Dining Room Updates

Disclaimer: I know this isn’t a home blog so I apologize for making you read through some of this stuff, but I promise it will lead to some fun & inexpensive table setting ideas…so bear with me. 

Hey party people!
Here’s the story.
Mike bought our house a month before he proposed. He proposed at the house, in front of 35+ of our closest friends & family at a surprise birthday party he threw me. One of the “lines” he used was, “Will you be my wife & help me make this house a home?”
Ever since then, I’ve been trying.
Our house was built in the 60s so it’s certainly in need of some TLC. We’ve painted every square inch of the house because it was ALL one color: a very mustardy cream color (even the ceilings). Blech.
We’ve finished off the basement, redid our master bathroom, put in granite countertops, added a cabinet/bar area in the kitchen, and slowly collected furniture.
One of the areas I’ve desperately wanted to address is the dining area. I mean, c’mon…I love to entertain & throw parties. I need a functional & attractive dining area.
So, a few weekends ago we tackled adding some board & batten to our dining area.
 

I still go back & forth as to whether that green wall color was a good decision or not. I like a little more modern home decor but my husband likes really dark, leather furniture type of decor…so we compromised & agreed to a pottery barn feel (at least in the main living areas).

I went with the green color because I saw the color in Pottery Barn & thought it’d take me out of my comfort zone of a neutral palette. Adding the Board & Batten definitely makes the green less intrusive. What do you think?

I didn’t really take progress shots of the board & batten but I will tell you it is SUPER EASY & really INEXPENSIVE. I’ve pinned some of my favorite board & batten tutorials on my Parties for Pennies Pinterest Page under House Ideas.

We’re not through with the dining area yet. I want to get a sideboard/buffet table and a rolling drink cart, plus add some art but this is progress.

If you notice the rug under our dining room table, it’s Mohawk Flooring’s Smart Strand bound rug. It’s AMAZING. It’s completely stain resistant and if something spills, just wipe it up with water & a dishtowel. I only hope one day Mohawk will create a white sofa with this same technology! 🙂

Thank you for bearing with me on the hometalk. I wanted to share how I was able to pull this table together for under $20.

* The milkglass & green glass pedestals were thrift store finds a couple years ago.

* The table runner is a flat sheet from the thrift store that I folded a few times to create a runner.

* The salad plates are actually paper plates from Home Goods. I looked every where for plates that I really liked to compliment the green in the wall but also add a fun vibe to everything & couldn’t find anything. When I came across these paper plates, I feel in love. You certainly can’t beat the price.

* I found a whole set of Crate & Barrel white dinner & salad plates (along with the bowls) at a thrift store right before I got married. After we got married, I thankfully found a very similar plain pattern at Crate & Barrel so I added a few extra plate settings.

* These cups were one of my favorite finds. I found these at Target, on sale for $4! There were 4 cups in each box so I snatched them up. My favorite part…they’re plastic. Our wine glass collection is so sparse because I am clumsy & have broken more than a few in my day.

* These were one of those purchases I couldn’t pass up! Three years ago, I found these on sale at West Elm for $1.50/box and each box had four of these little dishes. I romantically imagined my guests dipping their fresh hot bread into my homemade oil & herb mixture from these quaint little dishes. Well…now maybe my dream can come true. ;p

In closing, here’s my suggestions on how to save money when setting your table.

1. Pick one or two colors outside of a neutral color palette that you can use throughout seasons. Look out for sales on items with that color.

2.  Shop thrift stores for centerpiece options and accessories.

3. Invest in a plain white plate set that you can dress up for different occasions.

4. Don’t rule out nice paper plates to add a pop of fun to your place setting.

Hope you have a wonderful weekend! This Monday, I’ll be back with some anniversary party ideas.

Until then…Party On!

p.s. This is YOUR official invite to the party… join in on the Parties for Pennies Facebook page, Twitter, and Pinterest!