Dining Room Decorating Tips
Photo: Lars Ranek
Dining room design ideas:
Fabrics. Many people overlook the power of different fabrics in their dining room. One should invest in several different tablecloths to match whatever occasion one is celebrating. In addition, cloth napkins are a great way to make a statement with color and napkin rings. Runners can add even more color, either alone on a wooden table with fabric placemats, or in conjunction with a tablecloth.
Dining Room Colors. Do not assume that because a color is your favorite, it will also look good on the walls of the dining room or create a harmonious whole with the dining room furniture. Also, when choosing a color palette, understand that what looks good in the day in natural light may not necessarily look as good or even look the same in artificial light. In general, colors such as reds, oranges and yellows work to create a more formal atmosphere while colors such as golden or creamy yellow, terracotta, wine, burgundy or dusty rose are considered ideal for a dining room. These colors are said to stimulate the appetite and also have been shown to promote enjoyable conversation.
Painting Or Wallpaper. If you want the room to have some personality, paint those walls something other than white. You can also use wallpaper with various textures to get color with feel. You can paint one wall or all the walls. You can paint the ceiling, if it is flat and smooth. You can paint or wallpaper just one section of the wall, typically beneath the chair rail.
Linen and Accessories For Dining Room. When you coordinate the table linen to the colors that you have chosen for the dining area, remember that matching is far more difficult than contrasting. In any case, too much matching of colors among all the elements of a dining room may not even look that attractive; a contrasting palette may look more interesting and attractive on the whole. So if you have beige on the walls, consider wine colored table cloth and beige colored table napkins. Or contrast the color of the china and serving dishes to the color of the table cloth to get a dramatic and attractive look.
Dining Room Lighting. It is a good idea to use dimmers for the dining area. Differences in lighting can dramatically alter the ambience of the dining area from warm and intimate to bright and friendly. Dimming the lights gives you the option of adding candles to the table setting so that you can create a wonderfully romantic setting for special occasions.
Other tips by Jeanette J. Fisher
If you want to makeover your dining room for good conversations and dining pleasure, here are a few new interior design tips from Design Psychology strategies:
1. Focus on how you and your dining partners will look in the space. Don’t overdo the accessories.
2. Use colors to enhance the appearance of people and fabrics to soften the space.
3. Choose wallpaper with patterns smaller than your palm so the pattern doesn’t compete with faces.
4. Add flowers and soft — not spiky — houseplants to bring nature indoors.
5. Provide cushioned chairs for relaxed and extended conversations.
6. Establish a theme or style that reinforces your personal design statement.
7. Color your walls to complement food and enhance taste.
8. Relax formal dining rooms with rough textures and houseplants.
Make your guests and family feel honored with a dining room designed to support conversations and enjoy eating your shared dinners.
Copyright (c) 2004 by Jeanette J. Fisher
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