Survey #253 results
| Name (click to view full survey response and comments) | Which of the following statements describe your living situation with respect to a dining room and dining-room furniture? | If you checked “Other” or wish to elaborate on your answers, please feel free to do so in the space below. | Please complete the following statement: “Members of my household and I eat most of our meals _____.” | Please complete the following statement: “When I want to entertain guests for a meal, we usually eat _____.” | What feelings or memories—positive, negative, or in-between—does the phrase “dining room” evoke for you? (And more.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suzanne |
| The small kitchen has no space for even the teeniest table. The dining room is right next to the kitchen and not formal. | I’d say 70% of meals are eaten in front of the tv. Sadly. | At the only table which is in the dining room. | If you ask me I would say positive memories except for my very bad habit of putting all sorts of items on the table and leaving them there far too long. Dining and entertaining force me to clear the table clutter ergo, I should dine and entertain with regularity. |
| Anonymous user |
| sitting at our table or island | at the table in our kitchen/diningroom (we modified the design which was to be two rooms and make it one big room) | Dining room for me was the center room of a tiny house that had additions. It was where my dad sat smoked cigarettes and hung out. He was alcoholic so we just mostly stayed "clear" | |
| Cee |
| Between eat in kitchen and dining area | In dining area which is part of the great room. My dining table is a butterfly table that expands to seat 6 to 8 | I love having a space dedicated to dining and entertaining. However It gets abused as drop off area which I usually need to clear of mail and other clutter ( boxes and over flow of groceries) . The space was originally to be kept clutter free for welcoming guest anytime without embarrassment. | |
| Beth in Houston |
| Sitting in our recliners in the den while watching tv. | Because of the clutter, I rarely have guests in my home. | The term ‘dining room’ conjures up good feelings and memories for me of pleasant meals enjoyed with friends. | |
| Maureen |
| In family room in front of television :(. | In the family room around large coffee table. | Until a few years before the pandemic, we actually used to have people over for dinner -- in the dining room. Life and messiness and the bill chair 🙂 got in the way and we haven't entertained since, which makes me sad because I'd really like to have people over, but am embarrassed about the state of my house. | |
| Anonymous user |
| . . . . .in front of the television, in a family room. | We have not had any guests come to our house when we served a meal for several years. | Dining and entertaining with guests have not been done in our house for several years. We would not want other people to see the condition of the house, since it is in need of some major repairs. The roof leaked in a heavy rainstorm, and the ceiling looks terrible because it has not been repaired. | |
| JM |
| At the kitchen table which is where our "formal" dining table is (not in the formal dining room which is where our piano, drums & multiple instruments reside. | In the kitchen "breakfast nook" at our formal dining set. | I love the idea of a formal dining room and we had one for years, but as the kids grew we turned it into a music room and have never looked back. About a decade ago, we remodeled the kitchen & spiffied up the breakfast nook for our "formal dining set" so seamlessly that I actually forgot we had once used the formal dining room for its intended purpose. (It's been the music room for so long, I actually forgot it was a dining room until I took this survey!) The kitchen table and counter get the clutter. There's no table in the music room so it doesn't gather much clutter. | |
| Linn |
| in front of the tv | in the dining room | I have positive memories as a family of 5 all working together to prepare, serve, and clean up after dinner in the dining room on the dining room table. My days of entertaining in the dining room are long gone. The dining room table is currently full of items for I need to eliminate from my home. | |
| Summer |
| watching You Tube | my "kitchenette" table. I only have 1 table. | Positive memories in my parent's DR growing up. Now my son has the table and chairs in his house and I love seeing it! | |
| Marianne |
| At the dining table. | At the dining table | Memories of where we gathered. My parents (both gone) and 6 siblings. Dining table in the kitchen. Always someone (usually mum) with a coffee or food on offer. Now all gone our separate ways. Even a different country. Mum's kitchen and dining table always clean even though there was 8 of us. Mine always cluttered even though there's only me. I use it to eat, read, write, knit, craft, talk with friends, and dinner once a year with my two children and their partners. | |
