Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
If you did what I did, you too may have done what I did. What did I do?
I bought an ornate, Chippendale-ish dining table, for a large McMansion type house. I never liked it, however, it was what people were buying then.
At the time, I had an EIK a regular dining and a Formal Dining room. I just have an EIK and Dining room now.
I know I can sell it or donate it. It's dreary in an uncool way. I was thinking of doing something wild, bright and light with it. Reupholstering the chairs, painting the looming lighted China cabinet. Making the room more informal.
Throwing it out would be nixed by my other half.
I have tried numerous times to sell it an it really is true. No one wants this really formal stuff anymore.
Any ideas? Before and after pictures? Suggestions are welcome.
My house is Craftsman. Walls in the room are painted a soft grey. Molding is Quarter Sawn Oak. I like did century modern, eclectic, arty and fun looks.
Donate it, maybe? Reading your post, I can't imagine that you will ever be totally, 100% happy with it.
I donated my formal dining room set to the Salvation Army. They came in a big truck to pick it up, and thanked me so sincerely that I felt really good about doing that.
If you donate it, then you can spend some time shopping for exactly the furniture that you want to have in that room.
Or, if you live in a huge house or mansion, maybe you could use an extra room for a hobby room and put it in there.
Donate it, maybe? Reading your post, I can't imagine that you will ever be totally, 100% happy with it.
I donated my formal dining room set to the Salvation Army. They came in a big truck to pick it up, and thanked me so sincerely that I felt really good about doing that.
If you donate it, then you can spend some time shopping for exactly the furniture that you want to have in that room.
Or, if you live in a huge house or mansion, maybe you could use an extra room for a hobby room and put it in there.
No. I live in a 2300 square ft. house.
I want a dining room. Just not this one.
Has anyone ever undertaken such a thing? I know people chalk pain a lot. But, isn't that only to achieve a "Shabby Chic" look?
I was faced with the delima of how to fix up my in laws house, a few years ago. I had a budget and they hadn’t done anything to the house in 30 years. Here is a picture of the chalk paint I did on their brown, beat up dining table and hutch. I also painted the chairs and basically everything in that room, walls and cabinets, got painted and ready for market. Chalk paint really does make old furniture look new and you don’t have to prime first.
I tried to lighten up the 70’s brown and green and make it appeal to younger buyers. I had the old vinyl floors tiled, but did everything else. I recommend chalk paint, if you haven’t tried it, maybe do a small piece of furniture to see if you like it.
We had our old, round coffee table refinished. I had the base painted gray, and the top given a lighter stain. It really made the old piece look better. Doing this was beyond my skill set, so I had it done.
Painting the dining room set would be a long, tedious job. Be sure you want to tackle this to the end, and that you are perfectionist enough to produce satisfactory results.
Another factor to consider is whether to paint the entire set, or just part of it.
I would want to know what wood you have. How well were the top boards matched? Who is the manufacturer. And remember that the painted furniture fad will peak, and then fade. And your painted pieces could look outdated in a decade. So—you need to be sure that what you do is something you really like, whatever the style.
Look around for a dining set you like and price it.
You could consider breaking up the set and mixing in more eclectic/modern elements. I’d keep the table, recover the chairs in a funky fabric (easily changed when trends shift), leave 2 or 4 chairs with the set and choose some different chairs with similar back height for the other chairs. Use the chairs in other rooms, and keep them for entertaining. Possibly paint the China cabinet. Or repurpose it into a bar. Add modern lighting and a fun rug.
We had a "re-styler" chalk paint our cherrywood Queen Anne dining set to a soft sand color. We moved from the Midwest to the South and needed a lighter look. Yes, she distressed it a little, but not so much that you'd call it Shabby Chic. My husband doesn't like that look. The re-styler said that she would just hit points on the arms & legs to make it look a bit worn, but naturally so. We reupholstered the chairs with a textured tone-on-tone gold material that's a bit of a modern flair. We're very happy with the look as it has a waxed finish ... but not shiny, just protected.
Do go wild with color if that appeals to you!
We never had a china closet. I think those are just very outdated now. But we did have one of those large armoires in the bedroom that held the old deep TV's. We were able to separate the top cabinet from the lower dresser. We added a marble top to the dresser -- we probably could have painted/stained it. But my point is that perhaps you could turn the "looming" china cabinet into a buffet?
BTW, we found the re-styler by her posting on a physical bulletin board at our local Sherwin-Williams store.
Good luck!
You could consider breaking up the set and mixing in more eclectic/modern elements. I’d keep the table, recover the chairs in a funky fabric (easily changed when trends shift), leave 2 or 4 chairs with the set and choose some different chairs with similar back height for the other chairs. Use the chairs in other rooms, and keep them for entertaining. Possibly paint the China cabinet. Or repurpose it into a bar. Add modern lighting and a fun rug.
This!
Remember if you paint the furniture, that painted furniture will go out of style and then you are STILL stuck with a dated look. I'm not saying don't do it - you don't like this furniture anyway so who cares? But the look you will get will be just as dated in a few years as the look that's dated now.
But I would definitely change the fabric on the seats, get a funky rug, and replace the two end chairs with something different and unexpected that ties in with the rug and fabric. Also consider changing out your dining room light fixture. Get creative with the china cabinet!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
