First, there is a material made out of recycled paper that is commonly used for countertops. A company called Richlite makes a very durable material out of recycled paper that is treated with an environmentally friendly resin and baked. The resulting product is heat resistant, scratch resistant, and stain resistant. It is just as easy as stone or Formica countertops to clean. Just because this material is generally used for countertops does not mean that you could not get a piece cut for your tabletop. It comes in many different colors and would be a great green addition to your breakfast nook furniture.

There are also tabletop pieces out there made from recycled sugar cane. The waste that is left after they make all the sugar products can be used to make a durable material called bagasse. The bagasse is used as the base for particleboard, which can be used to make furniture. You might also find bagasse tableware, food containers, and paper products.

If you buy wooden breakfast nook furniture, this to can be considered a sustainable material. However, you need to make sure that only the wood from managed forests if possible. You also want to avoid any wood that comes from old growth or rare trees. As long as a forest is carefully managed, we can continue to make furniture out of wood without endangering the ecosystem.

Another way to make sure that you are purchasing green breakfast nook furniture is to look for companies that use green manufacturing techniques. If you visit the web pages for different furniture manufacturers, you will be able to do research into how much effort and emphasis they put on green manufacturing and sustainability in their business. There is even a Green Business Certification available to businesses who are environmentally aware and use practices like water conservation, using recycled materials, reducing waste, and preventing pollution just to name a few.

The most popular style is a rectangular shaped cart with a bottom shelf where two stools can be stored when the cart is not in use. Typically there is a semi-circle leaf that will fold up when you roll the breakfast cart out to eat a meal. If you have a small breakfast nook or kitchen then this type of breakfast table with stools could be perfect for you because it does not have to take up room permanently. Instead, you can roll it out when you want to use it but store it against a wall or in a corner when you do not need it. Another advantage is that you can use this cart for purposes other than eating meals in your kitchen. You can use the cart to serve appetizers or drinks at a party, for example.

Just because most breakfast nooks are small and most people will not have room to make their breakfast table bigger, that does not mean that it is impossible. There are some breakfast tables with leaves.

Because the kitchen is usually for informal meals, you will find that the breakfast table furniture is less formal than the table for your dining room. For example, simple wooden tabletops made of oak or other light wood veneers are more common than ornately carved real hardwood tables made of teak or cherry. The dining room table is usually heavier and darker. Breakfast nooks typically have many windows and lots of natural light. Therefore, the furniture that fills the space needs to be light and uplifting. Many breakfast furniture pieces are painted white or stained in light colors. The light colors and the lack of ornamentation lead to more casual furniture sets.

One very important characteristic of breakfast tables is that they must be easy to clean, especially if you have children. No matter how well behaved they are, kids will spill and make messes. For that matter, so will adults given enough time. It is not common to use tablecloths in the kitchen because you want to perpetuate that light and airy feel so it is much easier to spill liquids or food directly on the table. You need to be able to clean these spills easily without needing special cleaners or wood treatment chemicals. A sponge should be enough. That is why tile tabletops, glass tabletops, and plastic tabletops are common.

One last attribute that is important to breakfast table furniture is the fact that it must be functional and easy to use. The table cannot be so big that it is hard to pull out the chairs and sit down since there is not enough room between the table and the wall. However, the table has to be large enough to accommodate your entire family. That is why you will find breakfast nook benches with many breakfast nook table sets. Benches will seat more people and do not take up as much room as chairs that have to be pulled in and out.

My first recommendation would be to choose the table first. The shape and size of the table will dictate what type of seating you can and should have. So in order to choose the table, you need to consider the size and shape of the room. The shape is the most important. If your breakfast nook is rectangular, then the most common shaped table will be appropriate, but you will find that many breakfast nooks are oddly shaped. Some stick out from the house in a half octagon sort of shape and others are square. If you have an octagonal shaped breakfast nook, then a round table might be best, if it is square then a square table will work well. Pick a table that will fill the most space in the room. It is a waste of space to put a circular table in a rectangular space. You can fit so many more people around the table if you maximize your use of the space.

The size of the table is the next thing to consider. If you go to a furniture store, the sales people that work there will use a simple formula to determine how large of a table you can fit into a particular space. Your first step should be to take measurements of the room. Once you know the dimensions, you can subtract approximately three feet from each side so that there will be room around the table for people to comfortably pull out chairs and sit down. As an example, if you rectangular breakfast nook measure ten feet by twelve feet then you can fit a table that is four by six into the space. Alternatively, if you have an octagonal shaped breakfast nook that measures ten feet across, then you can fit a circular table with a diameter of four feet. I say approximately three feet should be taken from each side, because you can make slight adjustments as needed. If you use benches, then you do not need as much space to pull them out or if you choose a corner breakfast nook, you do not have to pull out seats at all on two sides. In addition, if everyone in your household is thin, then you do not need so much space to pull out the chairs or get by them when people are sitting.

