new dining table and chairs for the green wallpaper

Moving from a smaller space to a larger one is great because there’s extra room to wrestle on the floor with dad (and leave LEGOs strewn about, for days).
(just watch your step)

Of course the funny thing with any house is that the furniture that once fit perfectly, in that perfect room, might not work in the new house layout.
And that was the case with our old table.
It was great in the old house; but too small for the new one.
It looked funny.

So, time for a new dining table adventure!



In a previous Home Building post I shared that fun green wallpaper we had installed.  And I had taped out a space on the floor where I thought a table should go.

Cause if you remember our old house, the dining table looked like this:

It was an old antique I found at a garage sale for $30!  It just needed a new facelift, which you can read about here.


And for many years it served as my white backdrop for photo styling, when the kids were so tiny.

I’ve really loved that table.  But we really needed something larger to fit the space.
So I started researching.

At first I thought about having one made.  Or maybe we could make it ourselves?
Maybe a very dark wood top with white legs?….to tie in with the exposed beams in the great room?
I still love that idea.

But then I went to IKEA, and found these, and it was just too easy.
(Norden Table •  Sigurd ChairsSigurd Bench)

The table is probably more space than we need….it actually extends to 119 inches!  Eeek…which just means we need to have friends over for dinner more often.  The table would be fantastic for a Thanksgiving get-together…and we could even pull it out onto our deck, which we did a couple times this summer.

Mostly, I love how well it fits in the space.

And the chairs make me smile, because they look like they’re smiling…..and remind me of school chairs, and being a kid.

I went for benches on each end so it would be easy to get in and out of the exterior door.  And so little kids could easily climb up and down.



….and torment older siblings.

…and so I’d be shocked at how tiny they look sitting all the way at the end!
How did I get to this point in my life?  Just yesterday I was single and living in Los Angeles.

Now, a word on the color.
I was a little worried about choosing a light wood shade since the floors look like driftwood and the beams in the great room are quite dark.  But.  I’m trying to pull in some more “natural” design pieces into the home so it feels more cozy.  I’m not a person that likes brown and tan, so this is a stretch for me.  But I think it’ll work.

…and it might be a good excuse to buy this rug for our great room.
Which, maybe I already did.
What is happening to me?? Brown? Tan?

I do think it’s possible though to pull bright colors and naturals in together.
That’s what I keep telling myself.
And guess what?….see those white bar stools below??  I JUST finished the covers last night!  Six of them.  I’m tired of sewing.

And I should point out one home feature in the photo above—the “floating” ceiling above the dining room table.  It was our architect’s idea to have the dining room pop down, since the great room pops UP.  Originally, we wired for rope lights to illuminate the box up toward the ceiling, which I was really excited about.  BUT.  We failed to put the rope lights and the large drum light on separate light switches….so they both came on at the same time.  And the large light overpowered the rope lights.  I was bummed.  And the only way to fix it was to cut into the wall, where we had JUST installed wallpaper the day before.
Grrrr.
Let it go. Let it go!
So instead they installed a plug up there in the box.  So if I ever want to hang a mess of white Christmas lights from that ceiling, there’s that option.
Christmas Dinner at the new table with a bunch of lights, some chocolate-dipped gingerbread softies, and maybe a few sparkle skirts or a sash?  Sounds lovely.

Little by little the house is coming together.
It might take a few years before it’s fully decorated.  But that’s the journey.

You can read more about our new home adventure in these posts here:
We’re building a new home!
Groundbreaking Party
From foundation to frame 
Stucco, shingles, and a pretty paint job 
Sheetrock, paint, and a double-decker deck
We moved!…and an ode to the old house
Tile, Flooring, Countertops, and Color 
Guest Room makeover 
Mosaic Tile and Wallpaper
The big Chandelier

Have a great day!

  1. 1) bdaiss

    I love the drop down ceiling. Get some solar powered lights! Then they’ll come on at dark, go off in the morning, and not cost you one extra penny in electricity. 😉

    I love a rich, dark wood. It’s the light neutral wood that I just can’t. But I do love the smiley chairs. Can’t wait to see the covers you made!

    • 2) Dana

      Fantastic idea on the Solar! Never even thought about that!
      Thanks Britt 🙂

  2. We just bought that table last month too and I’m in love with it. We have four kids and I love how we have so much room, even if their papers and markers are piled at one end of the table- there’s still lots of room for us to eat together. We have white chairs too, and a long bench on one side. Love the benches- you can pile so many kids on them! Love your wallpaper, too!

    • 4) Dana

      Thanks Nikki! And yes, so much room for everything. We can have a mess of playdough and toys at one end, and still eat dinner at the other 🙂

    • I was thinking of something wireless, too. At Christmastime, there are Christmas lights on a remote. Maybe you could plug in some rope lights (or Christmas lights) and they’d come on with a remote click? It might feel like a bachelor’s pad (with remote-control mood lighting,) but hey, it might be fun?! 🙂

  3. Wow! I love your decorating style! Natural light is so beautiful. All these posts about your home have got me day dreaming about having my own house someday 🙂

  4. 11) Jess

    I love reading your design posts!! We JUST bought a house this week after a year of searching so I’m super ready to start decorating.. I’m really curious to see what you’ve done w the kids rooms.. I have a boy and two girls as well and since you have fabulous taste, I’d love to see what ideas you’ve done in kid rooms.. Just a thought for a future post (wink, wink)? :))

    • 12) Dana

      Thanks Jess! And congrats on your new home purchase! I bet your in that big time-suck warp-zone of pinterest and Houzz, looking for all sorts of ideas :).
      Yes, I do need to share about the kids room. Clara’s is almost done. Lucy’s and Owen’s room has a long way to go.
      Hopefully I can get a post together about Clara’s…..or at least share their rooms from the old house too. Totally need to do that!

  5. Ha, we have the same table! We bought it about 10 years ago.
    USA and Belgium (Europe) are connected by a table!

  6. 14) Rendy

    Hello! I have been blog stalking you because we’re in the process of building a home too! It’s nice to hear about your experience and all the choices. . . so many choices. Anyway I wanted to ask- does this room face north or south (or east or west)? I have recently been *freaking out* because our entire greatroom has north-facing windows and I’ve been terrified into thinking that it will feel dark. Thoughts?

    • 15) Dana

      Hi Rendy,
      I know exactly what you’re stressing about with the direction of the house…and it’s funny because as much planning that goes into the house, you can’t always control the direction of the home’s footprint.
      So. Our front windows do face North. Actually, it’s sort of Northwest, but we never get any direct light in through there. But because of our open floorplan, we get a lot of light coming in from the great room and the dining room. Those windows all face South, but they also don’t get direct light because of the deck covering outside. It’s sort of a nice balance though…..just a lot of diffused light coming in.

      I really, REALLY wanted a skylight in the kitchen and sometimes kick myself for not pushing for it. So if you’re really worried about the light and can swing the cost of a pretty skylight I would do it. Builders are always iffy about putting them in and always say “well, they leak”….but sometimes I think they’re just feeding you lines. Yes, I’m sure some leak, but not all leak. And I have seen plenty photos of gorgeous homes with sky lights so I know it’s possible.
      I guess that was sort of a ramble there.
      Hope something in there helped!
      – Dana

      • I would agree with you on the skylights. My mom and stepdad have two of them in their family/living room and they’ve never leaked. That part of the house was added over 5 years ago and they get enough rain and snow to know if they would leak. I would love to have them if I ever have a chance to own a house. :o)

  7. Oh! I went on prospection to ikea, because i will be moving in a few months and the only tables I seemed to love were the ones I couldn’t pay (and were not by Ikea). And then, I saw the Norden table! And I fell in love too! So I really hope it will fit into my apartment, but I think I will go for the white one!

  8. It fits perfectly! I have the same table and bench in my kitchen (though my bench is red) and I love it too. Good choice!

  9. 19) Ginger

    We’ve had that table in our finished basement for about 5 years–4 kids and lots of art projects it has held up well! It’s where I cut my fabric. 🙂

  10. Love the look! We recently built a new home south of Austin and considered the Norden but changed our minds and went with the Bjursta in the same finish because it fit the space better. Ikea has been such a blessing as we’ve decorated because of the cost and the quality. We sold our old table for enough to purchase the table and 6 chairs and still had money left over for the glass cabinet (http://www.seasonedhomemaker.com/2014/01/kitchen-storage.html). We have Ikea pieces in every room – including a new cutting table for my sewing room (on my blog Sept. 22nd).

  11. i think your house just keeps getting better with everything you add! and i think you need not be nervous about bringing the naturals in with bright colors as well as the different wood finishes. my home is like that and i think when well done it has more character than either a all natural toned or clear bright style. in the living room we have one deep aqua/turquoise wall against a white ceiling and offwhite walls and almost same offwhite/beige floor tiles(not my choice, we rent, but it works). the furniture is mostly wood in 3 different finishes (dark rich brown, bright natural like your table and some darker natural stain). our chairs are wicker. the accent colors i use to decorate are usually deep dark blue, a warm dark gray, white and black, sometimes a natural bright pink flower hue…i have some antique and gold pieces too. my house has kind of a ikea flee market vibe to it and many people love it. i think the trick is that even the bright colors you choose have a warm tone to them so they add to the room… now if only the kid’s lego colors would fit in 😉

  12. Your home looks so lovely! And you’ve been so spot on with your instincts until now, why not trust yourself on the tan as well? I think it works and is a lovely backdrop for brighter colours. Now I’m looking forward to the big bar stool reveal!!! 🙂

  13. I love shades of brown and I also love pops of bright colors. You make them go well together. I absolutely adore all of the photos you’ve been sharing. I do like that table. And I love the benches.

  14. 24) Stacey

    It looks really great! You have such an eye. Would you share where your drum light in the dining room is from?

  15. I love this whole house, and agree it’s getting better and better. I have the same table but in white! Found it on Craigslist – they don’t carry it in white at IKEA anymore. I’d buy it again in the light wood in a heartbeat though.
    I think you should check out some peel & stick wallpaper for the drum lampshade, or fabric for a bold geometric runner going down the center of that table??

    I love your style & think our styles are so similar.
    See if you like any of my designs? I sent you an email offering to send you a yard or two, but I’m guessing it might have come across as spam.

    http://www.spoonflower.com/profiles/mrshervi

  16. We have that same table and loooove it. So solid, easy to clean, and big. Great choice – it’s looking lovely.

  17. 27) Carrie

    Of course I come for all the sewing and crafty inspiration (and your pretty photos, oh, the photos!), but I am LOVING these house updates. I wasn’t sure about the dining space wall paper when you showed it before, but in this post it looks so darn cheery! Good stuff.

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