You should find a rug, curtains and fabric that you like first and then decide what color to paint the furniture in order to anchor those accessories - whether dark brown, black, tan or whatever.

I'd look to places like Ballard Designs for your inspiration - either Black or Super-Dark Green plus dark red should be your colors.

Table base and chairs - Green or black.
Leave the table top and sideboard natural.

Consider a large sisal rug on the floor with a dark green & red tapestry binding - or perhaps a large oval rag rug in those colors.

Stick w/ Green or black plus red as your colors for seat cushions, placemats, etc.

The IKEA torchiere in the corner needs to go as well as the dead wheat sheave on the sideboard - replace with a nice little buffet lamp and a big roundish french country mirror on the wall above the sideboard.

I actually like the pine and really don't see that server in black; rather the chairs and table legs, if you must. The white/nickel hanging light and the floor light seem out of place though. All you need is nice good-sized rug to cover the tiles and a simple black chandelier.

I think I would paint the country blue on your table white or an off white color...The server seems to large for the area and takes up a lot of room...so make it also white or off white. It would blend into the walls and add some brightness to the room. Simplify the top of the server and maybe put your grasses on the floor beside the server? I see a funky larger painting above it...once you decide on the rug and curtains you could incorporate those colors into the art work.

i think the blue works fine. use the rug and the accessories to pull the room together.
one tip that would help with the scale of things...cut the grass in the vase down about 12". its making the room look short.
i think your off to a lovely start.

Honestly, it feels like a little too much furniture in a small space. I'd see what I could get for them on Craigslist...

I would buy your curtains FIRST and then pick a paint colour from the curtains to use on your chairs.

I agree with spiralgirl that it's looking a bit crowded. To minimize the bulk I like the idea of painting the server to match the wall so it disappears, and then take the doors off, paint the inside a bold contrasting color, and show off some fun pieces.

The space seems small so I wouldn't suggest too much color contrast. I suggest leaving the server as-is. If it is too much pine to look at all of the time, trim a runner to size and cover only the top surface area. I would paint the chairs and the table legs glossy white and add a sisal rug to the floor. Is that light fixture too low? it looks to be. I think something smaller, simpler and a bit higher would be better for the space like this galvanized steel pendant http://www.potterybarn.com/products/p12845/index.cfm?pkey=cpendants. Also, I would ditch the torchiere and grab one of the super-cheap can lights from CB2 for $6 to hide in that corner: http://www.cb2.com/family.aspx?c=120&f=3832&q=can light&fromLocation=Search&DIMID=400001&SearchPage=1. For the drapes and table linens, choose whatever colors speak to you. Almost anything can work against a neutral backdrop. Good luck.

Thank you for all of the helpful comments! I really felt like it was driving me crazy because I didn't know what direction to go in! Craigslist is an option, but my grandmother would kill me. :) I will definitely update the decor on the server---love the idea of a mirror/funky painting and lamp. (I will cut or scrap the seagrass!) I will update the lighting in here too. I will also be on the hunt for curtains and a rug and go from there with the paint color. THANKS EVERYONE!

@wally3--

Good point - that ceiling fixture is too chrome to be country.

A better choice would be a simple black wrought iron chandelier:

http://www.lampsplus.com/Products/Iron-Arm-Six-Light-Candelabra-Style-Chandelier__89981.html

http://www.ballarddesigns.com/Lighting/Chandeliers/Davenport-Petite-Chandelier/p/7540?path=1%2C2%2C1467%2C1528&iProductID=7540

...or a hanging lantern:

http://www.ballarddesigns.com/Outdoor-Living/Outdoor-Lighting/Outdoor-Ceiling-Lighting/Winthrop-Pendant/p/10568?path=1%2C2%2C1464%2C1501%2C1734&iProductID=10568

http://www.lampsplus.com/Products/Taylor-Court-Collection-18-and-three-quarter-inch-High-Outdoor-Hanging-Lantern__94578.html

http://www.lampsplus.com/Products/Mossoro-22-inch-High-Outdoor-Indoor-Hanging-Light__G3654.html

You've got a little too much of the same thing going on in this room. I'd remove either the server or the table and replace it with something else. I like the way you put the vignette on/above the server together. Honestly, if you painted the chairs black, switched out the table for something a little cleaner, more contemporary, it would be a good start. Be prepared....this furniture is not in keeping with the taste of most people who frequent this site so you should be prepared to hear "toss it all!" If taste/budget does not allow, then work with it.

