Start the Morning Right with These 6 Breakfast Nook Ideas!

Design a cozy breakfast nook with these smart décor tips

Many of us like having a little space in the morning to wake up, decompress, and sip a cup of coffee without the world intruding. However, dining room tables aren’t always ideal for quiet contemplation or reading the newspaper. In most cases, they’re too spacious and empty for the first meal of the day, especially when chowing down on some toast by yourself.

Breakfast nooks are far more comfortable and cozy alternatives. With the right nook ideas and styling tips, you can set up a delightful morning haven in your kitchen or dining room. If you don’t know where to start, we can lead you in the right direction!

What is a breakfast nook?

A breakfast nook is a small, semi-isolated spot near the kitchen or dining room where you can enjoy your preferred meal in relative quiet and comfort. Unlike dining room tables, which are usually larger and intended to seat more guests, breakfast nooks are typically smaller, more confined, and designed to hold only a handful of people at most.

Breakfast nooks are also usually set up in places with natural light, like beside bay windows, bow windows, or large picture windows. Keep in mind that your early morning meal isn’t the only time you can use a breakfast nook. You can also use them as comfortable spots for enjoying a good book or as an area to relax and converse with friends and family.

If you have the space for it, a new breakfast nook could be a great expansion or improvement to your dining room or kitchen area. Alternatively, your home might already have a built-in breakfast nook, but it might need some decorating and furnishing to reach its full potential.

Whether you’re setting up a nook from scratch or decorating an existing one, let’s explore a few design and style recommendations that are sure to inspire ideas for a breakfast nook.

Decide on a Location

If you’re looking to create a new breakfast nook, you should first think about where to set it. Ideally, your breakfast nook should be:

• Exposed to plenty of natural light – that way, you can enjoy the sun’s first rays as you eat a delicious breakfast.
• Somewhat isolated relative to your kitchen or dining room. The point of a breakfast nook is for it to be “out of the way” compared to other places where family or guests might eat or bustle about.

Bay windows are excellent spots to set a table, window seat, or other breakfast nook furniture. These spacious and inviting windows are perfect for watching leaves fall in the morning or seeing the city begin to awaken.

Bow windows also make fantastic areas to set up a breakfast nook. Whether you get your natural light from a bay or bow window, your nook is sure to be amazing!

Depending on the natural light in your home, you can also set up your breakfast nook in the corner of your dining room or eat-in kitchen. If you have enough space, a corner table off to the side might be situated enough away from your dining room table to function as the perfect dining room breakfast nook.

 Set Up Your Seating

You can’t have a good breakfast nook without at least one table! Luckily there are dozens of different shapes, styles, and sizes of tables you can find, depending on your preferences and the location of your nook. For example:

• If you have a nook with a built-in bench, consider setting a classic wooden table with complementary colors or accents to the benches. Make sure the table is low enough for you and your guests to reach the food!
• If you have high-top chairs, a high-top table is a foregone companion piece that would pair perfectly with these chairs of choice.
• A bistro table might be perfect if you prefer a small and intimate space for you and your spouse to eat breakfast together each morning before rushing off to work.
• If breakfast isn’t your thing, then a low coffee table might serve as the perfect nook! You can set books, teacups, or plates on top while you sip your morning coffee in comfort.

Depending on the size of your table, you could decorate it with a bowl of fruit, a tablecloth, or anything else to fit your style. After all, it’s your table – set it how you like it!

Build in a Banquette

If you’re in the mood for a more involved home upgrade, consider hiring some contractors to build in a banquette or do it yourself (if you have the DIY skills, that is). A banquette consists of one or more built-in benches that you install along at least one wall, like the space beneath or perpendicular to a bay or bow window, that can create a cozy built-in breakfast nook bench area.

Once you set up your banquette bench, you can add a table and chairs or decorate the space however you please! Add a few throw pillows along the bench for added comfort and additional cushioning as needed.

As an added feature, you can install benches with extra storage space underneath their seats. This storage could be perfect for storing extra blankets, dishes, and other knickknacks hanging around your home.

Create Charm with Stylish Curtains

Morning sunlight can be invigorating but can also become an aggravation if it shines directly in your eyes. If your breakfast nook's orientation means that the sun is more blinding than it is comforting, consider hanging some stylish curtains in front of your nook's window(s).

Curtains can add vibrancy or warmth to the space and allow you control over the natural light in the area at any time.

Make It Yours – Add Some Art!

The right wall art can greatly improve a breakfast nook's aesthetic or "energy.” For example, you can hang a few framed or carved wooden inspirational quotes over the bay windows of your nook so you remember to start your day with the right mindset. Or you could lean more toward the classical décor side of things, hanging some nice artwork or natural landscapes around your benches or chairs to make for an elegant breakfast nook.

Whatever you choose, remember to make the art suit the existing aesthetic in your kitchen or nearby dining room!

Apply a Fresh Coat of Paint

Don’t forget that the color of your nook’s walls can impact its comfort and thematic fit with the rest of your home. If needed, apply a new coat of paint to the walls of your new nook to make it a bit softer and more inviting in the morning. Some paint shades appear radiant when morning sunlight hits them at the right angle.

Try a breakfast nook and never look back!

Mornings are always full of new possibilities, so let your breakfast nook inspire just that! No matter what style you prefer or what your interior design instincts say, you can whip up a homey and inviting breakfast nook that you can enjoy every morning with a little prep and experimentation.

Already have an idea for a bay or bow window breakfast nook… but no bay or bow window? Window World of Athens can help! Contact us today and ask about how to make bay or bow windows a reality in your home!