Once you have chosen your table, you need to start thinking about seating arrangements. You have two choices. You can have traditional chairs or space saving benches. Both choices have attributes, and your choice ultimately depends on what your priorities are. If you have a large family and your main concerns are having enough seating for everyone and enough room to store everything you need in the kitchen, then bench seating is probably a good idea for you. You can fit more bodies on a bench than you can fit in chairs in the same space. Generally, a rectangular table will have two chairs on its longer side and one on its shorter side. If you replace those three chairs with a wrap around corner bench, you fit as many as five people in the same space. In addition, benches often come with under the seat storage so for the family who never seems to have enough room for all their stuff, they could be the perfect solution.

There are also reasons you might prefer chairs to benches. If you do a lot of entertaining and frequently have guests at your breakfast nook table, then chairs are probably a better choice. Benches require that you sit fairly close to the people next to you and for guests who might not know each other very well, that could be uncomfortable. Chairs offer people his or her own space and no one will feel crowded. In addition, benches do not offer as much support as chairs and they can be uncomfortable for some people to sit in. A chair is often the more comfortable choice. Because there are advantages to both, most breakfast nooks contain a combination of the two.

The first decision you need to make about your lighting is whether you want to use overhead lighting or lamps. Most rooms in your home benefit from a combination of both. However, lamps might not be the most appropriate in the kitchen. Typically, your breakfast nook will have just a table and chairs. Many breakfast nook sets have benches that are up against the wall. This does not leave much room for additional furniture to hold a lamp. Because you want to seat as many people as possible, you will probably try to put the largest table you can in the space you have. This will not leave much room for floor lamps either. Floor lamps could get in the way when you are trying to pull a chair out or push it in. Therefore, overhead lighting will probably be the best option.

What kind of overhead lighting should you install? There are many possibilities, but the two main choices are with recessed lighting or with hanging light fixtures. There are positives and negatives to both choices. Your factor that could affect your choice is the shape of your table. If you have a round or square table, then a single hanging light fixture directly overhead will light the eating space evenly. However, if you have a long rectangular table, then a single hanging light might leave the ends of the table in relative darkness. In this instance, you could choose a hanging light fixture that is rectangular as well or you could use recessed lighting. Recessed lighting allows you to light a space in any way you like. You are not forced into any configuration by the shape of a fixture or the location of the bulbs. You can point recessed lighting sources in any direction and install as many as necessary to light the entire room. Experts say that to light the room most appropriately, you should overlap the areas illuminated by your recessed lighting by approximately forty percent.

Whatever type of lighting you decide on; there are some features you can add that will make any lighting design better. One such feature is a dimmer switch. Because you will not have the benefit of a lamp to softly light the room if you desire, the dimmer switch allows you to change the mood of the room whenever you like. If you want to have a romantic dinner, the combination of candlelight and overhead lights, dimmed low, sets the perfect mood. Another way to achieve different levels of lighting without employing lamps is to use a light fixture that has several levels. There are hanging chandeliers that have one central light bulb and then several smaller bulbs around it. Then on the light switch, you can have three choices. One choice would be to turn only the center light on, the second would be to turn only the outer lights on, and the third would be for both to be on. This is not as smooth as a dimmer but it can give you variety.

Whatever lighting system you decide to use in your breakfast nook, make sure that it is complimentary to your other décor. If you have a modern table and chairs then you can pick a modern light fixture or use recessed lighting. If your breakfast nook set is inspired more by country themes, then make sure your lighting reflects that as well.

Really, a breakfast nook’s purpose is not merely a place to eat your first morning meal, it’s about a focal point where a family and friends can gather. We eat ninety nine percent of our meals here. At night, this is where we play board games or discuss the goings on of the world over a cup of coffee. Our children fill in their coloring books, or do their homework, or take a break from playing to eat a snack at the table. In the end, this site’s purpose will be about kitchen furniture, decorating ideas, and activities that will enhance your breakfast nook and by extension maybe make your family life a bit better, if only just a bit.

Breakfast Nook Furniture

The most important part of all breakfast nooks is the furniture. Since this is usually a small room there is not a lot of space for a lot of pieces so the few that you choose are very important. In addition, this room is extremely utilitarian and you must consider how it will be used when picking out the furniture. Aesthetics are not the only thing that is important. The two most critical pieces of furniture for the breakfast nook are the table and chairs. My ideal breakfast nook is most importantly comfortable. It is, after all, meant as a place in your house to serve a causal meal or snack. I have a hard time picturing people snacking in a formal dining room. That means nice, but not necessarily expensive, furniture.

