I Love Small Dining Areas

There is something very special about the family meal. It's such a great opportunity to sit and discuss your day etc. So it's very important that you create a space that really encourages that, and I think that smaller spaces do that better than larger ones.

This is a room that I did that was directly off the Kitchen, and i think its a great example of how a space can really be stylish but work very practically as well.

Here are some tips:

• Using a banquette gives you a lot of seating flexibility.
• A large table no more than 60" across will allow lots of people, but still enable lots of conversation, from side to side.
• Simple color scheme is good, since there will be a lot of visual chaos.
• Good lighting is essentila, a blend of surface mounted fixtures and downlights is ideal.
• This might be a good area for the Family notice board too.

Banquettes

As the weekend is coming up, my mind naturally goes to all those great get together's that will be happening, especially with summer right around the corner. I love casual entertaining, sitting with friends as we cook etc etc, and nothing is more conducive to that than the banquette. Made popular in the 30's and 40's as a space saver in the "modern kitchen", this handy device is making a great comeback. I have included two examples;

• The first is an old home that we renovated, originally built in the late 1920's, this space was the old Breakfast Room. I wanted to create an area for the whole family and their friends, so I thought that a simple banquette that wrapped around three of the walls would do the trick. The family can sit almost 12 people at this table when the need arises, far more than a freestanding table and chairs would ever allow, and it feels neater and tidier on top of that. Just as an aside, a cool thing to notice, the walls are upholstered, which cuts down the noise and provides a convenient location for bus and soccer schedules! Don't miss the center light fixture either, it was designed to hold the family gold fish, the best seat in the house.
• The second example is a bit more typical, using a spare corner, I created a curved seating nook, flanked by two chairs. This Kitchen had a bit more of a mid-century kind of feeling, so laminate was used on the table, with a stainless steel edge trim, that gives it a "diner" kind of feel. Upholstery is in vinyl, so it is stain resistant, and the color brightens up every morning.

Banquettes don't just need to be used in Kitchens; look around the house and see if there are any unused areas that could benefit from this handy item of furniture. Maybe a bay window, the foot of the bed (especially in a small studio type apartment) or even in your office for meeting space, where you occasionally need to be able to squeeze in more people. It offers flexibility, comfort and economy of size, all good things in my book.