Think about the most memorable meals of your life. That Thanksgiving when everyone lingered until midnight. The dinner party where you met friends who became family. Your child’s first holiday dinner at the “grown-up table.”
All of these moments share something in common beyond the food—they happened around a dining table.
At Fairfield Galleries, we’ve spent seven decades helping Fort Wayne families find tables worthy of these moments. We’ve seen how the right dining table becomes more than furniture; it becomes a witness to your family’s story.
Beyond Just a Surface
When we talk with clients about dining room furniture, we often say: “Start with the table. Everything else will follow.”
Why? Because your dining table is where function meets emotion. It’s the piece you’ll use nearly every day—for everything from hurried Tuesday breakfasts to lingering Sunday brunches. It’s where homework happens, games are played, and holidays are celebrated.
No wonder it requires more thought than simply measuring a space and picking a style!
Finding Your Perfect Table Shape
The shape of your dining table affects everything from traffic flow to conversation dynamics. Here’s our real-world guide to table geometries:
Rectangular: The Traditional Choice
The most common shape for good reason, rectangular tables work with the natural dimensions of most dining rooms. They’re practical, familiar, and flexible.
Perfect for: Traditional dining rooms, large families, hosts who entertain frequently
Our designer insight: “Don’t assume bigger is better. I’ve seen many Fort Wayne homes where a slightly smaller rectangular table with the right proportions actually makes the dining room feel more generous and functions better for the family.” —Claire, Fairfield Galleries Design Team
Round: The Conversation Enhancer
There’s something inherently intimate about a round table. With no corners and no head, everyone faces each other equally, creating natural conversation flow.
Perfect for: Square rooms, smaller spaces, families who value face-to-face interaction
Our designer insight: “Round tables are often the unsung heroes of the dining world. They can accommodate ‘just one more’ better than any other shape, and they’re surprisingly versatile in transitional spaces like open-concept areas between kitchen and living room.” —Michael, Fairfield Galleries Design Team
Square: The Intimate Gathering Option
Square tables create a sense of balance and harmony in the right space, offering intimacy that larger rectangular tables sometimes lack.
Perfect for: Smaller dining areas, couples, apartment dwellers who occasionally entertain
Our designer insight: “Consider a square table with leaves that extend to a rectangle when needed. We love this solution for young Fort Wayne couples who don’t entertain often but want the flexibility for holidays.” —Rebecca, Fairfield Galleries Design Team
Oval: The Best of Both Worlds
Offering the linear efficiency of rectangles but with a softer profile, oval tables combine traditional elegance with practical space-saving benefits.
Perfect for: Narrower dining rooms, creating visual softness in angular spaces, formal dining settings
Our designer insight: “An oval table can transform a boxy dining room with its graceful silhouette. Plus, without corners, you can often seat an extra person or two when those unexpected guests arrive.” —Thomas, Fairfield Galleries Design Team
Material Matters: Choosing a Surface That Suits Your Life
That stunning marble dining table? It might be perfect for one family and completely wrong for another. Let’s talk honestly about materials:
Solid Wood: The Timeless Choice
Nothing compares to the warmth and character of solid wood. Each species offers its own personality:
- Oak: Tremendously durablewith prominent grain, oak develops a rich patina over time. It’s especially for
giving for active families. - Maple: With its subtle grain and exceptional hardness, maple offers a more contemporary look while standing up to daily use.
- Cherry: Prized for its warm reddish tones that deepen beautifully with age, cherry brings elegance to any dining space.
- Walnut: With its chocolate tones and often figured grain, walnut makes a sophisticated statement that bridges traditional and modern settings.
Our designer insight: “We often recommend clients touch the actual wood samples while telling us about their daily life. The way someone instinctively responds to a material tells us so much about what they’ll love living with for years.” —Claire, Fairfield Galleries Design Team
Stone and Stone-Look Surfaces
From authentic marble to engineered stone tops, these materials offer distinctive beauty and practical benefits:
- Marble: Undeniably luxurious but requires maintenance and accepts “character” (what some might call stains) over time.
- Granite: More forgiving than marble with unique natural patterning, but still requires proper sealing.
- Engineered Stone/Quartz: Offers stone-like appearance with significantly improved durability and stain resistance.
