What to Consider When Buying Dining Chairs?
Ever wondered what makes a dining area stand out?
Most would answer, Duh – the dining table!
But what if I tell you there’s something even more important yet much less thought about.
DINING CHAIRS!
Imagine yourself walking into a dining area, with a majestic dining table, paired with a set of basic chairs.
How would you rate that look?
On the contrary imagine a basic dining table, paired with some majestic chairs.
Which of the two will you consider for your home?
The latter of course, because dining chairs simply add more personality to the dining area.
While accessories like a rug, lights, table, stools, or a breakfast bar are important features of a dining area, a good set of dining chairs are much more. From adding beauty to comfort, dining chairs can do all.
Not to forget, from early morning breakfasts, mid-day snacking to late-night dinner parties, dining chairs offer a great spot to share meals and occasional gossips and life updates, with your family and friends.
Now that you know how important role dining chairs play in a dining room, let’s move on to the second most important part of this guide.
Factors To Consider When Buying A Dining Chair
Like any other room, a dining area is built completely using several different elements. Out of which dining chairs are one of the most important.
They can literally make or break your room. They are the one element that can solely indicate the feel and look of your dining room.
So the first and foremost thing to bring in to consideration when looking to build a dining area is:
Feel Of The Room:
How do you want to portray the room? Do you want a bold feel or a classic Victorian look?
Or are you aiming for a more modern and contemporary look?
Either way, choose elements that look best with your choice of style.
For example, a Victorian dining area would look best with a pair of classic mid-century dining chairs.
While if you have a more contemporary look in mind, industrial dining chairs are the next new thing!
The possibilities are endless. All you need is a clear picture of what you want in your mind and things should work out easily from there on!
Once you have a rough sketch of the final outlook, it’s time to bring things to reality. The first thing to do is to measure the room.
Dimensions
Before buying dining chairs, consider the following points:
- size of your dining room
- size of your dining table
- the thickness of the tabletop
This will let you know how many chairs and what size and shape you actually need to fit in your dining area.
Survey the area to get a fair idea about the number and type of chairs you would actually be needing.
The size of the dining area will tell what shape of the dining table fits best.
A square table in a long, narrow room is a great offence. While a rectangular one in a square room will take up more space than necessary.
Likewise, the shape and size of the table will determine the size and number of chairs required.
So will your needs.
For instance, a rectangular dining table can accommodate more chairs than a square one.
But do you need more chairs or are you good with two less?
In case you are a party person and love to host dinners every now and then, a couple of extra chairs are always a good idea. In fact, the more the merrier, unless it’s getting too crowded.
However if you are a small family of let’s say two and enjoy cozy meals by yourself, with an occasional party may be once a year, then there is no point in buying a huge table with a few too many dining chairs.
While many consider the shape and size of the dining table, they often forget to keep in mind the dimensions of the chair itself.
For good leg space and elbow space, it is necessary to keep the height and width of the chair in check along with the number of dining chairs you are willing to keep around the dining table.
You can find a variety of chair sizes here at Only Dining Chairs.
Once the dimensions are sorted, comes the material of the chair.
Material
The material of your dining chair matters the most as it determines its look, comfort and feel.
When looking for dining chairs and their materials, keep in mind that chairs are the most hardworking furniture in the entire house, and are more prone to wear and tear.
So durability and maintenance should be a top priority especially if you are looking for more lasting dining chair options.
Some of the materials you can choose from are:
Wood: Most versatile and common material to make chairs. Wood Dining Chairs can add a traditional and rustic feel to your space.
Rattan: Rattan Dining Chairs provides both texture and style, rattan chairs are more comfortable than they look.
Plastic: Plastic Dining Chairs are a great option for homes with kids and pets. Plastic chairs are easy to clean, light in weight and are extremely durable.
Metal: Metal Dining Chairs are perfect for industrial-style dining rooms. They work best when in a contemporary setting.
Leather: Leather Dining Chairs are stylish, durable and easy to clean.
Fabric: Chairs that are covered in fabric, which ranges from a wide variety of material and colours. They are durable, easy to clean and can be the most stylish and stunning pieces. A fabric chair can be both, bold and striking like this:
Or a more simplistic and toned down like this:
Velvet: Another classic material for dining chairs is velvet. It can spice up the dining area easily. But pair it with caution as velvet can easily look overdone. So make sure the rest of the elements in your dining area are muted to match the accent or vice versa.
Style
Choosing the right style of the dining chair is key to making any dining area stand out. Depending on your desired look and needs, there is an array of styles that you can choose from each having its own purpose and usage.
Some of the common styles are:
High-back chairs:
High-back dining chairs are perfect for formal gatherings or meetings.
We did a blog post related to High Backed Dining Chairs that maybe of interest.
Low-back chairs:
Creates a casual ambience.
Open-back chairs:
Makes a small dining room look more spacious.
