How to choose the perfect coffee table for your living room

Sourcing a table involves just a tape measure and a few simple rules to get one that will suit your space and sofa shape

EZ Living Interiors takes a corner sofa and styles it with the Duarte nest of glass-topped tables set on metal frames which can be stacked or staggered to give more tabletop space (€449).

When it comes to buying furniture I take my time measuring, considering colour and materials, mapping out the space it will occupy on the floor with newspapers so I know it’s the right size and I can walk around it if necessary.

But if there’s one item that has defeated me it’s the coffee table.

The Ashton rectangular coffee table featuring wood on a metal frame work (€449) is styled with candles, ceramics and greenery, pulled together on the Stavo bronze tray (€29). From EZ Living Interiors.

Yes, they come in all sorts of shapes, sizes and heights, from cheap, land-fill fodder, to bespoke beauties that last a lifetime and can be handed on.

Materials, too, suit all tastes — glass, metal, marble and timber — so it ought to be an easy enough quest to find the right one. But as I have a propensity for moving furniture simply for a change of scenery, and have been doing it more than usual during lockdown when opportunities for other changes of scenery were scant, a new sofa layout can easily alter the size and shape of space available to accommodate the particular size and shape of your coffee table.

Ergo, changing the direction of my sofa recently by 90 degrees means my fairly clapped-out square coffee table with wonky leg, which was only ever intended to be a temporary measure, has, at last, been despatched to the shed until I can offload it to a new home. A narrow bench-shaped table now plays, sigh, another temporary host to laptop, phone, tea cup, papers, remote controls and propped up feet. Inevitably, a symphony of interiors styling it is not.

Penneys' pair of black wooden nesting tables offer versatility including lining them up together to create a larger surface area, stacking them in smaller spaces, and distributing them around the room (€40).

I’m veering at the moment towards a table low to the ground so it doesn’t hog the room, but I might have to contort myself into a yoga pose to reach the remote control.

A chat with Emma Murphy, furniture and accessories buyer at EZ Living Interiors, offers practical tips on how to make the right decision for your space, starting with considering the length of the table.

“It should measure at least half but no more than two thirds the length of the sofa,” she says. “For example, if your sofa is 200cm, a coffee table of around 120cm is a good length. Secondly, the height of your coffee tabletop should be similar to the seat of your sofa which is typically between 40-45cm.

After that, it’s onto the shape and design.

“A rectangular or oval shape is a great choice for a narrower room or to pair with a sofa in an open-plan area where you need to keep a walkway in front of the table,” Emma suggests. “Round or oval coffee tables work great in a room where space is limited as you are literally cutting corners.”

Ikea's round Vittsjo double-shelf glass coffee table (€45) contrasts with the solid surfaces and square and rectangular shapes of the other furniture.

Lovely though it is to have a chaise longue integrated into a sofa for optimal lounging around, how the shape occupies space in a living room can offer unique challenges.

“For a room with a corner sofa or sofa with a chaise longue the rules change slightly,” says Emma.

Curved edges on the Eden coffee table mean no sharp corners when navigating round it to the corner sofa. Its surface space is augmented by a floor level shelf (€329). From EZ Living Interiors.

“The length of the coffee table should be at least half to two thirds the length of the main seat of the sofa excluding the seat with the corner or chaise longue.

“If the sofa is a corner sofa with equal size seating on both corners, I would advise a square or round coffee table to make the space look balanced.

“Depending on the size of the room, a round table may work best as it allows more space for walking around the table.

Then it’s on to the fun bit of styling the surface like a pro. Emma says, “Use a tray to gather items like candles and vases. This gives the table a more organised look and keeps decorative items together. Large coffee table books can also be used in lieu of a tray in a low stack of two or three.”

Emma also suggests adding touches of nature to the arrangement.

“I like to use small house plants like succulents or foraged branches to add greenery to a coffee tablescape.

“Faux plants are a great option for those of us that are less green-fingered and there are some very realistic options available now.”

For a final layer of interest, she suggests different finishes. “I like to use varying materials when styling a coffee table to offer different textures,” she says. “This creates interest for the eye as opposed to all items in the same colourway or material.”