| Anonymous user |
| At the dining table | At the dining table | ||
| Gabriella |
| When I and my partner are home by ourselves, we eat in the little breakfast / dining nook in the kitchen. When I have friends over I serve at the dining table in the living room. | In the dining area of my living room. | When I was a kid, the dining room was for entertaining guests. My family would usually eat in the kitchen or in the living room in front of the TV. From that time I have wonderful memories of the cozy relaxed meals with my family in old fashioned German kitchens. Using a formal dining area was nice too. If I had the space, I'd get a big rustic table for the kitchen and invite my friends to sit around it to eat and celebrate and enjoy ourselves late into the nights - as often as possible. I try to keep my living room with the dining area clutter free. My dishware for entertaining is well organized and easy to access. My kichen utensils are relatively minimalistic and - relatively - tidy. if friends come over on short notice I can usually whip up a simple little something without much effort. | |
| DS |
| In the kitchen | Depending on the number of people, we eat in the kitchen or adjoining dining room. | We went to my grandmothers nearly every Sunday when I was a child, and always ate in her dining room. As many as 20 people would be there. So, a dining room makes me think of family and togetherness and makes me happy. Having a separate dining room adjoining the kitchen meant that, for all of our married life, we could have all sorts of celebrations and larger quantities of guests. Throwing a get together for up to 50 people was never an issue. Because we entertain so much, there was less clutter in the house. Impromptu get together’s and “kitchen parties” meant that the house had to be sort of clutter free at all times. Once, when my husband’s business was audited, we even set up our dining room for the tax people to use and moved the pertinent records there for the week. It was so much less disruptive than having them in the actual business office. | |
| Bluenose Brenda |
| In the dining room, and rarely on T.V. Trays in the living room | In our dining room and in the summer, on the deck or back patio. There are more options with fine weather! | Dining room is a positive word full of great memories of family and friends. But, when I commit to having people "over for dinner" I feel panic...Now I must remove all my crafts, stacked books, and electronic equipment to have the dining room of years gone by - organized, uncluttered and nicely decorated. Some things gotta give! | |
| Mar |
| at the kitchen table! | in the kitchen ...we recently switched the large dining room table to the kitchen and the smaller table to the dining room. I couldn't be bothered bringing all the food, plates, etc. down the hall to the dining room. So we now will have all family gathering meals at the large table, but in the kitchen. The smaller table in the "dining room" has a lovely plant on top which can be easily moved to accommodate a game of cards, puzzles or painting (my husband's beautiful artwork). His painting supplies are on a rolling cart that is kept in the coat closet near the dining room. | Positive memories of Thanksgiving, Easter and Christmas dinners in the dining room...but at my age, it's just easier in the kitchen. | |
| Em |
| I eat in the dining room, unless I have already eaten the food while standing in the kitchen. When I am ill, I eat sitting in bed. The majority of my meals are at the dining room table, with a laptop computer as my companion. | When I entertain guests for a meal, we eat in the dining room. If I invited a guest for tea, we have it in the living room. | The dining room table was where the family met for supper every day. We said a prayer together in thanks of the food, then shared our day's adventures, and learned table manners. We were to eat everything on our plates. If we refused to eat, we had to stay at the table until the food was eaten or until bedtime. By 7 years old, each of us could set the table by ourselves, with china, silverware, glasses, and napkins in the correct spots; and carry the plates of hot food from Mother's post at the stove to each person's place. Afterwards, we would clear the table and do the dishes, then homework. That same dining room table was used for card and board games, coloring, as the buffet for family reunions, and for laying and cutting out the patterns for our clothing. Dad’s chess club met around it, and it was an extension for the desk in the corner for complicated paperwork. We used it for so many projects, that Mother would announce, "Clear the deck!" when it was time to set the table for dinner. That meant that everything had to be put away, not just shoved aside. The dining room table was a place to enjoy family, beautiful tableware, meals cooked from