Side chairs:
Budget-friendly and creates a semi-formal dining look.
Armchairs:
Comfortable and cozy. But if you’re short on space, go for armless chairs.
Here are some of our best selling styles, at Only Dining Chairs:
Coastal:
Perfect for a nautical themed dining area. Coastal dining chairs come in a variety of materials ranging from wood to rattan. They give the dining area a more beachy feel. Perfect for small encompassed dining areas.
Hamptons:
Although a little more luxurious than the coastal style dining chairs, this style also gives the perfect beach vibes. Hamptons dining chairs are usually covered in fine upholstery and usually feature a set of strong tapered legs.
Modern:
Modern design dining chairs have a lot to do with sleek minimalistic designs. They are simple yet aspiringly pleasing. Perfect for a modern day home.
Contemporary:
A contemporary dining chair can be anything ranging from sleek to a fusion between modern day design and mid century.
They come in a variety of material and sometimes even a fusion of materials. But the main focus still remains the edgy mix of design.
Farmhouse:
Farmhouse and Country style dining chairs typically feature a wood base, wrought iron finish paired with little to no upholstery.
Neutral colours like white and beige and natural wood stain are the best and noticeable features of any farmhouse style dining chairs.
French Provincial:
French Provincial dining chairs is an affordable take on historical monarch style furniture.
True French provincial dining chairs are made entirely on wood, they are sturdy and are made to withstand a good deal of wear and tear.
With main visual features being cravings and cabriole legs.
Hollywood Regency:
Popular since the golden age of Hollywood, often also known as Modern Regency.
This Hollywood style dining chairs focuses on the use of upholstery in bold hues paired with brass or wood base and finishings, best depicting a mix of comfort and luxury.
Some popular features also include tufted upholstery.
Scandinavian:
Scandinavian dining chairs best fits a dining room that is set to look and feel minimalistic and airy.
The use of light colours against dark hues is a popular feature along with wooden accents.
It often features a unique design element, making it more modern and edgy while still looking every bit minimalistic.
Industrial:
The industrial dining chair style celebrates the use of raw materials. It encompasses the use of industrial material, which although is finished, but minimally changed.
Sleek designs, with straight edges, are the top features of an industrial design dining chair.
Upholstery is kept to a bare minimum, with no accents of plush, keeping the feel of the dining chairs raw and edgy.
Mid Century:
A typical mid century dining chair is made on antique wood and features tons of geometrical elements, round edges and smooth upholstery. The designs usually feature a mix of elements and materials.
For a better visually pleasing idea, about different styles of dining chairs, Visit Only Dining Chairs and check out all the styles and determine what looks perfect for your dining area.
Comfort
Can you sit comfortably on a backless chair for the next 3 hours without moving from your position?
If the answer is even remotely yes, then you sure have a back of steel.
However, we highly suggest you choose a more comfortable chair. Especially when eating food. Because if you aren’t comfortable in your chair, chances are you won’t feel so good about eating either.
Yet It’s surprising how some people solely make their decision by considering the looks while keeping comfort aside when buying dining chairs.
If you are living with kids, pregnant women, or elderly people, buy dining chairs that have a padded seat, inclined back and provide ease when getting up and down.
Ergonomic designs are ideal to keep our body in good shape and provide all the back support to sit for long hours without feeling any discomfort.
We did a blog post on “What Makes A Comfortable Dining Chair?” that may help you.
Quality
Quality is key.
Not the way it is for all other furniture. Dining chairs, living room chairs, all kinds of chairs are the most worked up pieces of furniture. Withholding weights and consistent moving make them more susceptible to wear and tear.
This is why there should be no compromise on quality.
So before purchasing a dining chair make sure to:
– Check if it is secure and strong by moving it around and jerking it gently
– Make sure all the nuts and bolts are tight
– The legs, arms, or back should not move
– Check the quality of material used
– If you are buying a vintage chair, check if it is strong enough to be used
– Check product warranty
Price
Last but not least. How much you can actually spend on dining chairs?
Many people may consider repairing the old chairs, DIY tricks or buying something cheap from a nearby retail store.
But they may or may not last long.
What if you get affordable dining chairs in great styles with a lifetime warranty?
Well, that’s made possible by Only Dining Chairs.
There are some unbelievable options in dining chairs for sale that all come with a life time warranty you wont find anywhere else.
Visit our online store and browse an exclusive collection of high-quality modern dining chairs in Australia with a lifetime warranty at the best prices.
In the end…
Your dining room is a space where you eat good food and enjoy great conversations with family and friends.
So make sure to buy dining chairs that provide you with pleasure each day and create an inviting space for everyone.
Hopefully, keeping these factors into consideration will help you find the perfect dining chairs for your dining area that will match both your needs and budget.
So what’s the wait? Check out your ideal dining chairs now at Only Dining Chairs and create the dining area of your dreams with the comfort of a life time warranty!
