Organizing 101: Dining rooms

Buy storage-smart furnishings
Choose a table with drawers for stationery if you'll use it as a desk, or for silverware (line with a protective anti-tarnish cloth) if it's primarily for dining. A rustic antique table is great for kids' projects – no one will notice a few more dents.

Invest in built-in storage; you can hide any configuration of shelves, drawers and cubbies behind doors. Fit cabinets with adjustable components to accommodate a wide range of items, like china, linens, a computer, micro sound system and art supplies.

Retrofit a secondhand armoire with cubbies or shelves as an alternative to costly built-in shelves. Separate glassware, platters, craft materials, stacked linen and more into their own cubbies.

Replace three chairs with a wooden or upholstered bench with storage underneath the seat. It's a good spot for linens or toys – and kids like squeezing onto a bench cafeteria-style, too.

Dedicate a stand-alone piece of furniture to the secondary function of the room: an armoire for home office supplies, a small three-drawer chest for art supplies, even a filing cabinet for household financial papers (just slipcover the cabinet and top with a slab of glass).

Install an extra-deep shelf at table height that can be used as a side table for showcasing items or serving buffets.

Look for unusual antiques to repurpose; for example, line the drawers of a vintage library card catalogue with anti-tarnish cloth and store forks, spoons and so on in dedicated drawers, or hang a salvaged glass-front cabinet and display glassware and china.

If your living and dining areas are combined, divide the room with a specially designed cabinet, or a side table with storage underneath (keep stuff looking neat with a row of attractive baskets).

Place melamine bookshelves along an entire wall and organize china and glassware, books and whatever else you store there; hang curtains in front to hide items from view and to keep the room from looking cluttered.

Make the room special
Invest in a signature item like a Venetian chandelier or a unique piece of furniture that gives you great pleasure and also lends personality to the room.

Display a favourite work of art – it will provide the room with a source of beauty and act as a conversation piece.

Install dimmer switches on all lighting. Add a floor lamp or a small table lamp so you can vary the mood.

Wire the dining room for sound.

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