scratch, birthdays, games, and creative projects. It was the center of our home. I am alone now, and the dining room table is where I spend most of my time. I always eat at it, but any social life around it has withered as the use of it for projects has dominated. It doubles as a computer desk because the writing desk of my former life is too small for computers and all the devices used with them. Although it frequently attracts too much paper, it is usually fairly uncluttered, probably because of the overflowing desk on the opposite wall. However, even when it is at its best, the computers, monitor, cables, external drives, and accessories are unsightly. I open the drop leaf for eating, but guests must tolerate the heavy computers across from us, sitting there as if part of the family (which, I guess, they are). Thinking of the dining rooms of my past compared to the dining room I have today makes me long for the people oriented, more genteel life rather than the never ending paperwork, junk phone calls, unrelenting marketing made to look like urgent business, and instant news updates that flood it today. Technology replaced people, yet the same technology has become the lifeline to human contact. Maybe that is why it seemed okay to put computers on the dining room table. If the computers were elsewhere, I would not have to use a folded tablecloth under the china to set half the table, the keyboards and mice shoved to the other side. Rather than sitting across from computers at my dining room table, maybe I could move the it and computers to the craft area of my bedroom, and get stricter about what goes on the desk so that it doesn’t look so frenzied. I could put my small antique table in half of the dining room to create a little retreat for peaceful meals for myself and maybe attract a friend or two for meals together. | |
| Laura |
| In front of the television | Dining room | Honestly, our dining room is just inside the front door and always clutter-free! The dining room is also the space that features any seasonal decor. | |
| Melissa |
| At the table, which is usually covered in random stuff. I push aside said stuff to make space to eat. I usually eat in front of my laptop while watching YouTube | At my kitchen table | I love having people over especially for Christmas dinner as it gives me an excuse to clean and cook | |
| Anonymous user |
| In front of the tv | In the breakfast nook. | When we used the dining room in the past, it was family holiday meals. We put the old people in the dinning room and waited on them. | |
| Granny |
| In the great room. The table is between the kitchen and the living room area. It’s a very sociable space. Also great for parties | Same as we usually eat, but it depends how many people we are hosting | I like a dining room or at least a formal eating area. I have very fond memories of dinner parties 😀 | |
| Jessie |
| At the kitchen table | At the dining table | My dining table will collect a box or two until I flatten it for recycling. But, usually it is clear and ready for the family anytime. | |
| Kathy |
| We eat our meals at the kitchen table 5 days a week and eat in front of TV on the weekends. | If I have a friend over, we eat at kitchen table. If we have more than one person over (rarely), we eat at dining room table. | I never had a dining room growing up, so when we bought our house, which had a DR, I guess my feeling was "I'm supposed to entertain." Turns out, I don't enjoy cooking for or entertaining others. (If I had to do it all over again, I wouldn't buy a DR table. I would make the DR a library.) 🙂 We had parents over a few times, but then they became too old to travel or preferred us to visit them anyway. Our friends were fine with eating out, which I always preferred as it gave me a break from cooking. A few years ago, I became vegan and only have one other friend who is mostly vegan. But she is hypervigilant about what she eats due to autoimmune disease, so I can only make salads for her. I use my DR table for cutting out patterns and doing puzzles on. I do have some boxes and things in the DR that I need to make room for elsewhere, but at this point in my life, it wouldn't bother me to have people come at eat in my DR ... Take me as I am, and don't ask for meat! 🙂 | |
| Anonymous user |
| either in my office chair or standing at the kitchen sink. | at a restaurant | When I was growing up, my family ate together around the dining table. My memories are of my mother's care for us and her delicious home cooking. As an adult, my husband and I lived in a cluttered environment and our meals were haphazard and informal. Now as an empty nester widow with some health problems, my space is extremely cluttered and I don't have the energy to deal with it as much as I would wish to. (But I am working on it.) | |
| Pam |
| Standing in the kitchen. | in the dining area in the living room. | Now my partner has died. life has changed. I don't entertain much and use the dining table for multiple purposes. | |
