Picking furniture for your bachelor pad can seem tedious. Here are a few simple things to remember for a dining area complete with practical pieces you love.

Dining room tables

An important tip to shopping for dining room furniture, it’s a better idea to buy a table first, and match the chairs to it, rather than the other way around.

Remember to take into consideration the size of the space you have for a table. You don’t want a table that no one can squeeze into because it’s too close to the wall. You want to have plenty of space to push out and pull in dining room chairs.

Basic finishes for dining room tables are clear or colored glass, metal or wood. Picking a table with a clear glass top can be a great idea for a smaller space. The clear glass will make the table look smaller than it actually is. Contemplate different shapes of dining room tables, like circular, square, rectangular, oval or others.

As always, when buying furniture, always make sure you can get it in the door of your home or apartment. Consider the size of doors or elevators or any other obstacles that may prevent you from getting a table into your home.

Dining room chairs

The choice of unique chairs can completely change the way your dining room looks. There are many types of chairs to try out, including upholstered, pedestal, metal and wood. You can also choose from different shapes or heights, chairs with arms or without and more.

Just because you’ve purchased a wood or metal table does not mean your chairs have to be the same. Wooden chairs at a metal table can have a great industrial affect, and vice versa with metal chairs at a wooden table.

Try out all your dining chair options before purchasing them. Make sure they’re comfortable and fit at the table you’ve purchased. Picking a fabric or material that can easily be wiped off makes for easy kitchen clean up as well, keeping your work to a minimum.

Creating your own bar

Also consider creating your own bar in your dining room by arranging glasses and bottles in a hutch. Another great alternative is adding bar stools to your kitchen counter. If you don’t have a bar table in your dining room or kitchen area, adding a long table at the end of your kitchen counter creates space for bar stools. The addition of leather, metal or wooden bar stools is a great upgrade to any kitchen.

Home Saunas Create Relaxation Stations for the Entire Family

Sometimes when you come home, you can just feel the stress throughout each room. Your spouse is trying to handle taking care of the kids and the chores while finishing work deadlines. Your kids are studying for upcoming exams and completing tough homework assignments. Even you feel the stress of making sure to provide all that your family needs to maintain their lifestyle.

Sauna Relaxation Stations Helping the Whole Family Unwind

There comes a time when the family has to put down all their work and just relax. Everyone can turn off the televisions, mute the smartphones and just spend time together where they can talk and have fun. Saunas make the perfect relaxation stations where you can lean back and let the steam pull the stress out of the body. Saunas can also give important health benefits to the body as the young and old alike can use the space.

Incorporating a Sauna in Your Home

While people automatically think that only master bedrooms will have a small sauna installed into the bathroom space, there are other areas of the home where one can be built. If you are making it into a relaxation station for the entire family, you will want to have it in a more public area of the home without having people always entering your bedroom to use the space.

You might also want to place it in an area that offers a bit more privacy, as you don’t want to have to hear music or voices penetrating through the walls while you are trying to relax in the steam and the silence of the room. Check out the floor plan of your home. Then consider all the features you want to incorporate into the sauna to decide on the right location.

Will you have an outdoor shower attached to the sauna? Then you might consider making the space its own private building in the backyard and running water lines to the space.

Do you want to use the sauna in the winter? Consider attaching it to the home so you don’t have to go outside as you can place it downstairs in its own private area.

Have limited floor space inside the home and a small backyard? Look up. You can have a rooftop sauna if your home is structurally sound to support one up there.

Have Less Stress with a Sauna Relaxation Station

Consider having a relaxation station that has a sauna when you want to improve the health of your family as well as promote more socialization with your family. A sauna can relieve the aches and pains, lower stress levels and allow everyone to have fun together. Equip the sauna with everything it needs so it can turn into the best entertainment spot in your home.

Increase the Kitchen Entertainment Factor with Functional and Stylish Island Counters

Having a dinner party can be an exciting and entertaining event when you are the host. You get to serve scrumptious meals and have engaging conversations while laughing throughout the evening. Yet this situation can completely change when you are stuck in the kitchen for long hours with your back turned to the guests. Not only do you feel left out when you want to socialize with your guests, you can feel like a bad hostess because you can’t make sure your guests are happy when you are at the stove and sink finishing up the meal.

