Dining Table Dilemma ~ Oh No!

The only way to describe the most expensive mistake I made when remodeling our lake house is to call it the Dining Table Dilemma. Oh No! Because it was fixable, I could not live with the error.

#1 Biggest Headache for my Newly Remodeled Kitchen

My husband said the D word. Not D for Dining table, D for Divorce, yikes.

I was remodeling the kitchen, and my NUMBER ONE non-negotiable was the big-ass island. The compromise became my dining area, and I knew this would require creativity. Because of my big-ass island, I was creeping into my table space, but I did not care. I would deal with it later since it was just not as important. We never sat at our kitchen table at the Johns Creek house because we were always at the island. The dining area was no big deal and not nearly as important as my big-ass island. 

Umm, no. This area was a pounding headache, a reverberating oh no, what have I done? It became that space in my home I could not stop thinking about because it did not look right.

The space became, something was wrong. The brand new beautiful kitchen is not complete. It almost looks goofy. What is the deal?

The Plan, The Too Soon Plan

The above image shows the space for the dining table, and I thought it would be manageable. The main issue with the dining area is the french doors that swing inward. I needed a narrow table to not interfere with the dining table and chairs. Enter the custom dining table made by a Scott’s Antique Market vendor. See the image below.

Details about the design of this table are later in this post, but this is how gorgeous it looked in my office. It sat waiting for its permanent home while remodeling the kitchen.

Unfortunately, I ordered the dining table before the space was complete. I placed the table & chairs into the specified breakfast/dining location. Uh oh, not right.

But wait, I dropped $1,100 on a table I designed to fit the space. How can it not be right? Not right. I stared at the dining area with my brand-new table, and it tortured me.

Musical Chairs

Maybe I needed different chairs. The chairs I chose were temporary anyways. Once I had new chairs, it would work. I found some great, in-style chairs with high backs and texture, right?

Not right.

I had a brilliant idea. Bring my Windsor back chairs out of storage, and that would make it right.

Not right.

Oh, I know, the table was not supposed to be for six, so just put four chairs around it and use it as a small breakfast table, right? Not right. 

Wait! A gorgeous faux tall plant in the corner would complete the space and make it right. Not right.

What would make it right is the installation of new french doors that swing out to create more room. Then the table in the space will work. The doors are a mere $5,000, but at least my $1,100 table will work once the new doors are installed, right? Not right. 

Seriously?*

Lighting, Dummy!

Never mind, we need to get the chandelier hung, which would change my perception. The chandelier that for two years had been sitting inside a box in my office waiting to make its debut. Installed the chandelier too high, then changed down rod at one point for correct height proportion, not right.

I spent months trying to fall in love with my new, personally designed dining table. It never happened.

I spent money using designers to help me with this space. I did not want another $1,100 mistake. They recommended a forty-eight-inch round table and suggested I try a table before I bought one. If possible, always try before you buy. At least be able to return your item. Do not custom order.

Shape ~ Shift

A round table would make the space right. I love a round table, so I hijacked a round table from my Mom. I brought it to the space to see if I should have had a round table made instead. Not right.

UGH! 

My brand new, personally & perfectly designed table sat unused. Not perfect.

The space I did not care about became the space of my angst and unhappiness. I could not get over it. When I mention the importance of creating a home, a room, or a corner that makes you happy, it is true.

If you are unhappy with a space in your home, you will look at your mistake forever and always wish you had done it differently. Forever. The thought will never go away because it will haunt you. Forever. I know this because this was my dining table space. The good news on this one is it was not a permanent mistake, simply a costly one, financially & emotionally. Fun times.

Story Behind the Custom Order

I am backing up here to share the story of my perfectly designed table that didn’t work.

Found the person I wanted to create my table. She and her shop are excellent and did what I asked them to do. I had an idea about the table size and style. I did a lot of work and research. The day came, and I pulled the trigger to have the table made. I was so excited and could not wait to get it home to put in the space. The company that made my table did a fantastic job. The table is sturdy, made with gorgeous wood, and the stain matched perfectly to my request. Brilliant.

I got it home, and it was not brilliant.

This space gave me a mental block. The dining space was not as important as the big ass island. I backed myself into a corner.

Buyers Remorse

It took me over a year to admit I made a $1,000+ mistake. I was forcing myself to love the table because I had no solution. How could I have been so wrong? I had no idea why I couldn’t let it go, but it drove me crazy, and I did not know why. What I did know, it was not right.

After the professional interior decorators came to my home, I was on a mission for a new table. I did not breathe a word of this to my husband. He overheard some of my conversations. His only response was, we are not buying a new kitchen table. Again and again and again, we are not purchasing a new kitchen table. I understood. I heard him loud and clear. It was okay because I had no idea what table would work in the space. I created this mess, no big. It was all about the big-ass island.

Justification #1 or try to justify

*There was still hope with the current, personally designed table. I just had to wait for the french door installation. We would probably budget for it and get to it in 2027 or beyond. Yay! Not yay. Dilemma. Working on my patience, but there is no way I have that amount of patience.

Reminder, I borrowed my parents’ table for a few hours, which convinced me a forty-eight-inch round table was not the right size and type for my space. I have always loved my parent’s table and chairs, but the table did not work in my dining space.

Maybe I had it right all along because it is a quirky space. Check. The table I had designed was it! I needed to get to work to make it perfect and perfect in my head. Yet, the regret and remorse remained.

