The dining space is an extremely important part of the home. At the dining table, you enjoy the delicious cuisine and quality time with your family. Elegant dining chairs can give a makeover to your dining hall. A proper selection of dining chairs not only provides comfortable seating but also adds pride to your whole dining table and hall.
However, buyers find themselves in a fix while picking a dining chair from the furniture shop. They get confused with various factors like compatibility, style, comfort, seat height, arm, and back heights; or between types like skirted, Windsor, armless, and with arms.
This article reveals what you must consider before you choose dining table chairs.
Dimension Matters
Choosing the dining chair of proper dimension is important, though it is sometimes overlooked by buyers.
The correct dimension of dining chairs makes a difference to your dining hall. Here’s a guide to help you:
Seat height: Consider overall chair height rather than just the chair seat height, as in most cases the chairs are placed with table types like standard-height tables and counter-height tables. Chairs with standard height tables should be 18 inches to 23 inches high, and that height should be 24 inches to 26 inches for counter height tables. Chair arms play a role here; decide chair height judiciously, so that the chair arms should slide under your dining table easily.
A thumb rule you can consider: Keep a distance of 10 to 13 inches between the chair seat and underside of the tabletop.
Chair width: The average width should be 16 inches to 20 inches. Generally, every guest on the table needs 24 inches to 26 inches of eating space and 6 inches of extra space for elbow room. That space of 6 inches will help to get in and get out comfortably from the table. If you want to determine how many chairs you need, measure the leg-to-leg width of your table and divide that by 32 inches. If your space is limited, you can choose armless dining chairs.
Material That Matches
Dining hall chairs can be of various materials like wood, metal, and even acrylic. You should also ponder over the option of whether to own an upholstered seat or to keep it hard and flat based on the comfort level you and your family desire.
Here we gave narrowed down on the best few reliable options for you to choose from.
Wooden chairs: Wooden dining chairs will fit well if your home has a classic and time-honored look. They look smart if your home has some other wood furniture. You can buy wooden chairs with or without wooden arms, or with upholstered seats and back materials. You can customize them more if you need a more formal look.
Metal chairs: On the contrary to wooden chairs, metal dining chairs give you a more contemporary feel. They have an excellent ability to modernize your dining space. Metal chairs are extremely lightweight, so you can pick and move them from room to room easily. Another benefit is that they are really easy to maintain. Just take a piece of clean cloth and wipe down the metal surface and you’re done.
Upholstered chairs: Choose upholstered dining chairs, if you need extra comfort and want to sit on dining chairs for hours. The padding on the seat, and back provides comfort. Extra details like padded arms, tailored upholstery give a lavish look to your chairs. The comfort provided by upholstered chairs is not only a luxury for your family but will amaze your guests too.
Type Of Chair
Shopping for dining chairs can be tedious and confusing if you don’t know which type of chair you need.
Armchair: Your dining hall should have a fusion of comfort and style. Armchairs do just the same to serve that purpose. Armchairs can have any style, pattern, color, and geometric shape. They are simply great as they give you the option to rest your arms and create a private space from your neighbor’s seat.
Side chair: As the name suggests, the side chairs are placed on both sides of the dining table to manage space. They don’t have arms and this feature provides lots of space to you and your guests at the dining table.
Skirted chair: Dining chairs with a base skirt to cover the legs. Generally, that skirt is made of linen. Adding skirts around the legs of the chair is a great idea to create a casual feeling, and to add pattern to chairs. The skirt can either cover the legs of the chair or can cover the entire piece. Skirted chairs can turn your dining hall into a more inviting and cozier place.
Windsor chair: Chairs made of wood or metal, with a rounded and top backrest fall in this category. They can be versatile and lightweight; made of any material. Windsor chairs can have various styles like fan back, sack back, bow back, and low back.
Folding chair: Folding chairs are ideal for a dining hall with less space. You can use them whenever required and you can fold them and keep them away or near the dining table when not in use.
Style That You Prefer
After you have decided the dimension, color, and type of the dining chair, it is time to decide the style. The design of your dining room will be an important factor in deciding the style. Dining chairs have various patterns like traditional, contemporary, industrial, rustic, modern, and farmhouse. It is the tone of your dining hall, table, and your family that decides which chair suits you the best.
- Modern and contemporary: Chairs with linen material, less upholstery, and a solid color pattern will add to this look.
- Rustic and farmhouse: Choose chairs with distressed surfaces and warm colors to serve this purpose.
- Industrial: Metal chairs with the exposed framework will add an industrial look.
- Traditional: Pick chairs of rich colors, curved edges, and complex patterns.
Mix & Match
Always buying matching furniture can spoil the home decoration. Don’t get afraid to mix and match various colors, materials, and chair types for a more extensive approach to your dining hall. You need to make sure that the chairs complement each other. The dining table is like an anchor or central attraction of the dining hall and the chairs are like parked boats or cars around.
There is an easy trick to this mix and match. Place a pair of matching chairs on both ends of your dining table. They will create a look of contrast and give a strong look. Below suggestions regarding mix and match can help you achieve a great choice:
- Choose chairs of one shape and with different colors.
- The end chairs of your dining table should have armrests and the others without armrests.
- Decide on one color of your chairs and start to play with various shapes, patterns, and types.
- Add a bench or sofa on one side of the table instead of a few chairs.
Don’t Forget Maintenance
We start to panic the moment we hear about the long list of maintenance of any big investment. Keeping your chairs in a good condition just needs some easy steps to perform the task.
Clean your chairs: The cleaning process of dining chairs depends on the type of fabric material. In the case of upholstered fabric, vacuum regularly to get rid of dust and dirt marks. A small amount of white vinegar will be excellent to remove tea or coffee stains.
Level your unsteady chair legs: Unsteady and wobbly chair legs can be irritating. You can fix that at home with a coping saw, masking tape, chisel, and hammer, or call a carpenter if you have a busy schedule.
Fix that squeaky one: In some cases, your dining chairs can create annoying cries or noise. You can fix that on your own or employ a carpenter.
Some other tips you should keep in mind, like, don’t expose your dining chairs to direct sunlight for long. Putting a curtain or blind on the window can protect the chair material from the sun. Don’t forget to add a floor protector under your chair legs, especially if you have a metal chair. Look regularly for cracks, and scratches on your chair. If you find one, fix that before it gets worse.
Conclusion
We all love to see our dining chairs placed with style, but it is hard to know how to start the search. Chair with arm or armless chair, wooden or fiber chair, upholstery of linen or cotton or leather – whatever it is, practicality does matter the most. The chair you select should be perfect for your needs.
Ask yourself a few questions like, how often you will use your dining chairs, how long you will sit on that chair, how much space you have, and overall, your budget. The chair needs to be a fusion of function, design, and style. The simple above-mentioned steps can give you the insight and courage to start getting the best chairs for your home without a professional.