Piles of plush toys.

Maxwell is right, the only way to kill an echo is to put something in that would asorb the noise. Like fabric, or carpeting. If you got a neutral solid rug similar to the floor color, it would fade into the color of the floor and won't jump out at you so much.

Good luck

Acustic Ceiling foam?

Where did you get your table?
Thanks,
Sarah (not already posted)

Drapes (maybe floor to ceiling drapes on the wall with your french doors)? Slipcovers for your chairs? Large canvas art like Amenity Home's big prints: http://www.amenityhome.com/e-store/cnt_coll_pr_fl_det.asp?dsn=drift.

Leather squares, like tiles on the wall?

Why don't you like the look on fabric on walls? Because this could have many different looks. An oil painting is basically a piece of decorated fabric on a wall, for instance.

You could also get upholstered dining chairs. Or cushion seats for your current chairs, if that's too pricey.

How about those funky raised/textured wall paper squares?

can't remember who makes/sells them though...

Sheer curtains won't do anything. If that much light can get through a fabric it's safe to say sound can.

You need absorption, plain and simple. If you don't want fabric on the walls you might try wrapping sheets of compressed fiberglass insulation in fabric and suspending them from the ceiling (any direction will do).

A rug wouldn't have to go under the table, you could do thinner "runner" style rugs in other portions of the room.

With a room full of wood and glass you're going to have echoes.

Thanks for all these suggestions, everybody!

Sarah -- I live in DC. I got the table at a great vintage furniture store here called Miss Pixies (www.misspixies.com). The table is from an old school library.

Good points from everyone about the different kinds of textile stuff I could hang on the wall. I guess I'd been thinking more like a tapestry or, like, yarn art or something, which isn't my style. But something like leather squares or paper tiles could look great.

Thanks!

Depending on the table design, you may be able to hide some thin sound-absorbing material (try carpet padding) on the underside of the table top. The same may work for the underside of the chairs.

(FYI: the correct verb is "damp," as in "damp the vibrations." "Dampen" means to make wet.

How about an area of cork on top of the hardwoord, in place of a rug? I'm not certain it would work, but just another suggestion.

If you really want to leave the floor, ceiling and walls bare, you can treat the reflections by putting acoustical foam on the underside of your table and even your chairs if you can conceal it there.

Drapes on the windows will make a large impact, especially if you use a dense fabric.

Arranging your wall hangings so that parrallel walls have different patterns on them will make a difference. Smooth parallel walls are a huge issue with reflections. Shelves with books or trinkets will diffuse those reflections.

Try and soft objects in the corners of the room to eliminate low end reflections.

Good Luck!

i don't really want to come off as being mean, but man. you need some textiles in this room. there's an echo because it's empty. you don't have to put down a rug or hang up a wall hanging, but seriously. textiles will add texture to your space, and you really need elements other than wood in this room. it's very bare and uninviting.

i think you should take at least one of maxwell's suggestions. a table runner would be a good start, as would some kind of window treatment. plants if you have the light for them. i'm not generally a fan of upholstered side chairs and/or slipcovers, but i think they could work well here. i also think the space between the living and dining areas would be a nice place for a rug, if you don't open and close the french doors too much. you could also put a small one in near those two lounge chairs.

Even one of those painted canvas floor coverings would provide some dampening, I would think. And they don't have the look of a rug, to which you are opposed. I'm sure another AT reader knows where you can get modern ones, or how to make your own.

As Byron wrote, you can attach carpeting to the bottom of tables and chairs to dampen sound - this could make a big difference.

