Restoration hardware black windsor chairs

Hello! This is Kristin from Postbox Designs, back to share some beautiful, but affordable ways to decorate your home. I’m a huge believer that you can get great design at any budget! Sometimes I have even more fun decorating for clients with a smaller budget because you have to do some detective work before uncovering the gems. To prove my point, today I’m showing you a High-Low comparison for two dining rooms. Both rooms have a neutral farmhouse look to them, with a mix of whitewashed woods with pops of black. Both show off a little color with a graphic indigo rug. Both are beautiful, but one is THREE TIMES THE COST of the other! I don’t know about you, but I think I would pocket the difference and book a trip to the beach…

Designing a Farmhouse Dining Room on a Budget
by Postbox Designs

Can you tell which is which? Here is Version #1:

And here is Version #2.

So&#;..can YOU tell the difference? Which room costs THREE TIMES more than the other?

Before I spill the beans, here are some other farmhouse inspired dining rooms that make my heart beat a little faster:

Okay, you had some time to think about it now&#;was Version #1 or Version #2 the High-End version? If you guessed Version #1, then you were correct!

Let’s start with the High-End dining room: pretty right? With both rooms I started with a soft, neutral gray for the walls. The color is “Silver Fox” by Benjamin Moore. And I’m already picturing wide plank, hand scraped wood floors for a room like this. The more beat up, the better.

Here’s how I filled it up:

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Chandelier: This Pottery Barn wire chandelier will be a great focal point to any room, and it clocks in at $ (a fun fact though: it is an indoor/outdoor chandelier!)

Dining Table: This turned leg table is from Restoration Hardware, and it is truly beautiful. This is the type of furniture you give a name and make it a part of your family! However, it doesn’t come cheap, the 72” size it comes in at $

Area Rug:With all of these neutral colors, I think the room needed some depth with this rich, indigo flat weave rug from Pottery Barn. The 8’x10’ size can be yours for $

Woven Baskets: For some rustic decorations over your buffet, I love this idea of a collage of baskets. Mix it up with different sizes, shapes, and colors. For a similar look, you can pick up three of these Pottery Barn round baskets at $ each.

Buffet Table: I love the weathered look of this Restoration Hardware buffet with loads of drawers for storage. It comes in multiple sizes, but it makes me gulp at $

Pillow: I’m currently obsessed with a swiss cross pattern! This handmade pillow can sit on your upholstered head seats, or sit on extra chairs. But be ready to pay over $ for two pillow covers.

Black Windsor Chair: The ultimate farmhouse chair is the classic Windsor chair, this look will never go out of style! A simple black finish both ties in the chandelier, and helps ground the space. To buy a set of four of these from Restoration Hardware will set you back almost $ though.

Upholstered Chair: I love adding upholstered chairs to a dining room for the head chairs. It gives your space a more high-end look, plus it mixes things up a bit. To buy two of these for your table will cost around $ from Pottery Barn. Hint: If you are going to use an upholstered chair, think about having a stain-resisting treatment applied to it before use.

Grand Total for this Dining Room: $7,

I love the look, but I think we can do better. When you are starting any decorating project, go crazy and start Pinterest or Houzz boards filled with gorgeous high-end looks. This will help you narrow down the elements or the style of the room that you truly love. After that, it is time to play detective. Some great sites to start looking at are: Target, World Market, Pier 1, and Amazon. Also try Craigslist or Ebay to find a gem that you can DIY for a similar look (and then just hop on Remodelaholic for oodles of DIY tutorials!). I was able to replicate this dining room for less than 1/3 of the price. This is how I did it:

Chandelier:  I think I actually prefer this World Market chandelier over the Pottery Barn version! The black metal finish makes it classic, but it has a modern twist to it. And it is almost a third of the price at $!

Buffet Table: This rustic console table has a very similar look to the Restoration Hardware version, with drawers and open shelf for storage. You could buy two and put them side-by-side and still come in way below budget at only $

Pillow: The room still has the vintage looking swiss cross pillows to bring a softer quality to the room. Plus, having a pillow on my chair might force me to relax while my kids load up the dishwasher! This pillow cover is very reasonable at $

Woven Baskets: To achieve the look of a collage of woven baskets on your wall, my first stop would be the flea markets or garage sales. Collecting these baskets over time will give it a beautiful eclectic personality to it. But if you are looking to fill up your wall ASAP, grab three woven baskets from World Market at $ each. With this rectangle basket, you could even create a grid pattern using nine of these lined up over your buffet.

