I found myself a bit bored with the kitchen today (I know- shock!) so decided to turn my attention to its close cousin, the dining room, instead. Personally, I can take or leave a formal dining room- it’s about as low on my home priority list as his-and-her-sinks (can anyone explain to me the obsession with his-and-her sinks?), and I’d much rather have a big, eat-in kitchen. 

Some of these spaces, however, are lovely. Simple, casual and eclectic, these aren’t the stuffy, characterless dining rooms of decades past. In fact, I wouldn’t mind leaving my dream eat-in kitchen (occasionally) to dine in one of these. 

From the always-inspirational photostream of sarahleeab, I like the mishmash of this space quite a bit. All the blues and greens, as well as (what looks like) a bench against the wall keep it far from stuffy: 

This room from the same source has a sort of “modern farmhouse” thing going on, which I love: 

I like this space from Living etc, which is grown-up but fun at the same time. The round table, mismatched chairs and chandelier give it an eclectic feeling: 

The modern furniture, restrained colour scheme and blackboard wall keep this dining room, from Canadian House & Home, from being stuffy: 

I love this Parisian dining nook from Marie Claire Maison. The yellow seat cushions and wicked light fixture are just enough to give the otherwise white space a chic vintage feel:

From the portfolio of interior stylist Lucyina Moodie, this room feels much more traditional, but I still like it. All the white makes the brown-and-navy colour scheme seem fresh: