Friday, June 19, 2020

Please Help Me Choose

Bunny Williams

 I had an epiphany in the middle of the night regarding my new home. What to do with the dining room has been driving me nuts. Let me explain - there are four eating areas.

I am going to use my Platner table and Chinese Chippendale chairs in the breakfast room. There is also a breakfast bar for my stools and the lanai will host my Smith and Hawken dining set, and then there is the dining room.

I need a new dining table (the one here we found at auction technically belongs to Golf Guy) and my dilemma is that the dining area at the new house is 1. Not as large as I want, 2. Has a massive mirror that I don't want blocked with furniture, and 3. I rarely use a formal dining room, especially here in Florida.

So I have decided to get a massive rectangular dining table for the great room (not the dining room) and style it like Bunny Williams with coffee table books, orchids, blue and white Chinese porcelain, and the like. It will be a library table/dining table. It may float in the room or may be next to one of the walls; I think either will work. But I do not want a heavy brown wood piece, but rather something lighter. I have narrowed it down to my top three choices. For a rare large dinner party these below all seat 8. And they would make a killer bar setup for a cocktail party if we are ever able to have those again!

So here are my top three. All are huge and beautiful.

This first one from CB2 is four marble columns with a glass top. Very sexy.


CB2 Triple Dining Table with Rectangular Top

This next one also from CB2 is all marble. Very architectural.

CB2 Verona Marble Dining Table

The last from Williams Sonoma Home is a classic - the Mercer with a nickel base and glass top.

Mercer Rectangular Table with Nickel Base and Glass Top

O.K. my very savvy interior design afficiandoes. What do you think? As much as I love the all marble one, I hate to worry about red wine etching from dinner parties, but with occasional use, it probably would be fine. I have always wanted marble countertops, and this might solve my marble yearning. I also prefer the open bases of the other two, so as to not block the view. I am leaning towards the first one, but really really like all three.

I love this idea. I would really like your thoughts on which one. This was a great think outside the box moment for me. I have learned that if you can't find something you like, it's because you are asking the wrong questions. I was trying to find a dining table and chairs for a space that didn't work as a dining room for me, so I reimagined it all. And I have a wonderful idea on how to use the dining room that I will share down the road.


70 comments:

  1. Williams Sonoma. Definitely. The others may clash with your stone flooring. A classic clean lined design. It could be 50 years old or brand new. Its timeless and I can see it being in style forever.

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  2. They are all beautiful! I like the all marble one the most. Then, the next pick is the first one shown, glass top and marble column legs. You can't go wrong with any though. Can't wait to hear what you are going to do with your dining room. I am also thinking about repurposing my dining room, so a very relevant topic.

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  3. The Mercer! It definitely will make a statement without being”bossy”
    Michelle

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  4. My opinion is the Mercer is the perfect piece to use for the purposes you identified. It's understated so that you can make the accessories or the bar set up the highlight - not the table.

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  5. I think a country French with a hand scrubbed, light colored top would look good. I am afraid the modern ones will look dated in a few years.

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  6. I love the Mercer table. Could Century Chin Hua chairs go with it or is it too much culture clash?

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    1. I think that table works with everything IMHO.

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  7. The first one is a winner! Love the openness, with a bonus of the marble columns.

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  8. CB2 Verona without a doubt...IMHO. It's the sleekest, most innocuous piece that can serve as a blank canvas of sorts to feature anything and everything you want to put on it. Clean, timeless and the least risk of looking dated sooner than later.

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  9. Don’t worry about the modern looking “dated”. We bought a table very similar to the top one nearly twenty years ago and feel that it still looks great! I also really love that the glass top makes it take up less visual weight while the marble base grounds it in the space, so my vote is for #1. 🙂

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    1. I agree - in fact that table is based on one from the 30s. And I love glass top dining tables. Not a fan of wood ones anymore.

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  10. After looking at them a couple of times and thinking about how you plan to use it I vote for number 2, the all marble one. That one just feels right when I picture it covered in books and chinoiserie decor.

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    1. Marble would be pretty combined with blue and white Chinese porcelain.

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  11. I love the Williams Sonoma table for its clean lines. I also like number 1 as well. No matter which one you choose, it will be beautiful styled with orchids, books and blue and white porcelain. Wonderful choices!

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    1. Thank you! I agree that the Williams Sonoma is a great choice.

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  12. I like the Mercer, too, because the base reminds me of an elongated "H" from Hermes, which is classic, yet modern.

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  13. The WS table. Considering your beautiful stone floors, the contrast would be desirable. Also, if you wanted to change it up for events have a full-length fitted table cloth made.
    Thanks for sharing and including your readers in your journey!

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    1. I agree completely and the tablecloth I am already designing. Thank you!

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  14. The exquisite Mercer, definitely. Considering your beautiful stone floors the contrast will be desirable. An option for any table would be to have a custom floor-length fitted table cloth made to change it up for events.
    Thanks for sharing and including your readers in your journey!

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  15. The Mercer. With its Mid-Century Modern echoes, I think it is the most classic and timeless Plus, it has a lightness that's most appealing, especially if it will be sitting in a room without chairs most of the time. (No stubbed toes with the legs tucked out of the way.) There is something heavy and foreboding about the table with the four marble legs at the corners. The all marble table looks like something out of a mortuary. Sorry. Shudder.

