BRICK FIELD STUDIOS

Style Pointers
WALLS Plain neutral or earthy shades suit the look well, possibly with a broken color paint effect to suggest roughened plaster. White painted or stripped woodwork complements the rugged, rustic feel best.

ACCESSORIES
Whether it’s a metal sculpture of dancing figures, an intricate wire fruit bowl or lamp base, or a length of kelim patterned fabric thrown over the back of a chair, ethnic artifacts establish the global connection.

FURNITURE
A solid wooden dining table presides over the room, accompanied by a set of dark wood dining chairs. Each chair is treated to its own cover, in a variety of coarse fabrics to match the color scheme.

FLOOR
Bare wooden floorboards, stained and varnished, help to define the style. A natural fiber runner under the table is a good compromise instead of carpet in a dining room; it fits in well with the soft furnishings and is too narrow to catch many accidental food spills, yet helps prevent the floor getting scuffed by diners’ feet.

WINDOWS
Unfussy window treatments are the order of the day. Tabbed sheers and a length of coarse, hand-decorated fabric draped over a bamboo rod are ideal. Stiff bristle finial-like ends to the rod are an apt ethnic detail.

Furnishings
Furniture: Global style is essentially an international country look with pieces gathered from around the world. Rustic rather than refined, global dining furniture displays a forthright use of natural materials, such as wood and metal. Many retailers produce ranges of simple, sturdy furniture which work well with the style, or you could look out for similar designs in secondhand shops and flea markets. Plain or painted planked wooden tables, wrought metal chairs, benches, and farmhouse chairs with rush seats make good global basics. Tie-on cushions or loose covers give extra comfort.

For dining-room storage, choose a large wooden cupboard, armoire, or series of wooden wall cupboards to house linen, cutlery, glassware, and crockery. Strip old pieces of previous finishes and lightly stain or wash them with paint for a distressed look.

Table settings: Mix ethnic ceramics, metal platters, carved wooden bowls, and woven baskets for serving dishes and containers. Tableware should be chunky and colorful; spotted, striped, or plain earthenware in vibrant colors looks cheerful and unpretentious. You can cover the table with a patterned cloth or use individual place mats in rich or bright weaves. Many home stores stock a range of characterful dining accessories, from handmade wood ladles to handblown colored glass, that display the global theme.

Accessories: The definition of the global style relies on a few well-chosen accessories, rather than a mass of small curios and trinkets. Be bold and choose a few large decorative pieces, such as stoneware urns, embroidered wall hangings, and carvings to create points of interest. Too much clutter is claustrophobic and will detract from the center of attention, the table.

On the walls, display a collection of ethnic style prints, an oriental hanging, or rich appliqued embroidery. A mirror adds drama to the dining room, especially with a metal or mosaic frame.

Furnishings
All the colors, patterns, textures, and lighting in the dining room should provide a flattering setting for the dining table. Think of this as the star, center stage, and everything else, including existing features such as a fireplace or window, as important but supporting role players. Position the table for maximum impact, for example under a central, eye-catching light fixture, or framed by a window treatment or a handsome fireplace. Alternatively, create your own foil – position a sideboard or serving table to balance the dining table, and use the top for a dramatic display as on a mantelpiece, with lights or candles to each side. Other foils could be an elaborate screen, theatrically ornate mirror, bold picture display, specimen topiaries, potted palms, or other large, leafy plants.

As befits the most important feature in the dining room, the table should take pride of place; not only with tableware, linen, and accessories to enhance your theme, but because of its own impact. If your dining table and chairs are unexceptional or not compatible with your chosen style, transform them using spectacular patterned and colored fabric. A fabulous floor-length cloth, tailored to flatter the table shape, and chair slipcovers, will alter the whole look of the room. If all your chairs require is a simple change of color, lavishly upholstered seat pads will instantly focus attention where you want it.

Window Treatments
Window treatments reflect and enhance the look, so be generous here with shape, color, and texture. Use rich velvets and glowing silks – saris are relatively inexpensive – swagged and draped in lavish folds, and trimmed with rich braids, fringing, and tassels. Alternatively, choose a more restrained elegance. Minimalist blinds, tailored pelmets and lambrequins, and graphic prints such as those with classical motifs or calligraphy, all have a dramatic undertone, and a bold, almost stark approach can be just as relevant in the right setting as lavish furnishings in sumptuous, period-inspired schemes.

