The dining room is a happy place for most of us. We host guests there, share meals with loved ones, and even create memories that become the highlights of our relationships.
Buffets were made to help keep this happy place more organized. Their sheer versatility makes them a welcome piece in small to large dining rooms, and as its name denotes, its most defining use is as a self-serve food point when you’re hosting many people.
Whether traditional, contemporary or transitional, a buffet also helps you store and organize your table linens and dining ware year-round. Keeping a buffet in one place or owning the same model for years can get boring, calling for ways to spruce it up to refresh your dining room’s overall look.
So, how do you do that? Check out these six fun ways to modernize your buffet!
1. Turn Your Buffet Into A Statement Piece
Say you have a laid-back dining room with a color palette that barely steps out of neutrals. Consider painting your buffet in a bright contrasting color. You can also go vintage or antique when the rest of the room leans toward a contemporary style.
Alternatively, you could have a small dining room with a regular buffet that you’d like to touch up. Introducing open shelving or glass doors turns it into a dining room attraction, makes it look lighter, and gives the space an airy feel.
This Maisie sideboard captures the open shelving idea beautifully and, on top of it, shows how to decorate it for some glam. The candles, wine, and wall art leaning into the wall work together to turn the sideboard’s top into a decorative showplace.
2. Decorate it for Different Seasons
The idea here is simple: let the changing seasons inspire a different look for your buffet. For example, this Salida Buffet in Brown features an earthy tone that gives you various options on how to decorate it for different seasons.
For summer, go with a tall vase of summertime flowers placed in the middle of two lamps with plain linen lampshades, and a big framed mirror serving as the backdrop.
Fall works well with an ice bucket placed in the middle of the buffet’s top. You can fill the ice bucket with gourds to subtly celebrate the season while relishing in the beauty they provide for your buffet’s top.
If a holiday is around the corner, spruce up the plain linen lampshades with patterns. And if you’re having a sizable dinner party, a tray of candles in place of the ice bucket helps you create an inviting feel. You can also choose a hyacinth bowl sitting on moss for brunch with the ladies.
3. Replace an Old Sideboard With a Vintage Taupe Buffet
Maybe you’re interested in redecorating, which means letting go with the old and bringing in the new.
In this case, a vintage taupe buffet works wonders for your dining room. The Roxy 4 Door Buffet in Vintage Taupe fits in just right in a contemporary dining room space — especially when paired with contemporary art. That makes it an ideal transition piece.
Opt for a large contemporary artwork framed in the same black color as the buffet doors to keep up with the clean and bright look that this buffet brings to your dining area.
You wouldn’t go wrong with a glass vase and flowers on one side of the buffet and a tall lamp on the other.
4. Create Depth in a Toned-down Dining Room with a Homestead Brown Buffet
The homestead brown color bears a depth that can anchor nearly any space. That’s why pairing it with a homestead brown lampshade with a brass base strikes an enviable aesthetic balance for your dining room.
That’s what this Roxy 4 Door Buffet in Homestead Brown embodies. Plus, it creates dramatic energy in a predominantly white space while displaying modern design elements.
If you are trying to achieve a traditional or mid-century modern dining room style that exudes warmth and texture, an area rug combined with this buffet will help.
5. Create an Eclectic Look by Adding a Different Style Buffet
You can easily create an eclectic vibe in your dining room by adding a buffet with a style that contrasts your dining room set and décor.
For instance, this Bixby Sideboard in Espresso sitting in a casual dining room style paired with a mix of materials and vibrant pops of color — from turquoise chairs to a black lampshade lined with chrome — helps pull off an eclectic look perfectly.
It also works well in front of a dining set consisting of a turquoise blue dining table, black chairs, a gray rug underneath, and an espresso wall art hanging close to the sideboard.
If you have a high ceiling, you have lots of room to play with eclectic-inspiring chandeliers, such as a Nordic or a pendant ceiling chandelier.
6. Light it Up
Sometimes, lighting up your buffet can change how it looks completely.
Consider the stark yet beautiful contrast created by using a black cast iron lamp sitting on a distressed wood buffet.
Similarly, instead of standard lamps with linen lampshades, go for a bluish-green lamp with a mercury glass base and a mesh wire shade.
Lamps with tall and lean silhouettes and carefully chosen colors can help bring out the aesthetic appeal of any buffet. For example, two tall lamps in antique white playing off a white-washed buffet create special visual interest. Bronze lamps also work well on buffets with different shades of brown.
Lastly
The interplay between dining room styling and the use of buffets is neither about breaking décor rules or obeying them, but rather finding the right balance between them. Your ability to find a great buffet also helps you achieve a look faster and with fewer hurdles.
Mor Furniture is passionate about making your living spaces stylish, functional, and organized. Whether you want a buffet for aesthetic appeal, sufficient storage for your dining ware, or extra seating for parties, our wide furniture selection is designed to meet your needs.
