Whether your dining room has a more formal or casual look, modern or traditional, eclectic or elegant – one thing is for sure: you need chairs. While you might be tempted to go for the already-combined-together table and chair sets, how about you stepped out of the standard and tried mixing styles? Or, if you’re more into matching dining sets, there are still some things you can do to kick the style of your dining space up a notch.
Mixing things up and shaking up the traditional matched dining set can be a great start to create a more personalized dining room. This mixing and matching of your dining room chairs can even save you some money as you aren’t tied to buying a full set of identical pieces of furniture. Nevertheless, this requires some finesse to get it right.
Folding chairs on one side, a bench on the other – Folding chairs are known for their comfort, casual vibe and their affordable price. They are simple in design and are perfect for creating a dining room with a simple cafe-style. You can easily achieve this with a pair of folding chairs on one side and a comfortable settee on the other side. Also, this works perfectly well in small spaces. You can go with an upholstered bench for comfort or a wooden bench for a sleek look.
Different chairs, same colour – Another way you can go is to mix and match the shape of the chairs. This can be easily done if you stick with the same colour for all your dining room chairs. However, when you are doing this, it’s always a good idea to stick to the same general style. For instance, all chairs should be modern or traditional style but in different shape and same colour. This will make them look like a set.
Same chairs, different colours – You can go with any type of chairs you like, but choose them in different colours. Go with colours that have the same level of darkness or lightness. For example, you can choose all of them to be in mid-tones, pastels or bright hues, depending on your personal taste and preferences.
Different chairs, same upholstery – Even if all your chairs are different in shape, having them re-covered with the same fabric will make them look like a dining set. Also, you can make pairs of chairs all covered in similar material.
Same chairs, different upholstery – Another way to mix up your dining set is to buy the same chairs with different upholstery or different seat cushion designs. If your dining chairs don’t need replacement you can choose seat cushions in a pleasing range of patterns and colours. This simple trick will also do the job of updating your dining room.
Upholstered chairs at both end sides of the table – This is the simplest and easiest way to create a visual effect of a dining set. Choose matching side chairs for the long sides, while the upholstered armchairs take place at the ends of the dining table.
Different chairs at the ends – This is a similar way to make up a set as the previous one, with one main difference – the end chairs are completely different from the others. This doesn’t mean they need to be upholstered, instead, they can even be in a completely different style from the rest. This is all you need to mix things up. For example, you can place cafe chairs on the long sides while using cane-back side chairs for the ends.
Same chairs, same colour palette – Go for a completely same chair design but mix things up by choosing them in different but still closely related colours. For example, you can go with earth tones or try different shades of a single hue.
Mismatched chairs, same shape or material – If you are more into vintage or traditional chairs, make sure you opt for pieces that are made of the same material or are in distinctive shapes, such as ladder-back, cane-backed, wicker, metal, wood, etc.
Your chairs and table are a very important part when it comes to creating the ideal dining experience as besides being functional, they can also say a lot about you and your personality. They affect your level of comfort and affect how you and your guests feel while dining. Don’t be afraid to experiment with their styles – keep in mind my suggestions and be bold.