Yet even everyday meals can still leave you isolated in the kitchen when the rest of the family is busy moving about in the other room. You can’t keep an eye on the kids or strike up a conversation with the spouse unless they are in the room, as then you have to avoid bumping and tripping into your family while getting things from the fridge or the counter.

Kitchen Islands Are Functional and Stylish for Today’s Homeowners

Kitchen islands are becoming more pronounced in today’s homes. They are turning the kitchen, dining room and living room space into open floor plans without hampering the functionality of each room. These counters are being equipped with burners, ovens, sinks, and even small fireplaces to add a touch of style and decor to the kitchen. They can also add a dimensional depth to the space while allowing you to face outward from the kitchen, letting you socialize with your family and guests while you are cooking meals.

A Wide Range of Kitchen Island Designs

Kitchen islands aren’t restricted to just being a spot to make meals and wash vegetables. Tables can become attached to islands as this arrangement provides you with more prep space while giving the family or guests a place to sit. You can talk with the spouse or help the kids with their homework while keeping an eye on what is happening in the rest of the house.

Other kitchen islands can have several different levels to them to create a separate counter and bar area for entertaining guests. You can serve your friends drinks and appetizers as they can sit on bar stools at the counter area. They can also be your taste testers while you cook as you can laugh and have fun throughout the evening until the meal is finished.

Have Another Place to Entertain Family and Guests

You can turn your kitchen into the most entertaining room in the house with innovative kitchen island designs. Don’t feel isolated and alone in this space. With a kitchen island, you can be more social while cooking meals and entertaining the important people in your life.

Let Bar Stools Add A Unique Character To Your Art Studio

When you think about bar stools, you immediately consider placing them in kitchens by counters and islands, or at wet bars. Yet bar stools are very versatile as they are the perfect piece of furniture to place in art studios. If art is your passion and you need the right type of seating for work and for lounging, consider bar stools to be the perfect solution. There are many ways to use bar stools in your studio as here are a few ideas you may want to try.

Painting Stools

People create art in many different ways, so it stands to reason they need furniture that will help them create the perfect artwork. While some artists have to stand in front of the canvas to create their art, you might prefer a seated position when sitting in front of the easel. Regular chairs are simply too low, especially when you are working on large canvases. A bar stool can give you the perfect height to work on your creativity without causing strains to your back.

Work Benches

Do your part to make a better environment by repurposing old bar stools. Bar stools can be turned into work benches to hold paint and artist tools. All you need are two strong benches and a piece of wood nailed down onto the seat to create the perfect work bench. You are recycling the furniture for the perfect cause.

Creating Conversation Areas

There is much more to an art studio than simply looking at the artist’s greatest creations in silence. Instead, the art pieces are the best way to start an engaging conversation with viewers to see what the artwork means to them. You can create conversation areas near your best art pieces in your studio by strategically placing bar stools so people can sit and muse. You can instantly make an inviting atmosphere where people can laugh, debate and talk about the art world.

Artwork Displays

There is one little nook in your space that would be perfect for your pottery, statue or small painting. Yet you just don’t have the right table to place there at the angle you want so you can properly display the art. Consider a bar stool. With a bar stool that has a back, you can display artwork in a unique and creative way in any corner of the room. Instantly brighten up the space and have more places to display your items that will catch the attention of anyone who comes into your studio.

As Artwork Itself

As an artist, you know that there are many things besides clay, canvas and metal to create engaging pieces of art. When the mood strikes, and when you have an old bar stool that is showing signs of wear-and-tear, turn it into a work of art. Unleash your creative side and go crazy with the paint colors, sculpting tools or welding torch to make art pieces that are one of a kind.

Create More Space Even In Small Apartments

Tiny apartments can be a decorator’s nightmare. You want to have a comfortable environment where you can place all your possessions and necessitates out so you can enjoy them. Yet all your items take up so much space that you can barely move around.

Don’t start looking for new rental opportunities when it is not in your budget all because you are desperate to find a larger space. You can create more room in your tiny apartment with these smart solutions.

Multifunctional Furniture is Your Friend

Really, multifunctional furniture is a must-have if you live in small apartments. Sofas that can be converted into beds, and kitchen tables that can do double duty as work desks or can be expanded when you have guests over for meals, are the perfect solutions to increase space because it cuts down on the number of furniture pieces you have to buy. Think about what types of furniture would work for the floor plan you have and come up with some creative ideas that will work out for your lifestyle.

