3 posts tagged “sideboards”

Summer is still here; well kind of! The unpredictable rain seems to be putting a literal damper on that. But now and then we still get the odd day we can fire up the barbecue and get friends round in the garden for some drinks and food. But with the year past the half way mark (seems to have flown by) and with that the colder weather and darker nights just a month or so away it will soon be time to put away the garden furniture and think about taking any get-togethers indoors.

So we thought it might be time to look at what Furniture Store 247 can offer those looking for a new dining set, or some dining furniture, for the more festive season, or party season, on its way and the parties, meals and family gatherings that are fairly inevitable.

Now people will think, “Hang on its nearly 5 months until Christmas” but a few things to remember; those months will fly past, you don’t want to be buying new furniture as your buying gifts and presents, the festive season tends to begin its run in October with many people having Halloween parties, then bonfire night, then Christmas and new year, and it’s always better to plan ahead. Now sure not all of those may be a sit down meal, but many people prefer a nice dinner over a full blown party (and it saves on damage from drunken guests dancing!).

So if you really want to have some new furniture in time for Christmas and New Year, if nothing else (and those with American heritage might want a thanksgiving dinner party), then really you need to think about it now.

So what options does Furniture Store 247 have to offer you? Well we can break it down into dining sets, dining tables, dining chairs and dining furniture such as sideboards.

Now most people will be looking for a complete dining set (table and chairs), and we have a few quality choices in this respect. Depending on your styling we have minimal, modern and traditional.

Minimal – Both the Denver oak dining set, and the Oakleigh dining set both fill this criteria nicely, with the Oakleigh set adding a traditional touch and the Denver set a more modern feel. Both come with matching dining chairs with comfy padded seats, though the Denver is only available with 6 chairs with a standard table, whereas the Oakleigh set has 2 differing sizes of extendable tables with 6 or 8 dining chairs dependant on the table chose.

Modern – Well the Denver covers the modern bracket as well, but along with this there is the Ella glass dining set with 6 matching chairs, and the Bella beech and silver dining set this time with 4 chairs that match the design. However we also have many sets that feature the Guinness faux leather dining chair range or the Cornell leather dining chair range. These almost identical ranges (except for the material obviously) bring a very stylish, sleek and modern look to any dining table and that why we have a big range of tables to go with them, extendable and standard.

Traditional – The Trafalgar rustic oak dining set is the way to go here. Made from the finest oak, with a medium size twin leaf extending table and complete with 6 solid oak ladder-back dining chairs this epitomises style and quality with a traditional almost country living look.

Now there are more choices but these are full sets as opposed to buying them individually, but an example of one of our best selling traditional collections would be the Irish Coast range, made from reclaimed Baltic Pine with a choice of 2 types of matching chairs this is a stunning traditional styled range.

Then of course there are extras such as sideboards, not essential, but they can add a perfect touch to a dining room, and can be invaluable for storing extras for you dinner party, from bottles of wine, to serving trays or platters that you don’t want to clutter the table with.

Now I could go on and on, but it’s best you just have a look for yourself, just follow the link to our dining furniture section at our website and your bound to find something you like.

Invitations
Send out Invitations early to give your guests a week to RSVP and also give a date to RSVP by. This will give you time to finalize the menu and seating arrangements. But, don’t send out the invitations too early otherwise your guests may forget about your event by the time it takes place. A good solution to this could be a quick email or phone call to remind them

Decoration
Keep decoration tasteful, one colour and white always works well and make sure everything matches. A flowery old tablecloth is not the best answer to dinner party decoration. Try to have matching cutlery and plates. The quality is not as important as long as it matches it tends to look ok. If you lack matching cutlery you could try a theme of mismatched items and possibly try something mismatched with the menu like an unusual combination.

Dining Table
Try to ensure that the dining table is of an adequate size as overcrowded guests may be unhappy guests and the dining table needs room for serving, if space is an issue you could make use of a sideboard as a desserts table. Alternatively consider investing in an extendable dining table which can be used for family dining day to day and extended for dinner party use.

Menu
The best advice is to keep it simple, there’s nothing worse than a host fussing over food and leaving the guests to fend for themselves. Prepare a desert and starter if possible earlier in the day and leave only a few things to do once the guest arrives. It is usually expected that the main course will require some cooking but again ensuring you have prepared as much as possible leaves you free to spend more time with guests.

Seating
Ensure you have enough dining chairs to seat all your guests. Sitting on the stool from the kitchen is not fun. Plus the unfortunate guest ends up appearing taller than ever. Consider a seating plan to avoid a talkative and quiet end of the table, encourage new people to talk to each other; an interesting centrepiece could be an icebreaker for communication.

If you have run through this quick checklist and discovered an extendable table is the answer to your dinner party needs or you are looking for a new dining set then have a quick look at  http://www.furniturestore247.co.uk/Default.aspx with a great range of furniture options.

It has to be said that when we look around houses built recently there seems to be something missing… A dining room. Dining rooms are commonplace in old Victorian style properties but seem to be lacking in the building of modern houses replaced by a space in the corner of a living room or kitchen. Many people now don’t even own a dining room set, they are content to eat their meals from the kitchen counter or sat on the sofa, a lack of a dining room means people can’t physically eat at the same time due to lack of space. Mealtimes used to be a social time, a catch up of the days events. Without a dining room the chance to discuss the day and chat disappears into watching the news or a soap.

When they do exist Dining rooms raise issues for homeowners. Should they furnish it within the style of the property using Traditional style Dining tables or use a modern style dining room set or even a breakfast bar.

When furnishing a dining room, people often think what else can I put in the dining room apart from a table, the space is often seen as a wasted space. Sideboards fill this empty space, look good and provide handy storage for all the cutlery and plates while they are not in use. The sideboards provide space for the display of ornaments and family pictures which would look out of space elsewhere

A lack of a dining room can often be problematic for homeowners, often there is no room for a dining table. One solution to this problem can be the use of extendable tables. These can be opened out for meal times and folded away to save space in the corner of a kitchen or living room. Another solution could be the use of a breakfast bar which are generally smaller and take up less room.

So, if a dining room exists there exists a great deal of choice to fill the space and if there is no dining room, extendable tables provide a great alternative to sitting on the sofa and eating your meal off a tray.