The best part? You won’t even have to pull up a seat.
An Eat-In Kitchen or Dining Room can serve as the perfect bridge between function and style. Banquette seating cuts out not only the room required to pull out additional chairs, but the clutter of additional furniture all together. One, two, sometimes even three sides of a once small space holds potential to suddenly seat a family, and their guests. This cozy addition adds a little extra personality to create a charming, accessible space.
That being said- like everything else in the world of design, it can be easier said than done. Hyde Evans Design is sharing our three top tricks for perfecting banquette seating to achieve the perfect dining space.
1. Get in and get out… quick.
Very rarely does beautiful design make up for a lack of function. If the space is hard to access or uncomfortable to slide into, it will go unused, unappreciated, and take up space rather than saving it. It is important to give the client room to sit and slide into the seating. See the sketch below where we did just that.
2. Function (slightly) over fashion.
While beautiful prints and patterns may catch your eye, pay careful attention to the type of fabric chosen for the seat- it will need to be smooth enough for the movement and friction is can be expected to endure. Leather or leather-like fabrics lend themselves perfectly for projects of this nature. They’re slick and sleek, plus they are wipeable, perfect for a kitchen or dining setting. Traditional button tufting is a common trend within banquette style seating, if a client loves the look, make sure it doesn’t carry into the seat of the design. Extracting crumbs from each little nook can be infuriating.
3. Three feet too many.
A classic four-legged dining table will defeat the purpose of an eat-in space. Extra and unnecessary legs under the table will only clutter the space and make it difficult to make room the legs you actually want, those of your family and friends. Consider pedestal base or trestle tables- like the ones pictured below. We often have a custom build designed to ensure the perfect fit.
