De-Formalize Your Dining Room the Nate Berkus Way

"The dining room: famously (and ironically) the fussiest, most untouchable room in a house. Often an off-limits zone even for the year-round inhabitants of the home-where we keep Grandma's fine china and our least comfy antique dining chairs-the space sits invisibly cordoned off like a museum, save for maybe four or five occasions a year. And while you might expect top designers to prescribe some brand of aspirational Buckingham Palace edit for your abode's most formal space, think again: Nate Berkus, of , is busting down the door on the unspoken rule of the uptight dining room."

"Should a dining room always be formal? The answer is no. It is more important, I think, that a dining room is used. If you entertain frequently and prefer the table set with your best silver, then it should feel grand and elevated. But if you are not a particularly formal person and your dining room sits untouched for most of the year, it's a missed opportunity to enjoy all of the rooms in your home."

"Eating in the dining room should not feel like an effort. If it does, consider taking the formality down a bit. Could you swap out the chairs for a more casual, upholstered option ? Could you add a small settee or banquette on one side? It is simple to dress up a table on special occasions with a pair of candlesticks and a set of embroidered napkins, but it is hard to take the rigidity out of a room designed only for formal entertaining."

Dining rooms are often treated as untouchable formal spaces used only a few times each year, limiting household enjoyment. Prioritizing use over strict formality creates a more welcoming and functional space. Casual upholstered chairs, a small settee, or a banquette can reduce rigidity and encourage everyday dining. Simple accents like candlesticks and embroidered napkins can elevate the table for special occasions without enforcing constant formality. Adapting seating and decor to personal habits promotes frequent use and better overall enjoyment of the home rather than reserving the room solely for rare formal entertaining.

Read at Architectural Digest