Our designer insight: “Be honest about how you live. If you’re bothered by water rings or etching, authentic stone might bring more anxiety than enjoyment. We find many Fort Wayne families are happier with either a well-sealed wood or a high-quality engineered surface.” —Michael, Fairfield Galleries Design Team
Glass: Visually Expanding
Glass tops can make smaller dining areas feel more spacious and complement many design styles:
- Clear Glass: Creates visual lightness and showcases beautiful table bases
- Frosted or Textured Glass: Offers similar benefits with more forgiving maintenance
Our designer insight: “Glass isn’t always the high-maintenance choice people assume. Today’s quality glass tables feature tempered, thicker glass that’s surprisingly durable. They’re worth considering for smaller dining areas that need to feel more open.” —Rebecca, Fairfield Galleries Design Team
Mixed Materials: Contemporary Expression
Today’s dining tables often combine materials for both aesthetic interest and practical performance:
- Wood tops with metal bases
- Stone inserts in wood frames
- Concrete or composite surfaces with traditional shapes
Our designer insight: “Mixed-material tables often become the most interesting element in a dining room. They’re perfect for homes that straddle transitional and contemporary styles.” —Thomas, Fairfield Galleries Design Team
Size Considerations: The Goldilocks Principle
A dining table should be neither too large nor too small for your space and needs. Finding that “just right” size involves more than just measuring your room:
The Breathing Room Rule
We recommend maintaining at least 36 inches between your table edge and walls/furniture to allow comfortable movement and chair access. This is
especially important for Fort Wayne’s historic homes, where dining rooms sometimes have more modest dimensions.
The Elbow Test
Allow 24-30 inches of table width per person for comfortable dining without bumping elbows. Yes, you can squeeze more people in for special occasions, but for everyday comfort, this guideline leads to happier meals.
The Future Family Factor
We often ask clients: “Who will be sitting at this table five years from now?” Growing families, frequent entertainers, or those with family nearby might benefit from expandable options that adapt to changing needs.
Our designer insight: “One of the most common mistakes is choosing a table solely based on the maximum number of people you might host once or twice a year. Instead, find a table that works beautifully for your everyday life with the ability to expand when needed.” —Claire, Fairfield Galleries Design Team
Investment Value: Why Quality Matters
In our 70+ years serving Fort Wayne families, we’ve seen many dining tables pass from one generation to the next. What makes a table worthy of that journey?
Construction Details That Matter
- Joinery: Dovetail and mortise-and-tenon joints indicate quality craftsmanship
- Solid Construction: Substantial weight and rigid structure without wobbles or creaks
- Wood Quality: Higher grades of hardwood with matched grain patterns
- Finish Depth: Multiple layers of finish that protect while enhancing the natural material
The Cost of “Saving Money”
We’ve had many clients come to us after replacing dining tables multiple times, only to realize they could have invested once in a quality piece for the same or less long-term cost.
A client story: “We bought three dining tables in ten years before coming to Fairfield Galleries. The table we purchased here has already lasted longer than all the previous ones combined, looks better than when we bought it, and will someday go to our daughter.” —The Hendersons, Fort Wayne
The Beauty of Aging Well
Unlike disposable furniture that deteriorates, quality dining tables develop character over time:
- Wood deepens in color and develops a rich patina
- Minor marks tell the story of family life
- Solid construction maintains integrity decade after decade
Our designer insight: “I love when clients bring in photos of their grandparents’ dining table and ask for something with that same quality. They understand that furniture isn’t just about today—it’s about creating tomorrow’s heirlooms.” —Michael, Fairfield Galleries Design Team
Styling Your Table for Different Occasions
A beautifully chosen dining table deserves to be both protected and showcased:
Everyday Settings
- Quality table pads and appropriate placemats protect without hiding your table’s beauty
- Simple centerpieces provide visual anchor without cluttering dining space
- Properly sized table linens enhance your table’s lines rather than obscuring them
Creating Memorable Tablescapes
- Build around your table’s natural strengths—rustic tables support casual abundance, refined tables showcase elegant simplicity
- Consider scale—oversized arrangements on smaller tables overwhelm both the furniture and the diners
- Echo elements of your table in your settings (metal accents with metal-based tables, organic elements with natural wood)
Our designer insight: “Your table is the canvas for your entertaining style. We love helping clients select serving pieces and linens that complement their new table rather than competing with it.” —Rebecca, Fairfield Galleries Design Team
Making Your Selection at Fairfield Galleries
Finding your perfect dining table should be a joy, not a chore. Our approach combines our expertise with your unique needs:
- Experience tables firsthand in our Fort Wayne showroom—touch the surfaces, sit at them, imagine your family gathered around
- Bring your dining room dimensions (and photos if possible) so we can visualize the space together
- Consider bringing fabric swatches from your dining chairs if you’re keeping existing seating
- Talk openly about how you really live so we can guide you to materials and styles that will bring pleasure rather than maintenance stress
Our design consultants can help you navigate the many options and find a dining table that will serve as the heart of your home for years—even generations—to come.
After all, you’re not just buying furniture. You’re creating the setting for countless memories yet to be made.
Ready to find your perfect dining table? Visit our Fort Wayne showroom or schedule a consultation with our design team today.
