When you’re styling a dining room, you should think about what sort of look you’re going for. Will you relish the bright colours and Machine Age materials of art deco design, or will you embrace the clean lines and blank space of modern or minimalist styles? Will you add an elegant, French provincial touch to your dining room, or will you strip it to the bones, industrial-style?
How you style your dining room will depend on the look you’re going for. If you’re unsure where to begin, we have a comprehensive guide to help get you started. So, without further ado, here are some dining room styling ideas we think you’ll love.
A MODERN DINING ROOM
Modernism and minimalism are cut from the same (table) cloth. They both love clean lines, neutral tones, and textured walls. They do not regard blank space as a void to cram with decor; rather, they enjoy its unspoken beats.
If you want a modern dining room, know that bright colours are off the (dining room) table. However, there is one exception to this rule, and that’s if you want to contrast your neutral (table) setting with a lone accent colour. Bear in mind that accent colours are just that—accents—and should create focal points rather than dominate the colour scheme. Accent colours speak a fair few notches louder than anything on the neutral colour wheel!
Image: 1825 Interiors
The above display is a great modern dining room arrangement. Featuring reclaimed pine with a golden stain, the Oslo 2200 Dining Table fits the neutral aesthetic and cuts through vacant space with its clean-lined legs of hairpin-shaped metal. Its rustic timber top both matches and contrasts the smoothed timber floor. The charcoal-coloured wall, showing natural texture through its make of timber planks, matches the furniture’s bold, decisive legs whilst offsetting the light seats of the dining chairs.
Blurring the lines between the ebony and the ivory, the grey rug underscores this modern dining room setting. In a way, this display is a guided tour of modernism, cycling the neutral colour wheel and speaking through texture and shape. Even its vignette is minimal, never straying from neutral tones save for the muted eucalyptus branches and accent oranges.
A MINIMALIST DINING ROOM
To the untrained eye, it is difficult to decipher between minimalist and modern interior design. Whilst both follow similar design principles, their difference is in their philosophy. Modernism believes that form follows function, whereas minimalism stems from the approach of using only that which is necessary. So, whilst modernism is not impartial to the odd embellishment or decorative item, minimalism eliminates clutter with a ‘Marie Kondo’ militance.
Image: 1825 Interiors
This dining room, featuring our Newcastle 1400 Round Dining Table, also loves timber but it doesn’t fixate on its natural texture, shifting its focus instead to pristine, white walls and sharp, clean lines. Though adorned with subtle embellishments here and there, this display tones down the decor to emphasise the striking, black legs of the dining room furniture. Thanks to their bold tone and shrewd definition, these legs become the focal point of the picture. Compare these to the centrepiece candles, which almost melt into the milky white background, despite their ornamental purpose.
Reminiscent of fine brush strokes, it is unclear where the respective legs end and begin. They all come together to create movement and elegant inconsistency. Overall, this display exemplifies minimalism in the way that it finds beauty in shapes and outlines rather than in decorative additions.
AN INDUSTRIAL-STYLE DINING ROOM
You’ve no doubt seen industrial-style dining spaces if you’ve been to any hipster cafe. Imagine timber tables, metal chairs, and walls of weathered brick. This look, also derived from modernism, is best described as stylised utilitarianism. Like traditional modernism, it embraces timber and errs away from bright colours. However, it has a devotion to bold, often metallic highlights, which can work hand-in-hand with modernism’s clean lines to create a strong definition. It’s more common, for example, for an industrial-style dining room to feature chairs of metal—or, at least, with metallic highlights—than it is for a modern dining room, which prefers timber or upholstered chairs in neutral tones closer to the whiter end of the colour spectrum.
Image: 1825 Interiors
The above display, featuring our Newcastle Bar Table, is a great example of industrial interior design. From its weathered brick walls to its furniture that melds timber with metal, this dining setting creates a sleek, utilitarian design reminiscent of a factory floor. Whilst it’s not cosy, its power lies in the way it reclaims these ordinary features and gives them a contemporary twist. Even its weathered, metallic centrepiece looks stylish in this context.
