Hello AT,
I'm searching for the perfect porch table, and Outdoor Home month spurred me to write in for help.
My new condo in Cambridge has a long, narrow porch off the kitchen, and I'm puzzled by what table to buy. I cook and entertain a lot and we've loved having a big porch table at our house in NH this year...
Email questions and pics with QUESTIONS in subject line to:
editor(at)apartmenttherapy(dot)com)
Link To All Good Questions
The new porch is 5 feet wide by 19 feet long; I don't really want little café tables, which are all that I'm finding in a 24" depth: we give lots of dinner parties and usually have 6-8 people. Since the porch is plenty long, I am looking for narrower-than-usual tables, preferably about 2 feet wide.
I spotted the Böllo table in a 44" x 25" size (photo attached) on the Ikea website a few weeks ago and was ecstatic. As soon as I could make it to the store I searched high and low, but it turns out the table was a special release for summer, and they only get one shipment. So sad. At $49.99 each, I had hoped to buy two and be able to seat 8 for dinner, then fold up the tables and store them or move them out of the way.
Do you know of any relatively budget-friendly sources for unusual table sizes? I have looked at all the usual suspects but it seems like outdoor tables are normally 30" wide.
Thank you! Kate
Dear Kate,
We're going to throw this good question out to the crowd, but before we do we'll direct you to this hot link over at Remodelista, 10 Easy Pieces: Wooden Outdoor Dining Tables.
Anyone else????
Veronica & Keith's Handmade Chic 
Before & After: A Bathroom Goes From Pinky Peach to Sleek and Chic
Good Food to Share 
The Big Book of Small, Cool Spaces 
Apartment Therapy Presents 
The Eight-Step Home Cure 
Hunslet Dinner Plate
A Beginner's Guide to Superb Stir-Fry: Quick, Healthy Meals from a Wok
Easy Pitcher Cocktail Recipe: Strawberry Basil Margaritas
Comments (9)
I don't know too much about getting things custom made, but it seems like this would be the type of thing that would be worth it. You could have it made to the exact dimensions you wanted it, which would be awesome, and maybe they could build it in a similar style to the Ikea one so that you could fold it up and put it away when not in use. Again, it might be expensive but if you entertain so much and it'll get used over and over then it might be worth it in the long run!
I like the Ikea one shown at the Remodelista link.
Design Within Reach has a neat stainless table that folds down out of the way. I dont have dimensions but I think there is a store in Cambridge - no?
I don't have a great suggestion but even if you find a 24" wide table that would leave only 18" on each side for your diners to sit. This seems WAY too cozy for my taste - how would anyone get up from the table without disturbing everyone else? Custom made seems to be your only option or lining everyone up to look out over the railing. I too liked the Ikea on Remodelista. Good luck
I agree with Alice - 18" is a very tight squeeze. Even if you tried to use two round tables with four people at each (which might actually be fun), I don't think you can make it fit comfortably.
I'd recommend just using the porch for cocktails and doing your seated dinners inside.
If you're dead set on trying it, though, Target (and I'm sure others like them) sells 48"x24" collapsible banquet tables for $59.99: http://tinyurl.com/2xmden
Good luck, and congrats on your new home!
Kate, did you try calling Ikea to see if you could have them ship the table to you? Once several years ago I am pretty sure they sent me something in the mail--as I recall, ordering it was a weird process and the shipping fees were high, but it might be worth it if those tables are what you really want (and if your other option is getting something custom made and presumably pricey).
We have a kind of similar space problem inside our house--our table is usually against a wall in the kitchen area, and when we have people over we pull it out and it's a tight squeeze to get everyone in there--but you have to work with what you have, and nobody has ever refused to come over for dinner because they don't have enough space to scoot their chair back.
If I were you I'd get the skinny table and generally keep it pushed against the house or the banister (you could even eat that way with a smaller group), and pull it out only for bigger dinners.
Congratulations on your new place!
I would put a long narrow table against the railing, sit 2 at each sides and the rest 4 or 5 in the long part of the table. You would have more space to move around. And facing the neibourhood is nice!
Thanks for all the ideas, guys! MrGreen, your comment cracked me up because I said the exact same thing ("This was meant for a clothesline") when I saw it. Still, we'd love to eat outside, and the view is slightly less grim now that two huge trees that were out of the photo are covered in leaves, so I will keep looking for skinny tables. And I'll call IKEA's 800 number, that's a good idea.
I think 4 people at that 44" x 25" Ikea table will be very tight.