Elements that Make a Formal Dining Room

The dining room can be the perfect place to create a formal environment. Since this room is often utilized on special occasions, a formal look and feel can add to the overall appeal of the room when used for entertaining. However, formal touches can also be nice when the room is used for family dinners. Even if you haven't decorated the rest of your home in a formal fashion, adding formal elements to the dining room can help make the room a more special place.

Set a Formal Dining Room Table

Since the table is often the focal point of the dining room, you should pay special attention to this area. A table made from beautiful dark wood often looks more formal than one made from light-colored wood. Hand-carved accents on the table legs or on the edges of the table top surface can also help to create an elegant atmosphere. A beautiful formal tablecloth is also a required element for any formal dining room. Setting the table with your fine china, silverware and crystal stemware, even when the room is not being used for dining, is also a great way of adding a decorative look to the room. Or, create a simple but elegant look by topping the table with just a fine tablecloth and a beautiful floral arrangement. When choosing dinnerware, it's important to remember that "formal" doesn't always have to translate into "ornate." In many cases, a set of china adorned with a simple band of gold around the edges can look just as lovely as more ornate styles of china. Choosing china, silverware and crystal stemware patterns that accentuate the overall design of the room is often the best option.

Formal Lighting Options

A chandelier hung over the dining room table is often considered to be the ultimate in formal lighting. Chandeliers are available in a wide variety of styles and sizes, making it easy to choose one that will coordinate nicely with the rest of your room decor. Although many people immediately think of crystal chandeliers, there are also many other options from which to choose, including sleek brass or pewter fixtures featuring elegant silk shades over each light. As an added bonus, shades can help diffuse the light, which can add a wonderful ambiance to the dining room.

Decorating Accents for a Formal Dining Room

Even decorating accents can help set a formal mood in the dining room. For example, an ornately framed mirror on the wall can add a stately look, in addition to making the room seem larger. Large flower or plant arrangements can also add formal look, especially when they are arranged or grown in decorative vases or pots. Window treatments which include full-length draperies, topped by a cornice or valance give a dining room a special feel while fringes, tassels or swags add eye-catching decorative details. Chair railings or crown moldings bring an elegant touch to the dining room walls. Elegant pieces of sculpture, wood wall decoror modern metal wall sculptures, beautiful framed paintings or prints, or a display of formal china dinnerware on a shelf or in a hutch can add the perfect finishing touch to your formal dining room decor.