Use the Walls for Decorating Ideas

Many people refrain from doing anything with the walls because they don’t want to cause any damage that will come out of their security deposit later when they decide to move. Yet it costs less than $10 for a wall repair kit and 5 minutes of your time to repair small nail holes. So place hanging bookshelves and floating mantles on the wall to increase space.  Then move books, knickknacks and vases from bookcases and tables over to the hanging shelves and mantels. When you remove bulky bookcases and tables, you can instantly increase space in your apartment.

Don’t forget the versatility of doors to provide places to store your items. You can hang door organizers in cabinets and against interior doors to hold shoes, toiletries, cooking utensils, food products and other items.

Work Out a Better Floor Plan

Sometimes, the best way to have a bigger apartment is to rethink the current floor plan. You may find that certain areas in the room are more appropriate to place furniture to increase space and allow a flow to the room that doesn’t hamper movement. Then consider the items you need to have in your daily lifestyle and things that you only use occasionally and seasonally. You may find that it is better to pack things up and rent a storage space to hold the extra items that you own.

Enjoy Your Tiny, Spacious Apartment

There is no reason why you can’t have a tiny apartment that fits perfectly into your lifestyle. All you have to consider are the items that are necessary to have in your life, things that can be placed into storage, and using your space smartly to increase the amount of room.  Many solutions won’t cost much out of pocket or cause you to have to get rid of the possessions that you own. Instead you can have everything you need and the space you deserve.

When you think about animal elements as home decor, do you imagine walking into a home that looks like a jungle as a wild tiger (or your pet cat named tiger) hides among the broad leaves of a fake fern as it is about to pounce on your suspecting toes? Perhaps you imagine walking into a hunting cabin with animal heads and antlers scattered across the furniture?

Animal elements have been popular for decades. Yet they don’t have to take center stage and be the main theme in the room. If you want to explore your quirky, groovy side, or just add a splash of unique style to the room, here are several ideas provided by California Stools, Bars, and Dinettes to add animal themes to your home whether you have a modern, industrial, contemporary or other architectural style.

Animal print pillows are usually the first baby step a person takes when they want to tap into their wild side. Leopard spots and zebra stripes can be found on a range of pillow sizes that can be placed on sofas, love seats and beds. Animal prints also are ideal for people of all ages, as children love the unique design in their rooms. When a person no longer desires to have the animal print theme in their home, they can use pillow covers and shams to change the print design on the pillow.

Animal Hide Chairs and Ottomans

The interesting thing about animal hide chairs is that you don’t have to incorporate the design throughout the room. Usually you would select one or two chairs to make it a nice conversational piece that may be in contrast to the rest of the decor in the room. Upholstered chairs can come in a wide range of themes, even looking like cow hide or sheepskin. You can have the chairs in the living room, a work chair in your home office, or even in your dining room when the family sits down to eat meals.

Don’t forget that animal elements can go beyond the color and print of the chair to instead focus on texture. Leather chairs with snakeskin and crocodile skin add a dimensional depth and style. If you do decide to purchase this exotic leather for chairs, make sure to read about how to properly maintain it.

Animal Print Rugs

Just like pillows, rugs are another easy way to add animal elements to a wide range of home styles without overpowering other decor themes. The rugs are usually placed underneath coffee tables in living rooms. Yet you don’t have to keep them confined to only that living space. You can place them in bedrooms between your bed and a long dresser, in the kid’s room with large sitting pillows so they can sit on the floor and read or play, or even along the hallway as a floor runner rug.

Get adventurous and consider adding animal elements to your home. You can bring the outdoors into your home in a unique fashion. Then show off your new decor style as your friends will love the look of the room.

Convertible Furniture: Items That Grow With Your Family to Last for Generations

Life constantly changes, as we expect our homes to be able to match these changes to provide the best environment. People may get married or move in with their significant others. Families may get larger as children grow older. While looking for furniture at California Stools, Bars and Dinettes, you want pieces that are not only perfect for your present lifestyle, but are perfect for what lies in store in the near future. Here are several ideas for furniture pieces that can change and grow with your family so you can save money no matter what life event comes your way.

