Inheriting old dining room furniture from your parents seems like a right of passage into adulthood. Dining sets can be expensive and honestly most of us would rather invest in home renovations or even nice TVs and sound systems before we spend a ton of money on dining room furniture. How many dinner parties are you really throwing in your twenties? But if that old, chucky dining set has followed you from one house to the next listen up. Gone are the days of matching sets in the dining room, so ditch mom and dad’s cherry wood set today! We prefer to mix and match our dining chairs for staging which means we have endless looks for our staged properties. But even if you want to keep six (or more) of the same chair, we really suggest that you pair them with a different style table as opposed to the coordinating piece. So if you’re in the market for a new dining set, here are some considerations before you buy.

CONSIDER THE STYLE OF THE HOME

Is your home traditional or do you lean a little bit modern farmhouse? Regardless of your style, we recommend you stick with a dining set that compliment the overall aesthetic of your home. That being said, the idea of mixing up your dining set allows you to have the freedom to introduce a different décor style or go outside the box a little bit. In staging, we tend to use wood dining tables with clean lines and not much embellishment. Because we stage such a variety of homes, we prefer to keep the dining tables neutral and widely appealing. Our dining chairs are a bit more style-specific and we select the chairs to compliment the property’s overall style. As an example, in a traditional project we might use clean upholstered parsons chairs, while in a loft project might use funkier styles such as leather woven chairs or metal Windsor chairs. We typically use a set of four matching side chairs and two complimentary end chairs as opposed to six matching chairs. Our end chairs are often larger in scale and periodically we use arm chairs on the ends. We find that the combination of two different styles gives the room some added visual interest, but again we tie our furniture selection to the general style of the home.

CONSIDER THE SIZE AND SCALE OF THE DINING ROOM

It’s important to buy the appropriate sized dining set, so take into account the room dimensions, including height, when selecting your furniture. If you have a massive dining room, opt for a larger table (possibly with a leaf or two) and larger scale chairs. Consider tables that are a bit more solid and substantial and chairs with higher backs and/or armchairs. You don’t want to dining set to feel dwarfed or unsubstantial in the large room. Conversely, in smaller dining rooms, consider smaller sized furniture in shapes that compliment the room and materials that give the illusion of more space. Perhaps look at tables with glass tops to keep the space open and airy or consider a round table if the room isn’t particularly long. Pay close attention to how the chairs fit under the table and be mindful of walkways around the room when considering the size and shape of your furniture.

CONSIDER WHO WILL USE THE DINING ROOM AND HOW OFTEN

If you’re like my family, the dining room is used for an occasional family dinner, but typically reserved for holidays and other big occasions. That being said, my dining room leans a little more formal than the other rooms in my home. I have light colored upholstered chairs in the dining room and typically lay down napkins on the seats before my kids even enter the room. However, if your dining room gets a lot of use and you’re hesitant to use upholstered chairs, we recommend chairs that are little more durable and wipeable, like wood or metal. In some cases I’d argue for style over function (like shoes, of course), but if your dining room gets regular usage then I would invest in durable, family-friendly fabrics or other materials that fit your lifestyle.

Here are a few dining room combinations ideas that work. And we’re posting and sourcing pictures of our staged dining rooms all the time, so be sure to follow us on LiketoKnow.it where you can shop any of our photos and find inspiration for your own home.