Before you buy any dining room furniture, consider a few questions.

• What kind of space do you have? Is it a dining room or a dining area?
• If you are furnishing a dining room how often do you use it? How will you use your dining room? Is it just for dining or will it be a multi-purpose room?
• What's your decorating style?

How big is your dining room? A cavernous room with a small table will look cold and empty, while a too small space with a large table and chairs will seem unpleasantly crowded. Always measure your room before buying furniture, and remember to leave enough room around your furniture to move around easily.

If it is a fairly large room, you may want to consider including other pieces of furniture such as screens, sideboards or cabinets. If you want to downplay the size you may also want to use heavy drapes or rugs. Wider, bigger or upholstered chairs may be used.

Before you begin furnishing your dining room, determine how you would use it. Will it be used every day, or only once in a while to entertain?

• A seldom used room can be furnished with high maintenance finishes and fabrics while a dining room that is used every day should be more functional. Look for sturdy furniture surfaces if young children will be eating there.
• If you use your dining room to work, read or converse, consider comfortable chairs.
• For a seldom used dining room, you may even consider designating some other purpose to it more suited to how you live. It's only a dining room if you say so.

Now that you have figured out the best way to use your dining room according to your needs and the amount of room you have, decorating it should be easy. It is about functionality and your personal preferences.

For a large dining room, you may want to visually divide the large area into smaller ones with the help of rugs and screens. You can also buy furniture that is larger in scale. Heavy drapes, and paint color may also help. The idea is not to make the place seem small, but cozy and inviting.