School of Decorating

Decorate with Confidence and Create a Home You Love

  • Free Class
  • Videos
  • Blog
    • How to Decorate
    • Simple DIY Projects
    • Life Tips
    • Success Stories
    • Our Home Tour
  • Classes
  • About
  • Contact

Dining Room Nook Styling

Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links. I may receive a small commission, at no cost to you, on purchases made after following an affiliate link. See my full disclosure here.

October 25, 2011 By Jackie

I am really dedicated to tackling the entire dining room project list, especially after playing around with some tabletop accessories yesterday.  One thing on the agenda was to personalize the space, particularly the prime real estate above the armoire in the arched nook.  We want our dining room to tell guests about us and to start conversations.

The nook in our dining room is amazing.  It was one of the moments when first walking through the home my jaw dropped.  I immediately envisioned a beautiful buffet tucked right into the nook.  Well, I ended up with a rather non-traditional buffet.  Since the family room has built-ins for the TV, we had no place to put our TV armoire.  It is a beautiful bamboo piece we got for nearly 50% off at the Room and Board outlet.  I could not stand to let it sit in the unfinished basement.  I decided to tuck my beloved armoire in the dining room nook sans the TV.  I killed two birds with one stone on that one; I found a home for the armoire and avoided purchasing a buffet.  For now the armoire is used for random storage, but I plan to add more shelves inside to organize my party and entertaining supplies.

Dining Room Before

Sadly, the top of the armoire over the last several months started to accumulate tools and random odds and ends.  It became a quick, high-out-of-the-children’s-reach place to set tools in between projects.  That arched area had so much more potential.  It is one of the first areas you see when entering the house.  It was an opportunity to make a statement, to tell a story, to show guests who we are.  And, what better way to start than with the jute wrapped monogram.

Jute Wrapped Monogram Letter

Now comes the part where I really stretch my self.  You see, I like things to be symmetrical. It comes naturally to me, but I know symmetry everywhere can become dull and boring.  I wanted to try something asymmetrical to bring more interest to the space.  Although it nearly gave me a panic attack at first, I stood the monogram off to the side leaning against the wall.  Then I hung a recent family photo printed on canvas to fill the rest of the visual space on the wall above the armoire.  I cringed while hanging that photo off-center, but when I stood back and looked at the room it just felt right.  The asymmetry was beautiful and interesting.

Dining Room Nook

The family photo was not even supposed to go in this room, but it hung out too long on the table waiting to be hung in the playroom.  I went to move it one day thinking it was a shame I still had not hung it and I realized the black and white image looked striking against the teal walls.  Even at 15 x 30″ it was too small for the larger expanse of wall on the other side of the room, but it fit perfectly above the armoire.  The family photo is of my husband’s side of the family, so it ties in well with the H monogram.

Dining Room Accessories

I also layered in the two gorgeous ceramic vases my in-laws gave us as a house warming gift, a sparkly platter my sister in-law gave us, and three small ceramic vases.  I think I prefer the armoire to a buffet now.  I feel a buffet might be harder to style, because you would be compelled to keep it clear for serving dishes.  The top of my armoire will never make a practical serving area, so it can just look pretty all the time.

Previous Post
Dining Room Accessories
Next Post
DIY Linear Crystal Chandelier

Comments

  1. Knit-2-Together says

    October 25, 2011 at 10:06 am

    I love this! It’s beautiful and the color pallete is gorgeous! Great Job!

    • Knit-2-Together says

      October 25, 2011 at 10:06 am

      PS I love the H!!!

  2. [email protected] Design for Living says

    October 25, 2011 at 10:16 am

    I love the panel detailing and color you chose for the walls. Great styling as well!

  3. A Mother and A Daughter says

    October 25, 2011 at 3:29 pm

    It looks great! Love the asymmetrical look on the armoire!

  4. [email protected] says

    October 25, 2011 at 4:19 pm

    I love how your room is turning out. That canvas pic is perfect where you put it and you’re right, it looks good off center. I’m so inspired by your H that I’m just going to have to make one myself.

    • Jackie says

      October 25, 2011 at 5:39 pm

      Thanks Lisa. I’d love to see your version of the monogram. Please share it with me on Facebook when you are done: http://www.facebook.com/tealandlime

Hi, I'm Jackie. I believe you are the best person to decorate your home and I'm here to help.

I teach online decorating classes to help you create your dream home. Click on the images below to learn more about each class.

Take an Online Decorating Class

Best for beginners!

12 Class Bundle!

Get a free copy of my book
Free Decorating


Start reading now...

Follow Me Here

Categories

  • How to Decorate
  • Simple DIY Projects
  • Life Tips
  • Success Stories
  • Our Home Tour
I believe you are the best person to decorate your home. You just need a dash of courage and a dose of decorating know-how. That's why I created School of Decorating.

I know how frustrating it is to feel like failure at home. I also know how amazing it feels when decorating finally makes sense and your home reflects you. I want to share what I've learned so you can create a home you love without years of trial and error.

Get a free copy of my best-selling book Free Decorating

  • How to Decorate
  • Simple DIY Projects
  • Life Tips
  • Success Stories
  • Our Home Tour

© 2018 School of Decorating
 · Terms of Use 
· Privacy Policy
 · Disclaimer




This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Cookie settingsACCEPT
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.
Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may have an effect on your browsing experience.

Necessary Always Enabled

Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.

Non-necessary

Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.