Jessica Helgerson Interior Design
I’m finally back to share more ideas for the dining room. Apologies for the delay — I was ready to post and then ran into some technical difficulties. If you missed a week of posts, you might have been affected by delivery glitches some readers with Comcast email addresses have experienced. Thank you for sticking with me — hopefully you’re receiving posts again.
When I shared our dining room plans last week, I mentioned the option of adding built-in bookcases. We still love the character that built-ins bring, but we’ve been exploring several other options as well. Our primary goal in this house is to spend thoughtfully — get the most charm and personality for the least cost.
My daughter Courtney and I came across a photo of a dining room that looks into a kitchen and it stuck with us. You can see it above. Beyond the kitchen itself, what we fell for was the archway between the rooms. Arched openings always feel so inviting. We’ve lived in homes with arched doorways before, and the soft curve instantly feels warmer and more approachable. In a home with a lot of straight lines and boxy spaces, a simple curve can add a lot of cozy charm.
At first we told ourselves an arch wouldn’t suit this house. Maybe you’re thinking the same. But then we asked, why not? It’s easy to be limited by rules about what’s “right” and “wrong” for a home. We’re not trying to create a period-perfect preservation — we want to add personality and make the space feel like ours. Interestingly, many of the interior doors here already have a double-arch molding, so another arch would actually echo an existing feature.
To help us decide, we used painter’s tape to outline an arched opening so we could feel the scale and mood before committing. Even that simple mock-up showed how much warmth a single arch could bring to the room.
We also moved the table into the corner to imagine a built-in banquette. Built-in benches along the corner walls with the table snug against them felt instantly cozy — a perfect place to sit, enjoy a meal, and look out at the view. Placing the table in the corner balances the room’s visual weight and actually makes the space feel larger, while leaving a clear path to the kitchen.
Built-ins on the window side would increase functionality and comfort, creating storage and seating that make everyday life easier in a smaller home.
Below are some banquette inspiration images to give a sense of the concept — not exact styles, but ideas for how a bench nook could work in our space.
Studio McGee
Traditional Home
Right now the room contains a mix of furniture that needs to be edited out to streamline the space. If you missed our kitchen window seat idea, that post details how a window seat in the kitchen would be a charming sight to view through the doorway whether we end up with an arch or a straight opening.
A few readers have asked for room measurements and a floor plan — I’ll measure the dining room soon so you can better imagine the proportions. It’s a comfortable size: not huge, but not tiny. When the table sits in the center it feels a bit tight because you have to walk through to the kitchen. A banquette solves that traffic problem while adding personality.
Adding a built-in buffet under the window where the sofa table sits would provide useful counter space and storage — especially helpful with a smaller kitchen.
There are lots of charming possibilities for this corner that would boost the home’s character.
We’ve also considered removing part of the kitchen wall — perhaps creating a half-wall — to open the kitchen into the dining room. I shared a similar small-space remodeling idea before we bought this house. That change may not be practical given the kitchen’s current layout, but it remains an option. More likely we’ll keep most of the wall intact, which is another reason the arch appeals to us: it opens the view without a major structural change.
Crazy Mary
Another idea is to keep the table centered and add interest overhead — raising the ceiling or adding a boxed or vaulted section like the one in our old dining room. The current ceiling is a standard eight feet, but a modest vault or a wood-paneled boxed ceiling could be a charming addition. There’s an attic above that might allow for this, though it’s a bigger project and we may postpone it for now.
You may have noticed we removed the ceiling light fixture while rearranging. It was off-center during the furniture shuffle and distracted from visualizing new options. Removing a few elements can help you better see the room’s potential.
Those are a few more ideas we’ve been tossing around. We have many projects around the house, so we’re weighing each option carefully to choose changes that make the most sense visually and financially.
I love having a clearer vision for this house. Even a few simple changes could add so much personality and make it feel cozy and inviting.
Related Posts:
Our Video House Tour
Catch up on all of our new house posts here!