack in the relatives when we come to visit. So great for the little ones too, you can really pack them onto a banquette so seating for six easily becomes seating for eight adults or multitudes of kids. She made the base with cabinets for storage. She keeps all her Christmas platters and dishware under there so she has to pull out the table only once a year to get them. It really adds to her storage space. She has a lot of holiday pieces.

Looks like you have an HVAC return on that wall. You'll have to make sure to accommodate that if you do a banquette.

You do not need to keep the same wall width on the sides of the door. Look at the top inspo picture posted and you can see the cabinets come in closer to the door on the left vs the wall on the right. It looks fine and with such a small house, you need all the storage you can get. I would also do a built in (just on the long-side and not “L” shaped) and put storage drawers underneath.

@tozmo1 Thank you so much! I really enjoy making the most of small spaces, sometimes I just need some help tweaking it. Usually it's the kids on the bench and 2 adults. Every once in a while, we'll say a few times a month we have another adult or 2 over for dinner. If it gets larger than that were all outside eating on the back patio, so were talking *maybe* 8 people max. Most of the time its 5 or 6.

We also really like the idea of extra storage, hence we would prefer something built-in vs. settee.

Yes there is an hvac return there which we would need to work around or perhaps put a "grill" of sorts to be seamless with the front of the bench. My husband knows more about that than I do and we would make the proper adjustments.

@lmckuin That's a good point. I struggle with anything asymmetrical because symmetry is aesthetically pleasing to me, or at least having things visually balanced.

Would you take the built-in all the way to the corner?

For those of you who support the built in idea, are we talking a bench box or do we need to include an angled back, etc?

If you take it to the wall, the depth of the seat is determined by the distance from the edge of the door to the wall. That might be deep enough but I think your diagram shows that to be 15.5 inches. Once you remove several inches for the back of the banquette, that's not a very deep seat. So I wouldn't be restricted by that.

Talk to an upholsterer who does commercial work for restaurants and offices. They can probably make recommendations for the space. Here's some pictures from the website of an upholsterer in my area who does both commercial and residential. They build all kinds of banquettes. These are probably fixed backs and fixed seats. You can find a lot of great vinyls now that look like fabrics or have it done in a performance fabric.

The one below has storage and accommodates HVAC. Yours will be trickier because a return is larger than a vent, but a skilled person can figure it out. This back is probably not angled but the tufted back has a lot of movement to it when leaning on it, so not needed to be comfy.

This one has nice storage with an arm on the end. Looks like the back is an angled wood.

Clean lines, HVAC and electrical accommodated. Slightly angled back with fixed cushions

Lots of other great banquettes on the upholsterer's website https://www.abzupholstery.com/portfolio

This one from your inspo pics also has storage. Looks like drop down cabinets.

Not sure if this is a DIY project, but if it's something you're going to keep in the space for a long time, you might want to consider having a pro build it especially if you are interested in fixed cushions.

@tozmo1 You make an excellent point about the depth of the bench being determined by the width of the wall which is only 15 inches. I'd love extra storage as you can never have too much of that in a smaller home. I'm wondering if we could put 2 shallow, low profile storage units flanking a built-in banquette. I share a photo of the settee option later today. :)

I think that first photo I linked in my response above shows slightly shallower storage options on either side of the banquette that is a little deeper. That sounds like a good way to go. Heres the picture...

I think that's a great idea but make sure you'll have enough clearance to make sitting down from that end work. How far out can the table be from the wall? You still have to get onto the seat. It might work, but I'd prototype it first with boxes or something to make sure the table doesn't have to come far into the room to be able to get on the bench.

I love more storage!

That's a beautiful banquette @Hope Stewart. I don't think I can get away with anything tall because there's the mudroom entrance just to the right of the table. I should probably include a photo of that wall.

A couple days late, here are the additional photos showing how the mudroom and living space are related to the dining space. I also so took some photos swapping out the bench for the settee.

@rebunky tagging you on this thread since you had some great ideas about the dining area. https://www.houzz.com/discussions/6260628/8ft-x-9ft-tiny-kitchen-layout-help We really love the idea of a banquette and now after looking at it, we are considering the bump out you posted on the previous thread. Our exterior wall is brick so the back of the bump out would be brick which could make a nice little feature. We could also put the sconces in the alcove similar to the photo @Hope Stewart posted above.