Mixed Up Dining

myhomeideas.com Photo Tria Giovan/Stylist Jan Gautro

I'm really drawn to dining rooms that don't have a matched dining set. In my previous home I had a very casual (very small) dining area with Pottery Barn chairs that were all the same style but each was a different color, and I paired them with a table that I had painted some detail on. I loved it (tried to find a photo but couldn't) . The table stayed with our old home when we sold it and I couldn't use the chairs in our new home so, as you've probably already seen, I used a couple of them for my DIY mudroom bench and will doing something with another one for my craft closet/guest room.

Coastal Living Photo Jean Allsopp

I love the way Amanda Nisbet mixes this rustic table below with these fabulous chairs. The nailhead detail on the chairs also adds interest, and of course I love the way smaller touches of turquoise are integrated into the scheme.

Besides making things more interesting, an added benefit of not having a matched set of furniture is that you can shop in a variety of places and price points to pull together the pieces you need.

Coastal Living Photo Jean Allsopp

And it gives you more versatility when remixing furniture from one room to the next or one home to the next.

Windsor Smith via houseandhome.com Photo Miguel Flores-Vianna

The table and chairs in my current dining room were purchased at different places, so they're not a matched set but the stain matches so closely you would never know it. I was pretty proud of myself for getting such a close match at the time,but now I'm wondering why I tried so hard! :-)

Don't get me wrong, I like the table and chairs and am thankful I have them. There is also absolutely nothing wrong with having a matched set, in fact that's probably preferred by most people. I'm just a little disappointed in myself for being so predictable when mixing it up is a look I like.

For those of us that have a matched set, or what appears to be a matched set, we still have some options for mixing it up. Here are a few:

1. Paint!
   - Paint the chairs and leave the table stained or vice versa.
   - Paint the host/hostess chairs and leave the rest stained or vice versa. In deference to Mr. K, and because I really don't want to, I probably will not be painting mine. :-)
2. Slipcovers.
   - Slipcover all the same.
   - Slipcover all but mix up the fabrics.
   - Slipcover host/hostess but leave the rest or vice versa.
3. Upholstery.
   - If the backs are unupholstered like mine, consider upholstering them.
   - If the seats are fabric, change out the fabric and again, consider mixing the fabrics up between host/hostess and side or a different fabric on each chair.

So what's your preference? Mixed up or matched?

8/20/10 - Linking to Nester's impromptu linky party.