Dining Room Ideas

[redpoint5]

My wife complains that despite our extravagantly large home, our dining area is too small. In all this space, we don't have a dedicated dining room. There's more utility in having 2 living rooms instead (which is how the house came).

This got me to thinking about constructing a floating bench seat anchored to the far wall studs, perhaps in an L shape, perhaps with a flip up backrest to keep people from leaning onto the window.

I'd then get a long narrow table. I figure I could easily seat 6 people on the long wall, and 2 on the end. Chairs could be brought in for the rare occasion we needed more seating.

Is this a dumb idea, or what would you propose? I like the floating seat idea since it leave the outlets accessible and makes sweeping easier.

The window wall is 11'3" and the wall on the right is 4'3".

[freebeard]

https://3iz4pu1r2cxqxc3i63gnhpmh-wpe...icers-mess.jpg

L-shaped bench, two small tables with a leaf that bridges them.

Else: Station wagon seats that make a bench/shelf when they're down but flip up to an upholstered seat at the correct height.

But I guess that's what you said.

[JSH]

I'm not seeing what you gain by building a bench vs chairs. Our dining area is also small. We place two chairs against the wall and push the table right up against them. (The chairs would be where your window is) When we entertain and need more space we move the table out, add a leaf or two to seat up to 8 (limited by chairs not table size) When the party is over the leaves come out and the table get slide back.

Even if you go with a very narrow custom built table I think chairs are more functional. The problem with a bench is everyone on it is the same distance from the table. Some will be too close, some too far, and maybe a few just right. With chairs they can all slide in and out to a comfortable distance.

[redpoint5]

Well, that's no fun. But a longer table and more chairs solves the problem. Not sure where I'd store the unused chairs. Perhaps in the pantry.

[Piotrsko]

Good quality comfy, puffy stacking chairs which you could leave out in a corner.

[redpoint5]

Just checked and if I arranged the pantry efficiently, I could fit 4 or 5 chairs in there.

Ideal length for a table in that space might be 6' x 3'. Current is 5' x 3.5'

[freebeard]

I keep 4 folding chairs for similar situations, mainly outdoor neighborhood potlucks. They stack in ~1ft of space, but they have flat wooden seats. They would fit in the corner of the dining space. Corners need a triangular cabinet anyway.

My brother has an expandable dining table with IIRC three (maybe two?) drop-in sections. So it can be three or four different length. Each leaf is maybe 1/2 a seating space.

I doubt you'll get two people on the end of a 3ft table.

[JSH]

We have 4 dining room chairs inside and 4 chairs around a table on the patio. When needed "inside" chairs the outside chairs come inside.

The outside chairs look similar to this so they fit around a table fine. They also stack

[redpoint5]

We've been doing that too.

It's Japanese curry rice night, so we'll be pulling in the patio furniture. Only 6 adults tonight, so it's not too bad.

[JSH]

Originally Posted by redpoint5

We've been doing that too.

It's Japanese curry rice night, so we'll be pulling in the patio furniture. Only 6 adults tonight, so it's not too bad.

So your evacuation order was lifted and the family is back at home?