Details
Because dramatic style is larger than life and an element of fantasy is the norm, you can really indulge a passion for extravagance when it comes to choosing accessories and style details. Make sure each element earns its place visually in the scheme of things; fussiness means a loss of impact. Let your theme dictate a signature color choice for tableware, fabric covers, table mats or color accent underplates, and match crockery and cutlery to stemware where possible, whether it is elegant crystal or extravagantly tinted, gilded, or beaded in style.

Be indulgent with table centerpieces – use fruit, vegetables, flowers, or natural forms. These offer lots of dramatic potential. Incorporate candles into the scheme – arrange them at different heights for effect. The containers you use should echo your theme. Architectural pedestal urns, oversized, sleek, and modern glass vases, carved ethnic bowls, and antique-style metal or rustic clay and wicker, all speak volumes about mood and ambience.

For many of us, growing up meant family dinners in the dining room where everyone shared his or her day with one another.

My how times have changed. Today, busy families find little time to gather at the dinner table. And the formal dining room in many homes is relegated to special occasions and holidays.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. With a little thought and some creativity, you can convert this little used space into a place where the family spends a lot of their time, doing homework, working on school projects and just hanging out talking.

Before you start your dining room project, you want to take an inventory of your existing furnishings, accents, accessories and décor. Often, it’s easy to simply swap around some things in your home to create an entirely new living space.

Of course, the dining room table is the focal point of the room and it obviously guides most of your decisions. Like other rooms, decorating usually starts with the focal point of the room and everything flows from the dominant piece. In this case, it’s the dining room table and chairs.

Flexibility is key in selecting the right table and chairs. Unless you plan to use this space just once a year, you want to choose a table that suits your personal tastes and which has the ideal seating arrangement. For instance, if you have a family of four and don’t entertain often, you can opt for a smaller table and add other furnishings to the room, such as a buffet or china cabinet to use for storing games and craft items.

If you entertain occasionally or often, you may want to get a table with leaves. That way, you can expand the table easily to handle larger dinner parties, and then shrink the table back to its more intimate size for daily use.

Taller dining room tables are very popular these days. Not only do they make the room look less formal, but they’re the ideal place to play board games, work on school projects or enjoy an evening of poker with friends.

When it comes to selecting furnishings and decorating, professional designers agree on one thing. There are no rules these days. Rooms are empty spaces waiting to be filled with the inspiration, beauty, energy and personality you bring to them.

That doesn’t mean there aren’t some basic guidelines you should follow. For example, your dining room should still look like it’s part of your home. It should have complementary color schemes, styles and woods. Contemporary fabrics can breathe new life into heirloom furnishings. And tired tables can be rejuvenated with a new layer of stain or varnish.

If you have the budget for new furnishings, you have endless options. Dark finishes tend to support a more formal dining look while oval and round tables finished in lighter stains are more informal. Be sure that the table has enough room for your guests to be comfortable so they’re not bumping elbows constantly. If you have small children, stain resistant seat fabrics will pay for themselves in a very short time.

Surprisingly, your chairs don’t even have to match one another these days. You can create an eclectic dining area by mixing and matching different designs of chairs or different colors. Be careful in doing this, since you don’t want your dining room to look like the circus is in town. Rely on your sense of taste and you should be O.K. When in doubt, ask your family or friends for their opinions before you plunk down a lot of dough on chairs that will just end up in a garage sale six months from now.

Once you have the dining room table and chairs it’s time to finish the rest of the room. Obviously, the walls deserve some attention before you add any other furniture to the space. Choose paint or wallpaper that sets the room off yet which complements the rest of the home. If you have dominant artwork in mind, you may want to choose colors that will work well with it. Before you paint, it’s a good time to add any new sconces or other wall lighting that will require some electrical work. No need messing up a great looking paint or papering job after the fact.

Now you’re ready to add the other elements to the room. Depending on the space available, this may include a china cabinet, hutch, sideboard or buffet. If you don’t have room around the table for all the chairs you have, you may want to factor that into your space planning. Chairs against the wall take up space and you don’t want the room to look crowded.

Finally, don’t forget the little things that make a dining room an inviting place to be. You want to add personal touches to the space. If you’re using a sideboard or buffet, consider adding candlesticks and some family photos. If you have a spectacular serving piece, consider using it as the focal point as well. When you’re not using it for entertaining, it can serve as a piece of art.

