7 Ways to Refresh a Dining Nook in a Flash
Simple swaps you can make in lighting, dinnerware, furniture, and styling to make a dining nook feel instantly welcoming.
This post is sponsored by Better Homes & Gardens at Walmart.
We set a new record for a dining nook makeover today! Or any room makeover really.
Back when Robert and I did a couple of room refreshes at our friend Kristina’s house (during her 1 day bedroom spruce up, patio glow up, and powder room remodel), I saw her dining nook and thought how perfect it would be for another quick makeover day.
Kristina is a single mom, cancer survivor, teacher, and one of the absolute sweetest souls on the planet. I’ve warned her before that we’ll basically makeover every single room in her house if she’s not careful. 😉
Dining Nook Before
Her dining nook started out like this, and after about 3 hours, some rearranging, mixing in thrifted items, and a few decor swaps from Better Homes and Gardens at Walmart, it looks like a newly pulled together space with a modern cabin twist.
The goal was to knock out this one without the need for any painting or pulling out power tools and work with her existing color palette.
Since her china cabinet was already this light blue shade, I pulled in a few colors that reminded me a little bit of this year’s HGTV Dream Home – vibrant blue, sage green, and rust.
8 Ways to Refresh a Dining Nook in a Flash
1. Swap the chairs
The beauty of replacing a table and chairs set with chairs that don’t match helps a dining nook feel more carefully collected.
Kristina’s matching chairs that came as a set with her table were very wobbly, so they were due to be replaced with these sturdier X-back dining chairs. The sage green brightens up this windowless corner so well with an extra punch of color.
(We had planned to swap out the table too, but the one we ordered ended up too big for the space. Oops! Rookie mistake. It all worked out though because the existing round table just works, and thankfully it was in good condition.)
2. Update the chandelier
Lighting makes such a huge difference in adding ambience to a dining nook or creating the illusion of a larger space. A good rule to follow is to hang a chandelier so that the bottom is 30″-36″ above the dining table.
Swapping Kristina’s half working chandelier for this modern one instantly added tons of light. (I’m sharing more info about it next week, by the way.)
3. A little wall art goes a long way
If you need some great inexpensive art inspiration, here are 20 creative DIY wall decor ideas. Keep a lookout at thrift stores too. Art is one of my favorite things to buy secondhand!
I just cut up a calendar with black and white Ansel Adams photographs of a few National Parks in California (since that’s where Kristina is from) and placed them in these matted floating picture frames. Never throw out an old calendar with great art. 😉
4. Replace old dinnerware
There’s something about a new unbroken set of dishes… eating a meal off of sturdy, unchipped, matching plates just feels good.
I love our very durable exposed clay dinnerware so much that I bought a set for Kristina too.
5. Rearrange the china cabinet
Highlight a few favorite pieces on your china cabinet shelves like a painting, an heirloom platter, or a vase. Move items around; stack and stagger them.
Kristina had a few geodes and fossils I placed among the dishes on her shelves. Her little coastal painting and hand painted plate deserved to have the spotlight front and center on her cabinet.
6. Create a planter centerpiece
If you ever say to yourself, “Something is missing,” add a plant. That’s my solution anyway. 😉 It couldn’t hurt, right? Can you really have too many?
I planted a little succulent garden using this hammered bowl, and it turned out to be just the cutest fresh centerpiece!
Place some river rocks in the bottom of the bowl followed by soil to help the plants drain and it will perk your dining table right up for months.
7. Add a low pile rug to define a dining nook in open concept
Rugs are great at “defining the space” in an open concept room if your living room and dining room are adjoining. In this case, Kristina’s dining nook now feels like a separate area from the rest of her open concept home.
Low pile or indoor/outdoor rugs are best for using under dining tables because they make easy clean up in the case of food spills and allow chair legs to slide.
Many of the items we used in this dining nook refresh were Kristina’s that we just reused in new ways for her, but here are all of the items we brought in from Better Homes & Gardens at Walmart to finish out the space.
Sources
- X-back dining chairs
- Matted floating frames
- Hammered metal bowl
- Exposed clay stone dinnerware
- Highball glasses
- Black matte flatware
You can see more dining room ideas here too.
Related: Dining Room Nook Ideas
- How to Decorate a Buffet & Style Anything
- Footed Grasscloth Buffet Makeover
- Weathered Oak Dining Table Makeover
- Shaded Chandeliers for All Budgets: Splurge vs Save
Love what you did with this space. I am redoing my dining room and love the chandelier you used. I have tried to wait patiently for more info on the chandelier, but can’t wait any longer. Do you have a link for it?
Hi, Leslie. Yes! 🙂 Here is the link https://rstyle.me/+zqGEYQvP_cuBf_BwvyNZjw
There you go again, knocking it out the ballpark. This did not look like the same space. You amazes me with what you can do with paint, rearranging things and making a few other tweets. This family not have a fabulous space. You gave them a well organized, cohesive, pulled together, classy, warmth space. I know they must smile every time they enter this room.
Wow! Love the rug that pulls out the blue of the hutch and the green of the chairs. Also love the black chandelier as I think every room needs something in black to anchor the space. Plus the light fixture adds so much more light to the space that does not have a window. The little table in natural wood finish complements the dish-ware and the entire room beautifully. It was so thoughtful of you to include the black and white wall art to this room. The redo made practical use of what the homeowner already had while adding much needed refreshment. I can see Kristina settling down at the table with a cup of tea or coffee and just feeling the cares of the day drain away.
Love this!! Info on the run PLEASE!!
Sure! Here’s the rug link: https://rstyle.me/+Ps3q7W506tSbf9AXf-7lpQ
Thank you SO much Lauren…I have just received the same rug in a slightly smaller size for my front hallway. It covers my horrible pinky tile (yippee) and makes my soft denim walls pop. I am now debating whether or not to refresh an old sideboard there that I use as an entry table with robin’s egg blue chalky paint or…….
I am delighted. My husband is thrilled that I have yet another project!!
Beth in Lexington
I’d be so giddy with this new look! Everything looks fantastic and so cozy now! Great job.