We had a table with benches (like pews rather than a straight bench) when I was growing up for a family of five with often visitors and in a small dining area (but with walls on three sides). It worked well and I have fond memories of being squished up with my brothers (and creating havoc) or grandparents. If you push it against the wall until meal times, that might help with the baby gate access? This way you can still sit at it casually on the out side and just pull it out when you need...just a suggestion :)

A rug under the table will cause problems when moving the chairs. To be safe and no nuisance, it has to be a huge rug. (A large round(!) floor cover....?) I like the street lamp. But I guess it is a STREET - lamp and makes the room rather sterile. It is kind of tallish in the corner and enhances to large distance to the ceiling. bring something else down from the ceiling. I guess you don't want a lamp because you have downlights. Do some search for some nice art, which does not move (shadows) in the light. Or use a beige old fashioned chandelier. Go bit by bit. And think about the carpet before you get it. Work on flow and lightness, delight, round parts, oval to balance the room. If I painted something, I would paint the stark white frames a little softer/toned. The white is a hard contrast. So is the black. (And I would probably paint a half wall white.) And the black ornament (light?) that comes down from the ceiling must come further down, should be larger. And then I would play with the room for dinner situations..... you can bring all the colour in you like. I wonder what the room looks like during the day. Try taking the (beautiful) mirror out and hang a canvas. The plant on the table looks forlorn. The Arabic lamp in the left corner looks lonely too. this would be a nice corner for a piece of furniture. An extra chair finds room in spots like this often. Do you have enough space when serving food? (Can you get light switches in a colour like the walls?) I would probably take 2 chairs out unless they are constantly needed and take the placemats off. Put a larger item.... maybe a plate of fruit in the middle. The repetition of chairs and placemats enhances the very formal atmosphere. I have just seen a cream coloured chandelier. Glass is too stark and black not suited to brighten the situation up. I love the room for its sheer size and uncluttered atmosphere!

I'd consider putting the corner sofa and TV stand in the dining room, moving the stand-alone chair and footstool and tall lamp near the stove as a "reading nook" and placing the dining table in the living room, leaving enough for a walkway from the entry to the current dining / possible living room. In terms of the actual furniture, everything other than the colour of the dining chair fabric looks pretty good. I would start by decluttering and removing anything that isn't functional or which you don't find aesthetically pleasing. I'd personally remove the mirror in the bar as I don't think it gels very well, the tiny framed art near the stove, the art on the wall near the TV as it's too small and hung too closely and the drum kit (unless the drum kit is used on a daily basis). I really like the Marimekko print and, IF you like it, then I would use it as inspiration for adding colour to each of the rooms, possibly even a "feature" wall using the bright blue from the print (although I'm not a huge fan of feature walls). A few minor changes may also help, like replacing the blown bulb in the wall sconce, storing the ironing board somewhere else and taking down the "hanging" glasses in the bar area as they're visual clutter right at eye line height.

Hello Elpi, I really love how you have chosen to display the mirror and artwork on the chosen walls. In regards to the buffet, I think you will find the space isn't blending nicely because it may be a little over crowded. If possible, I would see how it looks mounting the mirror to the wall, and changing to decorations with noticeably different heights. You could still use some of the items that you already have, but possibly opting for a few more that are shorter and rounder, as opposed to tall and skinny. A good place to start might be adding items that are similar colours to that of the artwork. I also, I think this would also help the dining room merge with the living room, which seems a lot softer and doesn't feature as many straight lines. Look for small, rounded coloured decorations, similar to the attached images as inspiration. Good Luck!