The dining room in my previous home was *literally* the jewel box of that place. It was my showpiece, the room I loved to just sit in and look around. I was proud to host dinners and game nights there. I was grateful for a beautiful space like that when it became the impromptu home office for my husband and me when we were sent home to work at the beginning of the pandemic in 2020. We didn’t have a breakfast nook, so it’s where we say like six times a day giving our baby (at the time) purees and snacks in her high chair (RIP rug). And then we moved.
Don’t get me wrong. I feel like I often talk about our home now disparagingly. I love where we live for many reasons, but it’s definitely lacking the luster of our old place. Mostly because everything that’s here is just a holdover. It was picked for over there, but living its next life here.
Another thing about where we currently live? It doesn’t accommodate all of our daily needs, specifically having office space for two working adults and an area for our toddler to freely play. We have alllllll of her stuff scattered between the living room (which I affectionally refer to as the luxe daycare when people come over), dining room, and her bedroom upstairs. She’s perfectly content because she doesn’t know anything else. But we do. Long story short, she had so much room to play where we were staying over our Christmas vacation, as well as at our friends’ place where we stayed during our fire evacuations.
So when we settled back home after a whirlwind month, I sat down at my spot on the dining table where I work and looked around, contemplating how I was using the spaces in my home. (For the record, my husband now works in a small office downstairs that we call the dungeon because it has no windows, and I can’t stand the idea of writing in there so it’s all his.) Was I being fair to my girl by commandeering the dining room because of what I *wish* it was? A whisper of my old jewel box? Sure, we used the 6-seater table here and there to host friends, but certainly not more than a handful of times per year. Did I like sitting here with a perfect view out the window that frames the beautiful trees on our street while I tapped away at my keyboard? Yup, sure did. But am I also tired of my living room being drowned by IKEA TROFAST units, play kitchens, make-shift ball pits made out of balls and a large storage container, etc. etc. etc.? Also yes (especially because the actual floor space for my daughter to play is super limited).
Living in a smaller home that doesn’t check all your boxes, in terms of spaces needed, always means someone or something is being sacrificed. If I’m being honest with myself, I want a formal dining room. I want a beautiful space to sit down and enjoy a meal with friends and family (we have a little bistro table in the kitchen we use when it’s just us). I want to sit where I’m sitting with easy access to the kitchen for a snack, right next to the powder bath for quick restroom breaks, across the window so I can see when my husband pulls up from an errand or a work outing. Seeing our neighbors walking by with their dogs’ leashes in hand, or the mailman popping over to the other side of the street to make their deliveries is good for my soul. But having a singular, big and open spot for my girl to play and do her arts and crafts and zoom around as a superhero and read her books under a Nugget couch fort might just be even better for my soul.
All of that to say, I’m pretty torn on what to do with this space. The dining room is always the easiest option to turn into a flex space. I know even our own Caitlin from EHD is talking about changing the function of her beautiful dining room into a spot for both her and her boyfriend to work out of. My family needs a living room, but maybe it doesn’t need a dining room as badly as a play space. So, let’s explore some options.
What I’m Currently Working With
This is the current state of my living room. Like, I snapped this photo as-is without even attempting to make it look any nicer 15 minutes before writing this sentence. Half of the large cabinet under the TV is full of coloring books, dot markers, board games, and various other toys. In front of the sofa chaise (at left in photo), there’s a toddler armchair and a container of balls and random blocks my girl throws in there regularly. The coffee table always has something currently in play on it, and other toys just finished being played with on the bottom shelf (and rogue MagnaTiles and drawings and construction paper…). The ENTIRE right side of the living room—I’m talking plant to stair banister—is toys and toy storage.
Here’s another view. The left photo is the wall right by the landing five steps up into the dining room from the living room (it’s a multi-level townhome). Guys, it’s not great, but I also acknowledge that this is for such a short time. My daughter is about to turn 3, and I’d be lucky if I had another 5 years of her little kid toys taking over my living room. It’s a blessing, I know that.
Here’s the dining room in question. We have toy overflow in here, a mail landing spot (and let’s be honest, a junk-landing spot most days), and my little work spot. The chair is NOT ergonomic by any means, but I’m only ever sitting for like two hours of straight working time so it’s not a big deal (I don’t think). I’d love to get a big rug in here to break up all the wood tones that are all on top of each other, and likely would still do that even if it became a play space.
This is the footie-pajamaed angel in question who needs more room to play. Again, she’s totally happy fluttering between the small amount of floor space in the living room, to the small amount of floor space in the dining room to the middle of the kitchen but you know…there are reasons why that isn’t ideal. We don’t spend a ton of time playing upstairs in her bedroom because the layout of her room doesn’t allow for much toy storage (an issue to get into for another day), and I don’t like leaving her alone to play up there while I get some other things done around the house the way I can when she’s downstairs.
