When you are on the market for a new dining table, you look for something pleasing to the eye. Before you get attached to a table that makes your swoon, read these tips to narrow down your table selection:
- Typically you can fit more people around a table with a pedestal base AS LONG AS that base does not interfere with the legs of your chairs. Beautiful pedestal bases can be chunky and flare out at the floor. These same bases can interfere with chair legs.
- If you are choosing a bench to pair with your table, make sure the legs or pedestal base allow enough room to push the bench in.
- Figure 24 inches per place setting at a minimum to decide how many chairs you can accommodate comfortably at a table.
- Tables can come in different lengths and widths. In a more narrow room, choose a smaller width. To figure out what width I can use in my room I always add an extra 24 inches to my the table size. The reason for this is that you will need to pull the chair out approx 24 inches to sit in it. If you want to use a table with a 42 inch width, but with the chairs pulled out they either hit the wall, or don’t allow for any traffic to walk by, you should look at narrower tables.
- If you love the look of grooves or planks in your table top, please understand that those tables will be a catch all for crumbs, and writing on it will be tough.
- If you are using chairs that have arms to pair with your table make sure the height of the arm fits under the apron height of the table so it slides in easily. It is also useful to know how much room there is between the table apron and the chair seat so it is comfortable to cross your legs.
- Ask the company or person you are getting the table from to help you figure out if the dining table you are interested in will fit the number of people you want to seat. Knowing the dimensions of your room is very helpful!
We use these rules at our interior design firm. Happy table hunting! 🙂
Here Are Some Samples Of Table Looks
Some of the rooms are long and narrow, some are very small
