As we have all been spending more time at home over the last 9 months than ever before, I have found I can’t help but look at every corner of our small space and analyze it. I felt that our dining room was due for an update. And I am so happy to share the result! In 600 square feet, a dining room is just a small wall in our kitchen but I believe having beautifully crafted furniture in that space and a freshly painted wall has made a big impact.
Here are some of the new realities that sparked this change for us…
Less Guests
After 9 months of not hosting friends or family for dinner we realized that we had more seats than we need on a daily basis. At the beginning of the pandemic we invested in a couple of very thin folding chairs that tuck into our closet beside my dresses. Before the pandemic we had a storage bench, 3 chairs and a highchair. This helped when we often had multiple families over on the weekends. But for the past year it just feels like I am always shuffling around and tucking in empty chairs.
Mandarin season on the Georg table with the No. 10 Tray
Growing Up
Mae, who is just 4 but acts like she is much older most days, decided recently that she is too old for her high chair. I don’t have the capacity to argue with her about this and figure our Stokke high chair will serve someone with a baby or toddler better. So we parted with it, also motivated by the above mention of shuffling around empty chairs in an already tight space.
Future Plans
We’ve also been actively looking for a two bedroom apartment (along with the rest of the city??!) so I knew if we were to invest in a dining table I would want it to be something that grew with us as a family. We don’t plan on ever having a huge space so the table would need to be small-ish but also well-made and something that could grow with us.
Dream Collaborators
We landed on a table from a Danish furniture company I have long admired (and recommended to clients) Skagerak, the Georg oak dining table (link here) and the matching Georg bench (link here). The quality and craftsmanship of Skagerak is an absolute dream to have in our space. Our dining table has to do so many things for us, a place to eat, to draw, to work, to craft, to gather, to play. I know that these piece will be able to grow and age with our family. And that as a B Corp sustainability was considered at all levels of sourcing and manufacturing. Not every piece in our home can be this beautiful but I love that this dining set is. And I hope over time that each piece in our home can be this thoughtful and special.
I have always gone back and forth on the need for storage in a small space and the desire for the space to feel as light and peaceful as possible. I’ve been slowly editing more things and realized that we didn’t need our storage bench after some rearranging of the bedroom closet to fit our vacuum and board games (previously stored in the bench). I am loving the lightness of the legs of the Georg. The light being able to passthrough the legs of the table and bench is surprisingly helpful in our space. The round legs also just happened to mirror our dining chair legs.
To find a stockist of Skagerak near you go here on the Objects NYC site. And if you are in New York please go visit the Objects NYC showroom in a Brooklyn brownstone and tell me all about it (send photos! not joking), I’m desperate to go when we can travel again!
Our dining room is a 4' foot long wall that separates the kids’ room from the kitchen. The kids’ room has two sliding doors for access. The Georg bench cushion makes for a cozy seat for the kids.
Oh and I also painted out our chalkboard wall in preparation for the new table. It was time for a change. It took 3 coats of primer and 3-4 more coats of paint. One funny thing is when I had removed our old table and we were waiting for our new table, (and were picnicking on the floor for a week) it looked like a dining set up could never work in this space. I knew it did but I think it’s good to remember that even when a space looks small it can still do a lot for you with the right choice of furniture.
Priming out the chalkboard wall after 10 years.
I understand that this table will not be in everyone’s budget but I hope that the lessons for small spaces here are helpful. A bench to provide additional and flexible seating (especially for kids). Narrow legs to allow light to pass through. A size that accommodates 4 people on a regular basis but can easily accommodate 6 (with folding chairs tucked away in the closet). Also setting the bench and table close to the wall during the day allows for wider walkways in our apartment and can be pulled out slightly for meals. My personal favourite combination of white and light wood (white FSC oak in this case), which carries throughout our apartment; creates a cohesive look and helps when your eye can often see all corners of the apartment. Not to say you need to choose light woods and white for a small space but choosing a couple of materials and repeating them throughout your space can really help the space feel larger and more calm. And if it is in your budget I can not recommend the Georg series or Skagerak enough. With it’s solid wood top I know we can refinish as needed over the years and I can’t wait to see it age along with us.
Thanks for letting me share our dining room update. It was certainly something to brighten our November days.
Georg dining table and bench by Skagerak. Beautiful tray is also Skagerak Tray No. 10.
This post is in partnership with Objects.nyc and Skagerak. All thoughts and opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that support this blog. I am very deliberate and careful with who I partner with here and am honoured to be working with Skagerak through Objects NYC, a brand I have long admired and gained inspiration from.