Dining Room Table Basics

new-dining-room-table

If you’re in the market for a new dining room table or perhaps your first official dining room table, there are some basics that you may want to consider before you make your purchase. Here’s a rundown of dining room table basics.

Dining room tables come in many, many shapes, sizes, colors, materials, etc. Some dining room tables come in wood, which then leads to what type of finish you’d like, dark or light, matte or glossy. A great way to pick out the perfect dining room table is to decide on a style that you want to go with, and then decide on other options from there.

Consider your lifestyle before settling on a table. If you have young kids that are constantly spilling things, a beautiful polished hardwood table may not be the best option for you. If your kids will be doing their homework at the dining room table, a wood table might not work, as writing on top of wood, will make indents and imperfections in the wood of the table.

Look at the space that you have, to place a dining room table in. If you have a spacious formal dining room that you’re trying to fill, a larger table will be no problem. If you’re working with a smaller space, you may have to be more strategic with your spacing.

Styles of tables feature different leg arrangements or pedestal supports. Some tables come with traditional supports, four legs supporting the table on each corner. Some tables feature one large support in the middle of the table. These types of tables are easier to sit at because there are no legs to get in the way. Essentially you can seat people all around pedestal support tables, without a leg in someone’s way.

Most dining room tables are 30 inches tall, so if you have tall family members, you may want to consider alternate heights. Some more traditional tables are oval shaped and feature removable leaves to change the size and length of the table. You can take the leaves out, and have a more round or short dining room table, and add the leaves in when you have company or more mouths to feed.

A new trend for dining room tables are benches, for a more family-style feel. Some dining room tables even come with chairs on three out of the four sides, and one bench for the fourth side, so that you get a mix of both.

There are so many styles to choose from when it comes to dining room table styles. You can always find the perfect one for your home style, functionality or space. Assess the space you have and the size you want, how many people you want to seat at the table and go from there. Choose materials colors, chairs vs. benches and more to design your perfect dining room table.