When it comes to buying a dining room table, it is not only the cost or the look of the table that you need to consider. Furniture doesn't come cheap and rather than blowing up your money on that jazzy-looking dining table, take a step back and do your homework well. Know beforehand, how much money you can afford to spend, how durable the furniture needs to be and what are the various options available to a buyer, looking for dining room furniture? Some of the important factors which you should consider, before making your purchase, are discussed in this article.
Step 1
Dimensions of your dining room. Before setting out to buy the table, take a good look at the dimensions of your dining room and then decide on the kind of table which will occupy optimal space. It does not make sense to buy a large table, if the dining room is small, or is an annex or extension of the kitchen. Also important are the shape of the room, other furniture and accessories located here and the ease of entry and exit once the new dining table is in.
Step 2
Seating requirements. A good rule of thumb, when deciding which dining table you want to buy, is the current and future seating requirements of your family. Generally, a dining table should be a long-term purchase; you cannot be expected to pick up a dining table every other year! Therefore, estimate that the new table should meet your requirements over a period of at least 10 years. This should include the number of people it will seat on a regular basis, occasions when you would entertain larger groups and the frequency of such occasions.
Step 3
Shape of the dining table. Dining tables come in several shapes, popular choices being circular, oval, square or rectangular. If you will be seating less than 5 people at any point, then a circular table will best suit your needs. A round table promotes informality and coziness; people will not need to shout in order to be heard. For seating around 6-8 people, an oval table will work best and if you regularly have more than 8 people at your table, an oblong or rectangular table should be your ideal choice.
Step 4
Size of the dining table. You would not want you family or guests to be huddled around the dining table because it is too small. To seat everyone comfortably and also facilitate easy serving and placement of the food, allow about 25-30 inches of space per person, including elbow room and the reach of every person to the items placed on the table should be around 12-15 inches. Based on this, calculate how many people you can seat comfortably and accordingly decide on the size of the dining table to buy.
Step 5
Type of dining table. While wood is the most preferred choice for dining room furniture, you can also experiment with furniture made with other materials. This choice will depend mainly on the overall décor of your house, as also the amount of space in your dining room and the ambience or atmosphere you plan to create. Look for furniture made of materials such as rattan, cane, tubular steel, wrought iron, etc. Your choice is limited to the extent of your imagination, look for design help and advice from magazines, furniture catalogs or the Internet, where you'll find loads of design and décor ideas.
Spending some time on careful research and being clear on your current and future requirements will help you avoid making expensive mistakes when choosing your dining room furniture. Armed with the helpful information listed above, you can now head out to the nearest furniture outlet and buy a dining room table which not only provides value for money, but is also aesthetically pleasing while serving its purpose.