| Cecie |
| In the recliner in the living room | In the living room | Dining room at home as a kid was used just for holidays, with special tableware. Pleasant memories. Ate at table in kitchen otherwise. Current apartment is small and I don’t entertain. Am a senior citizen and have no interest in or energy for entertaining people other than my adult kids. Am very informal. Dining room table used for crafts. | |
| Anonymous user |
| At the dining area table. | In the dining room area | Gathering times Family Tbr dining table is a constant battle to keep cleared at the end nearest the main walk thru. | |
| Anonymous user |
| On tray tables in the living room. | In the dining room. | We rarely have people over but I do have fond memories of the dining area growing up. It was a big room in the center of a large house. We regularly ate in the kitchen so it was mostly just passed through as we went from one area to the next. But for large gatherings, the normally small dining table expanded with 7 leaves fitting about 20 people for parties, holiday meals or baking days. It was also used when my parents held Pinochle parties with room for 4 card tables. | |
| Carla |
| Most of the time we eat in the kitchen. We use our dining table about 3 nights a week, usually on weekends. | When we have guests, we eat at the dining table in the living room. | I had a table designed for our space: long and oval with extra sections to make it longer if needed. We have had great feasts and great times at the table. Once we were 12 people at a table that normally can accomodate 8. I keep that table as free from clutter as possible. It does get cluttered if one of us is using it for work. | |
| Evelin |
| in front of the computer | at the dining table in the dining area (open concept) | sounds a bit fancy and outdated | |
| Jade |
| I have a dining table in the living room, and a bookshelf cabinet that includes a glass cabinet where I have a few decorative antique teapots. | In the kitchen | On the dining table in the living room, with the dishes in the kitchen. If I invite more than 8 people, which is more than that table’s capacity- the food and drinks go on the table where everyone serves themselves, and then everyone sits on the couch or clusters of chairs around the living room. | My parents and their friends would have a lot of dinnerparties, and I always enjoyed them. Ironically, because so many people were invited, they weren’t seated at the table most of the time. As children, we would be seated on the floor to eat off the coffee tables- or have our own table which was a fold out table. I also remember outdoor barbecues. I would like to entertain more at home, but people don’t really seem to anymore- and if I invite more than a few people, I fear forgetting to invite someone. The dishes are from my mother so they are her taste- but good quality. I could invest in some that are more similar to my style- but they are ok, they bring me joy by what they serve and my dinner parties are not so frequent so it’s fine. |
| Marsha |
| In front of the television | At a formal dining area | Dining room evokes deep nostalgia for me I tend to be old fashioned when entertaining I tend to pile paper and unfinished projects on the table It’s awful and its a place highly visible | |
| Anonymous user |
| Sitting in recliner and using a TV tray and in front of television in living room. | At a restaurant. I don't entertain at home, no one comes over. | Currently, my dining area has a desk and large cabinet that I use as a pantry since my apartment doesn't have a pantry. When I look at homes, I think a formal separate dining room is a waste of space and only becomes a dumping ground. Hard to justify a whole room that is rarely used or only used a few times a year. | |
| Ggb |
| OPen concept kitchen/dining/living room- we eat in the living room, just the two of us know, kids are grown and gone. | At a restaurant, lol. | ||
| Jetta |
| About equally between the dining room table and in front of the TV. | The dining room table. | The phrase “dining room” is neutral for me. Over the years I’ve realized that my dining table seats 6 and that I don’t need to invite more people than can sit there or I will be overwhelmed. My husband and I will both work on projects at the table, but don’t leave things for an extended period of time. | |
| Ginger |