Like the rest of the spaces in your home, your dining room should reflect your personality and tastes. Make it an inviting place to eat, relax, entertain and work and you’ll find that this once empty space will soon be overflowing with good times with family and friends.

Shop around and you’ll find dining-room furniture to suit not only the space you have available but the style of your home and your budget.

Dining-room furniture often outlasts other furniture in a home – a sofa and armchairs may show the strain of the rough and tumble of family life, but a sturdy table and chairs can go on looking good year after year. So work out your needs carefully before you buy a dining suite.

There’s an excellent choice of robust, well-made contemporary furniture available to suit all tastes and budgets, from the elegance of Georgian reproduction through sturdy farmhouse to modern steel and glass. Folding or extending tables are a good choice if space is limited or to seat extra guests.

A Touch of the Traditional
Traditional dining-room furniture such as a period style suite in solid wood or with a veneered finish is well suited to elegant formal meals. Before you buy it’s a good idea to decide how versatile you want your table and chairs to be. Most dining-room furniture has to be sturdy enough to meet different needs. During the course of a day the table may be called on to do duty as a play surface for children’s games and painting sessions, a desk for homework, and a worktop for a sewing machine as well as being used for an informal family breakfast, lunch, and tea. Yet it still has to be flexible enough to be dressed up for those more elegant evening occasions.

Consider this multi-functional aspect of the room when you shop for the furniture, and remember it’s easier to use attractive table linen to dress up a tough surface like solid wood for formal dining than it is to protect a delicate veneer from everyday knocks and spills. If you do choose a table with a finish that needs protection, buy a table pad you can cover with an easily laundered tablecloth for everyday use. For more formal occasions, take away the pad and use a fancy tablecloth and placemats.

Most modern upholstered dining chairs have been treated to resist stains but for additional protection, use tie-on chair covers, or make covers to slip over upholstered seats.

Modern Mood
The key to a modern dining room is simplicity. There is no shortage of clean-lined tables and chairs on the market. Favorites for a contemporary room are materials such as glass, chrome, and steel, but almost anything would suit, as long as the design is streamlined.

A laminate or lacquer which wipes clean and resists scratches and scuffs is a cost effective and practical option – especially if the table is going to be used by young children or if it doubles other ways, as a sewing table or somewhere to study or do homework. A modern style of table is best left uncovered, but you can give a more conventional table a bold new image with a dramatic tablecloth.

Make sure you check out a contemporary suite very carefully for comfort and practicality -a glass-topped table may lose its appeal if you are forever wiping off children’s fingermarks. Cast-iron chairs can look dramatic in a modern room but they are often very-heavy, which makes them difficult to draw up to and away from the table.

Dining room decor should lift the spirits to complement the food you are serving. Global styling is ideal for creating an exciting sense of theater that livens up the experience of eating at home.

Hospitable and comfortable, the global style combines informality with strong handling of the decorating basics – confident color, characterful texture, and lively pattern. The look is simple and natural yet exuberant, with the emphasis on straightforward materials and unfussy detail. Rugged, natural surfaces and finishes marry with cheerful handmade accessories to create dining rooms which are practical as well as enjoyable. The informal approach goes well with today’s casual lifestyles and the latest trends in decorating.

Global styling is also economical and easy to assemble. You needn’t travel far to find most of the ingredients for the look – homespun furnishings, handprinted textiles, handcrafted baskets, bowls, and tableware are as accessible as they are affordable. It’s always worth keeping your eyes open for ethnic craft items with bold profiles or striking designs, such as pottery jugs or metal candelabra, that look good on the dining table.

Unless you want to achieve a particular regional look – a minimalist oriental scene or a sumptuous Indian setting, for example – you can mix and match artifacts from different countries of the world and combine colors, patterns, and textures with abandon. In this relaxed styling, there’s no need to agonize over what goes with what, since most elements blend well together whatever their country of origin. If you like to travel, global style provides the perfect excuse to display your treasured souvenirs.

Creating the Look
Walls: The look is fundamentally bold, rather than pristine, warm rather than cool. Rich earthy tones, from ocher to brick red, epitomize the look. If you prefer a more reticent background, chalky white makes a good foil for dark wood and lively patterns.

For once, less than perfect wall surfaces actually suit the look. Paint loosely washed over rough plasterwork provides a wonderful textural dimension while layers of glazes or washes add luminous depth to the finish. You can accent the main divisions of the wall, at the top, bottom, or wainscoting level, with a handpainted trim.