All things considered, I’ve come up with three possible options if I decide to give my ol’ dining room the official boot (gosh, that hurts to type):
Option 1: Turn it into a multi-functional space to check all the boxes.
I’m talking play area, small dining nook, and maybe even a little desk set up. That or I use the dining nook as my desk the way I currently do, and bring in a bit of a library vibe, too. Because I still have tons of boxes of books sitting in the garage from when we moved in two years ago that I’d love to get out and onto some bookshelves. I could possibly get a 4-seater table that expands into a 6-seater when we need it, and tuck that into a corner by the window.
Here’s a messy sketch of some initial thoughts:
- Pros of option 1: I get everything I want in one space (but do I really have enough room for everything?). I can also make it pretty enough that it doesn’t feel too kid-like, but is still happy enough for my actual kid.
- Cons of option 1: I’d have to get rid of all my furniture that’s in here, and that makes me very, very sad. Plus, I use that credenza to store a lot of small appliances, platters, and other kitchen and dining things I can’t fit in the kitchen (but often use). Also, me trying to do everything might end up being everything done poorly. Can you really have it all? (With good design, yes, possibly).
Option 2: Try to fit in both a home office and a playroom.
So, maybe there’s a world where we get a folding table and chairs that we keep in the garage when we need to feed more than three people, and I focus in on two primary uses: workspace and play space. For anyone wondering how I could possibly work with a toddler playing around me, the answer is: I do not. I work while she’s at preschool or sleeping or being cared for by someone else. I’d still have to get rid of basically everything in my dining room, but I’d get back my entire living room. I could do a very pretty vintage secretary desk in front of the window, turn the area where the bar is now into a reading nook for my girl, and have so much space left over for all of her imagination and playthings.
Here’s another hurried sketch of how I could make this work:
- Pros of option 2: Plenty of space for both work and play, and an opportunity to have some breathing room aesthetically (we have too much furniture everywhere and it’s sometimes suffocating).
- Cons of option 2: No more dining room. No more dining-related storage. Setting up a temporary eating space in a playroom when the need arises.
Option 3: Use it just as a playroom with tons of open space.
As I’m writing this, I can already tell you that I don’t think this is the move. While I know I can find a spot to work in this house (upstairs in my bedroom, in the breakfast room, even in the “dungeon” if worst comes to worst), I’m not sure it’s the best move for prime writing Arlyn. And writing is my livelihood so…yeah. I needed to go through the exercise of typing this out to know that I’d be the least happy with option 3.
Now, for some cons about ALL of these plans: Wise parents of EHD—Will my kid even play in here or will she just go to the living room anyway? I might be okay with that scenario because at least I know that everything lives together in one space at the end of the day. But please, enlighten me with your wisdom before I make any drastic choices like putting my beloved table and chairs up for sale on Facebook Marketplace.
Oh, also! I have my couch to sit on in my living room where she currently plays and well, I’m 40 now and would rather not sit on the floor when she’s playing or I’m playing alongside her. A Nugget-esque couch could solve this, surely.
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Before wrapping up, I pulled some inspo of play areas with some of her existing storage pieces set up in a way that could work for us if they all lived in the same room, but also a few rooms that seem to have a few purposes.
As much as I love this, we won’t be doing any built-ins because we’re just renters and don’t know how long we’re even staying here. BUT, I love the idea of the larger low table for play in the center of the room. We’re big Playdoh/coloring book/watercolor/paper mosaic-gluing people and more surface area would be great!
If you stretch your imagination a little, I could see something like this for my space. A small table (though maybe something that extends), a few chairs, lots of books/bookshelves, and a window seat!
Same kind of thing here (the first image), just a bit too plain for my taste. But good to see how much space is opened up with a much smaller table (and something round is easier to place in a corner and still look good).
And kind of just what I want to be able to give my Evelyn. A bunch of open space to make a big mess, have space to build, climb, sit and read, and all the things she loves.
SO: WHAT SAY YOU?? There’s a lot to consider, and while I’m not locked into any “design” at the moment, I do think this exercise has at least gotten the wheels churning a bit. The idea of selling furniture and finding room for the things *inside* the cabinets in my dining room is daunting, but so is every new project I suppose. Would love to hear your thoughts or encouragements. 🙂
Until next time…
***Dining room after photos: Design by Arlyn Hernandez | Photos by Sara Ligorria-Tramp | From: Arlyn’s Moody Dining Room Reveal Is All About the Insane Power of Paint