In this particular example, we’ve thrown a botanical arrangement into the vignette so that the setup isn’t completely sterile. If you’re constructing an industrial-style dining room, you can further soften the aesthetic by adding a rug—be this an extension of the neutral colour theming or an appropriate accent piece.
A FRENCH PROVINCIAL DINING ROOM
Thus far, we have explored contemporary and modernist interior design. Let’s rewind the (antique) clock at least a century as we embark upon French provincial design, which takes its flavours from 18th-century Paris. Whilst modernist design uses neutral colours to tone down a room, French provincial design uses them to bring warmth and elegance to any space. This aesthetic is not opposed to colour, either, so long as it’s muted and used with strategy. A set of gold-plated, baby pink chairs, for example, would not look out of place in a French provincial dining room.
Image: 1825 Interiors
The above example, though a touch plain for a French provincial display, exemplifies the basic principles of the style. Most distinctive are the curvy-legged, cross-back chairs that almost channel the Tudor architecture of 18th-century French villages. These chairs find their elegance not only in their shape but also in their cookies-and-cream combination of white and chocolate-coloured timber. The chest and table echo this colour theme, which we’ve also reflected in the rustic decor. The green, botanical theme brings a touch of the outdoors in: a reference to French provincial’s preference for farmhouse decor.
To make this look more French provincial, we would swap out the table’s vertical legs for curvaceous cabriole ones. If you’re hosting a smaller party, you could trade the Tuscan 1400/1800 Small Extension Table for our Alcott Round Table below:
Image: 1825 Interiors
You could even fill out the wall’s blank spaces with pieces such as an antique-style clock or ornate mirror. Any of the below would make excellent additions:
Image: 1825 Interiors
AN ART DECO DINING ROOM
Art deco is an admittedly unexplored aesthetic at 1825 Interiors, but we do stock a few items that you could incorporate into an art deco space. If you’re a fan of the roaring ’20s and Jay Gatsby’s mansion, art deco may just be your style. This more contemporary design is equal parts opulence and artistry. From its soft velvets and rich colours to its bold metals and geometric patterns, this design breathes craftsmanship into every last surface and sprinkles them with luxe accent pieces. In a dining room context, those accent pieces could be velvet chairs in bold, jewel colours.
To achieve this look, you should use at least one piece of metallic furniture with decorative detailing, such as our Eloise Fancy Mirrors or our Fernie Chocolate Leather Breakfast Stool:
Image: 1825 Interiors
See how the dark diamond patterns of the former add a bold statement, and how the shapely curves of the latter express so much personality? If you’re hosting a party like Gatsby himself, you could even throw in our Taylor Wine Rack On Wheels, which features unintentional geometrics by virtue of being a wine rack:
Image: 1825 Interiors
Humble brag time: we’re a little bit chuffed that our wine rack slots into this aesthetic so seamlessly!
Once you’ve brought your bright-coloured or funky, metallic furniture together, it’s time for some finishing touches. We scoured our wall art collection and found two pieces that fit the art deco aesthetic to a tee: our Paulie and Pixie Parrot Oil Paintings:
Image: 1825 Interiors
Though wall art is not an essential addition, it’s also an appropriate finishing touch that emphasises the ‘art’ in ‘art deco’. Use your judgement about whether Mr and Mrs Parrot would suit your space, but we believe these portraits would suit a neutral-toned art deco dining room best.
FEAST YOUR EYES ON YOUR CREATION
Once you’ve styled your dining room, the only thing left to do is enjoy it. Once you’re done, pull out a dining chair and take in your own creation. Whether your dining room will be a work of modern art, a clutter-free minimalist space, a funky faux factory floor, a love letter to 18th-century Paris, or a tribute to Gatsby’s mansion—we’re sure you’ll create something wonderful. Our final piece of advice? Use neutral tones as a base and go from there. A neutral base is an unbiased canvas. It will grant you the flexibility to change up the aesthetic, should you want to try a different look in the future.