Once upon a time, back in a previous life on the Best West Coast, I had a dining room.
If I want an apartment in DC with a legit dining room I would have to pay about $1 Bazillion a month in rent, give or take 50 cents. So I invented one in my weird 7 ft square foyer space.
Here’s what it looked like empty. Note the light fixture. (Please excuse me for not taking a photo of that space from a better angle when I moved in.)
And here’s what it looked like until very recently.
The “dining room” isn’t big enough for all 4 chairs to live there full-time so one resides next to the coat closet and the other next to my fabulous Craigslist DIY campaign hutch. When we have dinner guests we just pull them over to the table.
Now I get to look for dining chair fabric! I’m thinking indoor/outdoor fabric would work best. Maybe something graphic like chevron?
Or we could REALLY go crazy and do a chevron Ikat!
There are so many options! What type of pattern do you think would look best? And in which color/colors? Let me know what you think!
NOTE: I’ve changed out many light fixtures in my short life because I don’t believe in suffering. (Lighting is all the things.) That said, I never do it “the right way” and I don’t want you to blame me if you get electrocuted and die. I have a Catholic husband so I don’t need any extra guilt. (Please direct all hate mail through the submission form.) That is why I found this. Please watch it before switching out your ugly light fixtures for awesome ones. The ugly one they start with is literally the exact one that was in my “dining room” before. See how I did that? Bringing it back home, kidz.
“Do as I say, not as I do.”
Apartment Envy 
I’m not sure how to send you pictures of the fabric swatchs I sought out, but the links below are my fave choices for your dining room chairs.
- http://www.fabricguru.com/?target=products&product_id=421701
- http://www.fabricguru.com/?target=products&product_id=616222
- http://www.fabricguru.com/?target=products&product_id=613721 (This one is my favorite out of all of them)
- http://www.fabricguru.com/?target=products&product_id=778582
I’m not sure if any of these would work in your space as I don’t have a “designer’s eye” like you, sadly :(, and I normally just pick the things/designs I like and hope it works in a room (with not much success). Let me know what you think.
Oh, thanks for these! I agree, that last one is my fave too! I love fabric. Like, A LOT :D
That looks wonderful. If it were me I’d go with the Ikat fabric. Which way are you leaning?
Thanks for chiming in! I think I’m leaning toward Ikat but still on the fence…
My dining “not a room” chairs have ikat seats! I like the chevron, but don’t think it’s eclectic enough for those cool chairs. There’s my unsolicited two-cents.
Opinions are always welcome! And I think I agree.
my vote is for the ikat, i think it’ll tie in nicely with your new couch……though i do love me some of the red velvet/velour you’ve already got going on!
I think I’m leaning toward ikat! I’ll find some amazing ikat fabrics and do a special survey post again so you can help me choose!
I want to know — do you replace the fabric on the chairs yourself? I really like the table and chairs.
Thank you! Yes, I will replace it myself. It’s very easy to recover a seat cushion. Once I have my fabric I’ll do a tutorial post and show you how :D