mix and match outdoor dining chairs and tables

When it comes to design for outdoor spaces, it’s becoming increasingly popular to go for a personalized look instead of a pre-packaged design. If you’re looking for outdoor dining ideas and inspiration, this might come as a surprise. Mixing styles will result in a sophisticated, unique, and memorable outdoor spaces, provided you follow a few simple guidelines.

Pick Three Finishes

When shopping for outdoor dining decor, you’ll have many options in materials. You can combine several, but it would be best to keep your choices limited to just three. For example, you might have a dining table that combines wood and concrete. Then, you can mix this with chairs that are a combination of wood and wicker. This gives you plenty of material to choose from for such things as side tables and accessories

WOOD & WICKER

WOOD & CONCRETE

COMBINED LOOK

Apply the 80/20 Rule to Outdoor Dining Ideas

The 80/20 rule is used interior design circles frequently, and there’s no reason why you can’t use it in your exterior space. This says that it’s perfectly fine to mix styles, such as Victorian, Mediterranean, Contemporary, and rustic, but that one should be more dominant than the other. In other words, 80 percent of your furnishings should have a dominant style, and 20 percent should be secondary. For example, you might have most of your outdoor dining area furnished with vintage decor and the rest with modern. A vintage teak beam table paired with modern white chairs would fit the 80/20 rule as long as much of the other decor was also vintage.

Mix and Match Chairs

Some of us just want everything to match perfectly, and this is a perfectly valid way to decorate your space. But, it’s not the only way. You can also mix and match your dining room chairs, as long as it makes sense. One popular approach is to add a bench along one side of a rectangular dining room table to create family-style seating. You can also add a different type of chair to the head of the table to produce some contrast.

How to Use Colors

Using the same color throughout your outdoor dining area is one way to go, but it won’t make for a memorable space. When it comes to colors, you can mix and match, but you’ll want to use a rule of three here as well. This means that you need to repeat each color at least three times to tie it into the overall design. So, if you use taupe in the seat cushions, you might also want to include it in an outdoor rug or accent pillows. If there is also blue in the seat cushions, you can tie this in by including blue in the place settings and centerpiece.

What About Shapes?

Shapes always play an integral role in the design of a space. The first thing you’ll need to decide is the size and shape of your outdoor dining table. This is often dictated by the dimensions of the space, but there are a few things to consider. Round and square tables are more conducive to conversation, but a rectangular table can generally fit more people. You can also play with shapes in other ways. When you mix and match styles with your outdoor dining ideas, you’ll get the benefit of different edges and finishes, adding a sense of warmth or charm to the area.

Outdoor Dining Finishing Touches

Furnishing an outdoor dining space can be fun, but don’t forget all the finishing touches. We mentioned a few of these when discussing colors. When you dine and entertain outside, you have an opportunity to create a space filled with color, style, and function. Include a beautiful centerpiece that matches one of the styles and colors that you’ve favored. Don’t forget other accessories such as placemats, lighting, and even color-coordinated shade control We are quickly approaching the outdoor entertaining season. It will soon be time to get the patio ready for lazy afternoons and evenings with family and friends. Whether you have a city balcony that you’d like to decorate for dining or a sprawling outdoor space, there are plenty of ways that you can mix and match styles to create a functional and inviting area.