The dining room table’s main function has been steadily changing over the years, but thanks to the pandemic, for many people, the role of the dining room table has taken on an even bigger transformation. Let’s talk about what’s going on with our dining room tables.
If you were to look at your dining room table right now at this very moment, what would you see? Would you see a polished and gleaming slab of unused tabletop space, patiently waiting to be used at the next mealtime?
Or would you see an assortment of objects, like books, mobile devices, papers, pens, coffee cups, and other random nicknacks that have accumulated over the day?
If option number two sounds more relatable, don’t worry, you’re not alone. The pandemic has unwittingly transformed our dining room tables into a multi-functioning, all-purpose surface. Work calls and meetings, homework, craft projects, and mealtimes, have all begun to take place in one comfortable space in our homes. The dining room.
Why do our dining room tables take on so much these days?
To be fair, my dining room table was cluttered at times, even long before the pandemic took things up a notch. The large surface space in the most heavily trafficked area of my home makes the dining room table the perfect space for setting things down momentarily and then leaving them there longer than I had anticipated.
But as mentioned earlier, the pandemic really took things up a notch when it comes to the amount of responsibility my dining table takes on these days. And there are a few theories that hold some water, as to why the dining room table has suddenly become the jack-of-all-trades of the furniture world.
The dining room is the central area of the home
Of course, each home will be different in its own way. But typically, the dining room will be near the kitchen, and the kitchen in most modern homes isn’t tucked in some far-off corner of the house. But the office, on the other hand, is.
When you’ve got family members working and studying at home with you, it can be nice and even necessary to close the office door (if you have an office space) and focus on your online task at hand. But over time, I think many people found that being near the kitchen, bathroom, and living room for when you need a quick break, is just easier.
The dining room inadvertently becomes our new office of choice. Large and sturdy dining room tables, like the Farmhouse Table, for example, give people working from home the comfort that they need when sitting long hours while providing an aesthetically pleasing style and homey vibe.
People are enjoying a cozier and more aesthetically pleasing workspace
Aesthetics play a huge role in our moods. Working from home has allowed people to realize that they don’t enjoy working from a cold office with a desk that’s too small under overbearing fluorescent lights. The dining room table on the other hand is comfortable, aesthetically pleasing, and usually just steps away from a snack or the coffee machine.
The silver lining – Dining together again
But our poor dining room tables are worth so much more than bearing the brunt of our new work from home schedules. And thankfully, the true purpose of the dining room table has not been forgotten.
In fact, the pandemic has actually brought families together and placed them at the dining room table more frequently than before. Even with all the new roles that our dining tables have taken on, meal times at the table have still managed to remain a priority.
For the last decade, people had wandered into the living room or to the kitchen island to eat their meals. But nowadays, it seems that the dining table is back in business. This is partly in thanks to people not being able to eat out as frequently or comfortably as they have in the past. We’ve all been forced to stay home, and this has opened the door for many people to experiment with new recipes and serving those new recipes to family and friends at the table.
The Farmhouse Table
The Farmhouse Table is a great option for any dining space. The sturdy and classic look can be dressed up or down, to fit right in with almost any home decor style. And you can be sure that these hand-crafted tables will last far longer than any pandemic ever could.
Coming together and enjoying a meal is something that many people will never take for granted again, and coming together around a beautiful farmhouse table can provide memories to be cherished for a lifetime.