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A dining room is the perfect backdrop for family connection and conversation. However, it’s incredibly common (and easy!) for a formal dining room to become a dusty, stuffy museum exhibit that’s used only on major holidays.
So, how can you create a dining room that you’ll use – and enjoy using – frequently? Here are major considerations for furnishing, decorating, and designing a space that feels like the heart of your home.
Figuring out how to create a formal dining room that feels both welcoming and practical is difficult, as those qualities can seem like polar opposites. Choosing the right furniture to strike a balance between formal and inviting is essential.
The “right” size and shape of your dining room table depends entirely on your family, home, and circumstances. If you’re regularly hosting parties and holidays but will have a smaller crew gathered around the table in the day-to-day, an extendable dining room table is a superb option. Otherwise, the general rule of thumb is to determine how many people will typically be seated at your table and choose an option that offers each diner at least 24 inches of space. Keep in mind that you should also ensure there is enough space around your table so guests can easily walk around, pull out chairs, and serve food. For this, the rule of thumb is to leave about three feet of space around every side of the table.
The shape of the dining table is just as important as its size. Rectangular tables are great for long or narrow rooms, or for anyone who regularly hosts bigger groups. If your room has less square footage, a round table can help to improve flow, make the room feel more spacious, and create more flexibility in seating.
Rectangular tables offer the sleek, defined angles often found in more formal spaces, while round tables better facilitate conversation and closeness.
People are not going to gravitate toward uncomfortable seats. Many formal dining rooms prioritize aesthetics over comfort, and dining room chairs can feel stiff and unforgiving – perfect for fancy dinners, but not a casual Wednesday breakfast.
A truly inviting, practical dining room will equally value comfort and cushion. “Test drive” any dining chair you’re considering, and make sure it would be a genuinely pleasant choice for casual meals, late-night homework sessions, and family game nights.
Furnish your room with convenience and practicality at the forefront. If you know you want to use your dining room for activities beyond four-course meals, select furniture that can be used for both! If you want your dining area to be a quiet study spot, pick a buffet with room for extra pencils and other supplies. If you dream of cozy at-home coffee dates in your dining room, pick a china hutch that can double as a coffee bar. The more practical the room feels, the more it will be used.
Decorating your dining room with warmth and personality can transform it from a furniture showroom to your family’s happy place.
If you want your dining room to truly be practical, offer lighting that works for both an intimate dinner and a thousand-piece puzzle. If you’ve already invested the effort in figuring out how to hang a chandelier over a dining room table, don’t let that deter you! Just make sure to use adjustable lights that can be dimmed and brightened, or include other options – like standing lamps or table lamps – that can be used for different activities.
The easiest way to soften a room is to add a rug. Choose one that is large enough so that every leg of the chair is still on the rug when it’s pushed in or pulled out for seating. Typically, a rug that extends about two feet from every side of the table should do the trick.
The difference between a dining room in a magazine and the dining room in your home is the family that lives there. Add unique touches through your dining room decor. Hang up family photos from your favorite vacations, or artwork you chose together. Fill a vase with your very favorite flowers.
Forget the idea of a picture-perfect formal dining room and focus on making it a real one.
When learning how to decorate a dining room table, it’s important to keep practicality and convenience in mind. That means choosing table decor that can be easily moved or adjusted to accommodate other items, like laptops and board games. With every furniture and decor choice you make, ask yourself if something will look good in photographs or feel good in real life… and ideally, you’ll find things that check both boxes!
While most of the focus has been on the furniture and decor, the empty space in your dining room is just as important for designing a space that feels accessible and welcoming.
It’s essential that there is enough room around the table (about 3 feet) so people can move easily. When a room feels overly crowded or cramped, it can create discomfort. By ensuring there is plenty of space to get up, serve food, and comfortably move around furniture and people, you’ll help ensure the room becomes a place people enjoy being.
As you’re furnishing the room, envision the natural paths people will take. This means considering doorways and ensuring they don’t feel blocked or cramped with furniture, and that natural paths (like from the table to the kitchen) feel spacious and convenient.
Clunky, ornate seats may look gorgeous, but they might not be practical for the hustle and bustle of a high-traffic area. If you want your dining room to be used as much as possible, for as many activities as possible, you should choose seating that can be moved, tucked away, added, and adjusted as needed to maintain flow and ease.
A dining room works best when it’s designed for real life. CORT Furniture Outlet offers tables, chairs, and storage pieces that balance style and function—without the full retail price. Shop in-store or online to create a dining space you’ll actually enjoy using.
