Dining area: comfort and timeless elegance

29 July 2022

Open space with living and dining area: fluid layout for two communicating areas

Begin to welcome again, embrace a new and more authentic form of conviviality: this is the desire that recurs today, because you are ready to enthusiastically reopen the doors of your home to guests. The living area is the heart of this rediscovered ritual and in particular the dining room and the living room, two areas to better prepare for a new season of convivial moments. Whether it is an open space or two separate rooms, the communication between the living room and the dining area must always be open, just as the management of the spaces must be fluid. There is more comfort in a house where you can move easily, where you find your way around and find yourself, because feeling at home means just that. Stylistic consistency, completeness of furnishings, modern design and decorative details are all elements to be orchestrated in harmony: the aim is to feel at ease in an elegant environment, which is appreciated for its ability to harmonize function and style, completeness, and atmosphere. Therefore, it is important not to neglect any element and to identify a common thread between furnishings, lighting, accessories and overall mood. Finding a key to understanding, an idea to be inspired by and to be consistent with.

Sartorial details and refined materials for the contemporary dining table

Perfect synthesis of function and aesthetics, the dining table is the absolute protagonist of this room of the house. And in a modern vision it fits almost like a sculpture, in which the lines, the materials, the design details are revealed one after the other, like secrets. The essential archetype of the top with four legs takes on very sophisticated characteristics, first starting from the research on materials. The classic glass, marble, wood are transformed by processes that enhance their beauty and at the same time contribute to making them functional and suitable for use, nowadays fluid.

The dining table is no longer just a space for conviviality, but also transforms into a support base for work and study. It is a table not only to look at but also to live, intensely and at different times of the day, from sunrise to late evening. This evolution is an aspect to reflect on and to start from, when designing the interior of the dining room, thinking about a concretely contemporary lifestyle.

Ergonomic seats with elegant lines

Furnishing a modern dining area with the idea of ​​living it differently, at different times of the day, implies an extremely sensitive design, guided by a broad and conscious vision. The design of the furniture is a critical variable because it must combine beauty and design quality, understood as the ability of the furniture to support a long and different use of the furniture itself. The chair is an emblematic example: it must naturally have an aesthetic that is consistent with that of the table and the context, but at the same time it is essential that it respects certain requirements related to comfort and function. Although not an office chair, the dining chair must also respect the principles of ergonomics and be comfortable even after long use. Let’s think about when, as we said, the dining area is used as a workspace. But also, more simply, to a convivial moment, during which all the participants must be able to feel comfortable and at ease. Beauty, functionality, and comfort have never been so integrated.

Sideboard: the modern evolution of a classic

With a view to integrating aesthetics and function, one of the main furnishings in the dining room is undoubtedly the cupboard or sideboard. Modern evolution of the classic sideboard of the past, today it houses everything needed to set the table, sometimes transforming itself into a refined bar cabinet. Its top welcomes precious accessories, such as Murano glass vases and table lights which, as we will see better later, create an atmosphere. It is a piece of furniture with an important presence, and it is crucial to identify refined materials and finishes suitable for the context. From the lacquered surfaces to the artfully engraved grooves, from the transparency of the glass to the warm texture of the wood. When choosing the sideboard, a feature not to be overlooked is the shape: in some cases, it develops vertically, in others horizontally. This is to fit harmoniously into any type of environment.

Diffused light between function and atmosphere

The ideal lighting of the dining area is never direct but always diffused, and it is important to illuminate enough to make the meal pleasant, without creating discomfort to the eye, even when it is directed to diners, or moves in space. The light from above must therefore be chosen carefully, not only in relation to the design but above all as regards the type and intensity of the light source.

Always to be integrated with floor or table lamps to have the possibility of creating different atmospheres and introducing more or less light into the space. This is even more true if the dining area is in an open space with a living room: in this case the light becomes a real architectural element essential to mark the different functional areas.

Living area: sofas, carpets, and refined details

As we said, the dining area is increasingly integrated into an open space which sometimes also includes the kitchen. In these cases, the furniture takes on the important function of marking the space and defining the various functions. The goal is to maintain visual coherence but at the same time distinguish and set the pace for the alternation of living and dining. Creating the perfect balance between division and fluidity: the idea is to give the possibility to move and communicate easily between one space and another, without creating confusion or disorder. Without making one or the other function prevail: it is not a dining room with a sofa, and it is not a living room with a dining table. Rather, we are talking about a completely new environment, to be experienced in a new way and therefore, to be designed in a new way.

Furniture and accessories: the new collections for the dining area

Dining table: contemporary lines and modern functionality

Sculptural and functional: the design of the dining table must combine aesthetics and concreteness. Love Me, Love Me Not is the collection designed by Michael Anastassiades for Salvatori, a brand devoted to sophisticated stone processing. It is a sculpture, and its structure reinvents the architecture of the table: the round top rests on three feet giving life to an original, unexpected design.

The rectangular version is more classic but with a strong impact: an authentic tribute to marble. Designed by Rodolfo Dordoni for Cassina, Longplane (on the cover) is a dining table with rigorous but not obvious lines, with a refined combination of colors and materials.

Extendable, it declines the fluidity required for the furnishings of this room of the house. Iconic and innovative, the table from the Air line by Lago seems to float in the air, thanks to the glass structure that supports the top. The top is available in various finishes, from classic wood to a wide palette of colors, to integrate into dining rooms with a different atmosphere: from familiar to formal and up to professional settings.

Comfortable seats with a refined design

In the current scenario, the dining table can also accommodate long study and work sessions, which is why the chair must be chosen with particular attention to comfort and ergonomics. Without renouncing the style, the refinement of the materials, the refined lines of contemporary design. Janet, designed by Vincent Van Duysen for Molteni & C is an excellent example of a perfect synthesis of these elements. Essential, available with or without armrests, characterized by the contrast between the seat upholstery and the solid wood structure of black ash, eucalyptus, and sunrise oak.

The Montera seat by Roberto Lazzeroni for Poltrona Frau also goes in the same direction: the seat has a shape that enhances the processing of leather, a theme dear to the company and by embracing the body, it offers support and comfort.

Universal is the seating collection by Jean Marie Massaud for MDF Italia: chair or armchair, in wood or upholstered, has a rounded back that makes it welcoming and characterizes its aesthetics.

Sideboards with rigorous lines and sculpted surfaces

The sideboard is a piece of furniture that completes the design of the dining area, acts as a connecting element with the living room and has the important function of containing. As we said, the top is a support surface to be interpreted, as is the wall in which it is inserted: an ensemble to be composed. Backdrop by Alain Gilles for Bonaldo bears his intention in his name: to act as a background, as a discreet but present, decorative, and certainly useful element. In canaletto walnut wood, or glossy caramel-colored lacquer, it warms the room and decorates it, thanks to the front inspired by the facades of modernist buildings.

Lights and accessories to mark the spaces and make them intimate and welcoming

Two critical issues relating to the design of the open space with dining and living areas are the division of spaces and lighting, which must be suitable for very different moments of the day. To divide the space without creating barriers, the screen is perfect, an antique furnishing element that returns today and is appreciated for its functionality and decorative scope: Hima by Jean Marie Massaud for Poliform is a functional work of art that divides the living area from dining area, in a fluid and elegant way.

Likewise, an excellent intuition is that of the bench Clara by Christophe Delcourt for Baxter: a hybrid between a dining seat and a sofa, perfectly consistent with the changing nature of this home environment.

Finally, light helps to underline the many functions of the dining area: Silo by Salvatori is a suspended light that interprets the classic chandelier of the past in a contemporary key and is perfect for a modern and sophisticated dining room.

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