Any time you are wanting to purchase a piece of furniture it’s important to make sure you have accurate measurements, but measuring alone doesn’t mean that you will be able to choose wisely. Understanding the scale of furniture you need within the space you have is CRITICAL. And – it’s not only critical for the way the rom looks aesthetically, but also important for how the room functions.
Here are some things you should know about selecting a coffee table, to set yourself up for making the best decision for your home as you can.
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Measurements:
1. Most coffee tables are a standard 18” height.
2. You should allow about 14 – 18” between your sofa and your coffee table so you can easily reach drinks, games, etc, from a comfortable seated position.
3. Your coffee table can be up to 2/3 the width of the width of your sofa. For example, if you have a sofa with a chaise and the width of your sofa without the chaise is 60”, your coffee table width can be between 35-40” wide. If you have a long 105” sofa, you could have a long rectangular coffee table that is up to 66.” Scale matters.and if you’re looking at your space and wondering, does this look too small…chances are it’s too small. Same goes for if you wonder if it’s too big. Chances are, yes, it’s too big.
Contrast:
1. Geometry: If we think about our living rooms in terms of geometric shape, most of the items taking up real estate within our living rooms are rectangular. The couch – rectangular. The art on the walls - rectangular. The side tables – square (which, btw, all squares are rectangular though not all rectangles are squares). Coffee tables – rectangular. Of course we know there are shopping options available for us that are not always rectangular, but until we start seeing our rooms as geometric shapes, we don’t know to intentionally choose a shape that is opposite of the predominant one in the room. In this case – most couches (unless you’ve been bitten by the curved sofa bug) are rectangular. A natural contrast to that, is round (circle or oval) coffee table.
2. Material: Coffee tables are an excellent opportunity to move intentionally away from matching sets. Ditching the ottoman that matches the couch and intentionally choosing a coffee table that is made from a different material, elevates the overall look of the room. Material, in this case, doesn’t necessarily refer to fabric selection, though it can. Material can refer to the composition of the coffee table: wood, metal, leather, maybe even a similar cloth as the couch, but a different color.
Purpose:
We all know that coffee tables are important pieces of furniture in a room for holding drinks or snacks while watching a movie or hosting book-club but consider the other ways in which you need the coffee table to function. Do you have toddlers and need the extra storage for toys? Do you need drawers to hold chargers and remote controls? Do you want your coffee table to be used as the location for the ultimate Monopoly game night and need it to be large enough to hold the board and the money? Or are you wanting it mainly as a foot rest and would prefer the coffee table to be leather, using a tray to hold books, candles and a plant if you want it to?
Thinking about these things PRIOR to purchasing will help you choose a coffee table that is most useful for your family and best fit for your home.
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