Floors: Dining room flooring should be easy to maintain. With its bias toward natural materials, the global style is best expressed in plain sanded or stained floorboards, natural stone or brick flooring, plain terra-cotta quarry tiles or natural fiber coverings such as seagrass, coir, or sisal.

As an extra layer of comfort, you can partner basic no-nonsense flooring with bright scatter rugs or runners.

Indian dhurries, kelims, and Mexican scrapes come in a wide range of colors, patterns, and price ranges. Natural fiber floor coverings can be made up in room-sized mats or runners, loosely laid over a non-slip backing.

Windows: Window treatments are best kept simple and uncluttered. Slatted wooden louver shutters, natural split-cane blinds, or wooden Venetian blinds filter the light interestingly. If you prefer fabric at the window, choose a homespun or handprinted textile, such as batik or tie-dyed designs. You can catch up a length of ethnic fabric, including saris, in front of the window with clips or drape it over a wooden, bamboo, or metal rail for an instant, no-sew window treatment.

Lighting: For atmospheric dining, combine a chandelier over the table with soft wall lights, table lamps, or discreet torcheres. Plain modern fittings are best, while lamp bases in polished metal or glazed ceramics fit in well. Metal candleholders with tiered branches look right on the table.

Making an impression is central to dramatic style, so the intimate setting of a dining room is the perfect place to express your creative flair- and to revel in the riches of color, pattern, and texture.

Dramatic style provides you with a bold canvas, whether your tastes are sleek and contemporary or steeped in the glamour and history of a period look. Ambience is important in any dining room, and creating a setting where your guests have a sense of well-being underlines its success. However, the mood in a dramatic dining room or dining area goes further, bestowing a sense of occasion and making any meal served in the room a memorable, almost theatrical experience. The success of the style relies on an imaginative approach rather than a large budget – creating a great visual effect is what matters. Capitalize on the attributes of the room, such as its natural light, height, or size. Even a particularly small dining room can be an advantage because you can emphasize its cozy, intimate atmosphere. Highlight any key elements: extravagant drapes in luxurious velvets, silks, or brocades; crystal glass and sleek, gleaming tableware; large, ornate mirrors and candlesticks; and the most important element of all, strong, bold color combinations.

Creating the Look
Use color on the walls to establish a particular mood. If the mood is to be airy and romantic, pale shades, with gilding or shiny metal accents, will help to create the right ambience. For a classical twist, you could opt for graphic black and white.

If the mood is more exotic, or has a sumptuous, period feel, saturate the room with intense, warming color; reds, glowing earthy colors, faux stone, and rich, dark shades, all have the effect of “pulling in” the walls.

Deep purples, midnight blues, and vibrant malachite greens have this enclosing, haven-like effect, too, but these rich colors also convey a subtly different mood with an air of mystery and a hint of magic.

For floor covering, take the lead from your special theme. Stone slabs or faux effects and black and white tiles suggest many looks, from ancient or heraldic to classical and ethnic, and can also look very modern. Pile carpet, polished parquet, or customized floor designs have a sophisticated, luxurious element to them.

Lighting, like color, captures the mood. Dramatic style relishes special effects, so choose lighting designs that work for your theme. Torcheres, sconces, picture lights, table lights, as well as an imposing light positioned centrally over the table, allow you to create subtle changes. A dimmer switch gives you control. Candles are a vital prop, and are a must for an intimate atmosphere.

Style Pointers
WALLS
Rich/sumptuous: vibrant contrasting color paint effects; colorwashes and glazes, stippling, faux effects; stone, marble, verdigris; murals, trompe l’oeil, bold plain color, gilding/metallics; ornate moldings.

Wall coverings: bold, flamboyant/exotic pattern; classical motifs.

WINDOWS
Flamboyant/curtains: lined, full-length, variations of dramatic classic styles; pelmets, swags, and tails; elaborately draped metal/wooden poles; extravagant tiebacks, sumptuous cord ties.

Blinds: sleek and architectural with slatted Venetians; or theatrical/exotic festoon styles.

FABRICS
Gorgeous/exotic: richly colored and textured silks; satins; moires; saris; luxury devore velvet/velvets; brocades; shimmery metallics; fur fabrics; bold graphic prints; floaty voiles; shiny plastic/PVC; leather; dramatic pattern prints, stripes, checks.

