There's a piece of furniture that was in almost every home in the 1950s, 60s, and 70s — and then quietly disappeared. You'd find it in your grandparents' dining room, holding the good china and the drinks cabinet and the things that didn't have anywhere else to go. It was practical, it was substantial, and at some point, it fell out of fashion.
The sideboard is back. And this time, it's not going anywhere.
Why the Sideboard Disappeared
The decline of the sideboard tracks closely with the rise of open-plan living. As walls came down between kitchens and dining rooms in the 1980s and 90s, the traditional dining room — and everything in it — became less relevant. Built-in storage replaced freestanding pieces. Minimalism became the dominant aesthetic. The sideboard, with its substantial presence and traditional associations, felt out of step.
What replaced it, in most homes, was nothing. The storage it provided — for table linens, serving dishes, drinks, and the miscellaneous things that accumulate in a living and dining space — simply went somewhere else. Usually into kitchen cupboards that were already full, or into boxes in spare rooms, or onto surfaces that were never meant to hold them.
Why It's Coming Back
The return of the sideboard is partly aesthetic and partly practical. On the aesthetic side, interior design has moved away from the stark minimalism of the 2010s toward something warmer, more layered, and more personal. Furniture with presence — pieces that anchor a room rather than disappear into it — is back in favour.
On the practical side, people have simply run out of places to put things. The storage problem that the sideboard solved in the 1960s hasn't gone away — it's just been ignored for thirty years. A well-designed sideboard in a living or dining space solves it elegantly, without requiring a renovation or a new room.
What a Sideboard Actually Does for a Room
Beyond storage, a sideboard does something that's harder to quantify but immediately visible: it gives a room a sense of groundedness. A long, low horizontal piece anchors a wall in a way that art alone can't. It creates a surface for styling — for lamps, plants, books, objects — that elevates the whole room.
In a dining room, it provides a serving surface for meals and a home for everything that belongs in that space but doesn't fit on the table. In a living room, it works as a media unit, a drinks cabinet, a display surface, or all three simultaneously. In a hallway, it's the piece that makes an entrance feel considered rather than functional.
The sideboard is one of the most versatile pieces of furniture you can own — which is probably why it keeps coming back.
The Fluted Detail: Why It's Everywhere Right Now
If you've been paying attention to interior design over the last few years, you'll have noticed fluted — or ribbed — surfaces appearing on everything from cabinet doors to vases to architectural details. The vertical grooves add texture and depth without adding visual weight. They catch light in a way that flat surfaces don't, making a piece feel more considered and more expensive than it is.
On a sideboard, fluted door panels do something particularly effective: they break up what would otherwise be a large, flat expanse of surface, giving the piece visual interest from across the room. Paired with a natural wood finish or a neutral colour, it's a detail that works in almost any interior — from Scandi-minimal to warm maximalist.
How to Style a Sideboard
The surface of a sideboard is one of the most enjoyable styling opportunities in a home. A few principles that work consistently:
Vary the heights. A flat arrangement of objects at the same level looks static. Mix tall items (a lamp, a vase, a stack of books) with lower ones (a small plant, a candle, a decorative object) to create visual movement.
Use odd numbers. Groups of three or five objects tend to look more natural than pairs or even numbers. This is a rule that interior designers use constantly and that works almost without exception.
Leave space. The temptation is to fill every inch of the surface. Resist it. Empty space is part of the composition — it gives the eye somewhere to rest and makes the objects you do display feel more intentional.
Add something living. A plant, a bunch of flowers, or even a single stem in a vase brings a sideboard to life in a way that no decorative object can replicate. It also changes with the seasons, which keeps the styling feeling fresh.
What to Look for When Buying
Width is the first consideration. A sideboard that's too narrow for its wall looks lost; one that's too wide crowds the room. As a general rule, the sideboard should occupy 60–75% of the wall it sits against.
Height matters for proportion and function. A lower sideboard (around 30–32 inches) works well as a serving surface and keeps sightlines open in a dining room. A taller piece provides more storage but can feel heavier in a smaller space.
Storage configuration is worth thinking through carefully. Drawers are better for smaller items — cutlery, napkins, candles. Cabinets with adjustable shelves handle larger items and can be reconfigured as your needs change. A combination of both is usually the most practical.
Vektaya
62" Fluted Buffet Cabinet
Fluted sliding doors · 3 drawers + 2 cabinets · Built-in power outlets · FSC-certified wood · Scratch-resistant