Is my oak dining table dated?

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We bought a lovely dining table from oak furniture land 8 years ago.

It’s a classic design. However it has a honey colour finish. It’s a bit like this https://www.oakfurnitureland.co.uk/furniture/canterbury-natural-solid-oak-extending-table-and-6-cross-back-chairs-with-dappled-beige-seats/1015845.html

The scroll back chairs are doomed and going to the tip. The table is coming with us to a brand new kitchen with neutral greige shaker cabinets and a karndean herringbone LVT floor.

I feel like the colour of the finish is dated and won’t match the floor of our new house.

do we sand it down and re finish it?

or replace for a more modern design table?

Thoughts welcome!

A dining table should last forever! If the colour bothers you, then sanding and refinishing sounds like a good idea

Does it matter if it's "dated"? Does it work? Do you like it?

Not sure most people will ever have the luxury of worrying if their 8 yr old dining table matches their floor tbh. Just chuck a tablecloth over it if you really can't bear the clash!

Why are the chairs doomed? I would have thought it would be better to keep them together?

Why would you spend that amount of money on something to dump it 8 years later? What a waste.

If you no longer like the colour chuck a table cloth over it. I genuinely can't understand why you'd get rid of something that cost so much just because it doesn't match the colour scheme?

I think it is very dated and its not my taste.

However that opinion is irrelevant. You think it's lovely and that is the most important thing.
Im not sure I'd have the confidence to sand it down but its an option if you really can't stand it.

Why are you putting chairs in the tip? If you don't want them, give them to someone else.

This wastefulness has shocked me tbh.

Get some seat pads for the chairs, tie on cushions and a tablecloth.

you can change the tablecloth regularly for different looks and seasons.

La Redoute is good for them

What's wrong with the chairs? I have a dining set from oak furniture land that is around 20 years old now - the chairs are still in perfect condition. If yours are the same then donate them to charity or sell, don't just chuck them!

Our table is probably a similar colour to yours and looks absolutely fine in a navy and grey kitchen.

We would sell it so it’s not that dramatic…!

it’s coming with us for now but think it will look a bit odd with the rest of the kitchen. We would also like one the extends so we could host Christmas.

The chairs have been destroyed by family life with animals and young children, sadly. They absolutely do NOT look good in the new kitchen.

We use them currently with chair covers over them but I’m keen to get some that are wipeable this time.

It’s not like it was meant to be cutting edge fashion, it’s a dining table. Most of my friends got theirs second hand on Facebook anyway 😂

How on earth did general family life, children and animals destroy the chairs so badly?

If you don’t like the colour then sand and refinish but you may as well look at it in the new kitchen first. The style is classic.

At least sell or donate the chairs rather than taking them to the tip.

It’s very staid and wouldn’t be my taste, so I’d be using the opportunity to get something new.

Agreed. It's so unnecessary. Can the chairs and possibly table not be advertised online, given to a charity, re-gifted...anything really?

Advertise the chairs as free to collect on Facebook.

Probably worth seeing it in location first, and new chairs might give the table a new lease of life. If you still don't think it's right I'd sell and get something new rather than attempting sanding/painting, but that's because whenever I've attempted such things they've turned out a right mess!

This made me chuckle because I’ve done exactly that! our dining table is the most hideous glass topped thing but it’s practically indestructible, a great size and super sturdy so it persists, covered in various tablecloths. The chairs were new when we moved though as the old ones were ripped/filthy/broken, they actually went in the skip and someone pinched them 😂

Have you seen any tables that you like op? Wishbone chairs seem quite popular at the moment and round tables. There is so much choice at the moment. My friend was looking for a dining table and next seem to have a good selection.

Yes

I think you'll have opposing views on this thread; some, including myself, were perhaps brought up with very little and taught to look after things and value them. You invested in a quality piece of furniture that will last. By all means, change the colour to suit the new kitchen but to buy new again seems wasteful. My bed, carpet and sofa are still going strong after nearly 18 years as we bought quality. This table is also great quality and timeless. You could buy something more 'current' only to find it looks naff in a few short years.

You have made your mind up I think! What puzzles me is why you are asking here, as I doubt anything will convince you to keep it and adapt it as necessary.

So go on then, sell/donate it and replace, then enjoy the new one!

Antiques and historic furniture are admired partly because of their patina. You have a sturdy well made set of furniture in a natural wood. Use it, polish it, let it acquire the marks of wear that a Georgian table has. Let it become an antique in it's own right. Even if it wasn't made by Chippendale or Snowdon.

Chairs are really difficult to sell or donate as there are so many of them - when I tried to donate chairs to BHF they refused them. By all means try to donate, or even get them repaired, but if they are really unsalvageable then yes at least they can go in the Timber section of the tip with some potential to recycle??

Yes, it looks like something from a church