Design Dilemma: Small, Oddly Placed Dining Room
Tucked between the living room, stairwell and kitchen, this room needs to function as a dining room – preferably with some presence and style. Otherwise, it lapses into a detritus-collecting pass-through space. Help needed!
Existing layout:
Design Diagnosis:
Problem 1: The heavy wood bannister and exposed brick are beautiful architectural details, but without a focal point in the room, they steal the show, making the room seem unbalanced.
Solution 1: The rear-most wall in this room can be seen from the very front of house – use it! Not only will it provide a visual anchor for the dining area, it will connect it to the living room, making the combined spaces feel more expansive.
Problem 2: Dark wood furniture weighs down the feel of the space, making it seem more like a dark corner nook than a significant room in the house.
Solution 2: Make the space a beacon of style that summons from all intersecting parts of the house with color and a mix of materials – lighter wood plus light-reflecting metal or glass.
Problem 3: While the room is not big, the small scale of the furniture just emphasizes it’s diminutive size.
Solution 3: Larger pieces with a lightweight feel will give the room some personality and weight – not to mention making it more useful – without making it seem overcrowded.
