The dining room is, in my opinion, one of the spaces of a home that is truly divine... where we linger, soak in the day, and eat {the latter meant in the most sincere way. Not like survival eating - but more like... the atmosphere in which it brings us all together}. Like the kitchen - where we prepare food and praise what it does for our senses - the dining room is where the thoughtfulness behind nourishing our families takes place - and is appreciated.
Whether Ava's standing up in her chair reciting made-up lyrics, or Noah washing his cars in his apple juice... it's still a place that is beautiful, bountiful, and a blessing to have each night - together.
Now... we spend most of this kind of evening jubilee in the breakfast room, A - because we don't cry over spilled milk and I can take a wet sponge to it in a heart beat, and B, because our formal dining room is well... formal.
Where we occasionally celebrate and have sit down dinners like this. I didn't mean for it to turn out that way - it just sort of fell into place like this since moving in over 8 years ago.
Where we occasionally celebrate and have sit down dinners like this. I didn't mean for it to turn out that way - it just sort of fell into place like this since moving in over 8 years ago.
With Thanksgiving coming up tomorrow - this has been on my mind a lot lately - and how I really, really want to freshen up this space... and informally dine here with tiaras and trucks...
So here is where we are:
Really formal isn't it? And so square. The "dining" room is actually in the back of this photo, by the mirrored wall - and just this past year, I moved it into the formal "living" room to have more space. We re-upholstered the chairs {they were white before} - and the more we got into decorating this space {wall color, side tables, pictures}, the more I realized I was diving right into the "formal" trap.
My inspiration board looks more like this:
Although mahogany, it still looks like it can withstand a few dozen spills doesn't it? The chandelier and rug really sing here...and I love, love this wallpaper! {Or technically - fabric - did you catch this SH's episode?}
Sarah Richardson
Dark rooms like this one - are just cozy. This dark gray is just yummy. Why can't I find cabinets like that? The rug - not so crazy about... Oh, and what do you think about a round table? Hmmm....
House Beautiful
Fireplaces in dining rooms - oh I wish! What a perfect setting - large sunny window to pat your back while crunching on toast, or a fireside bench to sit on while finishing up that last bite of creme brulee...
House Beautiful
What do I not love about this room? The flooring? The white walls? This amazing table?! Oh... and that green lush landscape outside the window isn't too bad to look at either.
Architectural Digest
Chocolate walls? This gorgeous table - a sofa?? Talk about piecing together everything you love...
Country Living
And yes - I have had many dreamy nights of turning our formal area into something more like this...
Coastal Living
But right now, all I can handle are puzzles {not paint}. Ah.... I love inspiration boards. Although - sometimes they confuse the matter even more. Hard to decide isn't it? I can see us in every room here...
I'm off to stretch for my frolicking days ahead - not eating in my FORMAL dining room of course - but enjoying a roundtable of meals with our families. Perhaps over the course of all this eating elsewhere... I can pin down exactly what our dining room should be more like...
and be eating more like this...
Happy eating!
It's fun dreaming and creating inspiration boards. We bought cream suede dining room chairs (pre children - what were we thinking?!?!). I agree, a fireplace in a dining area sounds like bliss.
ReplyDeleteIn regards to the halloween memory cards on my blog, I origianlly wrote about them here:
http://etadventures.blogspot.com/2010/10/were-going-on-halloween-hunt.html
our dining room is my favorite space too. love all the inspiration.
ReplyDeleteI think i can appreciate a nice table scape with the rest of you all out there... but I just don't have what it takes to create an inviting atmosphere in any room. To be blunt, I am God-Awful at decoration. I don't think it's a huge surprise, especially to anyone that knows me. Some mornings i leave to go to work and when i get home, the TV is on the other side of the room and there is a new chair i never saw next to a desk that I would swear we didn't own. She might have swapped out family portraits, or moved a lamp - but i might not notice it for a few days.
ReplyDeleteIt's not that i don't care, or even that I don't want to notice... its just that when it comes to home decor... i suck.
Thank you Zarlacht for making our house beautiful.
Oh Aaron - that is so true! BUT my dear, most of it is done with your help... like when I get the sudden urge to paint an entire room so that it matches our table better - and you will - that same night. Or if I want to knock down a wall, or have a shelf mounted - you hammer away and make the space that much more wonderful. On top of that - I love shopping for home accessories with you because you are my voice of reason. Otherwise, we may have ended up with {a lot more} weird pieces. You need to give yourself more credit. Your like my very own Nate Berkus :)
ReplyDelete