Oh I have not even touched the surface of fabrics that are available and beautiful. But, best to qualify further if you are recovering or buying new chairs before we get too excited or caught up in the beauty of the products. I love fabrics and the chemistry and technology that goes into modern day fabrics would astound most people. I'm not even talking about the residential fabrics like the Robert Allen collection I showed you. I'm talking about the fabrics for the hospitality and medical care industry. Now if you are interested in MODERN look fabrics I would send you to Maharam to look at their 20th Century Modern collection. Some of those are the real deal by Eames and Girard. Anyway, when you get further along in your plans then I can give better input.

Also take a look at Room and Board....they have several tables with different wood finishes or wood/steel/metal bases and a good selection of various tabletop materials. Also if you prefer a wood table, an area rug underneath the table could also help to break up all of the wood too.

Hi Jennifer K, thanks for your comments. The photos you have posted are really lovely but not really suited to our environment and house, which I know is impossible to tell from one photo. We have built a modern farmhouse on 10 acres. That room looks out to beautiful green countryside and the river below. The dining room is a bit of a feature and is completely different to the rest of our relaxed lodgey style house but I don't want it to be too modern, if that makes sense. The photos have given me a few ideas so thank you so much for your help!

Hi, We have recently renovated our kitchen, and have had the idea to turn our living room into a dining room. The idea is, that we would have some really comfy chairs and would be able to relax while sitting around the table; so the dining table wouldn't be only for meals. Then rather than having a dining table, we would have a bench with bar stools on the kitchen/living room wall. (nb the wall is load bearing and cannot easily be removed so this isn't an option). The other option is to keep the living room and set it up with a sofa, coffee table and a couple of occasional chairs. Dining wise we would have a smaller dining table in the kitchen. The living room opens on to the lounge which is set up as a TV room. There is also a guest bedroom and bathroom downstairs; the family bedrooms and bathroom is upstairs. We will also have an outdoor dining table in the undercover area outside the kitchen. I look forward to your thoughts and ideas.