Our grandmothers bought them with glossy laminated tops and chrome trim. The chairs went perfectly with the glossy vinyl and mid-century style. Our mothers bought them in a perfect early American period, maple over pine finish. Regardless of its appearance, the kitchen table was the center of our homes.
Today, options abound when it comes to outfitting your eat-in kitchen. You have a wide variety of sizes, shapes, styles, and materials to choose from.
One of your first considerations is the size of your kitchen. If it’s designed to be a eat-in kitchen and you have enough room for your kitchen table set, you have plenty of options. But if you only have one corner to fill, you can still make it work. Please measure carefully to see what size table fits. Be sure to consider the space you will need to remove the chairs from the table; three feet from the edge of the table is a good rule of thumb.
How many people usually sit around your table? If you live alone or if you are a couple, you can probably get a small bistro table and a couple of chairs. If you are seating a larger family or regularly make room for a few extra people, a round or oval table can allow you to fit into an extra chair, because they don’t have corners. And you have the option of choosing the height of the table: it can be a standard height, a counter height or a high table at the height of a pub. Look at your space and try to visualize the tabletop at different levels. One style can be more attractive than the others.
After deciding on the size and shape of the table, you can start looking for your kitchen table set. This is where your sense of style and your personal preferences come into play. Do you have a traditional decoration? Looking for a Shaker, Country, Victorian, Midcentury Modern, Scandinavian, Mission or European design? You can find a wide variety of wooden sets in various finishes. If you want to add a natural material to your kitchen, you can select a kitchen table set with a marble, granite, tile or slate surface. Some designs integrate stone with wood for an attractive look.
A perennial favorite is a glass table. You can find a glass top kitchen table set with a fancy metal base, a solid wood base, and a woven rattan base. Choosing a kitchen table set with the base in a material that coordinates with your décor, but using a glass top keeps the look light and open.
It is difficult to separate the selection of table chairs from the kitchen table set. Most sets are priced that includes chairs, but you can often buy the table and chairs separately. If you’d rather not have a matching full set, consider purchasing a matching set of chairs instead of a matching one. This way you can have the look, fit and comfort that a custom outfit provides.
While the table takes up most of the floor space, the chairs are where you sit. For convenience, you should try the chairs that match the kitchen table set you select before purchasing. Many games come with wooden chairs. Selecting chairs with upholstered seats gives you built-in comfort, but you have the option of adding chair pads to a wooden seat. Chairs come with and without armrests provide additional comfort but take up more space.
Whatever you choose, you will find that your new kitchen table set will become the center of your home.