| There’s just the 2 of us. We rarely eat at the same time or even the same exact meals. Hubby eats in his recliner in front of his TV. I eat at the kitchen table. | Anywhere we can find space. Usually around the kitchen table. Or, with plates in our laps in living areas. Or, with a bigger crowd - we’ve set up tables & chairs in our super-sized garage. There’s a refrigerator, microwave and TV in the garage. | ▪️Nothing but positive. I enjoyed having a formal dining room in my childhood home. Parents and 8 kids. I have special memories of family dinners there. As an adult - none of my 4 homes had a formal dining room. ▪️I don’t think my attitudes, beliefs or practices have changed. I never was the best hostess and I’m still not. I’m not a cook. I get stressed having to cook for anyone other than myself & hubby. Fortunately, in my family - I never have to do these things alone. Someone always pitches in. This year is our year to host Thanksgiving & Christmas. I’m planning to have it at my niece’s home. I’ll need to prepare meats and dressing. The others will bring other items needed. ▪️The only impact I’ve experienced has been too many items we don’t use. Baking trays. Serving trays. Those are about to be decluttered. Our neighbors do a lot of entertaining. I’ll offer it to them. If they take it - we could always borrow some if we needed it. | |
| Jean |
| All of the above | I don’t! | I recall awkward dining room family dinners. I think the picnic table idea is for me. I have a few dishes that are dining room clutter. | |
| Nina |
| In the kitchen at a high top table that has 2 chairs. | In the dining room | I like our DR for entertaining but I often find myself using the table for an assortment of stuff—until it gets on my nerves and I put it all away. It’s a bad habit I’m trying to break. | |
| Anonymous user |
| We rarely use the dining room for anything at all, except holiday dinners and occasionally use the table as a desk for business paperwork. The room goes goes to waste most days. | In front of the tv or in our bedrooms | On our kitchen island | I am an adult in my 30s living in my parents house because I can't afford to live elsewhere. My mom refuses to let the rest of us in the house us use the dining room for anything useful, we have to keep it as a rarely used formal dining room. "Dining room" evokes negative memories of my mom losing her mind over making the complicated holiday meals, family drama, awkward dinner conversations, and the tons of money they blew on the fine china and flatware that has to be handwashed and takes up a whole bureau in the dining room and our entire linen closet upstairs. We never even have guests over anymore but my mom won't even let us reduce the amount of fine china we keep |
| Danetta |
| At the kitchen nook table | In the dining room | We were too poor for a dining room when I was growing up but we had nice tablecloths and dishes. I’ve taken over being the matriarch from my mom, and I use good China, serving dishes, candles or flowers, and cloth napkins for both family and friend get-together a. | |
| Rebecca |
| At the informal kitchen table or out on the back porch. | At the kitchen table or on the backporch. | My formal dining table is a sorting area for items going out the door- back to friends or to a thrift store. My informal kitchen table is where we eat, informal bill paying/mail room, homework desk, game table, and just a catch for multiple activities. | |
| L |
| I have a dining room living room combined and only use that area a couple of times a year. It includes a dining table for six, a matching hutch, and matching chest of drawers inherited from my parents. The living part of this area has a fireplace which I never use, a couple of curio cabinets with family heirlooms and a couple of swivel chairs which can face the fireplace or face the windows that look outside. My husband calls this "wasted space". I also have a dining nook in the kitchen which is used for crafts or office type projects. | In front of the television in the family room | In the dining room, twice a year, Easter and Christmas. | When I was growing up, the dining room/living room was used for special occasions such as Easter, Thanksgiving, Christmas and my parent's formal parties. Negative on my parent's formal parties as they were loud. Negative on the family holidays as they were too formal and quiet. |
| Lee |
| 1.) My husband would like the dining room to be used primarily for dining. Sadly, my paper and other clutter make that impossible. Worse is that the dining room is completely visible from the living room, so my mess in the dining room also causes diminished peacefulness in the living room. | My husband eats most meals in the living room, some in restaurants. I eat most meals standing in the kitchen, some in restaurants. | at the dining room table. (In summer, we might eat on the deck, but the dining room table is used for buffet style serving.) | No emotions associated with "dining room." (But my attitude is that it should be a place where one eats. Again, it's ok to use the dining room for additional functions as long as they don't interfere with the primary function of the room. Unfortunately, I don't live up to that ideal.) Entertaining necessitates stuff shuffling to clear the dinng room table. This results in worsening of organization of the stacks of papers that must be removed. I never look forward to entertaining, although I think I would if I could get things under control. Aging seems to have made things take longer so I am getting farther and farther behind. |
