The living room tables neighboring seating areas play a supporting yet starring role. Beyond surfaces for snacks and remotes, tables bring function and flair as essential style elements. This guide explores popular living room table options—from trusty coffee tables to space-saving sofa tables—and provides guidance for selecting pieces tailored to your decor.
When evaluating living room tables, consider size and scale, shape and style, functionality, placement, and multi-use capabilities. Table proportions should align with furnishings. Measure area dimensions, seating height and clearance to determine optimal sizes. Match table shapes and styles to your existing decor. Assess how tables will be used and select versatile pieces with built-in features like storage. Note traffic paths and seating positions for ideal placement allowing leg room and access. Multi-use nesting, stacking and flip-top tables maximize versatility.
Stylish and Practical Side Tables
Side tables provide convenient surfaces next to seats for items. Round pedestal tables with slim profiles are space-savers. Benefits include small-scale fits tight areas next to chairs, stashaway storage with shelves or drawers, lightweight builds enable easy rearranging, adapt to many decor styles, and affordable versatility. Tradeoffs are limited surface area, restrict access to chair side, prone to clutter without storage, and solitary pieces lack visual impact. Side tables deliver essential utility without cluttering open floor plans. Introduce assorted stacked volumes and shapes for interest.
Multi-Purpose Drink Tables
Drink tables offer surfaces for holding beverages in living rooms and entertaining areas. Some include built-in glass racks. Advantages include provides dedicated drink resting spots, elevates glasses from floor level, comes in range of heights for seating varieties, fold-down capabilities for compact storage, and used for small decor. Considerations are limited usage beyond holding glasses, condensation rings can stain wood tables, glass racks prone to chipping and cracks, and smaller scale minimizes visual prominence. Scatter sleek drink tables around conversation areas or position beside accent chairs. Opt for wheeled versions that can move around.
Cocktail Tables Host Happy Hour
Cocktail tables lend living rooms old-school lounge vibes for drinks during gatherings. Benefits include nostalgic retro feel evoking vintage bars, keep drinks conveniently close at hand, mobility to rearrange configurations, adaptable height blends with assorted seating, provide standing guests a useful perch. Considerations are primarily used for drinks so less versatile, prone to spills and glass rings marring surface, limited tabletop space compared to coffee tables, taller height restricts leg room when seated. Circle cocktail tables around sectionals for entertaining. Use tabletops to display barware and books when not in use.
Coffee Tables Anchor Seating
Coffee tables are likely a living room’s most used table. Centered before sofas and chairs, the indispensable piece gives drinks and devices a home. Benefits include ubiquitous living room staple, anchors conversational seating, provides shared surface for interacting, stashes items, and comes in range of styles, sizes, materials. Limitations are requires leg room clearance, surface prone to clutter, size must align with sofa proportions, and heavier pieces difficult to rearrange. When designing seating layouts, choose a coffee table size proportional to the primary sofa.
Console Tables Maximize Narrow Space
Console tables hug walls inconspicuously while providing storage and display space. The slim profile saves square footage. Advantages include efficiently utilizes narrow entryways or behind sofas, optional shelves or cabinets, open base doesn’t obstruct floor, pairs well with wall art and mirrors, surface to drop items. Tradeoffs are limited tabletop real estate, fixed positioning reduces flexibility, some lack leg room for seating, and proximity prone to dings and nicks. Give console tables purpose in foyers, hallways and home offices for storage or showing off photos.
Sofa Tables Welcome Guests
Sofa tables station behind sofas to welcome incoming guests. The petite yet practical tables offer versatile utility. Benefits include greets visitors behind seating, extends usable surface area, displays decorations, provides light source anchor points, incorporates out-of-the-way storage. Considerations are visible clutter requires frequent curation, size constraints limit function, lacks leg room for seating, and fixed placement reduces flexibility. Make hospitable first impressions with sofa tables holding vases, trays, greenery or decorative objects. Opt for wheeled tables that can shift around.
With an array of living room table options, thoughtfully weigh size, design, utility, placement and your overall decor goals. Tables not only provide surfaces, but make lifestyle statements. Choose pieces that make functional and fashionable sense.
