Does anyone else move their dining table into the lounge on Christmas Day?

[BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz]

We are spending our first ever christmas day fully at home. Our lounge is lovely, and festive and cosy. Our kitchen is practical and colder and probably needs repainting. If the oven plays up it also get a bit smoky.

We don't have a dining room. The only dining table we have is a 4 seater in the kitchen which we use for weekday meals.

Im contemplating moving the dining table into the living room for christmas. We have the space (ish) but would also benefit from sitting in the room which is decorated for christmas.

I've never missed having a formal dining room until now!

We have done as it's bigger than the kitchen, and a few times we've had 10 people.

We have a food up table we use, it gets fetched from the shed, put up and laid about 30mins before dinner.

We have done more than a few times. When we have guests, we've also used a folding table in the living room so that the chef has space and peace to cook and I can set my table beautifully.

Thanks. Yes, I like the idea of getting it all set beautifully for the meal too which, if it was in the kitchen, just wouldn't look as nice.

Yes we've done this. I take the armchairs out of the living room, push everything else back. Yes you can lay the table earlier and the cook has more peace, and you don't eat looking at the pots and pans! Can have a side table for drinks in the living room.

After Christmas lunch we move the tables out/ back to kitchen, world's quickest Hoover of the dropped crumbs, bring the armchairs back and then you can play games/ unwrap presents.

If you have the space then I would. I have in laws who do this, their living room is massive and has the main tree in it. If I put a table in mine I wouldn't fit the chairs 😂

I think if I pushed the sofa forward I could out the table behind it with the chairs then on 3 sides (4th longer side against the sofa back)

Ongoing bad tempered rumblings about similar issue here, not involving the sitting room though.

We have a big dining room which looks lovely, decorated fireplace, tree etc. It has an open fire hence permanent ventilation.

DH says too dangerous to use it for Christmas meals. We must use conservatory with its roof vents for ventilation. Lots of fairy lights, dining room tree could be relocated to there.

Both rooms are plenty big enough for everyone, but to me using the conservatory won’t feel like Christmas.

We do, for Xmas the coffe table goes under the stairs so the kids have lots of room to open and play presents and the dining table gets pulled away from the wall so more in the room

@TrickyD

Ongoing bad tempered rumblings about similar issue here, not involving the sitting room though.

We have a big dining room which looks lovely, decorated fireplace, tree etc. It has an open fire hence permanent ventilation.

DH says too dangerous to use it for Christmas meals. We must use conservatory with its roof vents for ventilation. Lots of fairy lights, dining room tree could be relocated to there.

Both rooms are plenty big enough for everyone, but to me using the conservatory won’t feel like Christmas.

Eh? Please explain why your DH thinks the dining room is dangerous?

@Hollyhocksarenotmessy - I think the DH is arguing there is more ventilation in the consevatory making it safer re:Covid

Oh yes, of course. He might have a point there.

Can you not just open a window in dining room same as in conservatory?

Thanks for your all your comments,.

The dining room windows are hard to open and would have the tree blocking them anyway. Conservatory roof has adjustable panes which can create a (very chilly) up-draught.

We are assuming that the five day 'holiday' will allow a family meal in which case there could be ten of us. Both rooms are big, it is this ventilation issue rather than spacing that is bothering DH.

BernadetteRostankowskiWolowitz, yes move your table, the festive atmosphere will make it worth the added effort.

We always move ours. We don’t have a separate dining room (well we do but it’s a playroom) and usually eat in the kitchen, but on Christmas Day we move the dining table into the living room and use our wallpaper table (usually kept in cellar) as a temporary plating up station in the kitchen. Means we have lots more space in the kitchen and then can lay the table beautifully in living rm.