Picking colours for a kitchen or living room is simple. Choosing the design and colour scheme for your dining room, however, is more of a challenge. Equal parts a place to socialise and a place to relax, dining rooms need to be both stimulating and comfortable – a tough combination to achieve.
By choosing flooring, furniture, and accessories that inspire conversation and also let you relax and unwind, you can create the perfect home dining room. Read on to learn how to use colour, contrast, and lighting to turn your home dining room into the perfect place to entertain and socialise.
Flooring: Dark and Powerful or Light and Welcoming
When it comes to dining room flooring, you have two great choices available: light and welcoming or dark and powerful wood panelling. It’s generally best not to use tiled flooring in the dining room, as it can clash with many dining room tables.
There are exceptions to this rule, however. Mediterranean-style dining rooms can look wonderful with ceramic tiled floors. Ultra-modern dining rooms can also look very good with dark and powerful natural stone flooring.
Furniture: Rich and Natural or Sleek and Modern
The colour of your dining room furniture can have a huge effect on the atmosphere in your dining room. Materials like marble and granite – which are warm white and dark and powerful black– can make your dining room feel stylish and modern.
Wooden tables and dining room chairs, on the other hand, can create a warmer and more sociable environment. Your furniture should be balanced with the colours you choose for your floor and walls – balance lighter walls with darker furniture.
Walls and Ceiling: Light, Bright and Low-Contrast
In most cases, dining rooms look best with earth-toned walls. Colours like green and white, for example, blend in seamlessly with the natural wooden tones used in most dining room tables and chairs.
The darker your colour scheme, the more it will begin to absorb the other colours used in decorating and furnishing your dining room. If you want your furniture to ‘pop’ and stand out, choose a light colour such as beige or cream for your walls.
Decorations: Have Fun and Get Creative
Express your personality in your dining room decorating. Different colours can be used to create a special mood in your dining room, making it feel more artistic and creative or calming and serene.
This excellent BBC article explains the effects that certain colours can have on your mood and attitude. Decorate according to your tastes and personality – or according to the type of conversation that you’d like to inspire during a dinner party.