Do you have a dining room that looks pretty but about the only time you go there is to dust? Maybe you have a few family dinners per year, but it is space that could be useful for other things? Let me show you how she did a repurpose on her dining room.
This is her charming home, just across the street from me. I am lucky to have this beautiful view.
When you go into the foyer, you see on your right the space that is the formal dining room. It has crown molding, a chandelier, lots of light, chair rail, and embellished wainscoting and hardwood floors. My neighbor set it up as a dining room right after she moved into the home, but then discovered that they seemed to eat family dinners in another part of the house which I will show you next. Here is the dining room that became an extra sitting room/living room.
I love the soft colors that set the tone for the rest of the house. The room has so much light! The former dining room furniture made a move to an area off of the kitchen. Here are the dining room table and chairs and the hutch in their new location.
There are bar stools at the kitchen island in case the family wants a quick meal.
I asked my neighbor if I could show you the rest of her lovely home. She had it all ready to go on the market and the real estate photographer took these great pictures. Boo Hoo! I don’t want my friends to leave!
This is the upstairs bonus room that is also an extra bedroom.
It has an adjoining bathroom.
Now we are back downstairs and on the screened porch.
The home went on the market and after two days there were multiple offers. No surprise!
Here are some other ideas for assigning another purpose to a dining room. This one is from designer Mark D. Sikes and is in his own home. He has turned it into a library, but by removing the books, it becomes a dining room again.
Here book shelves were added. The room can still be used as a dining room/reading room/library with minimal effort.
Miles Redd, decorator.
The above dining room was turned into a library.
Maybe you don’t want to make a huge change. Clear the dishes off of the shelves in the hutch and add books. Instead of putting place settings on the dining room table, how about stacking your favorite decorating books. Sit in there read them! If the room is large, add a comfortable chair in a corner and have a special place just for you and quiet meditation.
Be like my neighbor. Don’t be afraid to repurpose a room in your home.
Create and be happy!
deborahwoodmurphy 
I love the soft colors in her home. I have been repainting my home room by room this year and find that is what I favor as well. blue/gray in the kitchen, soft yellow in the dining room and living areas, soft greens in some of the bedrooms, neutral in the hallways….
my dining room doubles as a homework area for my teenagers. I had to purchase a thick table pad to protect it though. the table has plenty of space for poster projects, science fair boards etc. and we have all our textbooks and reference materials in one place next to our home office with access to the computers. Just the season of life we are in. When they are off to college in a few years maybe I can repurpose that room for something else.