Expandable Dining Tables

Small dining and kitchen tables are perfect for newlyweds living in small spaces, yet instantly feel too small when there is the pitter-patter of small feet as children grow older. Expandable tables with leaves that can be added are perfect additions to the home. They instantly add more seating spaces when desired for your growing children. When they become teens and go off to college, you can remove the leaves to make the table smaller and add more space to the room.

Convertible Cribs

New babies to the home can be a trying time for parents with tight budgets. You are constantly buying new clothes and items as the child grows older. Cribs have become the answer as the perfect furniture that grows with your child. When your baby moves to the toddler stage, the crib can be converted into a toddler bed. Then the same toddler bed can be used as a headboard for big kids.

Second-Use Changing Tables

In addition to cribs, changing tables are getting a makeover to become multifunctional pieces of furniture that can be used throughout the home. Some changing tables can be changed into hanging bookcases, while other tables can be converted into floor bookcases and even desks for tweens.

Multifunctional Beds

Beds that can transform into sofas and love seats have been around for decades. The sofa instantly transforms into an extra bed for kids or seating when your teens have their friends over. A multifunctional bed is also ideal for when your aging parents decide to move in, as you can transform a sitting room into an extra bedroom. They can sleep on the twin bed at night and convert it into seating during the day while watching television.

Yet sofas aren’t the only other piece of furniture that beds can transform into for your home. There are several manufacturers who have created beds that can transform into work desks. This set up is perfect for teenagers during those long exam study sessions.

With the wide selection of furniture pieces out on the market, you can create the perfect indoor atmosphere that works with your growing family. Get an idea about your present furniture needs, and how your furniture would need to accommodate you in the future, to pick out the right pieces for your home.

It’s past time to get new bar stools for your home. You find the perfect stools that fit into the decor theme of your dining room or kitchen at California Stools, Bars and Dinette Sets. Yet what do you do with the old bar stools? If you can’t gift them to a friend and your college-bound child doesn’t want the bar stools to clutter up his small dorm room, you can repurpose your former counter stool into other items that you can use in the inside and outside of your home. Here are several great ideas you may want to try to recycle the old bar stools and give them other functions.

Nightstands and End Tables

Just a dash of chalk paint or spray paint and you can transform the bar stools into instant nightstands and end tables. If you desire a wider table piece on top, you can attach another piece of wood, either square or round, to the top of the barstool seat. Keep in mind that the larger the table surface, the top-heavier the nightstand or table will become even with wide legs as bumping a large table surface could make the stool topple over.

Sofa Tables and Work Desks

Similar to the night stand idea, you can also make the table longer by adding another barstool to create a work desk or sofa table. You can cover the bar stool with fabric to match your space and create a softer feel. Use the tables as a new study area for the kids, an extra table in the craft room, or just a decorative table in the corner of the room to hold books and vases.

Outdoor Drink Cooler

It’s amazing how far a little ingenuity can take you. If you remove the bar seat and attach a metal bucket on top, you can create an instant drink cooler for your outdoor space. Fill it with ice and set wine coolers (or non-alcoholic drinks) inside as everyone can have a drink without impatiently waiting beside the wet bar.

Indoor/Outdoor Plant Stand

One of our favorite DIY barstool projects is a standing planter. All you’ll need is an old stool and dirt. Place the planter along the corners of your deck or inside your home by the window where the plants can get plenty of sunshine. You can also place herbs into the bucket to use in your cooking.

Garden Bird Houses

Bring more birds to your flower and vegetable garden who will eat up the pesky bugs that nibble on your plants by creating a garden bird house out of your old bar stools. Simply attach a large birdhouse to the top of the stool and place it in a corner of your garden. Make sure to securely mount the legs by either driving the metal ends into the ground or even cementing wooden bar legs in place.

The possibilities on what you can do with bar stools are endless. If you aren’t the type to take on a diy bar stool makeover, you can simply try to sell or give the stools away at yard sales and garage sales. Then the old bar stools can find a new home that isn’t at the local landfill.

When it comes to relaxation in the great outdoors, you want to have the perfect furniture in your outdoor living space whether you are lounging by the pool or reading a book under the pergola. California Stools, Bars and Dinettes offers a wide range of kitchen, dining room and bar sets that can be placed into outdoor living spaces. Before picking out a range of furniture for lounging, dining and entertainment, you need to understand the durable materials that are commonly used for furniture and the maintenance that is required to make the pieces last no matter the weather outside.

