A dining room table is one of the basic necessities in a living space. No matter the size of your house, you need one to accommodate yourself, and your guests. It is basically a table but a giant one, and needs to have some chairs around it. So, you can expect it to take a lot of space. In a small apartment or house you are living, it can pose a challenge. When placed in the dining room, you need to have some room around the table to move around.
While you are buying a dining table based on the appearance and seating capacity, make sure to do a little room measurement first to prevent an unpleasant situation. For instance, you may not have enough space to walk around when the dining table is placed along with chairs. Ideally, a dining table must be placed at least 36 inches away from the walls to make it a comfortable room to walk around. Here is a detailed guide on how much room you should have around your dining table!
Identifying how much space is required for a dining table is quite easy for a room that is rectangular in shape. You can measure the width and length of the dining room and deduct 6 feet from each measurement to figure out the maximum size for a rectangular or square dining table. For example, in case your room is 12 feet x 11 feet, the maximum size of your dining table should be 6 feet x 5 feet, making it exactly 3 feet 36 inches of space between the nearest wall or doorway and a side of the table.
In case your dining room has another large piece of furniture in it, for instance, a storage cabinet, keep it considered while measuring the space inside. Measure its width and length and deduct it from the overall measurement of the space as well. For instance, if the storage cabinet is placed in a corner, deduct its length from the measurement of the space available in the room. However, if it does not come in the way of a person walking around, its measurement won’t make any difference.
However, if the cabinet is placed along a wall, it will make a difference. You will have to take it into consideration when measuring the space. Also, you should also consider the space available when a person is sitting on a chair and has to get up and walk around. In case the cabinet is wide enough that it would be placed directly behind the guests seated, ideally, there should still be 36 inches of space between their spot at the chair and the storage cabinet.
Another thing to consider here is the dining table space per person. For instance, if seating an additional guest or two at the dining table that does not offer an expansion leaf. A couple of feet of table width or space per person provides enough room for enjoying a meal in a comfortable manner without bumping elbows.
For a routine dining, 20 inches to 24 inches of space or width per chair or per person may be enough. However, as far as formal scenarios are concerned, you must have more space between the guests. In case you frequently host guests as holiday dinners, or formal parties, make sure to have a table that provides 30 inches of space between the chairs. For an ideal table that works perfectly for special occasions and routine use, make sure you have a table with an extra seating capacity that can be stashed away if required.
While a 36-inch rule is quite advantageous in dealing with an average dining room with an average sized table of any shape, a few scenarios may call for adjusting the table placement to meet your requirements. In a typical scenario, the table might get closer to the center of the room so that an overhead light or chandelier hangs directly over the table’s center. In smaller rooms, you can push one side of a rectangular or a square dining table against a wall to provide ample seating capacity in case that side of the table is not needed for seating.
A bench seat or a banquette can also offer a way of arranging a seat in the room lacking space. You can go for a table that has standard armless dining chairs. A bench would offer more seating for another two people. In a bench scenario, the back of the banquette must be against the wall and the top of the table must hang over the front edge of the fixed place seat by a few inches. Make sure to go for a bench and table combo that provides around 12 inches from the bottom of the table to the top of the seat.
A common thumb rule allows 24 inches of space for everyone gathered around the table. Similarly, side chairs often range between 26 inches and 24 inches wide while arm chairs can be around 30 inches wide. In case your chairs are 24 inches wide, add an extra 6 inches to the complete width of your chair to make sure it is comfortable enough. In addition, you might not want to knock elbows while eating. In case the space is limited and extra seats are needed, consider using side chairs.
Furniture in Fashion is an ideal platform for buying dining table sets and chairs. It is a renowned furniture store in the UK offering a great variety of dining tables of all styles, sizes, designs, materials and colors. So, you have a vast choice to choose from. Also, they are experts and can guide you on choosing the perfect dining table that fits well in your dining space!
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