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  16. The Mercer. It is classic, will never age and the accessories will be the star. It is solid design-wise but play off the stone foors.

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  17. I like the Mercer as well. Agree, room will love the contrast. I had a 4'x 8'glass top over pedestal bases for over 2 decades and loved its ease (after nursing an antique dining table from disasters!). When I turned the dining room into a library, den and dining room, I put in a round 54" (I think) from Charlotte and Ivy and covered it with a floor length Afghan rug with a batik underskirt (just so you don't hyperventilate about the cloth not covering up the table) and piled on the books. At 70, I decided having six people at table was enough! And the books can be moved as I need to move it. That room also has a fireplace so the walls full of books and varied sources of lighting makes the room our favorite. Getting rid of the 1" thick glass top took some doing!!! six guys as I recall.

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  18. I love the Mercer! The strong, clean, classic lines. The lightness of the design which will work well in a tropical space. The blue and white porcelain, books, and orchids will be stunning.

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  19. I agree with the majority! The Mercer.

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  20. WS, for sure. Why not make your formal dining room into a library with four cozy chairs arranged in a circle?

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  21. Hi Beth, thank you so much for sharing. If I were you, I would find something lighter weight that’s easier to move. There are so many fabulous used furniture stores in Florida I would suggest looking there. You’ll be amazed what you can find. Naples has absolutely fabulous places and the money goes to charity.

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    1. Thanks, I will start looking - my daughter and her boyfriend love doing that and have found great stuff.

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  22. I like the Mercer for just about all of the reasons above.

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  23. I'm concerned that you won't be able to execute that Bunny Williams look with these tables. I think a big part of that styling working is because of the wood top of the table. Especially the dark wood and the contrast it provides to the blue and white and the glass. You will completely lose that element with a light colored or clear top. Just putting that out there as something to think about. I know you like that styling and if would be terrible to have such a compromise on what seems like it will be an important element in your room.

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    1. If I may, I think the glass topped table would be better in this particular room than the Bunny Williams wood table. This room is open concept. There is no division between the dining room and the rest of the space. She said there's a huge mirror she doesn't want to block. Plus, she doesn't want to block the view out the back glass windows/doors. Even though I love the dark wood table in the Bunny Williams room, I think a glass topped table will work out better in an open concept living/dining space. Just my opinion.

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    2. I'm seconding your thought...as much as I try to visualize these tables, they just don't provide the drama that the big dark wood does...

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    3. I totally agree with that...but then ultimately, these things are subjective. I wouldn't do it but understand if Beth has a certain vision in mind that she'd like to pull off..

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    4. Jeannine - Sorry if you got the impression I am trying to recreate the Bunny Williams room. I said I liked elements of it and the styling. I am not a fan of dark woods especially here in Florida. I want light and airy and see through pieces.

      Bg - Every point you made is spot on. I want the view to be center stage - it's why I chose that house.

      Karen - Big and dark is not what I want. I don't want anything blocking the view.

      Delta - Thank you.


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  24. Love #1 & #3 is classic, but the Verona reads funeral home display table.

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    1. I kept thinking that in the back of my mind that it looks like a crypt. Thanks!

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  25. Your favourite Bunny Williams interior - styled with these 3 tables - will melt like snow in spring , I'm afraid .
    This " colonial look " needs the darker wood and a darker table top to
    make books , coral/shells , orchids and blue and white Chinese porcelain really stand out .
    It's contrast that works in her interior , not things that blend in .
    Also it is not overly feminine , yet spectacular in detail and drama .
    Please , think again Beth , if you want to stay closer to a room you like so much .

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    1. I really dislike dark woods and have gotten rid of all of it. And I want overly feminine. LOL

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  26. The Mercer, but not for dining....not a fan of sitting at a dining table and seeing my feet, just my 2 cents.

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  27. Right, but I’m liking the idea of switching things up with a full length cloth, which is definitely what I’d do for dining.

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  28. So I adore table #2 that is all marble. Without thinking about any other aspect, practicality, need, anything my first reaction is that #2 is the best looking table I've seen in a long time! I would choose it because i love love it and then figure out what to do to make it work at parties with red wine, etc. Basically you are going to be looking at it and enjoying it yourself 90% of the time or more and just be using it to dine or serve as a bar a small amount of time. I'd choose the table I love the most. For me that's #2

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    1. Thanks - funny, people either love it or hate it. I agree that it is a beauty.

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  29. The William Sonoma table. It's a classic.

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  30. Oh boy...I must urge you to continue your search. Glass table tops seem so very fragile to me even though they are constructed of tempered glass. Just putting down a glass or a fork makes me nervous! The marble example is of course gorgeous and adds a natural layer to the mix, but at my age I am looking for low-maintenance and marble is not. Having said that, if I had to choose from the three above, it would be the Mercer. Bon chance!

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    1. I have a glass top dining table (vintage), coffee table (vintage Baker), side nesting tables (vintage), two bar carts, and breakfast table. None have a scratch on them except two of the vintage pieces that had a couple light ones when I bought them and it doesn't bother me at all. I find glass tops to be very low maintenance.

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  31. I like the Mercer table it is light and could be styled better. Being in Florida I and surprised Mcguire rattan base with thick glass top might be an option. Can't wait to see what you choose.

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