Dining in the lap of comfy luxury
“FORMAL” no longer needs to precede the term “dining room.” Eclecticism is favored more and more by consumers and interior designers such as Amanda Pays. Her own homes have been diverse -- Georgian, English Country and Spanish -- and her furniture line has won over clients as disparate as Barbara Bush and Nicolas Cage. How to channel such varied tastes into the dining room? Chairs help make the room distinctive, Pays says, and they don’t have to match. “You can find a chair that is separate from the table as long as it complements it in some way.” Here she offers tips for finding that elusive, perfect dining chair.
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Where to start: Decorating a home is not about designing one room, Pays says, but about unifying your house. “You are integrating your dining room with the rest of your house, so it needs to flow,” she says. Examine your lifestyle. Do you already have an eating area in your kitchen? Choose the table first, because it has the most effect, then move onto the chairs. That’s where you can have fun.
Define the room: Is it formal or informal? Do you have kids? Do you want it to be exciting, perhaps for entertaining, or calm and serene for secondary use as a work area? “I painted one dining room red and I must say, the conversation became very heated in that room,” Pays says with a laugh.
Define the look: Is it contemporary? Is it modern? Clean lines are a great asset in mixing and matching furnishings, Pays says. A classic dining room chair works in a contemporary setting because of its clean lines. The classic chairs pictured here, with Sensuede upholstered seats and mahogany legs, were paired with an antique English table. Mismatched chairs are perfect for a bohemian home. Again, Pays says, it’s all about the flow of the home. If the rest of the home is colorful and strewn with tapestries, the chairs will work. If it’s a minimalist environment, they will not.
Consider alternatives: A bench complements a contemporary table well. “It’s simple,” she says. “Plus you could do a great cushion on the bench using a fabric that complements your color palette.” For a more relaxed outdoor eating area, a rustic table can be paired with the unexpected. Pays bought old French cafe chairs at the Rose Bowl Flea Market and painted them steel gray for an outdoor dinette.
Think comfort: Put aside aesthetics, if only temporarily. “Comfort rules,” Pays says. “You want to be able to sit in a good chair comfortably for a few hours and be able to talk and enjoy a glass of wine. There’s nothing worse than sitting in an uncomfortable chair.” High-end or low, IKEA or Baker, chairs need to be tested first.
Note dimensions: Height is an important consideration. Pays had to make sure her 6-foot-4 son’s legs fit under the table. Write down the height of the table before shopping for chairs. Pays prefers over-scaled pieces in small rooms because they make a statement.
Palette, texture: Color and fabric add softness and warmth. “You can’t fail with linen,” Pays says. “It gives the chair a European classic look of its own.” Start with a simple background color in the room and then add colorful accessories for drama. Keep the walls, drapes and sisal flooring rather plain, and instead use punches of color on the chairs. Pays suggests turquoise linen for drama, complemented by bright Bauer pottery on the table or nearby shelves. For a more formal look, simpler is best. Textured woolens in creams or greens enrich a room. “It adds weight,” she says.
Mix materials: It’s all about balance. “You can take organic materials -- leather, steel, wood and fabrics -- and mix them in the right way,” Pays says. Leather accents on chairs or olive leaf designs on wood can soften pieces. “It’s fun to go from something simple to something classic to something seasonal. It shows people the different aspects of who you are.” Have fun with your upholstery and cushions, and when in doubt, “do what you love and what works for your family,” she says. “It’s all about feeling comfortable.”
Lisa Boone can be reached at lisa.boone@latimes.com.
