Dining Sets Buying Guide
In the middle ages, castles and large manor houses
typically had a “Great Hall”, which was mainly used for
dining. Great Halls were often packed with people eating and
smoking, so were extremely noisy and smelly. It was usually
quite an unpleasant place to hold a discussion. Because of
this, the nobility began to build parlours or drawing rooms
off their Great Halls. These were far smaller rooms to which
they could retire to relax and talk in quiet. Over time, the
nobility ate more and more of their meals in their parlours.
Eventually dining in the Great Hall became something that
was done only on special occasions, and eating in the
smaller “dining room” became the norm. While poorer homes
wouldn’t have had a dining room in the past, nowadays more
and more homes, both small and large, do have a room solely
for eating.
Obviously, a
dining set, with table and chairs, is the centrepiece of any
dining room. However, a few other pieces are needed to complete
the room. These include a
sideboard or a
dresser, to store crockery, cutlery and other items, and
perhaps a
display cabinet for glass wear and to keep photos and
ornaments in. Some people also choose to have a
bookcase or
wine rack in their dining room, as well as a
mirror on the wall.
There are five key questions you should ask yourself when
buying new furniture for your dining room:
1. How big is your dining room? PineSolutions’ dining
room furniture varies in size to suit every space. For
example, we have dining tables ranging from the large
Rustic Oak Extending Dining Table and Six Carver Chairs
to the compact
Julian Bowen Ashley Dining Set (x2 Chairs) . Sideboards
range from the small Mayfair oak sideboard to the
large Newhaven sideboard. You must bear in mind that
pieces of furniture that are too big will take over your
dining room, or might not fit.
2. Do you want your dining room to be traditional or more
modern in style? PineSolutions has furniture to suit all
tastes. The
Brooklyn Oak Dining set with 4 Chairs will add rustic
charm to your home, whereas the
Madrid Oak Furniture has a contemporary design. You’ll
probably want to make sure the style of your dining room is
in keeping with the rest of your home.
3. What do you want to store in your dining room? You’ll
need to make sure you have enough space to store what you
need, whether it’s crockery, cutlery, glasses or other
items. There are lots of stylish options for storage in your
dining room.
Sideboards,
dressers and
display cabinets provide a huge amount of space.
4. Do you want to, or are you able to, assemble your
dining room furniture yourself? We have fully assembled,
part assembled and flat pack dining room furniture.
5. How much do you want to spend on your new dining room
furniture? PineSolutions has pieces to suit all budgets. The
Corona Pine Sideboard is great value, while the elegant
Rustic Oak Extending Table and Six Carver Chairs and the
stylish Rustic Oak Glass Display Cabinet are great for those
with a larger amount to spend.
To keep your dining room furniture looking its best,
clean and protect it with good quality beeswax. You should
also keep your dining room furniture away from strong
sunlight and take care not to place it in front of, or next
to, a radiator. The heat might cause it to shrink, loosening
joints and veneers.
If you choose flat pack dining room furniture, here are
our top tips for assembling it yourself:
• Lay a blanket down on the surface you’re going to use
to assemble your furniture to prevent scratching and damage
to both the surface and the furniture.
• Take all the pieces out of the packaging carefully and
lay them out. Make sure you have everything you need before
you start.
• Only try to assemble one item of your dining room
furniture at a time.
• Lay out the various panels and identify each panel with
a post it note, indicating left/right/top/bottom.
• Lay out your tools – hammer, screwdriver, etc.
• Get to work!
If you don’t want to, or are unable to, assemble your
flat pack dining room furniture yourself, we recommend Flat Pack Amigos,
who have furniture assemblers nationwide.