Beginning of the Solution

While perusing my favorite local interior design store, I sat down at a narrow tall table I had had my eye on for quite some time. I know this because I had a picture of it in my photos from a year earlier. I loved it. Perfect. But doubt it would work in my space because there was not enough room for a long, 77-inch table. I would just be creating a bigger problem. Right? 

I sat at this table with one of my best buds while shopping, and we discussed how much we both loved the table. I loved the table because it was a narrow thirty inches (30″) wide. The table matched the width of the table I wanted from the get-go.

FYI…custom table I had made was 32 inches X 56 inches, so I was close, but there was one huge difference…the height of the table.

Hiding in Plain Sight

This narrow table in the store was my favorite but two problems. 1- Too long. 2- Too high. No way the table was going to work. These two problems had me resist. The height was counter height, and I didn’t think a counter-height table would work. It was a mental block. I know the source of my mental block, but I will spare you that story.

Instead of purchasing the table, I bought the two stools that went with the table. The stool height enabled a fit with my big-ass island, and I loved the look. They would blend perfectly in my kitchen & dining area, and I had been hunting for counter-height stools for quite some time. See the image below.

The Test

Three months later, perusing the store again, I talked to my favorite associate, who has become a friend because I see her often. Shhhhh. I inquired about the narrow table, and she looked at me and said, this table thing has been making you crazy. She offered to let me take the table home on approval, no harm, no foul. Brilliant!

I needed to get my husband out of the house long enough to get the table home and try it. If it did not work, it would be returned to the store, no harm, no foul. He would never know because I doubted it would work. 

After soliciting my daughter and neighbor to be on standby and help me with the logistics once I got the table home, I was ready to load the 77-inch long by 30-inch wide table into my Honda Odyssey. Having a Honda Odyssey, you do not need a pickup truck, just sayin’.

I got the table home, in the house, placed it in the breakfast-dining area, pulled up the stools and a couple of my counter-height chairs, took a step back, and Voila! PERFECTION. I fell in love immediately.

The joy, happiness, and overwhelming infatuation with this table knocked my socks off. This table was perfect for my dining space. I was so happy! Finally, RIGHT! 

Uh Oh.

Then the dark cloud appeared. I realized it was time to fess up to my husband about the event. Please help me.

He was going to see the table & I would discuss it with him when the time was right. I waited a couple of hours after he noticed the table, and when I brought it up, he said he needed the 24-hour rule to calm down before we could have a conversation. Yikes. I do not think we talked for two days.

After the RIGHT table installation and before my husband and I discussed it, I had a friend over, and he overheard us talking about how perfect the table was for the space. He piped up and mentioned that the table would be the only thing I would get in the DIVORCE. To say this was a sore subject would be an understatement.

In the end, I waited for an evening, we were both in great spirits, and I brought it up, explaining the complete and utter joy the table gave me, and he understood. He also understood there was no way he could deny the table was perfect for the space.

We have sat at this new breakfast/dining table more in a few weeks than at our kitchen table in Johns-Creek, for 15 years! I got a great deal on the table because there are a lot of scratches and dents, but I do not care because the rustic-ness seems to work.

On Approval

Let me talk about the table height. I thought the counter height was wrong for the space. The table height is beyond fabulous! All the people sitting at the table and island are now on the same level. The chairs are interchangeable, and it works better than I ever dreamed. I have no idea why I never thought the height would work. The table height is the big difference between the table I had custom-made and the one there now. Had I not taken the table out on approval, I would not have gotten the table height right.

Because the table is so long, it can seat many people comfortably. It is a pedestal table which has always been a non-negotiable. A bar runs across the middle of the table about foot level so people can rest their feet. It is awesome.

Oh, I went to buy two more of the same swivel back stools I had bought for my island, but the price went up $150, yikes. Naturally, I purchased the two counter-height chairs paired with the table at the store. They are better looking and more affordable. I finished with the complete set from the store.
Below is the space I did not think I cared about, but it has become one of my favorite spaces in our home. I have a lot of favorite spaces.😉

The chandelier hung at the perfect height, so, no need to edit. I can add multiple chairs and stools. The french doors work better than ever, thanks to the 30-inch wide table. I can completely open the french doors that swing inward, unobstructed. Wow!

Justification #2, or it was so worth it

The table I bought seems designed for this space. To make myself feel better, I have never seen another one like it, 30 inches wide. I feel better. My husband sits at this table every day. He used the originally designed table as a catch-all, which is my least favorite use of a clean surface.

The total cost for the two tables, two chairs, and two stools remains less than what I would have paid for a table had I ordered a new one. I do not think I would have ever chosen a counter-height table if my new friend at my favorite interior design store had not let me take the table on approval. Genius. This store will forever get my business. And boy, do they.

Every day I see the dining table, I am overwhelmed with happiness. It may have been a costly mistake, but I learned. I am a Raptor. Sometimes, our mistakes become the most impactful experiences. We need to recognize them and share them!

Learn From My Error.

Hopefully, I can save someone out there some money and a headache with my story. There are a lot of nuggets here, so take away the parts that suit you. Regardless of the amount of research I do, most of my life experiences have been trial and error.

Luckily & reluctantly, my husband has come around and understands the importance of the Dining Table area. While we still have several projects for this home on the horizon, I am not in a hurry. I will not try to fill a space before the work is complete. Not to mention, I will try before I buy.
Whew. The kitchen and dining area are complete.

Doors are next. Another D word, oh boy. Patience, grasshopper.
For now, I plan to enjoy every single makeover and remodel we have completed in just two years. Two years is a blink in this day and age.

As far as the new dining table and justifying it, I could provide hundreds of reasons, but in the end, it just makes me happy.😊