Finding a Gorgeous Coffee Table Where You Can Actually Reach Your Coffee
The formula for the perfect size coffee table, and places to find a beautiful one
Sunday was the Super Bowl and even if you don’t care about football, you probably made major use of a coffee table. If you were frustrated by your ability to reach the chips, or frustrated by the lack of space for your many dips and apps, you may want longer arms or a new coffee table.
We just got our new coffee table delivered from the man who built it. After searching far and wide for a wooden coffee table that was 38"L x 30"W x 15"H, not mid-century, and inexpensive, I instead found someone who could make it custom for less. And the wood shop was in my neighborhood.
Why did I search for a 38"L x 30"W x 15"H table you ask? I used a formula for the ideal coffee table size. With the ideal sized table, you can easily set your drink down and not have to get up to grab it, set out many appetizers or a full dinner on it, have a conversation with people sitting across from you without yelling, and display treasures, flowers and candles. Here is the formula:
Width and Depth
The ideal distance between sofa or chair and coffee table is around 12-16” give or take. And ideally a coffee table is around 12-20” short of a sofa for scooting in and out. So I measured 12” from each side of my L sectional, and around 12” from the ends so people could easily move into and out of the sectional.
Mapping out my coffee table size
Shape
Think about how much stuff you want to be able to put on the table. I like to host and cook for friends, so a rectangular table is the shape with the largest surface area for platters and bowls in a small space. Round and irregularly shaped tables work in all size spaces, but especially if you have a lot of space for a larger coffee table. Sometimes rectangular tables can be too large, so the people sitting on different sides of the table are too far away making the conversation less intimate, and forcing people to stand up to reach something on the far side of the table.
Examples of tables fitting the space well. Interiors by Electric Bowery on the left and Rodman Primack on the right with a Venetian glass table by Marie-Rose Kahan I love a coffee table shape that contrasts with the shape of the sofa and chairs. If you have a lot of rectilinear furniture, then a round or organic shaped coffee table would look great and visa versa.
Contrasting shapes in design by Pierre Yovanovitch Nesting tables or a grouping of smaller tables work really well for larger spaces where you need some table to reach 12-16” away from seating.
Nesting tables with many configurations by Batten and Kemp
Height
The ideal height is around the same height to a little lower than the seat of your sofa or chairs. I like tables that are slightly lower than seat height. Inevitably, people may end up sitting on the floor and they’ll easily be able to reach anything on the table
A low coffee table
When I was looking for our ideal shape coffee table, I found a few beautiful ones on 1stdibs, Chairish, and Etsy. But all of them were either the wrong size or had shipping costs out of my price range. I spoke with some custom furniture designers to see if I could have one made custom, but the wood costs alone was out of my price range. Wood is expensive! Here are materials and style considerations when you’re looking:
Material
I personally wanted a reclaimed wood table, because I wanted something in the apartment to look wabi sabi. I think this gives a space character. Also, I don’t really have a budget for a stone table and wasn’t about to use inexpensive plastic or wood veneer. I didn’t want metal or glass because edges tend to be too sharp. If you have more of a budget, there are beautiful plastic, metal, glass and even ceramic tables. If you have less of a budget, I recommend solid wood, or go with vintage, a trunk, or an ottoman.
Low Meiji Era Minimalist Table, Japan, 1890s. The table look I was going for. Still for sale here on Chairish! Upholstered coffee tables or ottomans are great especially for people with kids or adults who inevitably bump into them. You just need to put a tray on top of the ottoman to hold your things and drinks. Also, sometimes you can find or make an ottoman with storage, which is a major perk.
Chairish ottoman on the left, custom ottoman by Alice Crawley Interiors on the right If you don’t like how your existing coffee table looks and you want a cheap fix, find a beautiful fabric and drape it over. I’ve seen this done very well.
Style
Coffee tables are a great way to add interest to an otherwise boring room. A coffee table can be a sculpture. I’ve seen so many gorgeous coffee tables, and am extra nerdily excited about art that serves a function. However, if you have a lot of cool stuff going on in your room already, coffee tables can also recede into the background. They are that versatile.
Interior by Ryan Lawson on the left, table at Love House and Cassey Johnson Studio
I just about gave up my dream of the perfect size, inexpensive, wabi sabi wooden coffee table when I found Jim Dietrich on Facebook Marketplace. He is a woodworker in Brooklyn who uses reclaimed wood. I messaged him and he said he’d make me a 38"L x 30"W x 15"H table in two weeks for a very reasonable price! I am still geeking out that he used reclaimed wood from a house just 15 minutes from me. I love his funky cartoon signature painted sneakily on the underside, something you don’t get when you purchase from a larger furniture company.
A few places to find coffee tables:
Least expensive:
Etsy like this shop and this shop (I got one for a client and love it so much!). Facebook Marketplace, Lulu and Georgia, Sun at Six, Shoppe Amber Interiors, McGee and Co, Citizenry
Middle of the road:
BeamBK, The House, &Tradition, SixPenny, Maiden Home, Faithful Roots, Lawson Fenning
High end:
Love House, The Invisible Collection, Claude Home, Officina Antiquaria, Daniel Boddamm, Studio Giancarlo Valle, VNTG
and of course your local antique and vintage shops, 1stdibs, Chairish, and Craigslist
Other Oddities
Labneh: go-to dip for hosting and bringing to friends because you can make it on the fly, it tastes amazing, and its healthy and filled with protein
Ingredients:
1-2 cup Full fat plain greek yogurt
Juice of one lemon
1 tablespoon olive oil
Za'atar seasoning + pinch salt and pepper
optional: garlic powder, red pepper flakes, grated cucumber
Instructions:
Mix ingredients together (you don’t need to strain the full fat greek yogurt)
Top with more za’atar and olive oil
Serve it with pita, crackers, crudite, crusty bread, or as a base for a veg dish
Galentines gift exchange: I just went to one at a high school friend’s apartment. I brought the labneh and my friends asked for the recipe, so that makes me feel like its good enough to share. We did this style gift exchange and had so much fun, we want to do it again.
This vase is really cool: Large Geo Lichen Vessel found at the Comerford Collection
I wonder what the story is behind this crazy intricate wrought iron handrail outside the Atlantic Ave Trader Joes. Did Trader Joes make it or has it been around forever?
