Correne’s dining room

Posted on Tue, 9 Jun 2009 by midcenturyjo

It’s our next reader’s makeover as guest blogger and interior designer Jason Martin helps Corenne this time with her dining room. It’s almost there but Corenne wants just a bit more “oomph” and Jason is keen to help. Remember Corenne does the “DIY” and Jason adds the “+”.


Corenne’s thoughts on the space

I’m a little lost with what to do in our dining room to draw it together. I love the table and chairs (green doesn’t have to stay) and the old travel chests can stay. I’d like to keep the poster and the lamp (I’d like to change the shade as I’ve moved away from red). The room is 3.6m wide (including the corridor) x 2.8m long x 2.7m high.

The room is used for meals with guests (we sit at the kitchen for everyday meals) and a space for my 2 year old to do craft. The kids table and chair is going on the deck (when it is built) but an area for craft activities still needs to be included (I am toying with an old school desk with the chair attached). Storage is a must. I like colour and am/will considered wallpaper. We wish the space to be modern-eclectic meaning graphic and handmade.


The three things I want to address in the space:

1. As you put it I need that extra 10% wow, factor.
2. Storage (the house is on a block of 200sqm so every inch counts) eg shelves for display or a sideboard
3. Space for an indoor craft area for our daughter. On this subject sorry I bought a old school desk on the weekend. I have attached some pictures for you. I do need chairs though.

(… inspiration from Correne’s tear files)

 

Jason’s notes

In a small space like your dining area, it can be difficult to have multiple functions and still look clean, modern and pulled together. The smallness aside, there are a few things you can do to make the space more functional and still read more adult dining space than kids craft corner.

1.Make bold strokes – You have to unify the space. Little pieces here and there won’t work for what you want. You need consistency and a minimum of materials to clean up the look.

2.Mass out the storage- The storage cabinet that is in the room now is to small for the space. You need something that stretches almost wall to wall and has lots of doors and drawers. It is key to have as much closed storage as possible especially in any furniture that is at or lower than table height.

3.Lighten up and be consistent – Above the storage cabinet you need open shelving with organized consistent storage boxes. If you can’t find stock shelving that will stretch the length of the wall you could separate it into two groups just make sure there is some kind of vertical element ( a column of photos or one long art piece) to break the two sets of shelves.

On the other wall you can be more free form with things. Maybe mix up photos, prints and paintings and a section for hooks or a coat rack (see below). For the window, i would cover it with a simple bamboo shade. Your vintage kids desk could work in here.

4. Expand the space from the floor up- I really like the rug you have now. The color is great the patten is cool. But it’s not doing you any favors as far as space is concerned. I think the round shape is making everything else in the room feel like it is in orbit around the table and nothing feels grounded. I would replace it with a rectangle shape in a larger size. While you are at it go with an indoor/outdoor rug that is easy to clean and can take a lot of abuse in the crafting and finger painting department.


I would use the wall adjacent to the shelving wall to display the two dimensional art you have. Maybe in a loose asymmetrical arrangement to counteract the linear quality of the shelves like this image from Coleen Interior.

So what do you think? And Corenne remember to send us photos of your new dining room when it’s done!

kim. says:

Loving the ideas Jason provided Corenne. I think a really big unit with shelving really would be perfect to fill that wall. And I agree about the round rug. It almost makes me dizzy. It's a great space to work with, with the white floors that look amazing. PUHLEASE send after photos when you're done!

I love the white dining room and chairs. Great photos.

Anonymous says:

He put together a good look, excited to see what comes of this. Love this series of posts.

Anonymous says:

By the way- wonderful blog/ updates/ content, a must read daily! …i hate to say this- but I'd find this post much more informative if it had a final photo of the outcome included (hold off on posting the initial direction until you can tell the whole story), I may be alone on this view.

sofas says:

Nice tips from Jason's note. It is very useful for small space like dinning area

Penny says:

It's a good room to start with and the advice sounds good too. I too would love to see after photos but I understand that this is an initial e-consult. I know I would have to take my time to get most of the things that Jason suggests. Not that high end but still high end for me at thsi time in my life.

Great tips. I would love to see an elegant wallcovering or vibrant paint color to unify the space and feature the dining set.

Renate says:

I agree with anon 10:21, too. I am so curious to see how this turns out…
BTW: I'd go for a lighter colour shelving and storage as the room isn't that big. The black ikea unit is also available in yellow – very cool!! Ikea might have matching yellow shelves, too.

Adrian says:

I love the green pattern rug, where is it from? I have the same table and would love to have that rug!

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