Types of Outdoor Furniture Materials

There are four categories of materials crafted into outdoor furniture: wood, metal, plastic and wicker. Each material has its benefits and disadvantages when it comes to longevity and maintenance, yet most of this furniture can be maintained simply by washing the dirt and grime off with soap and water. Decide on the best materials based on your personal preferences and your budget.

Metal Furniture

Out of all the materials available, metal furniture is the most durable. There are two types available: powder-coated aluminum and wrought iron. Both types are sturdy although they are pricier than other materials. Typical maintenance for metal furniture requires sealing the metal to prevent rust. One of the disadvantages to wrought iron furniture is that it can easily absorb the heat from sunlight, making them extremely hot to the touch. Some metal furniture may also be paired with glass, such as tables, or upholstered cushions on chairs so take this into consideration when performing maintenance care.

Wicker Furniture

Wicker is often preferred over other types of outdoor furniture because it has more of a garden look, making it blend into backyard gardens. Bamboo, cane, and rattan are common materials used to make wicker furniture as often wicker will be paired with upholstered cushions for increased comfort. Many wicker pieces may be made from synthetic materials to increase their weather resistance. When selecting wicker, you want to protect the cushion seat to prevent mold and mildew that can cause it to rot out. So keep wicker protected from wet weather or select weather-resistant fabrics.

Wood

Wood furniture can be beautiful and long-lasting as some pieces can stay outside for over 50 years. Furniture may be made out of a range of softwoods, such as cedar, or hardwoods like teak. Sealing and treating wood with special oils can help protect the surface from weather and maintain its original appearance. One of the major advantages of wood furniture is that it doesn’t absorb heat quickly, making it cooler to the touch versus metal furniture.

Plastic Furniture

Plastic is often a go-to material for outdoor furniture because it is the least expensive and requires very low maintenance care. Plastic furniture is also lightweight, allowing a homeowner to move it about their outdoor living space and stack it when not in use. Plastic usually is the least durable material to buy and will need to be replaced more often than the other types of materials that have been mentioned.

With spring arriving, people will be looking for outdoor furniture to spruce up their backyards. Consider the materials used to create your favorite pieces of furniture and select one that fits perfectly into your lifestyle.

When you purchased your family dining room table, you probably thought about how well it would seat your family, how sturdy it was, and whether or not it would fit in its designated space. What you may not have thought about is how valuable this piece of furniture is to helping you as a parent.

Research suggests that families that dine together tend to be happier and healthier. Unfortunately, many families are not taking the time to gather together around the dining room table and eat. In fact, a poll conducted by Gallup suggests there has been a significant decline – a decrease of almost 9% – in regular family meals. Considering how important family dinners are to a child and teen’s development, it is important to try to incorporate it into their daily lives.

Wondering just how helpful a family dinner can be to your family’s emotional and physical well-being? Here is a look at some of the benefits that have been linked to regular family dinners.

The Development of Essential Social Skills

Children aren’t just eating when they gather for family meals. They are learning valuable, essential social skills that will help them through life.

A recent article from the Daily Times discussed how children who regularly at family meals at home had better social skills than those who didn’t engage in traditional family dinners. Some of the skills learned at the dinner table include proper manners, ability to easily converse with people of all ages and backgrounds, and proper oral communication.

Healthy Eating Habits are Learned at the Dinner Table

One of the most shocking statistics regarding family dinners is their impact on children’s eating habits. Research conducted by the Journal of Adolescent Health suggests that individuals who regularly ate a family dinner had better eating habits. These children and adults tended to eat healthier foods, such as fruits and vegetables, were able to control their portions, and were less likely to develop disordered eating.

Create a Functional Space for Family Dinners

Considering how important family dinners are to your children’s social, emotional, and physical growth, you should designate a space in the dining room or kitchen that is used for family dinners or family gatherings. California Stools, Bars and Dinettes has a wonderful selection of dining room tables, chairs, and sets that are perfect for families looking to create a warm, welcoming place for family dinners.

Browse the selection of tables, chairs, and stools and create a space for family dinners. You will be surprised at just how well your children and teens succeed in life thanks to having family dinners.