Breakfast Nook Tables

Since it is the largest object in the room the breakfast nook table is automatically the focal point. There are a few things to consider when picking out the right table for your eat-in kitchen. First of all, you want to pick a table that is as large as will comfortably fit in the space. Even if you have a small family now, you never know how it may grow in the future and you always want to make sure there is room for guests. That being said, make sure that there will be adequate room for the seating. You also want to pick a table that is shaped similarly to the room. For example, a breakfast nook that is a half circle would be the perfect place for a round kitchen table. Secondly, make sure the table matches your kitchen in decorating style. If you have a country kitchen with wooden cabinets and checkered curtains than a wooden table would be appropriate. In contrast, a modern kitchen with black marble counter tops, stainless steel appliances, and very straight lines might be complimented nicely by a glass table with metal legs. The material and look for the table should fit in. Yet another reason to consider the material your table is constructed out of is how easy or not easy it will be to clean and its durability. Especially if you have children, you will have to clean up messes often and you know that kids can be hard on furniture. Make sure the table is made of something durable and is easy to wipe off. Tables that need special cleaners are inconvenient when you are in a hurry so you should consider that when purchasing a breakfast nook table.

Breakfast Nook Chairs

Once you have chosen the piece of furniture you will sit around, the next step is to choose what you will sit on. There are two main categories of breakfast nook seating. The first is chairs and the second is a breakfast nook bench. It is quite common for there to be a combination of the two around a table as well.

The benefits of using chairs are that they are sometimes more comfortable. If you are a person of large size then it is more comfortable for you to sit on a seat that supports your entire bottom rather than a bench that might only support part. Another advantage to chairs is that they give the occupants personal space. If you are going to be entertaining at all, then you might want to allow your guests the option of sitting in their own personal seat. Benches require a certain amount of intimacy and closeness that not everyone would be comfortable with. Thirdly, it is easier to pull out a single chair to sit on than an entire bench. If only one person wants to sit down, it is awkward to pull out the whole bench by yourself. If you try to only move one end then you end up sitting at a strange angle. Chairs make it easier for individuals to find their place at the table. Finally, choosing to use chairs means that you can be more flexible when choosing your breakfast nook set. If you decide on a modern style then you are much more likely to find a set of furniture that includes chairs than benches. Benches are typically used in very specific styles. Chairs give you a wider range of possibilities. If you end up going with chairs consider picking up a set of breakfast nook cushions.

However, there are pluses to using benches as well. Benches can accommodate more people in the same amount of space taken up by chairs. If you have a large family then benches could be the key to making more of the limited amount of space that you have. In addition to seating more people, they can help maximize your space in the entire breakfast nook. Corner breakfast nooks are great space savers. If you put a bench in the corner of the room and then put a rectangular table right up to the benches you can have a larger table in your room than you could if you had to pull chairs in and out on all four sides of the table. One final advantage is that benches are often equipped with storage underneath the seating area. You can use this space to store anything from kitchen linens or small kitchen appliances that take up space in cabinets or on countertops to art supplies or games that are used often in the room. Everyone can agree that extra storage is always good and that you can always find something to put in it.

Other Furniture

There are many different breakfast nook designs and depending on which one you choose, you might be able to fit in additional pieces of furniture. My mother has a small table sitting under one window that is only about one foot wide and about four feet long. She uses it to hold small plants and knick-knacks. If your kitchen does not have a lot of windows and natural light, you might have to compensate by adding a floor lamp, ceiling light fixture, or maybe even a simple chandelier. Since most people want to accommodate as many people at the table as possible there usually is not much room for other furniture. But, if you have the room make sure that the theme of the room is continued in any piece you add.

Decorating Your Breakfast Nook

As I have said before, the breakfast nook is not a large room. But, that does not mean that you can not decorate it tastefully and add character to the space. There are many ways to add color and personality to the room. One way is with the breakfast nook cushions. The chairs and/or benches should have some cushioning to them.  It might be nice to able to sit up at the table so don’t go overboard with the cushioning. Whatever padding you choose, make sure that the color compliments some color in the kitchen like in the counters or cabinet hardware. Another way to add color and continue your decorating theme is with the window coverings. There are an incredibly large number of styles and colors to choose from when picking out blinds or curtains. This is a great opportunity to use a utilitarian element to make an influential decorating statement. Whatever you breakfast nook plans are, you have plenty of other opportunities to add decorating elements like the lighting fixtures, place mats, center pieces, wall art, and even accents in the table or chairs such as tile borders or painted stenciling.