The multi-purpose bench..

As our lives get busier and everyone has there own schedules the idea of having a dining room table and only using it at Christmas or thanksgiving is quickly starting to go out of fashion. Now i love a good dining room table that can be styled with candles and flowers, place settings etc but the love starts to fade when its only used twice a year - to me that's a waste of important space in the home.

It is now that people are becoming more smart with there space and are turning to axing the dining room table and extending the kitchen bench top to create a multi-purpose working/eating area. For homes that aren't open planned this becomes a tricky challenge and possibly not visible for you but for those who have the space i highly recommend it.

I think its something to consider if your someone who only uses there dining room table twice a year or if your on the other hand someone who is having trouble fitting one into your already crammed space. These are just a couple of ways i think the multi-purpose bench can be put into action.




From: artcenton

This kitchen space is a personal favourite of mine. I love the way the dining space is attached to the kitchen bench top, it's almost inviting you to sit down and relax. Its a great touch when entertaining - all your guests can relax at the table and still be able to communicate with you. The cool thing about this idea is that you chose whether you want the bench top manufactured as one attached piece or you can easily find a table (potentially something colorful or patterned) and push it up against the bench which still creates a similar space for a much affordable price. A quirky touch could be mixing up the chairs by having two different settings in different colours to give some variation visually, giving an identity to both separate furniture pieces.





From: Counties Kitchens

From: Absolute Kitchens

Both kitchens above are more simple ways to create a multi-purpose bench/dining areas. The first one which has no cook top or sink on the island area is nice and simple which i really like - a cool way to make it stand out more would maybe having a textured bench top or a variation in colour to make it more interesting but if this simple version is more you then i highly recommend. Adding a really cool industrial light or wacky chandelier would really help lift the space also and make that area a statement in a subtle way.

The last picture shown doesn't appeal to me at all. This is a good example that this kitchen hasn't been designed for a multi-purpose bench/dining area. Cook tops by seating areas like island benches are really dangerous, a sink would work a lot better and be more ascetically pleasing as the range hood blocks the flow through the space. From the angle of this picture an add on of more bench space could be achieved in a similar way to the first picture but to be honest I'd rather have a new wider bench top to achieve a more cohesive look.


These are just a couple of ideas to get you thinking because its not until you've installed your kitchen or not taken into account a dining room table in your small space that you wish you'd thought about a better alternative to solving those issues - Multi-purpose seems to be the way these days and I'm loving it when its achieved well.