I'd paint it all black, but with an undercoat of something else, red maybe? Get rid of the dead grass in the jar, and all the ditsy accessories. I like the ceiling light, but not the torchiere.

Curtains, pad and a rug might be too much--I don't think you need the rug, and maybe not even the pads. Do get rid of the miniblinds.

I'd stay away from the black as it will look harsh against the yellowish pine of the table top.

I'd like to see everything stripped of paint and varnish to expose the natural wood. If it is indeed a yellow pine, I would either stain it white to tone down the yellow, or a deep walnut. If you're keeping the wall color, I'd go with the darker walnut.

to me, black seems too austere for this style of furniture. i'd go with something simple, bright and cheerful. aqua and poppy, or pale yellowy greens and greys are nice (and trendy!) color combinations and would go well with the traditional styling of the dining table and hutch. nothing too crazy; too many colors would be overwhelming with the somewhat-frilly lines and shapes you already have going, esp. w/ the chairs. maybe if you like black and want something a little more subdued, you could go with a seafoam palette and mix in a few complementary neutrals (including black) to create something like this: http://www.colourlovers.com/paletteImg/D9CD80/2B271F/95C798/DDE3AF/FCE8A7/sea_foam.png

and i'd definitely ditch the floor lamp and light fixtures, though i'm not sure what i'd replace them with; i'm sure others will have great ideas. good luck!

Here's a great rug for your style - the Khaki/Black would be my choice:

http://www.ballarddesigns.com/Rugs/By-Color/Green-Rugs/Chaumont-Jute-Rug/p/1362?path=1%2C2%2C1466%2C1518%2C1623&iProductID=1362

And have a look at these checked panels in Black:

http://www.ballarddesigns.com/Linens-Fabrics/Panels-Draperies/Window-Treatments/Check-Panel-with-Valance/p/6419?path=1%2C2%2C1465%2C1513%2C2223&iProductID=6419

You could get away with a single panel at each of your two windows, pulled away from the center and hung on simple black hardware:

http://www.ballarddesigns.com/Linens-Fabrics/Panels-Draperies/Drapery-Hardware/Chess-Finial-Drapery-Rod-Set/p/10819?path=1%2C2%2C1465%2C1513%2C2224&iProductID=10819

The room is too small, but well, there is not much to do there. Also, the floor is weird. There is too much going on....

First the lamp over the table is too big and too low, if you don't want to replace it (because it matches the one in the corner), raise it to be farther from the table... (you don't plan to play pool on it right?)

The server and the table top are pine...Don't commit a crime by painting it, leave it as is.... If you want to update the look, get rid of that red runner and replace it with individual placemats, that would make some difference, cheap and fast. Forget the apple bowl....it's so "i-saw-it-in-a-magazine-and-thought-it-was-cute."

What's with books in the dining room? Out! The same with those dead branches balls and twigs... This is a room to nourish the body, why surround yourself with dead stuff. Buda head... trust me he has more important things to do than watch you eat.

Walls need help.. I never thought i would say this, but well, yes... i strongly think you should go the terracotta way.... not pure dark and intense, but definetely something within the range of color to enliven the room. This way you could benefit of a more reasonably prized window treatment... Short, sheer or even printed sheer curtains to bring light and freshness to the room...

Try to keep accesories to a minimum, you already have a lot going on... Think of hammered metal accesories, some glass, transparencies.... a touch of crafty terracota in reds or blue... you know.... just touches to tie the metallic of the lamps and whites of the windows with the earthy natural feel of the table...