| Lise |
| Members of my household and I eat most of our meals at the table, the counter, in their room (daughter) and sometimes in front of the TV. | When we entertain guests for a meal, we usually eat at the table or an outdoor set up (makeshift table). | Growing up my great-grandparents or grandparents would host special occasions and to sit at the "formal" dining room table was a big deal since we would be at the kitchen table all the other times. When I was old enough to sit at the "grown-up" table at my great-grandparent's on Christmas Eve it was a cherished memory filled with family lore and laughter. I never lived in a home/apartment with a formal dining room and would have liked to have one on the "special" occasions (but we always worked it out). After the pandemic if/when we have friends over we now set up a dining area outside in the front yard with lights/candles and enjoy the fresh air. The kitchen table has become desk space for my husband and son unless the family is over for Thanksgiving and Christmas. | |
| Noreen |
| Lunch/Dinner In front of the TV or at kitchen table. Breakfast in office at my desk. | At the dining table which is part of the living room. | We had no formal dining room growing up, so always ate at the kitchen table. Entertaining was in backyard or on card tables in the living room. I've reached the age where I would rather go out to eat and not entertain. I just hosted Easter for 6 and it wore me out. | |
| Ellen in W Michigan |
| I live alone and eat most of my meals in my recliner while on the computer. | at the table in my dining area. | I grew up with the rule that all eating was at the table. My husband always wanted to eat in front of the TV. Now that I live alone, I generally read or am on the computer while eating, but eat at the table when I have guests to talk to. My apartment is simple, so eating at the table just means a few extra steps instead of filling my plate at the stove or counter. | |
| Barbara |
| Sitting at the dining room table. | At dining room table in the dining area of the living space. But because my apartment is small, I don’t have guests very often. I’ve lived in 12 different homes. About half had formal dining rooms and I used them for guests and Sunday or holiday dinners. | Setting a nice table is a family value—something my mother felt was important despite feeding eight kids day after day. And it’s a trait shared by my siblings and children. It’s easier when there’s a dining room and when I think of my family’s homes, they all have dining rooms and use them. But things change and not every one has the same values. If you don’t use the dining room for dining, it makes sense to use it for another purpose. Downsizing and aging have affected how much I would use a dining room. I no longer entertain at home except for a few friends or small family meals. My china cabinet now stores my liquor, table linens and vases with wine glasses and decorative items on the shelves. But I still eat at the dining table with grocery store flowers and candles in the winter even though it’s now just an area in my living room. | |
| Allison |
| At the kitchen table | At the kitchen table or the patio table if the weather is suitable for outdoor dining. | Only one house I've lived in had two areas for eating. We hung out at the small kitchen table but ate at the dining room table. All dining areas in my life have been informal and clear of clutter. It's important for me to be able to eat and entertain easily at a table. | |
| Theresa |
| My daughter and grandchildren live with me. I usually eat in a recliner watching TV. My daughter and adult grandchildren usually eat in their bedrooms. We rarely eat at the dining room table. | Once or twice a year when we have guest, they will eat at the dining table. | I have often tried to create a welcoming dining vibe. It was not appreciated. I do consistently clear the dining table as it is a clutter magnet. | |
| Cee |
| Between eat in kitchen and dining area | In dining area which is part of the great room. My dining table is a butterfly table that expands to seat 6 to 8 | I love having a space dedicated to dining and entertaining. However It gets abused as drop off area which I usually need to clear of mail and other clutter ( boxes and over flow of groceries) . The space was originally to be kept clutter free for welcoming guest anytime without embarrassment. | |
| Anonymous user |
| It depends, it could be at: the kitchen table in a chair in the living room at the table in the dining room at the table in the "family" room I eat a lot of my meals out while my sister eats mostly at home. | We haven't had anyone over in the past few years. | We only used the dining room for holiday meals otherwise we at in the "family room" (at a dining table) or in the kitchen. | |
| Jill |
