A guide to choosing chairs for the dining room

Timber, rattan, plastic, metal and upholstered, there are many types of chairs to choose from to pair with your dining table. Whether is it a table and chair set you are looking for, or an mix of aesthetics, this article will outline some things to consider when choosing your dining room chairs.

Defining the dining area

Where we eat at home isn’t necessarily in a traditional room with a dining table and side board. Sometimes we dine at a kitchen counter top, kitchen table or in an open plan room. You will need to get a chair that suits your purpose. If you are dining on your kitchen counter, you will need to use bar or kitchen stools. The average height of a dining room table is 750mm, a counter top height is between 900mm and 1100mm. A high stool is designed to account for the height of a counter. If there are only two people using the table, a cocktail table is a space saver, a quirky casual way to dine, and perfectly paired with dining stools.

Size

When choosing your seating arrangements, you need to take into account the size of your space. If you have a large space, you can use slightly oversize chairs, whereas a smaller room will need more slender chairs. Consider the size of your table, and the mood you want to create. A small table paired with oversize leather chairs will give the feeling of relaxed patio dining. A more formal dining experience will be achieved by using traditional chairs. Trying playing with the scale of the space by using chairs with extra high, or extra low backs. Low backs tend to be more casual, and high backs more formal.

Style

The chairs that you choose for your dining area will largely depend on the style or mood of the room. For a classic or formal room, you could consider an upholstered or carved timber chair. If you have a contemporary room, think about pairing a glass topped table with colourful cast plastic chairs, or for a more hard edged look, you could use steel chairs. Pair rattan or wicker chairs with a timber table create an earthy low key mood. For a casual dining experience, consider using benches along the length of the table with chairs at the head and foot of the table.