The accesories for the table double placemats one blue, one white, or one red (burgundy or terracota), one white, the same with serving plates.

Cushions on the chairs may also be great....

Sorry for being cynical sometimes, but well, that's me...

hope it helps

Aren't you sorry you asked!

I can't tell you how helpful these folks are on AT. It's an easy fix. Your stories are colliding. Country table set and sideboard, modern light, post modern flooring. Just go with one style story and one color story and stick with it. I like the blue chairs, but I think the table is a little big. Can you get a smaller table with a leaf and store the two extra chairs on pegs on the wall? That's a very shaker way to do it. Also, the furniture and wall color aren't jiving. Lose the clutter on the sideboard and trade "up" on the art piece hidden behind that straw arrangement. Get a lovely vintage painting of a bowl of fruit or something like that. Just streamline it and you'll be great!! Please post "after" pics :)

I don't understand painting beautiful wood furniture with such a lovely patina.

If this was my furniture, I would look for colors and fabrics (with texture) that would enhance the beauty of the aged wood.

But that's just me. You can't buy (new) American made solid wood furniture anymore.

I think that the blue is fine, but I'd paint the table top and server white!

Personally, it is the floor that is annoying me the most. I would suggest a nice big seagrass/jute style rug (one with sage green binding) and paint the chairs a not-too-pale sage green as well (or just a glossy white). I don't like tables half painted so I would strip the colour off the legs and restore it to all pine. I agree with most comments about the lighting too. Ditch the chrome and go with a simple black chandelier or, if you want some texture, one of those wicker type ones. New drapes should wrap it up nicely! Good luck!

Get a Provencal table cloth and a jute rug, and everything will work.

Questions: Suggestions for Dining Room?

Answers: Let go of the 90s. It's like one of those Guess the Decade rooms.

The problem with pine is that the grain tends to show through paint. Thus it will always look like painted pine, rather than the sleek black modern furniture you seem to want.

You have a number of options.

1. Repaint all of the blue bits in a fresh fashionable colour to renew the room and escape that peculiarly 90s shade of blue.

2. Embrace the country vibe with a more appropriate light fitting, strip the colour off the table and swap out the chairs with unpainted shaker-style pine replacements.

3. Replace it all with a style that's more you.

See, this is the thing: your grandmother would kill you? Did you ask for the furniture or did she just hand it down to you? I'm all for keeping hand-me-downs if they suit you, but don't like the idea of your grandmother bequeathing you her castoffs, then deciding what you're allowed to do with them. Is it your furniture or hers? You need to decide that first. I don't think it works in your space, and if it were me, I'd find a way to give it to another family member with a more country/traditional style. Your home is not your grandmother's storage unit.

This isn't very cohesive, but I have a few thoughts after reading the other comments:

1. I think a jute/seagrass rug would cover the floor nicely. However, those types of rugs are not all that easy to clean. If you think it will get dirty, you might prefer to look for an indoor/outdoor rug that 'looks' like jute or pick something washable, like cotton.

2. I don't think your room is that cluttered (of course, I live in a tiny NYC apartment) -- I think that impression comes from the perspective of the photo. However, I do think the disparate styles and colors cause the eye to jump over the room, making it seem busier. Picking one 'style' will probably help with this.

3. I think you have two choices of styles -- one that's country french (the black/white check suggestions; but no fleur-de-lis please -- that's too literal) or modern country (yellow or green with grey). I think design*sponge has house tours arranged by color, if you want to see what palette appeals to you.

4. I would take away one of the decorative items on the sideboard. Your table looks spare, making the sideboard look crowded in comparison. One large painting would probably help simplify the look too. (And I agree about cutting the grass, but I think it works.)

save up, sell this, and buy something else

Thanks for all of the feedback and comments everyone! I will use your suggestions and post the update soon. THANKS FOR YOUR TIME AND CREATIVITY!