Hello! Typically I reserve Mondays for my series Small Home Style, but I’m in the process of making some changes to my dining room, which got me thinking about when I first designed the space! Check out my IG Stories here, to see what just arrived in the mail #HappyMailDay for my dining room.
I love clever ways to style a small dining room, and I couldn't wait to share! One of the game changes in my small dining room has been swapping out a round dining room table and chairs for banquette seating. Before in my dining room, I was only able to seat four people comfortably, anyone extra was pushing it. Having an eat-in style kitchen with door openings to my living room and laundry room made it tricky to be able to host people other than my family of four.
Once we added a freestanding banquette to our dining room, it opened up our entire small dining room and provided us with additional seating. I’m now able to seat seven people around my table when the leaf is in and most likely could squeeze in one more person comfortably! The beauty of banquette dining in a small dining room, is having continuous seating, instead of several chairs that take up extra room.
Today, I’m sharing my three favorite design ideas for Modern Banquette seating and chair combinations. I’m super excited about this post this #GameCharger post sharing how to make the most of a small awkward dining space / eat-in style kitchen or larger dining room that needs some help to make the room feel cozier and well thought out.
ONE: Freestanding Banquette
Freestanding upholstered banquettes, look fantastic in small dining rooms and easily give off a feeling of comfort + sophistication. Dress them up with pillows in varying sizes and throws to add color and pattern. Consider using a small settee with the appropriate height for a dining room. This look is one of my favorites!
In my dining room, I’m able to seat three on the banquette comfortably. I found ours at World Market a few years back; sadly they no longer carry them. However, I this one from West Elm is affordable and allows you to configure your seating in three ways.
image via Modern Sofas
image via Vogue
image via Architectural Digest
TWO: L - Shape Banquette
L Shaped Banquettes are perfect for those odd small corners in a dining room and look beautiful when butted up against a kitchen. L Shape banquettes help give the illusion of a wider space and create continuous seat. For this look you can opt for built-ins or freestanding banquette benches if you have enough wall space availble.
image via BHG
image via Style At Home
THREE: Built-in Bench Banquette
Built-in bench banquette is so pretty! This design idea can be custom built or DIYed using upper kitchen cabinets to create a base. Another fantastic reason to goes this route is hidden storage. Instead of wasted space, you can have drawers in the bench that pull out for additional storage make it easy to access linens and mics. kitchen items.
image via BHG
image via BHG
image via Style At Home
Designing a well thought out space when you have dining small is crucial to your sanity, trust me! Consider how you use your dining room space and how your dining room flows with the layout of your home to help you best determine which banquette dining setup will work the best. Here's another look at the banquette in my dining room.
By centering our freestanding banquette under our window, it allowed me to make the most of our nine-foot wide dining room. Yes, friends, my dining room is only nine feet wide! Having a freestanding banquette also allowed me to room to place a small bar cart in our dining room, giving is extra storage and made it feel grown-up.
What are some of the challenges you've faced in your dining room?
