Dining Room Staging

In this chapter, we'll go over the best staging tips for your client's dining room. Staging/decorating a dining room is another important aspect of a home you don't want to look over, especially if you are staging for them to sell their home. If the property is for sale, it's important that you focus on slightly more neutral tones throughout the whole room, and only add pops of color through the accessories. If you are working on the dining room to suit your client's personal taste, there can be a stronger emphasis on the colors.

- IMPORTANT DINING ROOM STAGING TIPS -

• Bring in the table first and center it onto the rug You want to make sure the dining set sits completely on the rug. If your client doesn’t have a lighting fixture, try to place the table in the center of the room.

• In a dining room with a large and oblong space, the table may need to go on one end of the room. Balance out the room by placing something of equal "weight" on the opposite side of the room. A large hutch can be used in this instance.

• For an open concept dining/living/kitchen home design, place the table under the lighting fixture. Be sure your table is centered to the light. If the dining table is off center, the whole room will look askew.

• When staging the dining room, only use 4 chairs unless the dining room is huge. Push the chairs in to create maximum traffic flow around the table. Too many dining chairs will make a room look over-crowded.
   

• If your client's dining chairs have soiled or out-dated fabric cushions, replace them with neutral-colored covers that are solid, a soft geometric pattern or an elegant stripe. Otherwise, it’s best to replace them. You can replace the chairs without having to get rid of the table.
   

• If your client's table doesn't fit or just doesn't look right, try a round dining table instead. A round dining table is often the answer in a difficult or small dining space.
   

• Use a tablecloth in a solid neutral color to hide a less-than-perfect dining table. A tablecloth will immediately change the mood of a room. Vary the colors according to the seasons and holidays.
   

• Make sure that the “traffic lane” area around the table and chairs are wide enough for two people to walk through at the same time.
   

• Move in a buffet table, china hutch, or other large piece of furniture, ONLY if your client has the room. Too much furniture in a small dining room will diminish the space.
   

• Install clear light fixtures instead of opaque ones to create longer sight lines in a small dining room.
   

• When staging the dining room, set the table with nice dinnerware, silverware, glassware and cloth napkins. Set it as you would for an elegant dinner, not a typical family meal. Do only 4-6 settings in a small dining room, and 8 in a large one.
   

• Remove or open heavy draperies to let as much natural light as possible into the dining room.
   

• If you have a wall facing a window, hang a mirror on that wall to reflect more natural light into the dining room.
   

• Another home staging tip is to lean an over-sized floor mirror against a wall or hang multiple ones together to create a feature wall. 
   

• Instead of setting the table, you could also use a table runner and add a centerpiece. Centerpieces can be flowers, a bowl of lemons, limes or oranges for a spot of color, or lay out a simple arrangement of candles down the middle of the table.
   

• If you have room in the space for a sideboard or buffet table, hang a framed mirror above it to add visual space and reflect more light around the dining room.
   

- ACCESSORY TIPS -

• Place a dramatic arrangement of flowers on a buffet table to add elegance and beauty to the dining room when staging the dining room.
   

• Accessories in a china cabinet should match or have something else in common; use solid colors or neutral patterns for accessorizing. Use a contrasting color to the wall to liven the room up.
   

• For open shelving in a small dining room, match accessories to the color of the wall--they will seemingly blend in to the wall, creating the impression of spaciousness.
   

• Make a wall grouping with a collection of beautiful plates. Form the grouping into a geometric shape, like a circle or square.
   

• Keep accessories in scale with the room and in proportion with the furniture. Large room, large accessories. A single large accessory, like an oil painting, will create a striking focal point in a small dining room.
   

• When accessorizing open shelves, keep plenty of space around objects. This will create some breathing room, which translates to that open, airy feel. Focus on using just a few standout accessories instead of a collection of small objects, which can look cluttered.
   

• Create more height by accessorizing shelves with tall objects.
   

• If you have a china cabinet with glass doors, display china or your client's favorite collection inside. Don’t overcrowd the cabinet. Instead, place a few of your best pieces, keeping taller objects, like plates, at the back and smaller items in the front. Group similar objects together, don’t separate them throughout the cabinet.
   

• Don’t crowd the dining room with too much furniture. Remove the huge china hutch if it’s dominating the space. A dining table with chairs and maybe one other piece of furniture is all you need to complete the look.
   

• Don’t crowd ALL of your dining room chairs around the table in the attempt to show buyers how many people can be seated. This will make the room look cluttered and small. 
   

• Don't stage your china cabinet with a miss-mash of unrelated accessories - a matching set of dinnerware or pretty pottery will make the room feel more comfortable.
   

• Don’t display lots of tiny objects when home staging. Small accessories won't make a bold enough statement and will only look like clutter.

- SETTING A DINING ROOM TABLE -

When it comes time to staging your client's table, you're going to want to find a theme. You can do one that matches the rest of the house, or you can do one that focuses on the season/holiday at that time. Matching the season is important when you are staging a property for sale. 

First, lay down your main plate, this will be your base to start. It sits in the middle of the entire setting. The napkin can be placed virtually anywhere you'd like in this setting - on the center plate, but also to the left of the plate under the forks, or even to the left of the forks all on its own.

Next come the utensils. The fork goes to the left of the plate, and the knife and spoon go to the right. Remember that knife blades traditionally face the plate, and, just like in the formal setting, utensils are placed in the order in which they will be used, with the one that is to be used first placed in the outermost position. 

Any drink glasses or stemware should be placed on the right of the setting, above the knife. When staging a home for sale, you can just look over putting in the utensils and even glasses, and focus on the plates, the table mats, and napkins to do the trick. It keeps the table from looking to cluttered, and since it's a staged home, it doesn't need to be functional.