For each person who has a dining room they use regularly, there seems to be another who uses the space maybe once or twice a year—and yet one more who doesn’t have a dining room and avoids hosting dinner parties and holiday gatherings at all costs.
If you fall into the first group, congratulations! (And consider checking out these secrets to making your dining room even better.) If you don’t, we’re here to help. And while it might seem that the people with an underutilized dining room and those with no dining room at all have diametrically opposed issues, both can be solved by thinking beyond a room’s prescribed purpose and creating a multipurpose space.
If you play air hockey or table tennis more often than you host sit-down dinners, go ahead and turn your dining room into a game room; you can always place a board atop the ping-pong table and then cover it with a tablecloth to create a dining table. Or maybe instead of a dining room you have a second bedroom you converted into a home office; it’s pretty easy to transform your desk into a table, and if you want to hide some of your work detritus, add a sideboard where you can store items away or place a room screen in front of your bulletin board or printer area. (A room screen can also help you divide a large dining room into a smaller one plus a work space or play area.) And if you live in one of those funky apartments where the entry is larger than the so-called dining room (speaking from experience here), an expandable dining table that you can move into the foyer for larger gatherings is a life-changer.
Below are a few multitasking spaces that might having you rethinking your own dining area.
A foyer or entry hall can easily serve double duty as a dining area, especially if you already have an entry table in the space. Shown above: Torsion Dining Table in Oak, Bok Armchair in Oak, and Osso Counter Stool in Oak.
Clear off the vases and books, bring in a few more chairs, wheel in a bar cart, and voilà! this library is now a dining space. Shown above: Sarah Extension Dining Table in Limewash, Raylan Leather Chairs, Elle Large Rattan Chandelier, and Rustic Porcelain Garden Stool. Garden stools, by the way, can serve as extra seating or as a spot for placing a pitcher or platter. Photo by Matt Albiani.
Another example of a library/dining area, designed by Tami Ramsay of Cloth & Kind. (See more of the home here.) The expandable skirted table is ideal for hiding books under. Find a similar chandelier here. Photo by Robert Peterson. Styled by Frances Bailey.
Rather than a library that doubles as a dining room, this is a dining room that pinch-hits as a library. Designed by Cameron Ruppert Interiors, the room includes a cozy window seat tucked between two of the bookcases for curling up with one of the many tomes on the shelves. Find the chandelier here. Photo by Angie Seckenger.
Swapping out at least a few dining chairs for a daybed, settee, or bench is key when opting to have a dining area also serve as a sitting room. If you don’t have a den where you can escape for some quiet time while others are gaming or watching TV, a dining room with seating where you can kick back will fill the bill. And if the upholstery is stain resistant, so much the better. Find the five-piece gallery wall here.
Home office during the week, dining room on weekends: If that’s your plan, opt for a desk (like the one above) with plenty of legroom and few, if any, drawers.
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