| in front of the television. | in the dining room. | Eating is often casual with a BBQ or cookout theme. For holidays, we use the china and special napkins, but casual entertaining for more than four people is often disposable dishes to make cleanup easy. So needing a place to store paper plates, cups and plastic silverware adds to the clutter. | |
| Hawthorne |
| At the coffee table in the livingroom | Depending on the time of year we either set up around the fire pit out in the back yard or eat at the coffee table in the living room | Honestly, any formal eating area that we've ever had in the past quickly get filled up with clutter or gets destroyed with all the projects we work on. Our current living situation doesn't have any space for a traditional table and chairs set up, and even if it did we would likely use that space for projects and not eating | |
| C |
| Breakfast mostly in the kitchen. Dinner mostly at the dining table in the living room. When warm outside, both meals at balcony table. | Almost always at dining table in our living room | I've never lived in a place with formal dining room. It has always been a dining table in the living room. We now often use the table when one of us needs separate work quiet, when doing zoom meetings. | |
| Kit |
| Spouse: Desk in game room Offspring: Bedrooms I: Livingroom couch With guests: Gaming table in game room | Gaming table in game room – an 8-foot folding table left up permanently | Stuffy formality related to socioeconomic aspiration Since accepting that we're not that kind of people, we've abandoned all pretense of a dining room. The issues in that space have been: - Too many heirloom formal dishes to fit in the hutch. Decluttering has been both necessary and relieving. - The folding card table I use for food prep sticks out into the walkway more than I like, but I can't think of a secure way to store it folded under the bar. I feel like a molded strip of rubber to keep it from sliding might be the answer, but haven't looked for such a thing yet. - The large stacking recycling bins are convenient but bulky and unattractive. Would like to replace with smaller narrow ones that line up nicely in the same or less floor space. - The bookcases were overflowing with 3x as many books as actually fit functionally. Again, decluttering was necessary and relieving. | |
| Jeanne Bowes |
| I miss my old historic house with a formal dining room. I have gotten o despise open floor plans | My son persists eating at the kitchen sink, although I enjoy setting an attractive table. I using my pretty dishes and cloths, with a large window that looks out over The gardens and Mountain View’s | The dining area, summers outside. | I have wonderful memories of my old airy dining room. It was for weekly special dinners, Jigsaw puzzles , luncheons for the ladies. we had a very large kitchen with a dining end for eight in front of a fireplace then. Here it is all one area , I hope to move now my two of my adult sons are with me |
| Brenda B |
| At the dining table. Rarely in front of television or standing. | In the dining area sitting at the table | We recently moved from a very large house with a dining suite with table seating 10 and large hutch. We downsized and moved into a smaller house with a dining area where the large formal furniture no longer fits. Paid a fortune and now is vertically worthless. What do I do with it?? | |
| Celina |
| I live in a tiny flat (140 sqf or 13,5 sq metres), so my living room is also my dining room and my office 🙂 | in front of my laptop watching youtubers who read memes 🙂 | there are two armchairs and two extra chairs, so hosting a small dinner event is not a problem 🙂 | it feels like a separate area just for a table and chairs, where you have to sit straight and use fork and knife. It's overrated. Eating alone or with someone in front of a laptop while watching a movie is so much better. |
| Patty |
| In breakfast room | Dining room, breakfast room, kitchen bar, living room around coffee table and sunroom | I have as little clutter as possible in my home as I like to entertain at any moment possible. I have always loved dining rooms and dining g room furniture. My first adult furniture purchase was a China hutch. My current dining room now holds my two favorite pieces of furniture. An English grandfather clock from 1770 and a Scottish welsh dresser from 1900. | |
| Patti |
| We eat in various places, including at the kitchen bar, the kitchen dining area (at a table), and on trays in front of the TV. We only eat in the formal dining room when we have people over. | The dining room is our go-to for dinner parties. If we have larger family gatherings, people eat everywhere: the dining room, the kitchen table, the kitchen bar, and on their laps, if need be! For hors d'oeuvres or cheese plates , we host on the patio (we have only a coffee table set up out there). | Growing up, using the formal dining room at holidays at our house was a stressful experience, because my mom was not comfortable with the processes of entertaining. However, going to my great aunt’s house (who served as my main “grandmother”) was always a fun experience. She worked hard to make sure the food, the fancy place settings, and the conversations and games that happened around the dining room table were an experience enjoyed by all generations. I didn’t realize this as a kid, but now I know all the hard work she put in to make those gatherings relaxed, fun, and special. I strive for this when I entertain at my house now! | |
