Read these dining room decorating tips and bring your room into today's busy world

Optimize your dining room for maximum use and efficiency

When we think of dining room decorating today, we no longer think of the stiff, formal, fussy dining rooms of yesteryear.

Our lifestyles are too busy to worry about dressing for dinner at eight. No longer are there servants to cook, fetch and carry for our sit down dinners. Space is at a premium and dining rooms are often multi-functional rooms in our homes.

What is your Dining Lifestyle?

Every family has a different lifestyle. No longer is there only one proper way to conduct ourselves. Just look at our dining patterns. Do you recognize yourself or your family lifestyle listed below?

• Are you a person who regularly picks up a takeout meal before running on to the evenings activities?
• Are you a family with toddlers, feeding the babies at 5 PM and then collapsing exhausted in front of the TV with a microwave meal?
• Does your family consist of pre-teens that need to be chauffeured from one activity to the next while eating power bars in the car?
• Perhaps you are a family with teen-agers who rush into the house at meal time, grab whatever is handy, and rush off again?
• Are you a stay at home parent who loves to cook and have everyone gather together for an evening meal and discuss the days events?
• Are you someone who loves to entertain friends and family on a regular basis

Think about your dining habits, and fill out the Dining Room Analysis Worksheet available here in printable form. Once the form is filled out and you have thought about the purpose of your dining room, read on for some ideas about dining room decorating.

Where do you really dine?

As you thought about your dining habits, you must have given thought to where you really eat. Do you eat:

• In the dining room
• At the kitchen table
• In the family room in front of the TV
• In the living room in front of the fireplace
• On the deck or patio
• Standing up by the kitchen island
• In bed
• All of the above

When thinking about dining room decorating, don't just think of the dining room. If you regularly eat in various parts of your home, plan to make each one of them a comfortable, convenient area that becomes a special place to enjoy the pleasure of dining.

Be sure to have a convenient space for placing food and drink within reach. Have a small basket handy for holding utensils, napkins, and salt and pepper. If you prefer not to have these items around, keep a small tray or basket in the kitchen, that you can just pick up and carry with your food as you go to a dining area.

It is irritating to have to keep jumping up from your meal to return to the kitchen for salt, a napkin, or whatever other small necessity you have forgotten to bring with you. It not only takes away from your dining pleasure, but it doesn't help your digestion either!

What is the function of your dining room?

Does your dining room decorating scheme consist of a dining set, buffet, china closet or other storage pieces? Is your room only used for the evening meal or formal entertaining?

If this is the case, how often do you really use this room? If it is only used occasionally, consider revamping your ideas about your dining room.

Consider other uses in your dining room decorating scheme

If you are fortunate enough to have a separate dining room, consider ways to use the room more often for greater efficiency.

Consider these options:

• A library
• A home office
• A study or homework area
• A cozy conversation corner for an after dinner drink
• A guest room with the addition of a futon or small sofa

However you decide to use the room, set off the dining area from the rest of the room when planning your dining room decorating. This can be done with screens, an area rug, or a piece of furniture such as a buffet serving table. If you have a separate conversation area, place the chairs facing away from the dining area.

Use lighting effectively

If your dining area is part of a multi-purpose space, separate the areas with various types of lighting when planning your dining room decorating. By using an unusual hanging lamp over the dining table you effectively draw attention to the area as a focal point. In other areas, table lamps, wall scones, or spot lighting will be useful for bringing needed light and atmosphere to the space as it is being used.

Be sure to use dimmers on the lights so they can be adjusted as each area comes into use.

Don't forget to incorporate candles in your dining room decorating, to bring ambiance and romance to your dining experience.

And while we are on the subject of lighting, mirrors reflecting the glow of candles and subtle lighting add much to the ambiance of the room.

Check out this interesting site of contemporary and traditional art lighting for your home interior, exclusive collection of table and floor lamps, ceiling and chandelier fixtures, pendant and wall armatures.
Castlewood Walnut Three-Light Mini Chandelier

Pay attention to the seating

The days of sit up straight, don't put your elbows on the table, and dress for dinner are long gone. Today comfort and convenience reign.

One of the first considerations for comfort should be the chairs used at the dining room table.

To make your dining room decorating more interesting, consider using chairs that don't match the table. There are many comfortable seating choices available today. Dining room chairs do not have to be straight or wood. Padded or upholstered seating looks marvelous around a table and invites guests to sit back, relax, and enjoy not only a good meal, but also good conversation.

There are on right or wrong seating choices. The only considerations should be:

• Is the height right for the table?
• Do you like it?
• Is it comfortable?

Would you use the room more if the furniture wasn't so formal and more child friendly?

Dining room furniture does not have to be a "matching set". Many families relegate eating in the dining room to holidays because the furniture is "too good" for everyday use.

If this is the case, consider changing your furniture to a more informal style. Use a table that can be used for homework and hobbies at other times of the day. After all, it can still be covered with an elegant tablecloth for special occasions.

Opt for easy care flooring and area rugs rather than wall to wall carpeting. Remove fragile china while the children are small, or move it to higher shelves or into cabinets with doors.

Make your dining room the new family gathering place that everyone can use and enjoy.

Create a Dining Room for every day use

When planning your dining room decorating, open up your mind for ways and ideas to extend the use of your space. Create a room you can enjoy not only a mealtime, but every day in many ways.

If you have a dining room hutch, this was tradionally used to display the "good china". With today's lifestyles, many families choose not to invest in this item that is used perhaps once or twice a year at holidays and special occasions.

If you decide to use your dining room for other family activities, don't feel you can't display other items in your hutch. Books, collectibles, plants, photos, or any other item you choose to display is perfectly acceptable. Just be sure to compose a pleasing display if you have glass shelves and all is open to view.

The more you can spread your activities throughout the home, the more functional, comfortable, and enjoyable you will find your living space.

This is what makes your house a home you enjoy returing to as a haven from the outside world. Create this space of peace and harmony, and you will find these qualities extending into all areas of your life.

Happy Dining and Living!