There’s more to fabric than color and pattern. Like people, fabrics have personality: they can radiate warmth, exude confidence, or convey an easygoing attitude.
Consider the qualities of these popular fabrics:
Brocade: has a raised pattern resembling embroidery. It is often used in formal upholstery.
Chenille: has thick needle-punched designs. Its nubby texture is suitable for casual upholstery.
Chintz: is a plain-weave glazed or unglazed cotton. It sets a traditional mood and often has a floral motif.
Damask: comes in various fibers and weights and features a satin-and matte-textural contrast. Use it for formal draperies and upholstery or let it go casual as a loose fitting slipcover.
Matelasse has an elegant embossed look. It’s commonly used for bedcovers.
Moire is known for its shimmering finish resembling watermarks or wood grain. It lends a traditional look to the room. Moire fabric is ideal for drapering and paperbacking for wallcovering.
Taffeta is a crisp plain weave fabric. It works well for formal window treatments because it retains its shape with little support.
Tapestry has thick weaves and pictorial designs. It is best suited for uncomplicated upholstery or flat window panels.
Toile de Jouy is a tightly woven fabric with a pictorial print, usually on a white or cream background. It can look formal or casual, depending on the fabrics and furnishings that surround it.
When you can devote only one area of your easy-living home to formality, the dining room surely warrants consideration. Since you spend limited time there, it can be as formal as you like without intruding upon rooms where you kick back or curl up.
Civilized Twist
Formal dining doesn’t need to be uncomfortable. It is just a different kind of leisure – a civilized, unhurried sharing of your best, from manners and conversation to foods and wines. It is time to indulge the senses and appreciate life itself. The good news for contemporary design fans is that formal dining room pieces don’t have to be traditional only. The design principles for a formal look work equally well in contemporary and traditional spaces. Here are some of the ways to add formal grace when decorating dining room.
Symmetrical arrangements – mirror images on either side of an imaginary center line – provide the most formal balance. Use symmetry for some of your most important table, wall, and furniture arrangements.
Set your own degree of formality by sprinkling in a casual touch or two. For example, you can tie-on chairs that will relax the other elements around in your formal dining room.
Dress up with gleaming mirrors, lacquered fnishes, polishes veneers, and crystal stemware and candlesticks.
- Formal doesn’t mean fussy
Nothing makes a stronger formal statement than wooden dining room furniture with pure classic lines, be it 18th-century antiques or contemporary classics. Team those with lustrous fabrics, especially silks. Raw silk and silk linen are good choices for formal dining room contemporary settings.
- Match furnishings for the effect
Pick a dining suite, a pair of identical scones, and matching frames for artwork.