I'm not actually sure about their echo-reducing properties, but these type of "wall flats" might be worth looking into:

http://inhabitliving.com/SearchResult.aspx?CategoryID=20

Granted absorption is an obvious cure, but diffusion will help too. Irregular surfaces will prevent the sound waves from 'bouncing' from wall to wall to wall to wall. Minimize parallel surfaces if at all possible.
Check out Auralex's web site; they have a lot of info (mostly pro-audio related) that you may find helpful. www.auralex.com. They have a new 'style oriented' line of acoustical panels (pieces?) that you may be able to work into something you can live with. example ---> http://www.auralex.com/partscience/images1/AudioTile_emhe.jpg

soil, plants, water.
http://www.instructables.com/id/FN8AIF8G7KEQB0A7EM/

Based on the pictures and your decision to exclude drapery or carpeting, it appears that you want to maintain an austerity to the space.

Based on the photos, it looks like you may have a completely blank wall (the one on which the red painting? is hanging). You could quite easily cover that *entire* wall from edge to edge with a sound absorbing material, in white. That way, the room would look pretty exactly the same, but wouldn't echo.

Zach, Miss Pixie's rules! Got my coffee table there!

I saw on Design on a Dime the other night (I know, I know) that they put up a bunch of "upholstered" squares on the wall covered in menswear fabric. I wasn't especially keen on the overall design, but that might be an idea--very chic and understated fabric upholstered panels. Or, floor to ceiling straight hanging panels of the same ilk hung on dowel rods...something like that.

with noise cancelling and the following you will not have to change anything in your space.
http://www.amina.co.uk/product/aiw5.htm

the symbiotic vision would be soil, plants, water and the above technology which is all displacement or amplitude variable.

you dont want this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sensory_deprivation

This works:

For the blank wall, build a "scenery flat" or flats the size of the whole wall, similar to what is used in a stage production. Start with a braced frame made of 1 X 2s. Cover front and sides with canvas - like a large painting. Put poly, wool, or other natural batting inside (don't use fiberglass; the glass dust/shards are not human friendly), and staple plastic screening on the back to hold everything in. Paint the canvas to match your room.

One wall covered in this manner will tame just about anything, without making the space too "dead." A restaurant in Spokane, Washington uses this technique.

For many, many, more sound control ideas, get the book "The Master Handbook of Acoustics" by F. Alton Everst. It's pretty much the bible for this sort of thing.

I have a friend that owns a recording studio and he has some fantastic modern wall treatments. I'd do a search and see what's out there. There are even some stand alone pieces that really tasteful. Otherwise, some well placed screens with gorgeous fabric might do the trick.

Thanks again for all the cool ideas.

I love what Byron and Chad said about putting foam underneath the table and chairs. I'm going to do that this weekend!

And some plants and curtains would be a good idea, both for the noise and for aesthetics.

Thanks again!

I know you said no rugs, Perhaps you could try Flo floor tiles. They are carpet tiles that come in an array of colors and are easy to install. Plus the look can be very modern and clean.

Hi Zach and Christine:

I shop at Pixies! I'm currently looking for an armoire I like.

I'm hoping we get an AT DC!

Zach, don't just go out and buy egg-crate foam. That will do next to nothing. You need something a bit more dense. Try compressed fiberglass panels, usually available at insulation stores.

GlennQ, diffusion would help, but it's not going to prevent sound waves from bouncing. It just helps prevent them from bouncing straight back and forth creating first order reflections. In a space like this that would be less usefull, as you're never going to be able to pinpoint the sound sources. It's people making them, and we tend to move around more than speakers or musicians playing instruments.

The best bang for the buck will be absorption.

What about shelves with books along one wall. They would add warmth, break the sound and look great in a dining room - you have two side (not dining) chairs in the room - add a standing light and maybe it will turn out to be a good place to read and hang out. Guests might do so before or after dinner too.
It looks like a great aparment.

Right on Byron and Chad.
While designing a couple auditoriums I picked up that very trick from architects that deal with acoustics more often: if you can't cushion over, cushion under.

I would reconsider an area rug. Simple, modern Flor carpet tiles in red or another warm color could look great and enhance the floors, not detract from them.

How about ADDING sound - like music - when you are using the room.