Create the Desired Ambience in your Dining Room

Research has shown that where and how you eat is very important; perhaps as much as what you eat. Your dining room does not consist of only dining chairs and dining room table; it is also about ambience, about a welcoming and warm look. The dining room should be a place that you enjoy being in, not just a place to sit and eat your meals.

Accessories: Collect interesting dining room accessories, such an unusual cake platter, Pasta containers, Spice Bottles, Handmade or hand painted pitcher or vase etc. A beautiful vase for the center of the dining table or to place on your dining room hutch, makes an interesting focal point and adds a lovely decorating accent for the room. A cake platter or a decorative salver can be both functional as well as good to look at. It can be used to serve a dessert like a cake or to serve hors d’ouvres or other snacks. Decorative elements such as wall art, photo frames or curios can be used, to create some appealing accents but do not use too many; the drawing room is a better place for displaying those.

Arranging the Furniture: Clutter is never attractive, so try not to crowd too many pieces of dining room furniture into your dining space. Pick a few well matched pieces of furniture; perhaps even a dining room set, so that the room looks well balanced and well laid out. While the dining table and chairs should ideally always be in the centre, you can create a sense of balance by choosing some corner cabinets, to offset the table and chairs or a sideboard on one side with a matching chest of drawers on the other side of the room to give a sense of elegance and also practical storage options.

Visual Impact: Two things create the maximum visual impact: lighting and the color scheme. Don’t be a slave to color coordination. If everything is too color coordinated, the final appearance will be bland and unexciting. Contrasts work better to make a visual impact. For instance if your dining room furniture is made up of dark materials, use light colored table linen, or put light colors on the walls. If your walls are light colored, use bright and cheerful colors for your place mats or the kind of crockery that you use. Mix and match to achieve an interesting and colorful palette that will make the best visual impact.

Also choose your lighting with care, you could decide to go in for a central chandelier (make sure it is not too big for the room, otherwise it will give the impression of clutter) and then use a few other spot lights to highlight some particular pieces of furniture or decorative objects around the room. If you want to use a chandelier, make sure however that your ceiling is high enough, otherwise you would be better advised to use some well placed table or floor lamps. Heavy drapes and tapestry may not be the best option for your dining room, a light and airy look usually works better for this space.