Tag Archives: dining

How to Decorate A Room With Art

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This article is not so much about choosing art but how to make a room look good with the pieces you have chosen.
First of all you should make sure that artwork is hung so that it is the central focal point of the room. The picture or grouping of pictures should be at eye level. If several pictures are grouped together then they should be laid out close enough together so they look like one unit of exhibition.

It is also important that smaller pictures be on smaller walls and that you save the larger pictures for larger walls. This way everything will look in proportion.

To make sure that the art looks good when hanging it over furniture you should make sure that it is not longer than the piece of furniture itself.

If you take care to light your art well it will look more impressive. You can angle existing lights at the art or install simple track lighting. This is especially true if you are hanging it in a long dark hallway. You can use lighting to make the grouping of artwork look more dramatic or to place attention on a particular piece.

Art shelves are also becoming all the rage. These are simply shelves, sometimes ornate that are more like ledges and serve to hold knick knacks. A work of art or a group of works of art always look great held over this type of shelf. You can also mount objects behind glass, frame them in box like frames and hang them over a fire place or bed. This type of object display under glass if fast becoming an alternative to hanging paintings.

It is also good to choose artwork that falls in with the theme of your décor or even what you are interested in, in life. If your room is pastel try to choose art that goes along with that delicate theme. Any art you choose should always underscore the mood or theme of your room.

If you want to make a dramatic sweeping statement then choose one large piece of artwork and hang it over a fireplace or dining room table. This can sometimes look better than cluttering up the room with many smaller works.

If you have a small room you can help open it up and make it seem less claustrophic by hanging landscapes or oceanscapes on the wall.

How to Use Dining Room Chandeliers

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There are not hard and fast rules about how to decorate a dining room with chandeliers but it is important to get one that you like because it is likely going to be a focal point of your room. One suggestion is that the circumference of the chandelier should be about a foot less than the width of the table at its widest point. This is so people do not bump their head on the light fixture when they get up from the table.

Another guideline is that the chandelier should not be closer than four feet from any wall or closer than 48 inches from any cabinet or other piece of furniture.It is important to get a chandelier that is big enough or it might get lost in the room.

When hanging the chandelier you should make sure that it is hung low enough to light up the eating area. However it should not be in the way of seeing people seeing each other while they are talking or eating at the table.

There are all kinds of different styles of chandeliers and the best one for you is going to have a lot to do with your décor. A simple crystal chandelier goes with just about anything. A lot of crystals make it more ornate which goes best with more formal dining room furniture. Simple candle styles go with about anything.

Rustic style dining rooms look good with a wagon wheel or wrought iron style of chandelier. Wooden or natural chandeliers, like those made from deer antlers, look great with older style furniture.
Stark wrought iron chandeliers in white or black look best with the plain lines of mission furniture. Wrought iron chandeliers also look fabulous with Goth décor and dining rooms done in a slightly distressed shabby chic fashion.

You can also get chandeliers that are in a starburst shape with offshoots that look like Christmas light bulbs. Sometimes these also look like orbs or circling planets. This type of chandelier best suits Fabulous Fifties type décor.
Faux metal shapes and artistic looking optic fibres are associated with chandeliers that suit a room from the sixties and seventies. Gold or copper metal chandelier arms are more late seventies in feel. Silver metal arms are more associated with the sixties, nineties and this decade.

Keep in mind too that if you are going to get a chandelier with crystals that you can get them in different colors. This can make a big difference in the look of the room.