FLOORING
Luxurious/bold: wall-to-wall velvet pile carpet; animal prints; exotic/theme pattern; customized patterns/faux stone/ marble/linoleum effects; parquet; graphic black and white tiles.

Rugs: stylized contemporary/exotic patterns; natural/cream plains.

FURNITURE
Impressive/modern/period: theatrical flourish; glass and metal/black lacquer for contemporary looks; rich fruit woods, mahogany, oak, painted/distressed wood, painted motif for period look armoire, shelving, serving table/sideboard; metal grille-front radiator covers/bookcases.

Table and chairs: contemporary pale wood/glass and metal or heavy period styles for refectory, extending leaf, trestle styles; circular pedestal table; wrought metal/sleek wood chairs; flamboyant slipcovers; rich texture/color upholstered period chairs.

LIGHTING
Bold/atmospheric: sets the mood; extravagant looks for traditional or modern chandeliers; contemporary pendant shades/halogen spots; wrought iron candle fittings, character table lamps; dimmer switches; candles/nightlights.

ACCESSORIES
Impressive/eclectic: luxurious, streamlined contemporary or heavy traditional cutlery; metallic/bold color underplates; streamlined modern, ornate/metallic rim traditional dinner service; goblets; metallic/luxurious tablecloth/mats/napkins; elaborate floral/fruit display; striking mirror/picture frames; decorative screens.

Mike and Marianne finish the reupholstery of the dining room chair seat by showing you how to correctly apply the leather to the chair pad.

Dine Company, a full-service foodservice provider opened in 1982, provides restaurant equipment and supplies. Dine Company also does kitchen and dining room design with autocad. Learn more about us at www.dinecompany.com Shop online at http

A dining room is a room for consuming food. Historically the dining room is furnished with a rather large dining table and a number of dining chairs. The most common table shape is generally rectangular with two armed end chairs and an even number of un-armed side chairs along the long sides. A number of families have not enough places for make a dining room. They are usually combining with others room but nowadays dining room is becoming one of the requirement offers in a house. Dining room is becoming habit where all the members of the family enjoining food together. Dining room means a lot for the family.

What is dining room means for the institutions?

Most restaurants, hotels, schools, and office require dining room furniture. Those are place in dining area and facilitate eating, serving and seating. They include a wide range of dining tables, chairs, storage cabinets, serving trolley and side tables. Dining room furniture is not only as the plus points but main points in some industry. Dining room furniture is founded in many wood and metal combinations. Based on market needed there are many furniture companies sell dining room furniture product. As well as producers, the customers also need a qualified product with the minimal prize. One of the ways to get a minimal bugged is with looking for dining furniture wholesale company. You have a big change to get a big discount if buy in huge mount or in wholesale. For the institution buy in wholesale is beneficial than buy with retail. Dining furniture wholesale is helping for business sector but if you want to buy, pay attention on what you get not what is cheapest. Money is not cheat choose a qualified furniture do not trap in price. As a result, used dining furniture looks as good as new and cost much less.

A typical North American dining room will contain a table with chairs arranged along the sides and ends of the table, as well as other pieces of furniture. In modern American homes, the dining room is increasingly used only for formal dining with guests or on special occasions. Informal daily meals are often taken in the kitchen. This was traditionally the case in England, where the dining room would for many families be used only on Sundays, and other meals being eaten in the kitchen. Often tables in modern dining rooms will have a removable leaf to allow for the larger number of people present on those special occasions without taking up extra space when not in use. In Australia, while the use of the dining room is still prevalent, family meals are also often eaten in front of the television in the lounge. Although the “typical” family dining experience is at a wooden table or some sort of kitchen area, some choose to make their dining rooms more comfortable by using couches or comfortable chairs.

Anchored in those reality people will wonder to their self “Is dining room important?”

If talking about dining room is very popular but different. People have their own perception about the existence of dining room in the house or they can make dual function in one room. Therefore, you can answer that question based on your condition now. Some other people said that dining room is not important because I still have sofa in living room. Some other hand dining room is important as the peace corner for all the family members. Whatever your opinion you must agree with me that dining room furniture set is more important than dining room itself. Can you imagine that you have a room at your house called dining room without any dining room furniture set on it? However, dining room furniture set without dining room can function as dining room. Dining room furniture set as if chair and table have several function for the family than dining room itself. After being used for enjoying meal, dining room furniture set can be used as the learning area for kids. In conclusion, is not too much if you have dining room complete with dining room furniture set, you will get functional room in your house.