How to design a dining room in a small apartment? 9 rules you should know
The compact Sopot apartment has 46 square meters, on which it was necessary to separate various functional zones without any collisions. It might seem that with limited space there is no place for a dining room. However, the architect Roksana Dobrzyńska, the owner of the Norstudio studio, easily created a beautiful and comfortable place for meals. What rules are worth following if we want to arrange a dining room in a small space?
A small apartment in Sopot, after removing the walls, turned into a coherent apartment, full of space and light. Only the bedroom is partly separated by an effective glass wall. The living area includes a kitchen, a seating area with a comfortable sofa and a TV, a reading armchair and a round table with Iker Cheri chairs. It's the perfect, comfortable place for breakfast or a larger meal, inviting you to eat, spend time and talk together.
The apartment looks elegant, also thanks to the thoughtful colors. White, navy blue and gray dominate, warmed by a beautiful oak parquet arranged in a classic herringbone pattern. It is a timeless, functional interior, where classic elements meet modern ones.
How to arrange a dining room in a small apartment?
1. Do not close the dining room with walls. Separate a zone for meals, but do not separate it with walls, let it be an integral part of a larger whole.2. Choose a smaller size. A small apartment also means a small dining room. When choosing the size of the table, remember that there should be a minimum of 60-65 cm width of the table top for each person - this value corresponds to the average shoulder width. Therefore, this should be the minimum width of one side of a square table. The minimum diameter of a round table is about 80 cm (for 2 people). The table with a diameter of about 100 cm can seat 4 people.
3. Bet on comfort. Comfortable chairs are needed in every dining room. The Cheri chairs by Iker have ergonomic seats and backrests with a filling with adequate flexibility.
4. Do not limit the space optically. The Cheri chairs chosen by the architect for the apartment in Sopot have relatively low backrests and slender legs made of metal profiles. Such solutions make them look light and do not optically overwhelm the space.
5. Rethink the shape. A round table will work better in a limited space, the lack of edges makes it easier to avoid it. At a round table, it will also be easier to find a place for another person, especially if the table will stand on one leg.
6. Take care of lighting. A lamp placed centrally above the table top, which will illuminate the table surface well, but will not dazzle the people sitting at it. A good example is a chandelier placed relatively high - remember that it should have a smaller diameter than the countertop standing under it. If possible, use natural lighting - as in the apartment in Sopot, place the table close to the window.
7. Provide space around the table - so that the chair can be moved freely when sitting down and getting up. This must be the minimum depth of the chair plus approx. 20 cm. The Cheri chairs are 55 cm deep.
8. Remember about aesthetics. In the Sopot apartment everything is well thought out. Although the chairs, table and chandelier do not come from one manufacturer, they form a coherent whole. Pleasant to the touch, Cheri's velor upholstery corresponds beautifully with the deep brown of the wooden top. The light metal frame of the chairs reveals the table's strong, graphic base.
9. Trust the design. Cheri chairs were designed by a duo of designers from the German studio WertelOberfell. They are thought out in terms of ergonomics, comfortable, and at the same time beautiful and timeless, they will work in interiors in various styles. Cheri chairs are available in 11 colors of upholstery and 3 shades of metal frame.