Dining Table: I love this budget-friendly table: it is the very definition of farmhouse charm with it’s turned legs and slightly whitewashed finish. It comes in several sizes (including an extending version) from Pier 1, but this 60” version is only $ You could buy this table AND a back-up and still be ahead!

Area Rug: This indigo and cream graphic rug is a great focal point to all of the neutral colors. Whenever I put rugs under my dining tables (especially if there are kiddos in the home), I always use an indoor-outdoor rug. It is a breeze to clean with a bit of water. This 8’x10’ Target beauty is a steal at only $

Black Windsor Chair: I think the best deal in the bunch may be these black Windsor chairs. They are a classic look that will last forever. I have two sets in my home, and I plan on keeping them for a long time! Unlike the pricey ones above, these are only $75 each. So for all of you fellow math nerds out there, you can buy THREE of these chairs for less than the price of one of the high-budget chairs.

Upholstered Chairs: And again, to make Mom and Dad (or your guests) feel special, add two upholstered chairs to the ends of your new farmhouse table. These beauties from Home Decorators are $ each…go ahead, buy two!

Grand Total for this Dining Room: $

When you are willing to be creative and spend a little extra time searching, you can find budget beauties for almost any look, I hope you have had fun shopping with me! If you want to fill up on more budget friendly design ideas, follow me on Facebook, or check out my Postbox Designs Blog. We have all kinds of fun with things like Designer Math Mondays and the 30 Day Design Challenge. As always, thanks to the fantastic team at Remodelaholic for letting me come hang with you all today!

See you soon,

More ideas for getting that farmhouse style:

farmhouse X media console

farmhouse kitchen style (mood board)

build a modern farmhouse table

easy farmhouse DIY decor

Filed Under: Contributor, Decorate, Dining Rooms, Guest Bloggers, Mood Boards, Remodel Inspiration By RoomTagged: baskets, budget-friendly, buffet, contributor, Dining Room, Farmhouse, farmhouse table, high-low, neutral dining room, neutral room, pottery barn, restoration hardware, rug, swiss cross, upholstered chair, windsor chair, wire chandelier

About Kristin @ Postbox Designs

The Windsor chair is a classic beauty and worthy of a seat at any dining table. This style of chair originated in England during the 18th century and was widely popular during the revolutionary period of America.  Windsor chairs were first used in gardens and were typically painted green and left to weather outside. Eventually they moved indoors and I like to think that they were a staple at most Thanksgiving tables in Colonial homes.  (This post contains affiliate links – see my privacy policy.)

Photo by Bret Franks Construction, Inc.

The Windsor chair was first produced in this country in the Philadelphia region. It&#;s rumored that Thomas Jefferson wrote the Declaration of Independence while sitting in one of these timeless beauties.

Photo by Vincent Greene Architects

In the image below, you see the fan-back Windsor chair with a shield-shaped seat. Smaller than the high-back Windsor, these were typically sold in sets of six to be used as side chairs.

Photo by GIL WALSH INTERIORS

A beautiful powder blue gives spindle-back chairs a coastal vibe &#; a perfect complement to the ocean view outside.

Photo by Martha&#;s Vineyard Interior Design

If you don&#;t want an entire set of Windsors, cozy one up to a charming breakfast banquette.

Photo by Uncommon Ranch

The Windsor chair makes a great seat at any dining table. They&#;re comfortable and I think that&#;s party due to the fact that the seat is typically larger with just the right slant to it.

Photo by Frederick + Frederick Architects

A group of classic bow-back chairs gather round a sunny dining table. You can see how the curves of the chair seat mimics the shape of the human posterior. Maybe they knew more about ergonomics back in Colonial times than we give them credit for.

Photo by Catalano Architects

A modern take on the fan-back Windsor chair populates a Scandinavian dining space.

Photo by ANNA CARIN Design

Mustard-painted chairs carry their weight in this colorful home. I&#;ve seen dining rooms where each Windsor chair was painted a different color. The effect was actually quite charming.

Photo by David Gillett Design

I shared this dining room in one of my Sunday home tours. Black is a popular color for Windsor chairs.

Photo by Tim Cuppett Architects

Shorter fan-backs take on a cottage vibe with white paint. This breakfast nook proves Windsor chairs aren&#;t restricted to Early American decorating styles.

Photo by Terrat Elms Interior Design

Of course, the classic Windsor chair does look elegant and stylish in a rustic country setting. My first set of Windsors were similar to this dining set. I had two high-backs at the ends of the table, with bow-backs for side chairs.

Photo by Vincent Greene Architects

Of that dining set, I have one lone Windsor chair remaining and I hope to keep it for years to come.

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