| Debra |
| At my kitchen table | At my kitchen table | I can seat 8 at my kitchen table, and entertain often. I have opted for this very old rustic farm table instead of having any sort of living room since meals with friends are more important to me than lounging in front of a TV. I don’t think the experience could be better with a designated, separate dining room—even if I had one. I grew up with a large dining room where we ate every meal—but it was a very large house from 1875 and the dining room was gorgeous. I would cheerfully have a proper dining room if it were the one I grew up with. | |
| Lynn |
| In my recliner, mostly with music, not tv shows as atmosphere | Guests? I used to have dinner guests in the form of a dinner party, but it was never reciprocated so I stopped. Now it is just informal meals with one or two friends. The dinner parties were at my dining table. The informal meals are in my livingroom around a large ottoman. | Having people over gives that extra incentive to pay attention to the corner areas that sometimes get neglected. I used to have regular dinner parties with friends, but noticed it was rarely reciprocated so stopped the extra effort for group parties and formal meals and just do smaller informal meals with those closest to me. | |
| Gracie |
| At the kitchen bar. I'm a 1 member family. | In the dining room | Positive vibe. Happy childhood memories. My dining room is partially open concept and the space has lots of natural light. I've struggled with the pile of bills and work backpacks that I so easily dump on the dining room table. But I've recently developed a workable system that keeps this area organized for WFH and mostly Clutter free. Covid out a debt in entertaining at home but I'm getting back in the swing. I love my dining room and enjoy setting a pretty table. | |
| Anita O |
| at a small table in the kitchen. The "dining table" is only used when we have guests. | At the dining table (adjacent to living room) | Having family and guests around a table has been an important family value - in my childhood, and in raising our children. Most guests are family or long-time friends, and sitting at table together is important. We've never had a formal "dining room" but the function is important, even if the meals & hosting are casual. | |
| Ruth |
| In the living room | In the dining room | Positive memories of family and friends’ gatherings. The table is not cluttered. | |
| Anonymous user |
| At the dining table most of the time for the evening meal. Occasionally in front of the television - lunch mostly - breakfast often in bed. | At the dining table. | Early childhood we ate in the dining room (part of an open plan space with pass-thru kitchen units) but after a house move we had an in-kitchen (much larger kitchen) dining set and a separate formal dining room. The formal dining room was used on Christmas & Thanksgiving. Even though my father had some hoarding tendencies (sentimental clutter) it was never extended to either dining table. My parents prioritised family dining. I am more flexible about it but still try to have the majority of evening meals together every week. I don’t tend to store anything on the dining table surface or chairs. | |
| Becky |
| Since becoming a widow I eat in the living room in front of my lap top watching YouTube videos | In the dining room area | The dining room has always been used to eat. Growing up we had our meals in the kitchen and eight meals in the dining room on special occasions. It was never cluttered.. I love having people over and when I downsized it was very important that I had a dining area in which we could all be around the table eating family style. I moved about four months ago and I’ve had people over an average of once a week. It is getting used and it gives me joy. | |
| Name (click to view full survey response and comments) | Which of the following statements describe your living situation with respect to a dining room and dining-room furniture? | If you checked “Other” or wish to elaborate on your answers, please feel free to do so in the space below. | Please complete the following statement: “Members of my household and I eat most of our meals _____.” | Please complete the following statement: “When I want to entertain guests for a meal, we usually eat _____.” | What feelings or memories—positive, negative, or in-between—does the phrase “dining room” evoke for you? (And more.) |
